Faculty

Profile

Raz Godelnik is an Associate Professor of Strategic Design and Management at Parsons School of Design, where he explores sustainable business models, design for 1.5°C lifestyles, and how companies can respond effectively to the climate crisis. His work sits at the intersection of climate strategy, innovation, and design-led systems change, translating climate ambition into actionable frameworks for organizational leaders. 

Raz is the author of Rethinking Corporate Sustainability in the Era of Climate Crisis: A Strategic Design Approach and is currently working on his second book, The New Sustainability Sandbox: Breaking Free from Business as Usual.

Raz teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in innovation, leadership, sustainable design, business models, and strategic design. His research focuses on developing sustainable business models, designing low-carbon lifestyles, and helping companies move beyond sustainability-as-usual. He also led a collaboration between Parsons students and refugees in Berlin, working together on entrepreneurial initiatives to address refugee needs in cities and refugee camps. 

Raz served as the Co-Director of the MS Strategic Design and Management program from 2015 to 2018 and as the Director of the BBA Strategic Design and Management program from 2022 to 2024. He is the co-founder of two green startups, Hemper Jeans and Eco-Libris, and writes regularly on issues related to sustainable business, climate change, and strategic design. He holds an MBA from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Communication and Economics from the Hebrew University.

Recent Publications

Books:
Godelnik, R. The New Sustainability Sandbox: Breaking Free from Business as Usual. Routledge/Taylor & Francis, under contract; expected 2026.

Godelnik, R. (2021) "Rethinking Corporate Sustainability in the Era of Climate Crisis - A Strategic Design Approach". Palgrave Macmillan.

Book chapters:
Godelnik R. (2026) Designing for 1.5°C Lifestyles: Using Personal Agency to Drive Systemic Transformation. In: Ivanova E., Rimanoczy I., Singhal D. (eds) The Power of Arts-Based Pedagogies: Transforming Mindsets to Shape Our Future. Routledge.

Godelnik R. and Jaramillo L. (Forthcoming, 2026) Designing for 1.5°C Lifestyles: A Business-Driven Framework for Systemic Change. In: Poonamallee L., Joy S., Scillitoe J., Howard A., Akhil S.G. (eds) Technology, Management, and Social Justice: Critical Perspectives on Innovation, Equity, and Power. Springer.

Godelnik R. and van der Meer J. (2019) Sustainable Business Models in an Entrepreneurial Environment. In: Aagaard A. (eds) Sustainable Business Models. Palgrave Macmillan.

Papers: 
Godelnik, R. (Under review). Hacking Sufficiency: Bridging Individual Agency and Systemic Barriers Through Design. Consumption & Society, Special Issue on Structuring Sufficiency.

Godelnik, R. 2021. "Designers and the Fight against Climate Change: A Design Knowledge Framework for the Age of Climate Crisis." The International Journal of Design Management and Professional Practice 15 (1): 21-42. doi:10.18848/2325-162X/CGP/v15i01/21-42.

Godelnik, R. (2020, May/Aug.). The sharing economy dilemma: the response of incumbent firms to the rise of the sharing economy. International Journal of Innovation - IJI, São Paulo, 8(2), 176-203. https://doi.org/10.5585/iji.v8i2.17391.

Selected articles:

It’s reset time: 10 design principles for a warming world. Medium. 

Five GLP-1 lessons for sustainable design. Medium. 

Why AI is the biggest threat to sustainability — and what you can do about it. Medium. 

Can sustainability be saved by tackling loneliness, not just CO₂ emissions?. Medium. 

Is killing capitalism the only way to make sustainability affordable?. Medium. 

The Joy Crisis: Why Sustainability can’t be serious and fun at the same time?. Medium. 

Performances and Appearances

Latest media appearances/interviews:
Interviewed for CoreNet Global's What's Next podcast ("Rethinking Corporate Sustainability in the Era of Climate Crisis”), February 2025.

Participated in a panel shared on Sustainable Fashion Forum's podcast ("Balancing Profitability and Responsibilit: Navigating the Complexities of Sustainable Fashion"), June 2023.

Interviewed for a New York Times' article on Copenhagen Fashion Week ("Can Fashion Week's Trash Problem Be Solved”), January 2023.

Interviewed for an episode of PwC’s Experience Consulting’s PreWork Walk (“What’s Wrong With Corporate Sustainability”), June 2022.

Interviewed for 42courses podcast (“Raz Godelnik – The Circular Economy”), February 2022.

Interviewed for Climify podcast (“Let’s Write A New Story About Sustainability“), November 2021.

Interviewed for NPR Marketplace on corporate climate plans (“‘Look For Actions’ From Companies, Not Just Green Pledges, Experts Say”), October 2021.

Interviewed on Environmentenlist podcast (“New Narratives For Corporate Sustainability”), October 2021.

Interviewed The Deep Dive podcast (“Sustainability as Usual is Dead”), September 2021.

Interviewed for Fortune on Salesforce’s sustainability efforts (“How Salesforce Wants To Make Its Supply Chain More Sustainable”), June 2021.

Interviewed for Glossy on sustainability in fashion brands (“‘Secret Sustainability’: Fashion Brands are Learning to Master Initiatives Before Marketing Them“), January 2021.

Research Interests

corporate sustainability, climate change, business models, strategic design, circular economy, sharing economy, platform coops, design for low-carbon lifestyles (1.5C lifestyles), degrowth-baseed business models, sufficiency strategies, CSR, ESG.