Whole system design: an integrated approach to sustainable engineering by P. Stasinopoulos, M.H. Smith, K. Hargroves, C. Desha, Earthscan, UK 2009

A team of researchers demonstrated that whole system design (WSD) involved an integrated approach to sustainable engineering. This approach to WSD was demonstrated under The Natural Edge Project (TNEP) and proved effective and efficient. The project included 10 simple steps, or elements, such as whole system optimization and innovation tracking, that had the potential to be mapped onto a traditional systems engineering approach. These elements provided a pathway for sustainability thinking to be integrated into engineering design at the conceptual and preliminary design stages. The WSD concept was a major step towards educating future engineers on how and why environmental sustainability needed to be at the core of their professional practice. It showed the way to integrate a new and major consideration, such as sustainability, into the traditional systems engineering approach that was used for solving complex problems.