ADA 2021: Mauricio Padilla on the Sustainable Design Jury

This year, for the first time, the internationally-renowned Archiproducts Design Awards will introduce a ‘Special Mention’ for Sustainability.

This new award is dedicated to all projects that pursue sustainable design, from green materials to eco-responsible production processes.

A Jury specifically chosen to evaluate this aspect will select the products worthy of this new honour.

The first juror on the Sustainable Design Jury Panel 2021 we are interviewing is Ecuadorian Mauricio Padilla, founder of Hinter – a brand that creates evocative yet simple architectural spaces immersed in nature in the most sustainable way possible.

Interview with Mauricio Padilla, member of the 2021 Archiproducts Design Awards jury

What do you expect from the entries, and what sustainability features will you reward?
Projects that change the status quo. Projects must have a profound impact on both ends of the spectrum, meaning: did the process create something different and impactful? But I will really focus on the outcome and what happens when a project is finished -whether or not it will continue to give back to communities and the environment. I am investigating the idea of a ‘return on sustainability’. We live in an era in which carbon neutrality is not enough.

How should contemporary design evolve to meet the needs of the community?
I am a big believer in the fact that anything we design must have an educational outcome. A product needs to speak to the end-user. My belief is that we all crave to learn and improve ourselves. Be better, be good, do good. Product design must find ways to educate the end-user on ways to improve ourselves and become more sustainable. That’s responsible product design.

In a post-pandemic world, how might we define a ‘new normal’?
Normal is what we make of it. Every day we determine what is normal. Having said that, when something is taken away from us …friendships, family, our freedom to roam…. we realize how important those things are and how much we should value and appreciate them. I think design in this ‘new normal’ needs to speak to the importance of this. It must remind us and build stronger bonds between human connections and our planet.

Why did you decide to go into sustainability, and what changes do you expect to see in the future?
Our time here is too short. I am finding ways to transcend this, to actually create impacts. I think that these days, especially when we’re young, it’s really easy to get lost in what’s important only for ‘me’. At a certain point, it becomes irrelevant. We have to see the big picture. We have to work on things that are bigger than ourselves, that will outlive us. Unfortunately, we are brought up in a society that focuses on taking instead of giving. We have to change that.

About Mauricio Padilla

Mauricio Padilla was born and raised in Quito, Ecuador, but spent more than a decade in Montreal, Quebec, where he worked between software industries and market strategies.

During his business trips around the world, his perspective was transformed, and the idea for Hinter, a brand focused on slow living, nature and design, began to take shape.

He moved at full force to create a ‘space’ to offer meaningful experiences to people looking to spend time in nature surrounded by careful design. From suburban hotels to the most recent creation of an online studio focused on holistic wellness and the art of living, Mauricio is ever more committed to his mission of inviting people to live more sustainably, slowly and in line with nature. While creating physical and digital experiences, Mauricio’s goal is to educate and lead by example, demonstrating that any project can be profitable and carbon-free.

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind

hinterhouse – Ph. David Dworkind