Abstract

VALENZUELA-CHAPETON, Carmen. Design and ecoliteracy. Developing a Design and Sustainability Course with 21st-century Relevance. Rev. latinoam. estud. educ. [online]. 2023, vol.53, n.1, pp.101-126.  Epub Oct 02, 2023. ISSN 2448-878X.  https://doi.org/10.48102/rlee.2023.53.1.541.

In the current social, political, and environmental scenario, this paper is based on qualitative research and looks to recover experiences and highlight empirical findings from the process of building the Design and Sustainability course for the Industrial Design Department at Rafael Landívar University, acknowledging the role of ecoliteracy as a critical ability for 21st-century designers. Additionally, this paper briefly discusses the present flaws of the current design and ecological literature and how this affects the ecological literacy process, particularly when considering experiences in the context of the case study. Finally, the discussion centers on the Design and sustainability course. The course has successfully run for two years and has become a tool to enrich the environmental perspective of future industrial designers.

Keywords : design education; sustainability; ecological literacy; environment; contextualized design.