The Aptitudes of Industrial Design Students Towards Ecodesign Activities in Engineering Course

This paper reports the experiences in ecodesign activities of first semester undergraduate students in the engineering course at Chiba University. The students’ concern with environmental issues and the practical works performed were analyzed and discussed. The results of the questionnaires have shown that the students believe the socio-cultural aspects have great impact on the solution of the current environmental issues. Based on the practical design works on the elements of nature (Water, Earth/Terra, Wind and Fire), the students focused on the technology (energy production and use) and social-cultural (message of natural elements) approaches.