Judging from the standing-room-only crowd, one of the highlights at the Greenbuild 2006 conference in Denver was the keynote by William McDonough, a world-renowned architect, designer, and winner of three U.S. presidential awards. He and German chemist Dr. Michael Braungart co-authored Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things, a seminal text for understanding the concept of sustainable development and design. A central thesis of sustainable design and development is to not settle for eco-efficiency (as Mr. McDonough notes, “being less bad doesn’t mean you’re being good”), but to strive for eco-effectiveness. Citing lessons from nature, McDonough wondered aloud about the inefficiency of a cherry tree: “How many blossoms does it take to grow another tree?” At times, McDonough’s delivery came across more like comedian Steven Wright with a bow tie—understated, iconoclastic, and thought provoking. “If you only look at a Mozart score, you might wonder if it’s really efficient to use that many notes to make music.” Throughout the hour-long talk, Mr. McDonough tossed out wry observations, noting that “asphalt is actually two words, one dealing with assigning blame... .” Witty asides aside, his practical strategies for sustainable development were what resonated with the crowd. Waste equals food: closing the loop on eco-effectiveness Mr. McDonough’s work is primarily based on a philosophy of eco-effectiveness. Eco-effective products are designed as closed-loop systems, in which every ingredient or component is either biodegradable or can be recycled into high-quality materials to be used repeatedly. The cradle-to-cradle design philosophy stipulates that the ingredients of every product should provide the potential for reuse and that all waste simply provides the raw materials for future products. Under this scenario, the raw materials for a product can be classified as either biological nutrients or technical nutrients. Biological nutrients are those that can be decomposed after their use, whereas technical nutrients can be fully recycled. For technical nutrients, there is a clear distinction between down-cycling a material so that much of its inherent value is degraded (such as recycling plastic into park benches) and recycling (where a material such as steel can be reused without degradation). Eco-effective products now certifiably sustainable One of William McDonough’s enterprises is McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC). Near the end of his presentation, he provided an update as to the success of the company’s Cradle-To-Cradle Certification program. Under this program, products can be submitted for certification based upon three evaluation criteria: - Waste equals food
- Use current solar income
- Celebrate diversity
Levels of product certification mirror the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, running from silver, gold, and, ultimately, platinum. The concept of waste equaling food is reflective of the design principles for eco-effectiveness and eliminating waste as a goal of good design. In terms of using the solar income, these criteria refer to using renewable energy sources such as wind, biomass, hydro-electric (in some cases), and solar. To achieve a higher certification level, the solar income must include not only the energy used to manufacture or assemble the final product, but also the energy used to manufacture the components as well. This requires the applicant to demonstrate their monitoring of the upstream supply chain’s active use of energy as well (either directly or through the use of renewable energy credits). Diversity, which is the final evaluation category, refers to the local impact of water use as well as the manufacturer’s social responsibility in terms of operations and stakeholder relationships. Not just a branding exercise, early adopters expect profit and revenue A number of companies offering products ranging from furniture to textiles and cleaning products expect that their Cradle-to-Cradle certification will truly distinguish their product in the marketplace and result in longer customer retention. In the United States, products certified by MBDC can be offered as “environmentally preferable,” a current requirement for government purchases, which creates a competitive advantage. A number of companies with certified products shared evidence of cost savings as they reviewed production and procurement processes and worked more closely with their extended supply chain. They also cited growing revenue for their certified products as large corporate buyers specify greener products. The realization of William McDonough’s vision for Cradle-to-Cradle-inspired products has been a long time in the making. But, as companies design greener products and seek product differentiation through certification, the impact of these new products will be felt far upstream in the supply chain. For many suppliers, now is the time to evaluate your ability to be a greener supply chain partner and capitalize on this rapidly growing trend.
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