We don’t blame you

About the MA Program

We don’t blame you for driving a car.  We don’t blame you for buying products wrapped in plastic. We don’t blame you for using cell phones and computers and coffee makers made from plastic and metal and toxic chemicals that are all destined to contribute to e-waste. Our western capitalist consumerist culture makes it all but impossible to live without making the world a worse place.

We do applaud you for the efforts that you’ve made to be more sustainable. Perhaps, whenever possible, you ride a bike or take public transport, buy local and in bulk, buy used or avoid buying at all.  But we all know that’s not enough — not near enough.

So what can you do?

Being inspired and taking action is a fantastic start. To make real change, however, you need go beyond seeing problems and seeking solutions. You need to see whole systems and envision what “really good” looks like, at scale and over time. You need to be equipped with approaches, frameworks, and tools that empower you to create a positive and beautiful future that is aligned with nature and humanity. And you need to tie into a global community of like-minded and equipped individuals.


In order to change an existing paradigm you do not struggle to try and change the problematic model.

You create a new model and make the old one obsolete.
~ R. Buckminster Fuller

But you’re busy.  You have a job. Maybe you have kids.  How can you even get started?

MCAD’s fully online Master of Arts in Sustainable Design program was created for people like you — busy working professionals who are passionate about sustainability. You can complete the program from anywhere, anytime. We engage a global community of students and world-class instructors who work together to push the sustainability envelope forward across a variety of disciplines and industries, and across the world.

Just 30 credits and 5 semesters stand between you and your Master’s.


Want to learn more?  Join our next informational webinar or explore the short videos on our YouTube channel.  Or just email me at [email protected].  

Denise DeLuca / Former Director

Denise DeLuca is the Director of MCAD’s Sustainable Design program. She was co-founder of BCI: Biomimicry Creative for Innovation, a network of creative professional change agents driving ecological thinking for radical transformation. Denise is author of the book Re-Aligning with Nature: Ecological Thinking for Radical Transformation, which was illustrated by MASD alum Stephanie Koehler. She also teaches with the Amani Institute.

Denise’s previous roles include Education Director for the International Living Future Institute, Project Manager for Swedish Biomimetics 3000, and Outreach Director for The Biomimicry Institute. Denise is a licensed civil engineer (PE) and holds a master’s degree in civil and environmental engineering with a focus on modeling landscape-scale surface and groundwater interactions.  In addition, Denise is a Biomimicry Fellow and a member of the Advisory Council of The Biomimicry InstituteBoard Member of the International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP), on the editorial board of the Journal of Bionic Engineering, and an Expert with Katerva. Denise is based in Oregon.

contact:  [email protected]