Product Design

The document argues that product designers are uniquely positioned to mitigate climate impact because over 80% of emissions from product use are determined during the design phase. It provides a comprehensive framework for 'making your product design job a climate job,' offering specific tactics for digital products (such as minimizing energy-intensive UX/UI elements), physical products (such as dematerialization and designing for repair), and general organizational practices (such as creating sustainability-focused KPIs and reducing business travel). The guide also emphasizes the integration of behavioral science to nudge users toward sustainable actions and the necessity of embedding climate justice to protect vulnerable communities.

• Product designers have a significant opportunity to reduce a company's total emissions because Scope 3 emissions—indirect emissions from customer product use—average roughly 75% of total emissions, and more than 80% of those use-phase emissions are determined during the design stage.
• For digital products, designers can reduce energy consumption by implementing 'Green Design Principles,' which include minimizing content loads, avoiding auto-loading features, simplifying visuals, and removing unnecessary data.
• For physical products, the guide recommends 'dematerialization' (using fewer and lighter materials) and adopting circular design options that prioritize durability and enable repair, upgrades, modularity, reuse, and resale to avoid planned obsolescence.
• The guide advocates for the use of behavioral science and the integration of real-time climate information—such as carbon labeling and energy usage data—to guide users toward more sustainable behaviors.
• To embed climate justice, designers are encouraged to treat sustainability and equity as key criteria alongside usability and feasibility, specifically focusing on the long-term impacts of products on communities most vulnerable to climate change.

APA

Project Drawdown (n.d.). Product Design. https://drawdown.org/job-function-action-guides/product-design

Chicago

Project Drawdown. Product Design. n.d. https://drawdown.org/job-function-action-guides/product-design.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Project Drawdown |title=Product Design |url=https://drawdown.org/job-function-action-guides/product-design |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{projectdrawdownndproduct, author = {{Project Drawdown}}, title = {{Product Design}}, institution = {Project Drawdown}, url = {https://drawdown.org/job-function-action-guides/product-design}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }