Just in Time for April 22 s Earth Day, UC Student s New "Eco-Bag" Arrives in Stores

In a national competition to choose the best designs for a reusable shopping bag, University of Cincinnati graphic design student Emily Taylor, 23, of Kings Mill, Ohio, was one of only three winners chosen.

And now, her design will be on display and sale at more than 600 JCPenney Company, Inc., stores nationwide.

In creating her design for the reusable bag, Taylor said she deliberately focused on simplicity and clarity. (Her design references JCPenney apparel by using the lines of three gently curving clothes hangers to recreate the internationally universal circular “recycling symbol.”)

Said Taylor, “For the project, I had the challenge not only of focusing on social and environmental responsibility but also on defining and appealing to a broad market that would be encouraged to use and reuse this bag. While JCPenney’s typical shopper might be a 35-year-old woman, I also wanted to appeal to a broad range of consumers.”

The 100-percent cotton bags with Taylor’s design will also carry her name and signature. They will retail for $1.99, with proceeds benefitting the JCPenney Afterschool Fund.

As a winner in the national competition to design the bag, Taylor also had the opportunity to meet with JCPenney executives, including Myron E. “Mike” Ullman III, chairman and chief executive officer.

“That was the best part,” said Taylor. “The three winning students met with the presidents of each division and with the CEO in order to learn more about their perspectives on social and environmental responsibility. That was very important to me because I want to further environmental and social responsibility by means of design. To more fully apply and encourage sustainable, eco-friendly choices and practices, I need insights into how clients think and how they view these issues. From there, I can make a better business case for selling sustainable ideas and concepts.”

Taylor is already seeking to “sell” sustainability among her fellow designers. For her capstone senior project in UC’s internationally ranked College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP), she’s researching and producing a sustainable resource guide for designers. The guide chronicles each step in the design process, and at each step, it suggests eco-friendly resources, materials or steps.

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