In the library
12:30p to 1:30p
Come join your friends and co-workers and share your thoughts about Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough & Michael Braungart. Guided by the principle that “waste equals food,” the authors offer a radical new vision for the way we design the things we make that challenges the one-way, “cradle to grave” manufacturing model and the enormous amounts of waste and pollution it leaves in its wake. They demonstrate how products can be designed to follow the example of natural systems so that they provide nourishment for something new at the end of their useful lives. Part social history, part green business primer, part design manual, this book grapples with some of the most fundamental issues in the creation of a more sustainable world.
Please let us know at library@thoreau.org if you are interested in attending and/or if you need help finding a copy.
From the publisher's description:
William McDonough's book, written with his colleague, the German chemist Michael Braungart, is a manifesto calling for the transformation of human industry through ecologically intelligent design. Through historical sketches on the roots of the industrial revolution; commentary on science, nature and society; descriptions of key design principles; and compelling examples of innovative products and business strategies already reshaping the marketplace, McDonough and Braungart make the case that an industrial system that "takes, makes and wastes" can become a creator of goods and services that generate ecological, social and economic value.In Cradle to Cradle, McDonough and Braungart argue that the conflict between industry and the environment is not an indictment of commerce but an outgrowth of purely opportunistic design. The design of products and manufacturing systems growing out of the Industrial Revolution reflected the spirit of the day-and yielded a host of unintended yet tragic consequences.
Today, with our growing knowledge of the living earth, design can reflect a new spirit. In fact, the authors write, when designers employ the intelligence of natural systems—the effectiveness of nutrient cycling, the abundance of the sun's energy—they can create products, industrial systems, buildings, even regional plans that allow nature and commerce to fruitfully co-exist.
