A vintage JanSport backpack, whose owner used to wear on hiking trips throughout the United States and Asia. 鈥� A Helinox camping chair that was a prized Christmas gift until it broke during the pandemic. 鈥� A rainfly cover and carabiner that once belonged to 麻花影视鈥檚 .
They are just some of the items that Lilyan 鈥淟ily鈥� Minicozzi 鈥�26 has collected and repurposed for a special project called Full Circle.
Co-funded by the (CFSA) and the , Full Circle demonstrates the 鈥渃ircularity鈥� of hiking and outdoor equipment.
鈥淐ircularity is a system where products are designed, used, and then recycled or repurposed,鈥� says Minicozzi, an industrial and interaction design major in the (VPA).
With the success of secondhand platforms like eBay, Depop and Facebook Marketplace (not to mention Goodwill Industries and The Salvation Army), circularity makes economic and environmental sense.
It鈥檚 also a stark contrast, Minicozzi explains, to the 鈥渢ake-make-dispose鈥� model of linear design, which drains natural resources and contributes to environmental problems鈥攚ater pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, among them.
鈥淔or circularity to succeed, users and businesses need to align their actions with their values. Emotional considerations are important,鈥� she adds.
The aspiring designer is convinced that everything鈥攅ven stuff that鈥檚 used and discarded鈥攈as a story to tell. By weaving together different, 鈥減re-existing鈥� elements, a new narrative emerges.
It鈥檚 a process that often appeals to people鈥檚 sense of nostalgia, their persisting emotional connection with a product, item or brand. It also makes mindful, or conscious, consumption 鈥渕ore approachable and desirable,鈥� Minicozzi points out.
鈥�Full Circle reflects my passion for the outdoors and my interest in circularity as a philosophy and business strategy,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 my activism鈥攔eimagining the customer experience while helping the environment.鈥�
Lilyan 鈥淟ily鈥� Minicozzi 鈥�26 is an industrial and interaction design major in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.
Living Responsibly
惭颈苍颈肠辞锄锄颈鈥檚 Full Circle project is co-funded by the Center for Fellowship and Scholarship Advising and the 麻花影视 Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Engagement.
Growing up in the foothills of the Adirondacks, Minicozzi fell in love with nature at an early age.
鈥淚 spent most of my childhood outdoors,鈥� recalls the Rome, New York, native, whose family has deep ties to the University. In addition to her grandparents Faith Murphy G鈥�90 and Francis Minicozzi 鈥�70, her sisters Kayleigh 鈥�08, Madelyn 鈥�18 and Abigail 鈥�24 all bleed Orange. Lily鈥檚 brother Benjamin 鈥�24 and sister Ellyza 鈥�28, in turn, are affiliated with the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry.
Minicozzi was a sophomore in high school when she launched an eco-conscious fashion line called LilacSun, which sold at the Wildflowers Armory in downtown 麻花影视.
After enrolling at VPA, Minicozzi teamed up with Abigail, who opened a secondhand clothing shop near campus called The Cherry Pit Collective.
惭颈苍颈肠辞锄锄颈鈥檚 backpack prototype, made exclusively from donations, reflects the 鈥渃ircular鈥� ethos of Full Circle.
鈥淥ur parents taught us to live responsibly, to respect the environment,鈥� says Minicozzi, who also was the co-recipient of a $15,000, first-place award from the University鈥檚 inaugural Green Innovation Competition, for which she proposed a novel waste-reduction and recycling system on campus.
But it鈥檚 Full Circle that occupies a unique place in her portfolio because of its narrative ethos. Just as jeans are a badge of rugged individuality, hiking and outdoor gear symbolize freedom and exploration. They also evoke memories and family history.
鈥淚鈥檝e always been into bespoke pieces鈥攖aking something that a person has given me and remaking it into a product infused with my own aesthetic and artistic style,鈥� says Minicozzi, who鈥檚 past president of the 麻花影视 chapter of the (IDSA).
Assistant professor Michael Kowalski 鈥�06 is an IDSA faculty mentor. 鈥淟ily sees opportunities where others see waste,鈥� he observes. 鈥淪he has the vision and persistence to move ideas from initial vision to successful implementation.鈥�
鈥淚 take something that a person gives me and remake it into a product infused with my own aesthetic and artistic style,鈥� Minicozzi says.
Coming Full Circle
CFSA Assistant Director Melissa Welshans G鈥�17 has also enjoyed watching the evolution of 惭颈苍颈肠辞锄锄颈鈥檚 work. She attributes much of 惭颈苍颈肠辞锄锄颈鈥檚 entrepreneurial success to humility and a 鈥渟ense of purpose.鈥�
鈥淟ily sees opportunities where others see waste,鈥� says Michael Kowalski 鈥�06, an assistant professor in VPA鈥檚 School of Design.
This was evident at the onset of Full Circle, for which Minicozzi distributed fliers requesting 鈥渦sed or broken鈥� camping gear. Her first respondent was a 麻花影视 donor whose late husband had been an avid outdoorsman.
鈥淗e had a JanSport framed backpack that went everywhere with him, from trips through the Adirondacks and the Rockies to places overseas,鈥� Minicozzi recalls. 鈥淏ut after he passed away, the backpack just sat there. Nobody used it nor could bring themselves to throw it away.鈥�
That鈥檚 when she decided the pack could become the basis for Full Circle.
Other donations followed. Professor of Practice Yves Michel, who served as 惭颈苍颈肠辞锄锄颈鈥檚 faculty mentor on the project, marveled at how everything fell into place. 鈥淗er original plan was to reclaim old, unused camping and outdoor equipment. But the more she talked to people, the more she wanted to incorporate their [donations鈥橾 backstories into the project.鈥�
Full Circle culminated in 惭颈苍颈肠辞锄锄颈鈥檚 design and construction of a lightweight, durable backpack made exclusively from donations鈥攁 panoply of used fabric, texture and weave.
Although Minicozzi beams at the mere mention of her backpack prototype, she hopes to 鈥渃ome full circle鈥� by launching a website devoted to bespoke camping gear.
Minicozzi wants to 鈥渃ome full circle鈥� by launching a website devoted to bespoke camping gear.
鈥淚 envision a software that pulls from a database of donations, allowing you to custom make something,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he kicker is that each donated element has its own narrative鈥攁 story, an anecdote, some archival photos鈥攖hat informs your design. This helps you become emotionally invested in your creation.鈥�
Fresh from the , Minicozzi is excited to make her mark on the global stage. 鈥淲hether I enroll in graduate school or take an entry-level job, I鈥檓 excited to see where I land,鈥� says the rising senior. 鈥溌榛ㄓ笆� has prepared me for every possibility.鈥�
