SX21 Sustainability Summit – Q and A with Guest Speaker Glyn Griffiths

Glyn is a senior innovation and sustainability engineer, speaking at this year’s SX21 The Sustainability Summit, a 3-day online broadcast event taking place on 21-23 September.

SX21 Sustainability Summit

In Design Partners, Glyn works with world-leading companies and ambitious start-ups helping them solve complex technical problems by prototyping future experiences. With a doctorate in Sustainability, in research contributing to CO2 mitigation technologies, Glyn also provides consultancy on life cycle analysis.

By unearthing the inherent, but often hidden, aspects of product and service environmental impacts, Glyn helps clients find more innovative, sustainable solutions.

1 min pitch for what you are doing now?

I work for Design Partners, a product design and Innovation Agency based in Bray Co. Wicklow. I primarily lead the sustainability projects within the studio, which involves working with the world’s largest consumer electronic brands in the development of more sustainable products. Our involvement goes from identifying the areas of high impact in the product life cycle, devising strategies to minimise these, and physically designing and prototyping solutions for mass manufacture.

How was the last year, what worked well, what didn’t move as quickly as you would have liked / how have you adapted to the current corona times?

We had to adapt quickly, our workflow is highly collaborative in nature and so multiple face to face meetings a day were the norm. A lot of our work is also dependent on rapid prototyping and physical experiences, being remote meant kitchens and bedrooms became workshops and 3D printer buros! We learnt new practices in tandem with our clients, moving to virtual meetings spaces and trialled many collaborative working tools, and even VR workspaces to get the intimacy.

What are your plans for the future?

We are on a long journey, one we will be on for the rest of our careers. We hope to be an agency who are implementing practical solutions to the biggest challenges of our time. We also want to share the lessons learnt, be part of a community with open forums for collaborators and partners to freely contribute.

What will you be talking about at the SX21 Sustainability Summit? (brief taster)

Our specific role as a design agency is designing sustainable products, and that of our partners, clients and suppliers. The Sustainability Mindset being the common tool that is needed across multiple stakeholders to ensure all parties are informed and understand their responsibilities in delivering a truly sustainable product offering.

What inspired you to attend it?

A diverse range of speakers, and to be part of a network of like-minded people pushing for positive change.

Which influencers and websites do you follow to keep up to date with the latest developments?

GreenBiz, The Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Fast Company, The Guardian – and a close eye on press releases from EU and international regulations.

How can people find out more about what you are working on?

We are present on LinkedIn and Instagram, and share many articles on our website which include our sustainability Mindset Report, Life Cycle Assessment as a tool and Sustainable Packaging in Healthcare.

Prepared by Suzanna Hayek