The Swedish designer and creative director Emma Olbers is on a mission – to design good products. Products that are good from all aspects, including being good for our planet. As one of the Swedish pioneers in sustainable design she is renowned as one of the furniture industry’s climate crusaders, an effort for which she has been awarded several prestigious awards.
”I believe that sustainability and product lifecycles are key concerns and core values that I strives to incorporate in my work. Those concerns can translate into using recyclable and reusable components, thinking carefully of which materials to use and of course avoiding the use of harmful substances in production altogether. An ultimate vision is to be able to create products and furniture that, after a long and rich furniture life, can go directly on the compost heap when they are scrapped”, she explains.
Where does it come from?
Born and raised in the Swedish countryside, Emma has a close connection to the agricultural tradition and the connection between natural resources and our everyday lives.
”I’ve always been environmental aware, but after attending a sustainability course at the Sustainable Fashion Academy in 2008, my commitment increased, and I started to work methodically in all my projects. It has been kind of a knowledge journey, trying to figure out facts and learning along the way. Concentration and determination needed”, she concludes.
In 2015, while preparing the exhibition, ”Where does it come from, where does it go”, Emma decided to explore the different materials she is working with.
”It was planned as a trend exhibition, but I saw the possibility to share knowledge about how good furniture can contribute to sustainability and a better environment. I decided to team up with the Swedish Environmental Research Institute, IVL, and they helped me to do a life cycle analysis on the materials in my toolbox and to calculate and rank them according to their emissions of CO2e/kg material.”
While working with the exhibition, Emma learned that the most important we can do for the climate is to keep the carbon dioxide equivalents low. She decided to commit to the UN Paris Climate Summit’s goal to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5°C in her future work.
Bamboo lighting
”I discovered that certain wood, like birch and other leaf trees, had a less environmental impact. And bamboo, for example, turned out to be a positive material. When designing new products, I strive to use this knowledge, choosing materials that help minimize the furniture’s CO2 footprint. If I have to work with a material with a not so positive ranking, I make sure to use a very small amount. Actually, minimizing the quantity of material is important, no matter what kind of material you work with.”
Compared to lighting – where a great part of the environmental impact is related to the luminaire’s energy consumption while lit, furniture has its greatest environmental impact at the beginning and at the end of its lifespan. The choice of material is crucial, Emma states.
”From the perspective of being a designer, choosing the right materials and ensuring thoughtful production play a big part.”
For IKEA, Emma chose to design a new luminaire out of bamboo.
”When it comes to lighting, I think it is easy to just focus on the energy consumption, but of course, the body material also has a great impact. New technology also opens up for new ways to design lighting – not only regarding energy efficiency, but also when it comes to materials and production processes.”
"I’ve always been backed by my customers and architects – now I experience that we also get more feedback from consumers. There is definitely a new awareness in the society." Emma Olbers, desginer and creative director
A national heritage
Emma’s methodology has also characterized one of her latest projects; redesigning the old library at the newly refurbished Swedish National Museum. A national heritage that now has been carefully refined with Emma’s contemporary Scandinavian design. Sustainability has run like a red thread throughout the project. Emma chose to use wooden materials with low CO2 footprints for the different chairs, and the seats were produced in fast growing climate positive hemp and seaweed. Carpets were produced in forest-based cellulose.
”As the library is a public environment, I once again had the opportunity to share the knowledge about different materials, their effects on the climate and how different surface treatments can be used to make the materials age beautifully. Using materials such as birch, and hemp and seaweed instead of leather in the seats helped us reduce CO2 emissions 300 times. Considering these chairs have a lifespan of 30 years it really makes a difference.”
Thoughts into action
Over the years Emma has been working with a number of different furniture producers – from multinationals such as IKEA, to small Swedish premium brands. From the start, she has experienced a positive attitude towards her sustainability initiative.
”I’ve always been backed by my customers and architects – now I experience that we also get more feedback from consumers. There is definitely a new awareness in the society and personally I think that there’s been an important change of attitude the last year. The impact of Swedish environmental influencer Greta Thunberg is a great example of this.”
It also seems like people are taking their thoughts into action.
”Buying second hand and mixing old furniture with new is a trend, as is investing in high quality furniture that has a long lifespan and can be inherited by generations. Personally, I love the thought of reusing old quality design furniture, myself I have some really nice 1960’s chairs in my office.”
This kind of long-term thinking can be applied on other industries.
”The fashion industry has started to reinvent itself, developing more sustainable solutions instead of suggesting that the customer should change the entire wardrobe four times a year. Swedish brand Filippa K, for example, has launched a Basics collection with classic basic items that will stand the wear of the eye and the everyday life for several seasons. The garments are produced in recycled or renewable materials.”
What to ask for
As a customer – what’s the most important requirement to set when investing in new interior design?
”No matter furniture or lighting, I think that the first step is to take the question seriously – and as said before, material is the key. When choosing furniture, the material stands for up to 50 percent of the environmental impact – I’d recommend you to take a look at the material index. Look for plant-based material like wood, or for recycled materials. Today many companies share this kind of information on their websites. Choose furniture with sustainable surface treatments that is easy to maintain and make the furniture age with pride. Ask the producer where the product is produced and if the energy used in the production facility is renewable. If there is a life cycle analysis available for the product it is a sign that the producer has made an effort.”
