Part One of a Three Part Series: You may have read the recent interview with our CEO, Bridgitte Alomes and Douglas Magazine – it has inspired us to go deeper into our story about why Natural Pod does what it does.
Manifesto: a public declaration of policy and aims (man·i·fes·to)
Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing our better learning manifesto with you; How it guides our company vision and purpose, and how that can positively impact your work and your students. As you may know, at its core, ‘Natural Pod creates sustainable furniture for learning environments’. But what does that really look like and why should you care? This is the first part in a 3 part series diving deeper into those questions.
Manifesto Part One – Why Good Design Is Important For Education
Yes we really do believe in the positive power of good design. There has been a tremendous amount of psychological testing over the years that clearly shows ‘products we use every day affect our person and our well-being’, and of course Natural Pod’s intent is for that effect to be positive and beneficial.
The famous industrial designer Dieter Rams explains really well why good design is important and how it impacts us all:
“Good design makes a product understandable. It clarifies the product’s structure. At best, it is self-explanatory. Good design is unobtrusive, products are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user’s self-expression. Good design is long-lasting, both physically and aesthetically. Good design is environmentally-friendly. Design should make an important contribution to the preservation of the environment. It should conserve resources and minimizes physical and visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.” – Dieter Rams.
Natural Pod proudly holds true to all these principals. We know directly from our existing customers, both educators and students, that experiencing Natural Pod products on a daily basis has a continuously positive impact in their classroom. This especially rings true when thinking about how much time students spend indoors. We all now know the importance of being outside and giving children access to nature as much as possible, and many schools have created amazing outdoor spaces. But so often that consideration isn’t given to student’s internal environments, where truthfully, that’s where they spend the majority of their time.
There is the impact of design on students and educators mental and emotional well-being, but also on their physical health. Our products don’t contain toxic materials or off-gas, nor are they made from unsustainable environmentally damaging products by unethical manufacturing methods. Unfortunately, much of the school furniture available today has exactly these qualities.
For anyone who is a decision maker in students lives – we hope you seriously consider the impact of your purchasing choices on the emotional and physical well-being of both students and educators. We’re guided by these values and we know they will benefit you, your students and your needs for sustainable furniture purchasing choices.
