Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things

by William McDonough, Michael Braungart

book data

1,533 ratings, 4.24 average rating, 341 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		43%
4		39%
3		14%
2		2%
1		0%

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published

April 22nd 2002 by North Point Press

binding

Paperback, 208 pages

isbn

0865475873 (isbn13: 9780865475878)

description

Paper or plastic? Neither, say William McDonough and Michael Braungart. Why settle for the least harmful alternative when we could have something that...more

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12/03/07

Lisa rated it:

Read in February, 2008

Three stars doesn't quite do justice to this book. Its ideas merit five stars, but the text sags a bit and tends to repeat itself a lot, thereby losing some power.

What the text lacks in eloquence, however, it makes up for in tactility. I couldn't stop petting this book. Its "synthetic paper" pages felt so resilient and smooth and sleek. The authors chose to make a recyclable, "treeless" book from from plastic resins and inorganic fillers. It is waterproof and w...more

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07/22/07

Daniel rated it:

Read in August, 2007

recommends it for: anybody with opinions on environmentalism, industry.

The central issue in this book is the notion that we can manufacture products and infrastructure that are really, actually good for the environment instead of simply being "less bad".

Here's an example of what on Earth that could possibly mean. In making paper, you have two options. (1) You can cut down a tree to make clean, high-quality paper, but on a large scale this involves massive deforestation and the annihilation of ecosystems. (2) You can recycle old paper. Howe...more The central issue in this book is the notion that we can manufacture products and infrastructure that are really, actually good for the environment instead of simply being "less bad".

Here's an example of what on Earth that could possibly mean. In making paper, you have two options. (1) You can cut down a tree to make clean, high-quality paper, but on a large scale this involves massive deforestation and the annihilation of ecosystems. (2) You can recycle old paper. However, paper fibers get shorter and shorter the more they're recycled, requiring more and more environmentally-questionable chemicals (bleaches, stabilizers, etc.) to produce a product of less quality than the original. The authors call this "downcycling", which means just what it sounds like it means. Finally, the chemicals involved in the creation of either kind of paper remain in the environment long after the paper fibers themselves decompose.

So option (1) above is clearly bad, and option (2) is what they call "less bad". As an actually "good" alternative, they made their book out of some sort of inert plastic polymer that can be indefinitely recycled. The pages are as papery as plastic can be, and overall the book feels the way a book should. Maybe a little heavier than your typical 180-page book, but sturdier and waterproof. (I got hoisin sauce all over mine and it wiped right off.) Apparently, if you send this book back to the manufacturer it can be recycled into other books with close to zero loss in overall quality.

(I want to stress that this argument hasn't changed my overall view of recycling. In the absence of "good" options it still makes sense to pick the option which is least bad. I'll continue to downcycle my junk until it's possible to, uh, upcycle, even if that merely postpones the apocalypse instead of preventing it.)

This is a microcosm of what this book is actually about. Right now, we as a society are locked into a false choice between the standard capitalist notion of "progress" and the standard environmentalist notion of "sustainability". This book presents a third option that goes a long way towards reconciling the two. Rather than choose between progress and sustainability, why not design/engineer sustainability into products, buildings, and infrasrtucture?

The authors argue that this extra design effort can be economical for businesses when you consider the overall cost of manufacturing. They give the example of a manufacturing facility they designed in which the effluent water from the factory was actually cleaner than the influent. It took some extra money to design, but now the business doesn't have to pay regulatory fees or worry about how to dispose of its liquid wastes. Overall, that initial design effort saved them money.

I guess this review is getting a little long. Here is the punchline. Environmentalism and industry don't necessarily have to be arch-enemies. (I guess Captain Planet brainwashed me a little...) Intelligent systems design can create an industrial environment which is actually beneficial to local ecology. This book gets four stars rather than five because I wish it was longer. I wanted more details about specific things that have been/can be done in the service of this idea. Instead, the book is short and talks in broad strokes for a more skeptical audience than me.

I would love to loan this book to you.

