Foresight Design Initiative
Encyclopedia
Foresight Design Initiative is a Chicago
-based non-profit that actively promotes sustainable
practices in the Chicago area. Founded in 2002, Foresight is recognized as the Chicago chapter of the o2 Global Network
, and hosts the monthly Chicago Green Drinks
.
. Since the beginning of 2003, Foresight has hosted monthly Chicago Green Drinks
networking events. Green Drinks Business Edition (originally called the Chicago Smart Business Hour) started in early 2005. In 2006, Foresight Design Initiative created the Foresight Sustainable Business Alliance.
. Attendance usually ranges between 75 and 140.
, communication
, industrial
and interior design
, architecture
, design research and planning, marketing and entrepreneurship, government and non-profit work, and many others. Foresight provides these companies with resources, connections, and support.
approach to create sustainable and resilient solutions.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
-based non-profit that actively promotes sustainable
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
practices in the Chicago area. Founded in 2002, Foresight is recognized as the Chicago chapter of the o2 Global Network
O2 Global Network
O2 Global Network is an international network for people interested in sustainable design. The network is made up of the O2 Global Network foundation, regional hubs, local groups, liaisons and individuals...
, and hosts the monthly Chicago Green Drinks
Green Drinks
Green Drinks is an informal networking event where environmentally minded people meet over drinks. Started in London in 1989, by Edwin Datschefski, Paul Scott and friends, it has spread to 51 cities in the United Kingdom, 400 in the U.S...
.
Purpose
The Foresight Design Initiative seeks to improve and sustain the quality of life in the urban environment through smart design, without sacrificing the needs of future generations. Embracing strategies that engage design practitioners, government agencies, the business and non-profit communities, and the public, Foresight collaborates to develop and empower initiatives, build community support and engender a positive human evolution.History
FDI was founded in 2002 as the Chicago chapter of the o2 Global NetworkO2 Global Network
O2 Global Network is an international network for people interested in sustainable design. The network is made up of the O2 Global Network foundation, regional hubs, local groups, liaisons and individuals...
. Since the beginning of 2003, Foresight has hosted monthly Chicago Green Drinks
Green Drinks
Green Drinks is an informal networking event where environmentally minded people meet over drinks. Started in London in 1989, by Edwin Datschefski, Paul Scott and friends, it has spread to 51 cities in the United Kingdom, 400 in the U.S...
networking events. Green Drinks Business Edition (originally called the Chicago Smart Business Hour) started in early 2005. In 2006, Foresight Design Initiative created the Foresight Sustainable Business Alliance.
Initiatives
As a part of its purpose of fostering sustainable and socially responsible design in Chicago, Foresight coordinates, hosts, and runs a variety of programs intended to strengthen links between sustainable design, business, and the general public.Green Drinks
Hosted monthly, Green Drinks is an informal community event where individuals in the Chicago area can network over drinks. Each event also features a moderated panel discussion of some aspect of sustainable designSustainable design
Sustainable design is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment, and services to comply with the principles of economic, social, and ecological sustainability.-Intentions:The intention of sustainable design is to "eliminate negative environmental...
. Attendance usually ranges between 75 and 140.
Foresight Sustainable Business Alliance
The FSBA (formerly the Chicago Sustainable Business Alliance) is a network of businesses in the Chicago area that are interested in incorporating sustainability principles into their products, services, and practices. Fields represented within the CSBA include graphicGraphic design
Graphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience...
, communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
, industrial
Industrial design
Industrial design is the use of a combination of applied art and applied science to improve the aesthetics, ergonomics, and usability of a product, but it may also be used to improve the product's marketability and production...
and interior design
Interior design
Interior design describes a group of various yet related projects that involve turning an interior space into an effective setting for the range of human activities are to take place there. An interior designer is someone who conducts such projects...
, architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, design research and planning, marketing and entrepreneurship, government and non-profit work, and many others. Foresight provides these companies with resources, connections, and support.
Foresight Immersion
FDI offers an annual 8-week experiential learning called Immersion, a program for individuals and professionals interested in gaining experience in researching, devising, and implementing sustainable business design. The program involves a trans-disciplinary and systems thinkingSystems thinking
Systems thinking is the process of understanding how things influence one another within a whole. In nature, systems thinking examples include ecosystems in which various elements such as air, water, movement, plants, and animals work together to survive or perish...
approach to create sustainable and resilient solutions.
Other Programs
FDI hosts the annual sustainability scavenger hunt, Explorago, and the annual networking party, Sustainable Convergence. It also publishes and bi-weekly newsletter and provides online resources like the Green Business Directory.See also
- ecodesignEcodesignEcodesign is an approach to design of a product with special consideration for the environmental impacts of the product during its whole lifecycle. In a life cycle assessment the life cycle of a product is usually divided into procurement, manufacture, use and disposal.Ecodesign is a growing...
- eco-efficiencyEco-efficiencyThe term eco-efficiency was coined by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development in its 1992 publication "Changing Course". It is based on the concept of creating more goods and services while using fewer resources and creating less waste and pollution.The 1992 Earth Summit endorsed...
- eco-innovationEco-innovationEco-innovation is a term used to describe products and processes that contribute to sustainable development. Eco-innovation is the commercial application of knowledge to elicit direct or indirect ecological improvements....
- environmental designEnvironmental designEnvironmental design is the process of addressing surrounding environmental parameters when devising plans, programs, policies, buildings, or products...
- Green DrinksGreen DrinksGreen Drinks is an informal networking event where environmentally minded people meet over drinks. Started in London in 1989, by Edwin Datschefski, Paul Scott and friends, it has spread to 51 cities in the United Kingdom, 400 in the U.S...
- o2 Global NetworkO2 Global NetworkO2 Global Network is an international network for people interested in sustainable design. The network is made up of the O2 Global Network foundation, regional hubs, local groups, liaisons and individuals...
- renewable resourceRenewable resourceA renewable resource is a natural resource with the ability of being replaced through biological or other natural processes and replenished with the passage of time...
- social designSocial designSocial design has many definitions and the term is put to very different uses across the globe. Some definitions exist within the design world and refers to design in its traditional sense, meaning the shaping of products and services...
- sustainabilitySustainabilitySustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
- sustainable designSustainable designSustainable design is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment, and services to comply with the principles of economic, social, and ecological sustainability.-Intentions:The intention of sustainable design is to "eliminate negative environmental...
- sustainable developmentSustainable developmentSustainable development is a pattern of resource use, that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come...
- Center for Sustainable EnterpriseCenter for Sustainable EnterpriseThe Center for Sustainable Enterprise is one of four academic and research centers at the Illinois Institute of Technology Stuart School of Business in the city of Chicago...