Chapter Three
Eco-Effectiveness:
- Design of the "Cradle to Cradle" book: Paper is
biodegradable but ink contains carbon black and
heavy metals. The jacket contains wood pulp,
polymers, and coatings, as well as inks, heavy
metals, and halogenated hydrocarbons. It cannot
be safely composed or burned. Compare to the
"eco-friendly" book: beige, recycled paper, soy-
based inks, thin, un-coated text stock and the
absence of a jacket. Its design suffers and it is
not reader-friendly. It is eco-friendly, or IS IT?
The paper: chlorine free paper sounded good,
but it requires virgin pulp which would still
contain some natural chlorinated salts. So,
chew up forests or pollute rivers? They chose
the latter as the least of evils. The inks: soy-
based inks might include halogenated hydrocarbons
or other toxins. The cover's fragile paper requires
coating and so is not recyclable. The books fibers
are not made to last even as long as conventional
paper.
- Re-imagine/replace "paper." Instead of paper,
plastics developed around a different paradigm
for materials - polymers that are infinitely
recyclable at the same level of quality. Nontoxic
inks can be washed off the polymer with a simple
and safe chemical process or an extremely hot
water bath.
- This book: Although not the book in the
description above, it is a step in that
direction, thanks to Charlie Melcher of
Melcher Media. Made from a waterproof
polymer, it does off-gass, but has the potential
to be "upcycled."
Consider the Cherry Tree
- The tree makes copious blossoms and fruit without
depleting its environment. Once they fall on the
ground, their materials decompose and break
down into nutrients that nourish microorganisms,
insects, plants, animals, and soil - what might the
human-built world look like if a cherry tree had
produced it?
- Imagine a building designed and built by the cherry
tree: daylight pours in, views of the outdoors are
plentiful through large, untinted windows, each of
the occupants has five views from where they sit,
delicious and affordable food and beverages are
available to employees in a cafe that opens onto a
sun-filled courtyard. Each office space has control
over the flow of fresh air and temperature. The
windows open. The cooling system maximizes
natural air flow as in a hacienda: at night, the
system flushes the building with cool evening
air, bringing the temperature down and clearing
the rooms of stale air and toxins. Native grasses
cover the roof, attracting songbirds and protecting
the roof from thermal shock and ultraviolet
radiation.
- See the Herman Miller Factory by McDonough
+ Partners: Designed the factory around a tree-
lined interior conceived as a brightly daylit "street"
that ran the entire length of the building.
What is Growth?
- Natural growth usually perceived as beautiful and
healthy. Industrial growth called into question by
environmentalists and other concerned about the
rapacious use of resources and the disintegration
of culture and environment.
- Consider the Cherry Tree: It's growth sets in motion
a number of positive effects.
- Consider ants: They are a good example of a
population whose density and productiveness are
not a problem for the rest of the world, because
everything they make and use returns to the
cradle to cradle cycles of nature - compare to a
strip mall, (jobs and money circulating through
the local economy gained through the "cost" of
increased traffic, asphalt, pollution, and waste),
or a textile factory where water may come in
clean but goes out contaminated with fabric
dyes, which usually contains toxins such as
cobalt, zirconium, other heavy metals, and
finishing chemicals.
Once upon a roof
- Conventional roofing surfaces: Part of the
growing landscape of impervious surfaces
contributing to heat gain, re-emission of solar
energy, and increased water run-off. Compare to
a dynamic roof that responds to these issues
through its composition of soil and plants. It
provides free evaporative cooling in hot weather
and insulation in cold weather, shelter from the
sun's destructive rays. It makes oxygen, sequesters
carbon, captures particulates, and absorbs storm
water.
Beyond Control
- Toward a shift in perspective from the old view
of nature as something to be controlled to a
stance of engagement - "Nature being known,
it may be master'd, managed, and used in the
services of human life." - Francis Bacon.
- The story of the forbidden cherry tree: Hannover,
Germany neighborhood plants a cherry tree as a
habitat for songbirds and for people who might
want to eat the cherries. The legislature viewed
the tree as a risk due to it's unpredictability and
potential liability - a metaphor for a culture of
control.
Becoming a Native
- The notion of colonizing other planets as license
for destruction of this planet. Lets use our
ingenuity to stay here; to become , once again,
native to this planet.
- The Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin: Harvesting
wood from the forest at a rate at which the forest
can handle, thus achieving a balance between their
need for timber and the needs of the forest.
- The Yakima Indian Nation, whose traditional lands
include much of the Hanford Reservation, site for
long-term radioactive waste storage. The Yakima
were surprised - even - amused at concern over
their descendant's safety relative to the nuclear
waste. Their conception of themselves was not
historical, but eternal, thus there was no question
of whether or not future generations would be
alerted to any dangers present in the land.
The New Design Assignment
- Instead of fine tuning the existing destructive
framework, why don't people and industries set out
to create buildings, factories, products, materials,
transportation, A WORLD, inspired by the
abundance and fecundity of nature and natural
systems.
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