Culturing Carbon - Design Development for an Early Age Startup
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School of Arts, Design and Architecture |
Bachelor's thesis
Ask about the availability of the thesis by sending email to the Aalto University Learning Centre oppimiskeskus@aalto.fi
Authors
Date
2019
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Mcode
Degree programme
Muotoilu
Language
en
Pages
91
Series
Abstract
In my bachelor’s thesis, “Culturing Carbon: Design Development for an Early Age Startup”, I explore the design process and the possibilities of design development for Carbo Culture, a young biochar company from California. I go over the unique characteristics of working together with a company and delve into the biochar industry and its opportunities for both my client company and interested designers alike. The structure of the study is a direct reflection of the operational phases in a typical design process. The chapters progress from abstraction in the form of research and insight gathering into concretion in the form of my final production, a three-part design development project for Carbo Culture. In the first few chapters, I go over the basics of the biochar industry, and investigate the science, business, trade and opportunities related to the carbon rich substance. Chapter 3.0. introduces the three key areas of the design development project - brand building, storytelling and innovation - which are examined through theory, benchmarking and other applicable exercises. Chapter 4.0. focuses in on the characteristics of user-centric design. User research and insights are gathered through building user personas, hosting co-creative workshops and by interviewing relevant stakeholders. The three-part design project, built on the insights gathered in earlier chapters, can be viewed later on in chapter 5.0. It consists of a redesigned website, a company story video and a concept roadmap for future designs. The thesis goes through many themes that are relevant in strategic design and links these findings directly to my collaborative effort with Carbo Culture. The contribution of my BA project is twofold. Above all, it serves as evidence for my wide-ranging skills as a designer and proves my ability to take on challenging design projects and follow through with them on my own. In addition, it may be a relevant reference for practitioners who are interested in design development in the biochar industry, or more widely, in the sustainability sector or startup realm.Description
Supervisor
Miettinen, EeroThesis advisor
Miettinen, EeroKeywords
design development, biochar, entrepreneurship, strategic design, branding, storytelling, UX design, company collaboration