ABSTRACT
Given the opportunity to express and symbolize “sustainability” through the transformation of a recreational vehicle into mobile sustainability lab, a design team of nine architecture students from Philadelphia University and the SAVE Alliance/Green Allies Foundation struggled to find a core design approach and inspirations for form. The term “sustainability” has been assigned so many meanings it is difficult for designers to find its formal “image.” Originating from an “environmental” foundation, innumerous aspects of our society are now considered through lenses of “sustainability.” It is common to speak of financial, cultural, and political health relative to their ability to “endure.” The “triple bottom line,” “quadruple bottom line,” or the recent rise of the term “resiliency” all become means to categorize and organize sustainable action strategies with the goal of steering toward a better future. For the uninitiated, it is easy to become overwhelmed by the ever expanding layers of the sustainability dialog. This paper expands on the team’s search for a design form definition of sustainability which could inspire, the nature of interactive exhibits, and the RV design currently in fabrication.