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09/01/07

Dennis rated it:

Read in September, 2007

Cradle to Cradle is a essentially book of questions, and a calling for people to not only re-think the way we make things, but to re-think the way we perceive ourselves as pitted against the natural world, rather than working with the natural world. The age old paradigm of conquering nature and bend (or in many cases break it) to fit our needs is outmoded,short-sighted, and, in fact, harmful not only to humans but the entire natural system.

The concept of Cradle to Cradle replaces th...more

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08/23/07

Jono rated it:

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in August, 2007

recommends it for: Designers

The authors tell an encouraging and interesting story about our approach to product development and use today. One where the product 'lifecycle' is from 'cradle' to 'grave' - a product is made and when it dies it goes 'away.' They give lots of good examples of a) why that is a bad thing and b) how we can do it better by opting for a cradle to cradle mentality.

What I liked most about this book was how they peeled apart the subtle metaphors that strongly affect our outlook today for pr...more

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01/31/08

Nick rated it:

Read in January, 2008

Everyone on the planet should read this book. The authors, one a chemist, and the other an architect, have thought more deeply about what "green" truly means (in terms of the environment) than anybody else. What they say will surprise you. They are not big fans of recycling, for example, because most things that are recycled were not designed for same, and it takes a lot of energy to cycle them 'down' to a lower use (like recycling paper). Instead, they argue for designing products...more

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05/07/07

Phil rated it:

Read in July, 2007

recommends it for: Captains of industry and environmentalists of any stripe

A very interesting book that ought to be required reading for anyone at least marginally interested in the environmental catastrophe we humans seem poised to create.

The authors' vision for a future of abundance challenges the long-established paradigm of environmentalist thought, conservation. They argue that the focus on conservation and efficiency is misguided, because under that paradigm we are still using damaging techonologies, only less of them. Instead we should be striving ...more A very interesting book that ought to be required reading for anyone at least marginally interested in the environmental catastrophe we humans seem poised to create.

The authors' vision for a future of abundance challenges the long-established paradigm of environmentalist thought, conservation. They argue that the focus on conservation and efficiency is misguided, because under that paradigm we are still using damaging techonologies, only less of them. Instead we should be striving for what they call "eco-effective" systems; that is, systems that instead of resulting in toxic byproducts create residue that actively replenish our natural world. The ideal we should reach for is that of a cherry tree--a cherry tree creates far more blossoms than it needs to survive, yet those blossoms that go unused decompose and help the soil and surrounding ecosystem flourish.

In terms of approach, the book is clearly revolutionary, but I think it likely far more useful for designers and captains of industry (tellingly, the book is clearly written with the latter in mind) than the general public. Sadly, most of us are not in a position to make fundamental choices about the way our home and work environments interact with their surrounding ecosystems, at least not to the degree that would be necessary for implementing the vision suggested here.

We certainly need more designers and CEOs thinking long-term (one great aspect of the book is that eco-effectiveness is shown to be not just responsible but profitable), but until we have more executives on the vanguard it certainly wouldn't hurt to have a great deal more conservation happening on the consumer end. The best approach, it seems to me, would stipulate the following: when dealing with antiquated, polluting technologies (e.g. those that surround most of us for most of the day), utilize conservation strategies as frequently as possible; when presented with the opportunity to use ecologically effective technologies and energy sources, by all means, let your thirst be as insatiable as modern consumerism dictates.(less)

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12/26/08

Ron rated it:

Read in January, 2009

Sweet and sour on this book:

Sweet:

-- Is a nice philosophic groundwork for re-thinking our relationship to the earth, to manufacturing, to design. Broad and all-encompassing.

-- Some potent ideas about how processes and materials work can or don't work in an ecologically sensible way. Tying things back to simple logic is a consistent method that is effective here.

-- printed on synthetic paper, a wonderful demonstration of the book's argument
...more

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06/23/07

Benedict rated it:

Read in January, 2006

recommends it for: ecopreneurs

McDonough and Braungart demonstrate that design may be the key element in a (un)sustainable product's lifecycle. They show that products can be designed that are fully "bio-integratable" (including natural breakdown and absorption processes), where all the parts are fully reusable and that beautiful, functional and affordable, too.

