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Design Circular Colours: A cross-sectoral project for the systemic design of regional dyeing value chains

Format: Papers, RSD10, Topic: Economics & Organisations

Amina Pereno, Asja Aulisio, and Silvia Barbero

Dyeing plants are an endemic resource that powered the European textile industry for centuries until the advent of synthetic pigments led to their complete abandonment. Today, interest in natural dyes is growing again, but the socio-technical complexity of modern supply chains requires more than technological updating. The problem must be framed through a systemic perspective that allows grasping the past and the present to foster a new, sustainable development of the sector. The ECOLOR project aims at investigating the development opportunities of natural dyeing value chains in the Piedmont Region (Italy), within a circular economy framework. Design acts as a process facilitator, mediating between different academic disciplines and multiple industrial and regional stakeholders to ensure a broad approach to the topic. The paper presents the methodology adopted, which combines the experimentation of industrial technologies with the exploration of socio-technical systems through specific systemic design tools, such as the Holistic Diagnosis, to define potential circular solutions. The study opens reflections on a multi-level approach to technology that does not neglect the socio-cultural dimension of local value chains. Moreover, it presents the potentials and limits of an interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral design process, laying the foundations for the future implementation of local circular systems.

Keywords: socio-technical systems, sustainability transition, circular economy, dyeing plants, cross-sectoral collaboration

Citation Data

Author(s): Amina Pereno, Asja Aulisio and Silvia Barbero
Year:
Title: Design Circular Colours: A cross-sectoral project for the systemic design of regional dyeing value chains
Published in: Proceedings of Relating Systems Thinking and Design
Volume:
Article No.:
URL: https://rsdsymposium.org/
Host:
Location:
Symposium Dates:
First published: 3 September 2021
Last update:
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Copyright Information

Proceedings of Relating Systems Thinking and Design (ISSN 2371-8404) are published annually by the Systemic Design Association, a non-profit scholarly association leading the research and practice of design for complex systems: 3803 Tønsberg, Norway (922 275 696).

Attribution

Open Access article published under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International License. This permits anyone to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or form according to the licence terms.

Suggested citation format (APA)

Author(s). (20##). Article title. Proceedings of Relating Systems Thinking and Design, RSD##. Article ##. rsdsymposium.org/LINK

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Proceedings of Relating Systems Thinking and Design are published online and include the contributions for each format.

Papers and presentations are entered into a single-blind peer-review process, meaning reviewers see the authors’ names but not vice versa. Reviewers consider the quality of the proposed contribution and whether it addresses topics of interest or raises relevant issues in systemic design. The review process provides feedback and possible suggestions for modifications.

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Editor: Cheryl May
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Ben Sweeting

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In 2022, the Systemic Design Association adopted the scholar's spiral—a cyclic non-hierarchical approach to advance scholarship—and in 2023, launched Contexts—The Systemic Design Journal. Together, the RSD symposia and Contexts support the vital emergence of supportive opportunities for scholars and practitioners to publish work in the interdisciplinary field of systemic design.

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