Cradle to Cradle Is a Sustainable Solution
C2C and How It Helps Us Move Towards Zero Waste
The term Cradle to Cradle (C2C) evolved from the ideas of Swiss architect Walter R. Stahel. In 1976, Stahel and Genevieve Reday published the research report, "The Potential for Substituting Manpower for Energy," for DG Manpower and The European Commission. They discussed the idea of an economy in loops (or circular economy) and its impact on creating jobs, economic competitiveness, resource savings, and waste prevention, according to Walter Stahel in the Product-Life.org online article "The Emergence of the Term Cradle to Cradle."
In Stahel's 1982 Mitchell Prizes prize-winning paper "The Product-Life Factor," he suggests selling USE rather than goods "as the ultimate sustainable business model of a loop economy." Additionally, in "The Emergence of the Term Cradle to Cradle" article, Stahel discussed a loop economy as more profitable than the existing throughput economy. For a loop economy to be successful, he suggested that the industrial economy and its framework would need to be restructured.
Cradle to Cradle Not Cradle to Grave
After this report, some economists suggested a cradle to grave solution, because it was compatible with the existing economic model and massive changes would not have to be made. Stahel defended his ideas by pointing out that cradle to grave still relied on end-of-pipe solutions, which is the treatment of wastes and polluted streams. Ultimately, we are going to have to change the way we design our products, industries, and cities so that there is no end-of-pipe wastes to treat. The only sustainable solution is to use durable goods in a loop economy from cradle back to cradle.
MBDC and C2C Certification
The German chemist Michael Braungart also promoted the idea of recycling as a loop. Braungart worked with William McDonough on Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things, a book that discusses practical steps on how to create ecologically intelligent products that allow the co-existence of nature and commerce. McDonough and Braungart founded the firm McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC) in 1995. This firm offers companies Cradle to Cradle project consulting, education, and training to help them create ecologically intelligent products and services.
MBDC awards C2C Certification each year to qualifying companies. According to the mbdc.com online article "MBDC Cradle to Cradle Certification," Cradle to Cradle certification provides companies with a way to measure achievement in environmentally-intelligent design. It helps companies purchase and "specify products that are pursuing a broader definition of quality." When a company's product meets the criteria defined by MBDC C2C Certification, it is certified as a Silver, Gold, or Platinum product and can carry the label of Cradle to Cradle Certified.
Cradle to Cradle Certification encourages manufacturers to make their products totally recyclable, using materials designed to be reused rather than ending up in the dump. As more companies strive for C2C Certification, we will move closer to an environment that generates zero waste.
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