They stress a triple win philosophy: Cradle to Cradle (cycle) success means ecological harmony, social equity and economic profitability. All pro...more

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04/28/08

Sally rated it:

bookshelves: natural-living, non-fiction

Read in January, 2007

It was not the easiest read; I probably waded through more than half. The ideas of designing production and products so that there is minimal or no waste, and multiple processes can benefit from each other is certainly elegant and timely. We have spent way too long squandering resources by using whatever portion we need in the moment without much regard to waste and pollution.

Revolutionary and a long ways off from being implemented, but necessary seeds of thought to plant for our...more

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11/21/08

Kathy rated it:

bookshelves: green, kindle, non-fiction

Read in December, 2008

I give it a 5 for the concept, a bit less for way he sells it. The message here is that strategies like recycling, consuming less and so on just mean we destroy ourselves and our world more slowly. In fact he calls them insidious because they mask the problem and prevent us from taking the bold steps that are really needed: reinventing products so they are actually beneficial to make and use, and can be "fed" back into future biological or technological production processes indefinit...more

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06/18/09

Aaron Becker rated it:

Read in June, 2009

“Cradle to Cradle” reads quickly, and is worthwhile if you’re interested in environmental design because it presents an essentially optimistic message: environmental problems can be reduced to (soluble) design problems. The authors, Bill McDonough and Michael Braungart, invoke a change in design paradigm centered on one aphorism—“waste is food.” The authors contrast natural systems, which evolved to continually cycle limiting nutrients, to our industrial system, which creates product...more “Cradle to Cradle” reads quickly, and is worthwhile if you’re interested in environmental design because it presents an essentially optimistic message: environmental problems can be reduced to (soluble) design problems. The authors, Bill McDonough and Michael Braungart, invoke a change in design paradigm centered on one aphorism—“waste is food.” The authors contrast natural systems, which evolved to continually cycle limiting nutrients, to our industrial system, which creates products without regard for the retrieval of “technical nutrients” that they contain. Hence a new type of design—“cradle to cradle,” which conceives objects both in terms of their present utility and their future re-use.

McDonough and Braungart view the economy as a physical, metabolic cycle—a view at odds with contemporary economics, in which “the economy” is an abstraction. Reframing the relationship between the economy and the environment allows problematic interactions between the two to be understood as consequences of poor industrial design. One of the most compelling presentations in this book occurs when the author asks the reader, rhetorically, to design a “system of production” that pollutes, erodes cultures, results in massive waste, and so on. By re-casting industry’s results as objectives, the authors indicate how unintentional our current environmental problems are. The contrast between unintended consequence and positive objective imparts hope. It shifts the focus away from problems that designers must work against and onto goals that designers must work towards. Overall, the book empowers both designers specifically and human ingenuity more generally. If our current problems arise out of carelessness, the argument implies, then careful design must be able to solve them.

In approaching such broad social and ecological ambitions from a design perspective, however, McDonough and Braungart tend to idealize the businesses upon which designers’ jobs depend. Human beings may genuinely care for the earth they inhabit, but industrial systems are also governed by global capital and complex financial rules that seem to operate in a world all their own. While it is refreshing to view industry in terms of what it actually produces, designers have to defend their plans in front of board members for whom “capital flow” and “shareholder equity” are real concerns.

It’s hard to see where eco-effectiveness fits into an industrial model that defines objectives in terms of “consumer value,” or the illusion thereof. In flush economic times, companies may have resources to invest in innovation that confers a marketing and public relations advantage. Economic downturns, however, have the potential to challenge even those businesses that “understand and prepare for the learning curve” that accompanies the transition to cradle-to-cradle design. Corporatism is a cultural paradigm that the authors never truly challenge; instead, they praise commerce for its ability to find efficient solutions and harness human ingenuity. The inoffensive message that companies can, and should, continue to pursue profits while revolutionizing their product design strikes me as overly apologetic during a time when federal bailouts and corporate bankruptcy make headlines.

