ABSTRACT
Care has a key role in design in providing opportunities for the transition to the circular economy. The concept of care in product design has been increasingly discussed in the design literature and can potentially be integrated into design education. Adopting the concept of care offers a space for design students to make sense of the complex relations and dynamics that are inherent in the real world, to frame problems responsibly, facilitate caring behaviour, consider systems-level thinking and re-establish an ethical dimension for the discipline. This chapter describes an assignment involving design for sustainable behaviour in master’s and BA product design courses. The purpose of the assignment was to use a toolkit to explore and develop product design in ways which would prompt caring behaviour in users. A case study approach was adopted, followed by interviews to identify the insights gained from this process and for students to articulate their views. These insights emphasise the value of care practice as an aspect of sustainable behaviour and how it can be used in product design education to teach about the circular economy.
