 Cover of Cradle to Cradle | |
| Author | |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | |
| Publisher | North Point Press |
Publication date | 2002 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (DuraBook) |
| Pages | 193 |
| ISBN | 0-86547-587-3 |
| 745.2 (Alameda County Library) | |
Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things is a 2002 non-fiction book by German chemist Michael Braungart and US architect William McDonough. It is a manifesto detailing how to achieve their Cradle to Cradle Design model. It calls for a radical change in industry: a switch from a cradle-to-grave pattern to a cradle-to-cradle pattern. It suggests that the "reduce reuse recycle" methods perpetuate this cradle-to-grave strategy, and that more changes need to be made.[1] The book discourages downcycling, but rather encourages the manufacture of products with the goal of upcycling in mind.[2] This vision of upcycling is based on a system of "lifecycle development" initiated by Braungart and colleagues at the Environmental Protection Encouragement Agency in the 1990s: after products have reached the end of their useful life, they become either "biological nutrients" or "technical nutrients". Biological nutrients are materials that can re-enter the environment. Technical nutrients are materials that remain within closed-loop industrial cycles.[3]
The book uses historical examples such as the Industrial Revolution along with commentary on science, nature, and society.[4]
- ^ "Cradle to Cradle". Macmillan. Archived from the original on 1 July 2010. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
- ^ "Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things". Powell's Books. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
- ^ "Waste equals food". Speakers Academy Magazine. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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