Founder and CEO, Lot21
Lew is the Founder / CEO of Lot21, a content platform and resource helping the design community decarbonize the world –– by advancing climate action across the built environment with the design disciplines that shape it. Lot21 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, non-partisan, open-source platform.
Lew's environmental advocacy began with the emergence of the forestry stewardship movement decades ago and has since expanded to encompass a broader range of carbon removal solutions focused on restoring our climate.
Before launching Lot21, Lew led various Steelcase global brands and forward-looking initiatives for over 25 years, during which he commercialized new concepts by bringing them from research through ideation and product development to market, earning 23 patents.
Additionally, Lew is an active IDSA member, an International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) jurist from 2023 to 2024, a founding member of IDSA’s Circular Design Council, and its Chair-elect. He is also a strategic advisor for eco-minded companies focused on regenerative design, healthier living, and certified green products.
Academic engagements include Parsons School of Design, World Design Organization, IDSA, Rice University Business School, Northwestern University Segal Design Institute, New York Institute of Technology, California College of the Arts, Columbia Business School, Harvard Business School, Harvard Graduate School of Design, Tyler School of Art and Architecture, and Georgia Institute of Technology.
Editorial contributions can be found on Lot21. LinkedIn profile here.
Circular Design Becomes Transformative, Regenerative, Restorative
Circular Design is our profession’s growth opportunity to transform the circular economy and tackle climate change simultaneously. Industrial design’s contribution—breakthrough products, packaging, and design practices—impacts lives and livelihoods worldwide across consumer, commercial, and industrial sectors. Given this scale and global reach, every material selection, production method, and transportation decision we make forms a critical part of a holistic circular system. As a result, our roles are influential, and our work is consequential because it leaves a lasting imprint on the environment everywhere.
Guiding principles, common goals, and accountability are needed to ensure our approach is sustainable and scalable for both people and the planet. To that end, UN Sustainable Development Goal #9 focuses on building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation. It’s a goal around which we can all unite and join with others to broaden its inclusivity.
By adopting these practices, we can drive Circular Design further to create a future filled with the transformative, sustainable solutions that our planet urgently needs.
The audience will learn:
