Green Design Winner Shares Inspiration
We recently had th
e opportunity to witness what could very well be the future of environmentally-responsible design. Designers, students and enthusiasts from around the world were invited to enter the ReGeneration: International Green Computing Technology Design Competition with a challenge to design their visions of the next generation of green computing technology. 185 designers completed their submissions and answered the call, and their entries ran the gamut of product design, ranging from incredibly imaginative “pie-in-the-sky” designs to those one could easily imagine in their homes and workplaces. A panel of six judges made up of sustainable design experts from around the world then convened with the arduous task of slimming the pool down to just five finalists, which could then be viewed, discussed and voted upon by the community.
After a spirited debate about the future of design and 3,006 votes cast by the community, it is with great pleasure that we present Vas Obeyesekere of Point Innovation as the People’s Vote winner. His design, Evolve, was a modular PC for both home and on the go that eliminated the waste 
associated with purchasing an entirely new computer when upgrading a few of the parts would help meet the user’s ever expanding needs. Nothing in the Evolve design goes to waste. Even the packaging that it comes in can be used as a display stand and is designed to use all available space to minimize greenhouse gas emissions related to transport. I spoke to Vas last week and learned that his inspiration for Evolve was from, of all things, the process that our skin cells go through as they shed and regenerate. My interview with him is at the bottom of this post, so be sure to check it out when you get a chance. His thoughts and insights on the industry and his design are truly eye opening.
Here is a list of the other winners and their designs:
Top 5 Finalists ($10,000. award each):
° PowerFlower by Jason Milhoan, Milhoan Design, Seattle, WA
° Evo by Bryan Hunter, IDSA, Fahrenheit Design, Round Rock, TX
° LawnPC by David Veldkamp, Tekna, Grand Rapids, MI
° Evolve by Vas Obeyesekere, Point Innovation, Dallas, TX
° Sense by Kate Richard, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA
People’s Vote Winner ($15,000. award)
° Evolve by Vas Obeyesekere, Point Innovation, Dallas, TX
Design Educator Award ($2,000 award each):
° Jim Budd, IDSA, Associate Professor, Carleton University, Ontario, Canada
° Brooke Davis, IDSA, Assistant Professor of Industrial Design, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, USA
° Carolina Gill, IDSA, Assistant Professor, The Ohio State University, USA
° Dennis Kappen, IDSA, Professor, Humber Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning, Ontario, Canada
° EunSook Kwon, IDSA, Associate Professor, Director, University of Houston, Texas, USA
° Tucker Marion, IDSA, Assistant Professor, Northeastern University, Massachusetts, USA
° Dr. Gerardo Mendez, Centro de Estudios Superiores de Diseño de Monterrey (CEDIM), Nuevo Leon, Mexico
° Jason Morris, IDSA, Assistant Professor, Western Washington University, USA
° Benjamin Pratt, Professor, University of Wisconsin-Stout, USA
° Mitzi Vernon, IDSA, Associate Professor, Virginia Tech, USA
° Joel Wittkamp, Professor of Design, Savannah College of Art and Design, Georgia, USA
Congratulations to all the winners. Your designs will, without a doubt, spur dialogue on the future of ‘green’ technology for some time to come. On behalf of Dell and the ReGeneration team, I’d like to thank all the participants in the competition and urge you all to come back to the site often. Big thanks to the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) for its endorsement and support. Without organizations like IDSA, none of this would have been possible.
Interview With People’s Vote Winner, Vas Obeyesekere:
Way to go VAS!!! - All the best in making things Greener for the World!!
by Srinath Obeysekara / May 22, 2008
I was unable to listen to the interview but, from a personal perspetive I have been very concerned about the likely environmental impact of the computers that we discard in Jamaica. I am happy that you Vas, has had the creativity and inspiration to finding an alterantive to sending them to dump heaps thereby helping to reduce the already high levels of pollution we now face. Thank you.
by Tanya Walters / May 23, 2008
Congratulations brother vas.making the future of ‘green’ technology
by sameera obeysekere / June 14, 2008
Congrats Vas… Good Luck and All The Best…. !!!
by Shakila Pathirana / June 15, 2008