Cradle to Cradle will only have a lasting impact if its ideas succeed in generating a wholesale cultural transformation—something that must, necessarily, begin with a “seed.” McDonough and Braungart try to present this book as that seed; while their approach justifies, to an extent, the omission of detailed implementation strategies, they nevertheless manage to wrangle about forty pages of dull, ideological repetition into the book. In particular, the authors insist on repeatedly attacking “earth first” environmentalism as a shortsighted approach to limit a fundamentally “bad” industrial system. In proposing a re-designed, “good” system, the authors imply that change must come from within industry, discounting the efforts of activists who strive to put social pressure on industry from the outside. Their basic message remains positive and powerful, however, and contains an empowering set of guidelines by which industry can do its own part to move towards a “restorative economy.”(less)

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04/10/09

Kate rated it:

bookshelves: ecology, non-fiction, planning

Read in April, 2009

Brilliant ideas, but not much else. I read a blurb that describes this book as a "manifesto." Probably a good word for it. It introduces some very cool concepts that should absolutely be taken seriously, but then doesn't present them in the way that a serious scientific book would do. I feel like the authors could have done a lot more with what they were trying to say, and found "Cradle to Cradle" a bit unsatisfying on the whole.

The basic idea is that human societ...more Brilliant ideas, but not much else. I read a blurb that describes this book as a "manifesto." Probably a good word for it. It introduces some very cool concepts that should absolutely be taken seriously, but then doesn't present them in the way that a serious scientific book would do. I feel like the authors could have done a lot more with what they were trying to say, and found "Cradle to Cradle" a bit unsatisfying on the whole.

The basic idea is that human societies can, and should, find ways to have a positive impact on the environment while still doing the things they love to do. The main theme is that a huge amount of waste takes place in almost every production process currently in use. McDonough and Braungart point out that vast quantities of insanely valuable materials are lost to landfills, or "downcycled" in inefficient recycling processes, every year-- car bodies, large appliances, and everything else that must be discarded when no longer usable. The book makes some interesting suggestions about different ways people could conserve and recycle materials. (The slogan "Waste equals food" is often repeated.)

The authors suggest that there are two kinds of "nutrients"-- biological and technological-- and that if they can be kept separate, each can be reused again and again. As it is, so-called "monstrous hybrids" (products in which synthetic and natural materials are closely combined) make sure that nutrients used in consumer products can never be fully recovered, since synthetics clog up the landfills and naturals clog up the recycling process. The book also spends some time talking about green roofs, natural wastewater-treatment systems, and other friendly green things.

I kind of hate giving the book only three stars, because it was really interesting and I did enjoy it. The main thing that bothered me was the lack of concrete examples the authors provided. Several case studies are mentioned-- mostly happy green architectural projects McDonough's been involved in-- but there are no citations for them, and no follow-up on how well the new designs and strategies have worked over time. The ideas sound great, but it would be nice to have a convenient way to find out whether they actually worked well in practice.

I'd still recommend the book, and I hope that a lot of people end up reading it. I'd kind of like the authors to come up with a new, expanded edition of it, though.(less)

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03/11/08

Ana rated it:

Read in April, 2008

Great read! Encourages development of products that are not only less harmless, but actually _nutritious_ for our environment. The book is not even made of paper, but of synthetic materials that don’t use “wood pulp or cotton fiber and can be broken down and circulated infinitely in industrial cycles."

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05/27/09

Widyoseno rated it:

bookshelves: business, green

Read in March, 2009

Changing the way we make things. What if the design procedure is compatible not only for human but to other living creature as well, not forgetting the future generation.

What if the product not only does protect and contain the contents inside but also flourish the environment? Start thinking when customers can toss their goods out without feeling any guilt but pleased since the products will be needed for the trees.

When will we stop being scared of ourself harming our su...more

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10/03/07

Jen rated it:

bookshelves: currentlyre-reading

Read in January, 2005

recommends it for: EVERYONE!

This man is one of the most innovative thinkers of our time. This book will change you and how you think about everything around you. Read it.

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04/02/09

Amaury Sautour rated it:

bookshelves: social---environment

Read in May, 2009

Thank God people like Bill McDonough and Michael Braungart exist and share their knowledge. Cradle to cradle seems like the smartest vision of what our generation and the ones to come should aim at doing in society of consumerism.

