Benjamin Linder
Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering
Olin Way, Needham, Massachusetts, 02492, USA
E-mail: blinder@olin.edu

Abstract:
The design profession is in a position to address the environmental challenges faced by society and progress is being made in this direction. However, this paper cautions that achieving a sustainable environmental perspective within design requires educators and practitioners to go beyond the specifics of materials, tools and common strategies and address the very status of the environmental perspective. They will have to elevate this perspective above others and shift it from a relative requirement to an absolute one. Doing so will require several fundamental changes to design education and practice.