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| The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability - Designing for Abundance by William McDonough & Michael Braungart |
January 22, 2017
Book 4 - The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability--Designing for Abundance
by William McDonough and Michael Braungart (2013)
by William McDonough and Michael Braungart (2013)
Part 4 - Pages 183-217
Reading Time - 40 minutes
This is a book of hope - hope for the future, for our planet, for humanity. It inspired me even though I'm not a designer of anything, other than my backyard garden. But even there, I think now of the ways in which we could upcycle things.
For example, we salvage wooden pallets from the liquor store. Normally, we cut these up to burn as firewood in our fireplace. But what if we could find a way to cut the slats off the frames more efficiently. We'd have an endless supply of wood to use for our various building projects. It's one additional stage of life for the pallet.
Ultimately, the authors envision a world in which we can go from surviving to thriving. That we can make the world a better place than when we came into it. Which is one of the first lessons one learns when going into the woods. Pack it in and then pack it out (your garbage). But... if you see someone else's garbage, pack that out too. Making the world a better place. It can't just be governments and non-profits and environmental groups though. It has to be businesses and companies. They are the ones who can really make a difference. The question is... how to engage them to see that this can make their companies more profitable AND make the world a better place. Would be nice to have a win-win scenario!
Next Book
Almost Green - How I built an Eco-Shed
James Glave - 2008
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