I am myself a person who recycles, but I never thought about the "downcycling" effect entailed by most of today's recycling processes. The cradle-to-cradle approach proposes to rethink from scratch:
- what constituents should be put in the ve...more

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06/22/09

Kate rated it:

Read in May, 2009

This is the book where Peter Senge got a lot of the ideas/information for "A Necessary Revolution" - a book that I think everyone should read. Cradle to Cradle provides the basis (and mandate) for sustainability in the marketplace. The messages and examples are stronger and a little more technical in this book than in "Necessary Revolution." It is a lot more grounded in theory and less of a guidebook for people interested in employing these ideas in their own organizations, s...more

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01/25/09

Diana rated it:

bookshelves: environmental

Read in February, 2006

This book is made out of recycled plastic. I loved that I was able to read it in the bathtub.

The book begins very thought-provoking and makes one aware of the trash crisis experienced around the world, and starts to make some good points about how to solve the problem, but gets stuck in the middle and doesn't really pick up again. Perhaps this is because none of the solutions that are so obvious will ever be considered seriously? It is a good read, but slightly depressing to an ideal...more

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12/24/08

Tinabeans rated it:

bookshelves: non-fiction

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in June, 2009

recommends it for: everyone

The central premise of Cradle to Cradle is we need to rethink and retool how we design and manufacture physical products. The authors argue that we currently follow a "cradle-to-grave" model, which results in the loss of valuable materials to landfill (which further poisons the land with chemicals off-gassing and leeching). Alternatively, they propose thinking of all physical resources as nutrients, which, like molecules in nature, can be cycled infinitely without loss of integrity and...more The central premise of Cradle to Cradle is we need to rethink and retool how we design and manufacture physical products. The authors argue that we currently follow a "cradle-to-grave" model, which results in the loss of valuable materials to landfill (which further poisons the land with chemicals off-gassing and leeching). Alternatively, they propose thinking of all physical resources as nutrients, which, like molecules in nature, can be cycled infinitely without loss of integrity and depletion. This would pave the way to a new "cradle-to-cradle" approach, in which. This main argument is set in the context of a greater, eco-centric philosophical mindset, in which all of our actions have ecological consequences and therefore we should seek to assimilate nature's rules and existing energy and material flows. Finally, the authors are vocally against being "less bad." Instead, they advocate breaking out of the current trend of focusing on "efficiency" – continuing to pollute and deplete resources, but more slowly - and focus instead of "effectiveness" - eradicating the dangers of pollution and finite resources entirely.

This was extremely uplifting to read and I wholehearted embrace their entire argument. The book is also positively overflowing with optimism and faith in humanity, and it's infectious. Remarkably, they manage to remain positive even while being sternly critical of mainstream worldviews and practices.

In the first half of the book, the spend a lot of time waxing ecstatic about the joys of nature and asking us to "imagine if..." If you a bit of a cynic (and I think the right amount of cynicism in any situation is healthy), these can get old rather fast. On the other hand, if you lean towards the idealistic side, these can be positively galvanizing. However, I wonder if the efflusive idealism can be a turn-off for more skeptical readers.

This relates to my main problem with this book, which is that studied, concrete examples based in hard science and technology feel too few and far between, particularly in the first half of the book. The latter half begins to get down-and-dirty with case studies and specifics, thus showcasing the authors' expertise in the field, but it might come too late for the aforementioned skeptics. At that point, I can imagine that some might get sick of all the philosophizing early on and ditch the rest of the book.

Overall, despite having a last chapter of instructive steps for taking action, this feels more like a manifesto than a guide to taking action.

Critique aside, I love that every time I read a few pages of this book, I can't help but feel buoyed with a sense of great excitement... If you are an idealistic person, then you should allow yourself to be convinced by the glowing vision that this book sketches out. Because it is a wonderful feeling to be charged with hope and determination. After reading this book, really just want to dedicate my life to fighting the good fight for our only Earth. (If only I didn't already purportedly dedicate my life to 10 other things. =D)(less)

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11/16/08

Garrett rated it:

A must read for literally everyone. As a environmentalist with socialistic leanings, I had never considered that capitalism could be such a friend for the environment. The authors - persons with serious environmental credentials - paint a picture of optimism so badly needed now in a world filled with Doomsday scenarios. As much as it is a cliche, this book really did change how I saw how the world could be changed for the better.

The main assertion is that recycling is really a mat...more

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