Sorry it's been so long since I posted - I've been busy and this book took 2-3 weeks to come into the library. I'm making my way through my reading list, which contains a lot of nonfiction (Kolbert's climate change novel was also on that list). In a similar thread, Cradle to Cradle is basically about environmentalism, but it absolutely shattered every notion I'd had about being good to the environment. McDonough and Braungart start off talking about the effects the many different products we use on a daily basis have on us. They don't bog down with statistics, chemical or biological terms, but run quickly through some of the hazards of modern chemical living.
One concept I found very interesting was their view on recycling. Braungart, a chemist, explains that to break down soda bottles into rugs or coats, or even more soda bottles, not only are you doing more damage to the environment with chemical processes, risking your own health as these chemicals off-gas into your home and using much more energy than just creating a new bottle, you're "downcycling" the material. An analogy I would like to make is to recycled paper. Compare it to a new piece of virgin paper - recycled paper is grainy, brown, thin and aesthetically very unappealing. This is because turning that used piece of paper into "new" paper, actually downgrades the quality of the material - the same with almost everything we recycle in modern life. They say our products should be designed to be recycled indefinitely, with no effect on quality (which is possible). Braungart and McDonough blow the cover off modern environmentalism, basically stating that we need to redesign the way we live. Being "less bad" by buying recycled paper, "all natural" sheets and using the bus isn't good enough. They want American innovators to design products that are made to be good. Focusing less on what we're taking out of the environment, but how to give back to it. Basically, a version I suppose of their ideal product would be something made of nonharmful, effective and limited "ingredients" that benefits whatever it is meant to be used on, then goes back into the earth and further benefits the ecosystem that lives there. Their design proposition for products basically is this: Think outside the box. Don't work on improving the car - redesign our transportation system so that it eliminates the need for cars entirely.
I would also describe them as "locavores" in that they believe products should be made for individuals, not in a "one size fits all" mentality. They say that laundry soap flakes are made for the hardest job they might have to do, which means they can do anything, but it also means they are too strong for the job they usually have to do. Many people in less developed countries apply these soaps with their hands, in rivers used for bathing and washing. In this situation, these women need gentler soap that will work with the environment they are being used in. They want to design products made to be used in particular situations, suited totally to the needs of one system or group, and that are enjoyable to use. Respect diversity, don't eliminate it.
Another concept they introduce in the book is improving modern manufacturing. They describe the work they did with a Ford factory implementing eco-effective strategies to manage problems from worker happiness to rainwater management. With Braungart and McDonough (and a team of biologists, chemists and toxicologists), Ford cleaned up the dead and polluted soil around the factory using native plants and microrganisms, installed an underground water collection system that would filter water out to local waterways in a safe way. They also installed tons of skylights and windows in their building and implemented new heating and cooling strategies - making the workers much happier and more productive, aesthetically improving their building, and saving thousands on energy costs.
The book was exceptionally well-written, well-organized and easy to read. Their language flowed beautifully and kept the reader interested and in the loop - you won't find dry statistics, charts and technical jargon here. That being said, you must have an interest in environmentalism - it will be boring without one. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone as an essential read - but get it from the library. Although it is made of a durable, waterproof, indefinitely-recyclable and chemically safe synthetic, this technology is new and very expensive.
Overall: 10 out of 10.
Details:
Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: North Point Press; 1st edition (April 22, 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0865475873
ISBN-13: 978-0865475878
