Strategic Initiative

Terra Carta Design Lab

Designs for a sustainable future

Inspired by the Terra Carta, The former Prince of Wales and Sir Jony Ive launched the ‘Terra Carta Design Lab’ as part of the Sustainable Markets Initiative.

The Terra Carta Design Lab aims to highlight the urgent need to focus on the creative collaboration between art, science, design, and engineering to produce credible and sustainable solutions to the climate crisis.

In collaboration with the Royal College of Art (RCA), the Terra Carta Design Lab invites RCA students and recent alumni to develop credible and sustainable solutions to the climate crisis. Young and emerging architects, designers, scientists, engineers, historians, writers, and artists will be tasked with addressing the damage being done to our planet and creating solutions that align with the aims of the Terra Carta, drawing inspiration from, and giving back to, Nature.

The Terra Carta Design Lab supporting partners include Octopus Energy, Bank of America and The Climate Pledge.

Find out about the winners here .

Small ideas can have a big impact if they are supported with the right design, science, and engineering, and that is the key idea behind today’s Terra Carta Design Lab. We only have 100 days until COP26, the big UN conference in Glasgow to tackle the climate and biodiversity crisis, and we will all need to play our part, old and young, if we are to change how we look after the Earth, making it sustainable for Nature, People and Planet.

The former Prince of Wales

I’m incredibly proud to be part of the Terra Carta Design Lab founded by The former Prince of Wales. It's a visionary and imaginative way of helping address the world's increasingly urgent environmental problems. Often the biggest challenges demand the most ingenious, most creative thinking, which is why I’m so excited about the work that the RCA students will be able to contribute through this collaboration. I know that their creativity and inventiveness will develop truly powerful solutions. I’m delighted to be able to support this work both as a supporter of the Terra Carta, and in my role as Chancellor of the Royal College of Art.

Sir Jony Ive, Chancellor of the Royal College of Art

Terra Carta Design Lab at COP26

The former Prince of Wales and Sir Jony Ive, hosted an event for the Terra Carta Design Lab at COP26. The event was held at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum and offered a platform to talk about the initiative, which has been developed in collaboration with the Royal College of Art (RCA).

In attendance were academics, business leaders, philanthropists and students who are involved in the Terra Carta Design Lab – who were introduced, and spoke about their concepts, to both The former Prince of Wales and Sir Jony Ive.

It was a successful afternoon of action orientated discussions, networking and ideas, as the Terra Carta Design Lab came to life at COP26.

A key moment of the event was an ‘in conversation’ between The former Prince of Wales The Prince of Wales and Sir Jony Ive. Moderated by Sarah Douglas, Editor of Wallpaper, the ‘in conversation’ explored how disruptive design and innovation can address the world’s most intractable challenge – climate change.

The event also featured an introduction from the Vice Chancellor of the RCA, Dr Paul Thompson, an exclusive screening of the Terra Carta launch film, panel discussions from RCA academics on the role of innovation and design in tackling the climate crisis.

We also heard from one of the Terra Carta Design Lab partners, Greg Jackson, CEO and Founder of Octopus Energy, who discussed the importance of the Design Lab and how climate change is one of the fundamental design problems of our time.

Initiative Partners

The Terra Carta Design Lab is made possible through the support of the Initiative Partners.