No Alternative

Dr Chapman was nominated by an internationally-assembled panel, as one of six key thinkers in the emerging field of Sustainable Design worldwide. The nomination was followed by an invitation to present his research as part of a prestigious Sustainable Design Master Class, at the Arhitekturni muzej Ljubljana, Slovenia. Each of the six selected specialists represented different nations and generations, and Chapman (the only UK nominee) was selected to represent the new, emerging generation of creative thinkers in this context. In addition to Dr Chapman's contribution, the masterclass consisted of five other individuals: Dieter Rams (Germany), Ezio Manzini (Italy), Clive Dilnot (USA), Per Mollerup (Denmark) and Victor Margolin (USA). Keynote presentations and texts were delivered by each individual, tackling the issue(s) from different points of view, thereby creating a vivid picture of research into sustainable design at the highest level; exploring and defining alternatives to the prevailing logic of consumer society, and to outline the presuppositions for a new state of affairs, a new politics of collective emancipation and a sustainable ethics of design. Chapman urged that material consumption is driven by complex motivations and is about far more than just the acquisition of newer, shinier things, but a personal journey toward the ideal self that, by its nature, becomes a process of serial destructions – a book was published featuring chapters by each specialists entitled, Sustainable Alternatives in Design.