Relaterede nyheder
Når materialet betyder noget – Wrapped giver et fornyet syn på bæredygtig belysning
I en verden , hvor hvert gram materiale og hvert gram CO2 tæller, er Wrapped mere end blot et armatur – det er et statement. Det er Fagerhults mest bæredygtige pendel til dato, og det er langt fra tilfældigt. Hver detalje, hver beslutning, hvert materiale er valgt med omhu. Bæredygtighed begynder ofte med et enkelt spørgsmål: Hvad er den fremstillet af? For Wrapped er svaret en trio af materialer, der hver især fortæller deres egen miljøhistorie. Solid Board: en velkendt ven Hos Fagerhult stiftede vi første gang bekendtskab med Solid Board i 2021 med Multilume Re:Think. Men med Wrapped er vi gået et skridt videre. Materialet består af en trelagskonstruktion med en 100 % genanvendt kerne, et vedvarende FSC-certificeret toplag og en tynd, beskyttende plastfilm. Resultatet er et materiale, der er 65 % genanvendt – og som giver en 89 % reduktion i CO₂-udledning sammenlignet med ny ekstruderet aluminium. Billedgalleri: Solid Board Wrapped er fremstillet af organisk Solid Board, post-consumer genbrugsaluminium og post-consumer genbrugsplast. Nytænkning af plast Plast er ofte et varmt emne, når det handler om bæredygtighed. Men ikke al plast er ens. Wrapped anvender post-consumer genbrugsplast – plast, der allerede har haft et liv, måske som en shampoo-flaske eller fødevareemballage. Det adskiller sig fra pre-consumer plast, som aldrig er nået ud til forbrugeren. Citat: Josefin Carlsson Aluminium med en fortid Wrapped indeholder to strukturelle komponenter fremstillet af 100 % post-consumer genbrugsaluminium. en del af en cirkulær infrastruktur, der måske endda tidligere har været en del af et Notor-armatur. Sammenlignet med nyproduceret aluminium reducerer dette valg udledningen med 83 %. Design med mindre – bygget til at holde Bæredygtighed handler ikke kun om, hvad du bruger – men også hvor meget. Med sine kun 900 mm er Wrapped kortere end en konventionel pendel på 1200 mm. Alene denne reduktion i størrelse reducerer klimapåvirkningen med 25 % uden at gå på kompromis med armaturets lysydelse. Josefin Carlsson sammenligner produkters klimapåvirkning i Fagerhults Experience Centre i Habo. For at forstå, hvor langt vi er nået med Wrapped, må vi se på, hvor vi begyndte. I 2021 Notor 65 – fremstillet af ny aluminium – en klimapåvirkning på 34 kg CO₂e. I 2024 med 75 % genbrugsaluminium blev dette reduceret til 25 kg CO₂e. I dag Wrapped ligger omkring 12 kg CO₂e. "Det er en tredjedel af den oprindelige Notor 65 og halvdelen af den nuværende version, en stille revolution målt i kilo CO₂e," siger Josefin Carlsson. Efter sin lange levetid – anslået til 100.000 timer – er Wrapped klar til en lige så bæredygtig exit. Konstruktionen gør den let at skille ad, så alle materialer kan genbruges og genanvendes i den cirkulære økonomi.
Fagerhult uses recycled aluminium for high-volume products — ensuring circular use of resources
With a focus on reducing its long-term greenhouse gas emissions, Fagerhult now choose extruded aluminium profiles containing 75% recycled material from end users. The material is used for product families manufactured and sold in larger volumes — and where the material can make a real difference. The initiative reduces Fagerhult’s climate footprint by approximately 225 tons of CO2e per year.Aluminium is a lightweight and durable material that can be reused multiple times if recycled properly. Its environmental impact depends on several factors, including whether it is made from virgin aluminium, how it is produced, whether fossil fuels or renewable energy sources were used in its production, and if it is derived from recycled materials.Niclas Thulin is Sustainability Manager at Fagerhult:“We are taking a significant step forward by moving from renewably sourced aluminium to recycled aluminium (post consumer). The Notor family – together with several other product families – is now made of extruded aluminium that is 75% recycled. This results in around 70% lower climate impact than the average impact from European primary aluminium and 88% lower than the global average for primary aluminium*.”The change affects products sold in larger volumes. The products Notor 65, Notor Recessed, Notor 36, Fjord, Vil, Multilume Hydro, and Sentra are now made of recycled aluminium.“We intentionally upgrade the materials for our larger product series because it significantly impacts Fagerhult's greenhouse gas emissions. For the Notor family alone, we used approximately 65 kilometres of aluminium profiles in 2024, and nearly all of this volume has now been replaced with recycled material,” says Niclas Thulin.The change is part of Fagerhult's systematic sustainability work and a considerable step in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Scope 3: the company's indirect emissions from purchased materials. The Science Based Targets validate Fagerhult's climate targets, and the ambition is to achieve net zero emissions from the entire value chain by 2045.“This is our most important decision regarding materials, at least with reduced climate impact as the fundamental incentive. The majority of our emissions come from Scope 3, and through this change, we are making a difference where it has the greatest impact. Based on last year's volumes, the switch to recycled aluminium can reduce emissions by approximately 225 tons of carbon dioxide equivalents annually.”*Climate impact excluding the extrusion process. EPD compared to the European average for primary aluminium (European Aluminium) and the global average for primary aluminium (International Aluminium).