Page 24 - Packaging News Mar-Apr 2020
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    24 DESIGN | www.packagingnews.com.au | March-April 2020
  Packed with purpose
Pippa Corry, founder of philo & co, shares her views on why we urgently need to change course on packaging and her mission to help the creative industry design for the future.
I’VE always loved nature – its intricacies and processes that keep our world beauti- fully in sync. But it’s a complex and a fast- changing place. The natural world that our very existence depends upon is drowning in our waste and pollution. Societies, businesses and even govern-
ments are declaring climate emergencies, yet we continue to use finite resources like they are endless.
It’s estimated the production of goods (clothes, food, and all our everyday con- sumables) accounts for up to 45 per cent of global emissions (Ellen MacArthur Foundation). So it begs the question: how can we better design products and packag- ing to overcome our climate and waste cri- sis? Unless we drastically change our course and innovate away from the linear processes that have got us where we are today, we will continue adding to a prob- lem that we’re already struggling to com- prehend and manage.
Packaging has become one of our big- gest global waste challenges, with the spotlight firmly on plastics blanketing our oceans, maiming wildlife and scarring previously untouched corners of the earth. Currently, only 9 per cent of plastic is recycled globally. It is a material designed to last a lifetime, often used for a very limited lifespan and then disposed
of. Very early into my career, I started ask- ing myself, “What is the real cost of pack- aging? How and where are we sourcing all these materials and where do they go after use?” All I was finding was waste, a lot of environmental consequences and few solutions. So, I began my journey to help shape a better future. Fast forward nearly a decade, and philo & co was born to help the creative industry and consumer brands transition to a circular economy.
The circular economy is a transformative approach that systemically redefines how we use resources, challenging the current
Packaging has become one of our biggest global waste challenges, with the spotlight firmly on plastics blanketing our oceans.”
take-make-waste linear economy. Through design, we can look to keep packaging in closed loops and retain its incredible mate- rial properties and use its monetary value for as long as possible. By adopting new mindsets and marrying circular principles with innovation, we can design new econo- mies that look to have a positive impact on the world.
The links between business as usual and our climate catastrophe are too strong to not act. We’re starting to see bold, ambi- tious businesses take on these challenges by fusing sustainability, strategy and design. Ultimately, design will play a key role in addressing packaging waste and the creative industry has the power to inspire and educate brands on alternative, more sustainable solutions.
The four pillars of philo & co address how sustainable design thinking and doing can lead to change.
#1 INSPIRE & EDUCATE: The linear economy is currently playing an active role in our cli- mate and global waste crisis. We need to use creativity and innovation to inspire and educate people of the smarter, more resource efficient way of designing packaging. eXX- pedition Round the World is an all-female, two-year voyage travelling over 38,000 nau- tical miles to explore plastics and toxins in
   




















































































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