This article presents an investigation into the environmental impacts of plastic waste and discusses the importance of cradle-to-cradle design thinking.
Cradle-to-cradle design thinking is a practice that focuses on understanding where materials come from, how they are processed and used in the manufacturing of a product, how they change during their use, and how they can be reused/ recycled as materials for a future product (Gerber, McKenna, Hirsch, & Yarnoff, 2010).
Aligned with the
Cradle-to-Cradle design philosophy that focuses on the principles of a "no waste" society, our goal is to eliminate waste and create something to make a positive difference in the world.
Dozens of advancements in areas from biomimcry, to
cradle-to-cradle design, green building, nanotechnology, 3D printing, energy harvesting, and sustainable development are emerging and the instances of companies investing in new methods of dealing with water and materials shortages are becoming more common.
E Magazine: What is
Cradle-to-Cradle design, and how does it differ from recycling?
Ultimately, however, our
cradle-to-cradle design strategy is focused not simply on being "less bad" but on creating completely healthful materials that can be either safely returned to the soil or reused by industry again and again.
He admits that the road will be a long, tough one, but the company has made a serious commitment to a concept called "
cradle-to-cradle design."
Last fall, the agency's Office of Solid Waste partnered with McDonough, Braungart Design Chemistry to host a
Cradle-to-Cradle Design Challenge, the results of which were presented at the PackExpo Trade Show in Las Vegas.
To test for sustainability, Shaw uses the
Cradle-to-Cradle Design Protocol, a third-party system created by designer William McDonough and German chemist Michael Braungart.
The
cradle-to-cradle design frame work allows the carpet at the end of its life cycle to be remade into carpet.
If you know anything about
cradle-to-cradle design, you will understand that we shouldn't have to give up our fancy materials and heavy wall packaging to be sustainable.
Cradle-to-cradle design involves learning from nature through "biomimicry," an effort to design "buildings like trees, cities like forests." The concept challenges us to make the ant a role model.