Architect William McDonough and chemist Dr. Michael Braungart made a huge splash on the green scene in 2002 with their book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things and have since created an entire movement. Their Cradle to Cradle (C2C) framework is a paradigm shift to eliminate waste through innovative design. Originally developed in 1995, the framework posits that sustainable design, based on the laws of nature, can transform the consumer economy into a regenerative force. The C2C model provides a blueprint for redesigning products and ingredients to become nutrients, enabling old products to become the raw material for new goods and services.

They have since created a C2C certification program (through MBDC), for companies and products that adhere to the C2C criteria. Companies such as Herman Miller, Method, Steelcase and many others have products that have been C2C certified.

And last week, they announced that they were starting the Green Products Innovation Institute, Inc. (GPII), a non-profit organization based in California focused on transforming the making and consumption of things into a regenerative force for the planet. The announcement happened at Google Headquarters in Mountain View, CA, and included GPII founders and supporters, including William McDonough, Governor Schwarzenegger, Adam Lowry, James Cameron, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and many other political, business and design leaders.

The Institute will provide consumers with a valuable resource to ensure that the products they use daily at home, school and work—in every aspect of their lives—are safe and healthy. Rather than focusing on how to make the ingredients in consumer products “less bad,” the GPII is designed to be a resource for those who aspire to be “more good” and achieve new levels of environmental and human health and safety for all products sold in California (and soon, beyond).

The Institute, using the C2C protocols, will work with leaders from academia, the NGO environmental community, government and industry to establish a rating system for evaluating products. Products that meet the criteria will receive the Cradle to Cradle product mark. In addition to the data on toxic chemicals that will be collected as a part of the state’s Toxic’s Information Clearinghouse, there will also be a list of safer “positive” alternative chemicals list created that will enable greater innovation by industry. That innovation will, in turn, lead to safer products and bring us closer to a global Cradle to Cradle economy. Using the C2C framework, the GPII is set to transform how companies design, manufacture and use chemicals, fostering innovation and job growth in a new green chemistry sector.

As an architect, I want to make buildings healthy and choose materials that will have future lives, but it isn’t always easy to know what to avoid, as well as what are the best alternative solutions. That is where GPII can help. The creation of GPII is an exciting step for making C2C principles more accessible—not only for consumers to understand, but also for designers, architects, and companies to adopt in their designs and products. The C2C ideas are big, and the Institute has the promise to make the big innovative ideas a built mainstream reality.

Govenor Schwarzenegger brought a Green Chemistry program into law requiring the toughest, most comprehensive regulatory regime in the country for identifying harmful chemicals in consumer products and require manufacturers of those products to evaluate safer alternatives. This law also gives authority to California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to take action for imposing restrictions and bans. The DTSC and GPII will be collaborating on strong standards and offering solutions.

“The time is now for us to go beyond simply being “less bad” and to lead the world in the invention and innovation of “more good” with Cradle to Cradle products and a prosperous Cradle to Cradle economy. Together, we will inspire and transform the world.”—Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

Not only am I a huge William McDonough and C2C fan, but I am also proud to be an advisor with GPII.—Michelle Kaufmann

Of late, the lowly shower drain has undergone a style makeover of sorts. Once a strictly utilitarian component of the bathroom that only got noticed when clogged with hair, it has been re-imagined with decorative grille patterns and in sleeker linear formats that discreetly drain without calling attention to themselves.

The latest to hit the North American market is CeraLine, which has enjoyed some popularity in Europe and Asia for years and is only now being introduced to these shores by California Faucets. And none too soon, some may say. For one thing, it comes with much fanfare, having won six international design awards, including the much celebrated red dot design award as well as a Good Design Award, and takes shower discretion to a new level.

So what’s different about CeraLine? For one thing, it’s equipped with height-adjustment features that ensure level installation every time. And if you’re looking for drain holes, don’t bother because there aren’t any. Water drainage occurs along the sides, which explains the unobtrusive look. CeraLine is offered in three cover plate trim styles in sizes ranging from 32 in. to 52 in.

But if you’re a real stickler for that clean, barely-there look, it can also be specified with a custom trim to match the shower floor.

Finishes include stainless steel and five PVD finishes.—Alice Liao

Of late, the lowly shower drain has undergone a style makeover of sorts. Once a strictly utilitarian component of the bathroom that only got noticed when clogged with hair, it has been re-imagined with decorative grille patterns and in sleeker linear formats that discreetly drain without calling attention to themselves.

The latest to hit the North American market is CeraLine, which has enjoyed some popularity in Europe and Asia for years and is only now being introduced to these shores by California Faucets. And none too soon, some may say. For one thing, it comes with much fanfare, having won six international design awards, including the much celebrated red dot design award as well as a Good Design Award, and takes shower discretion to a new level.

So what’s different about CeraLine? For one thing, it’s equipped with height-adjustment features that ensure level installation every time. And if you’re looking for drain holes, don’t bother because there aren’t any. Water drainage occurs along the sides, which explains the unobtrusive look. CeraLine is offered in three cover plate trim styles in sizes ranging from 32 in. to 52 in.

But if you’re a real stickler for that clean, barely-there look, it can also be specified with a custom trim to match the shower floor.

Finishes include stainless steel and five PVD finishes.—Alice Liao

I feel very lucky that I can write about the thing I love to do most—design. There are so many wonderful things happening in the world of interior design, and getting to go to trade shows and see gorgeous products firsthand is nothing short of amazing. As a green designer, I am continually pleased and excited about what’s changing and evolving in materials and products in the kitchen and bath business, as well as the rest of the home. I get really pumped when I see that manufacturers are really “getting it” and changing the way they manufacture and produce their products to make them more sustainable. I have seen green design go from a trend to a mainstream market, even with the downturn in the economy.

So what’s my point? Tonight I’m on a plane to New Orleans to visit a job site, and I have some time to think about what my next blog post will be, and what new, cool thing I can talk about. But I’m not really feeling so great about the latest and greatest hot new product right now. The oil spill in the Gulf has really put me in a tailspin.

I try not to watch too much news on TV. I like to keep up with current events, but I really have to pace myself and not watch it more than once or twice a week. There’s too much going on that disturbs me so I’m better off just tuning in now and then. I know this might sound like a cop-out or that I have my head buried in the sand, but I can’t help it. I simply can’t see how keeping abreast of every news event worldwide every day is going to make me be a better person. There’s a Buddhist philosophy that states that everything you see, hear, think or say has a profound effect on your soul. I truly believe that, and watching hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil and natural gas spew into the Gulf of Mexico is really doing a number on mine.

I just don’t get it. It’s been three or four weeks since this tragedy unfolded, killing several workers at the outset. That’s enough of a tragedy in itself, but the oil continues to flow into the waters, doing untold damage to the wildlife and the ecosystem. And nothing is going on. The “blame game” is being played by BP. Washington, DC, has created a “committee” to look into the problem, and even Kevin Costner seems to have an idea about how to fix the problem. I feel completely helpless, as I’m sure you do. I don’t know what to say, what to do.

There’s a song by Marvin Gaye from 1971 called “The Ecology—Mercy, Mercy Me.” If you get a chance, find it on iTunes and listen to it. The words are below.

“Oh, mercy mercy me
Oh, things ain’t what they used to be
No, no
Where did all the blue sky go?
Poison is the wind that blows
From the north, east, south, and sea
Oh, mercy mercy me
Oh, things ain’t what they used to be
No, no
Oil wasted on the oceans and upon our seas
Fish full of mercury
Oh, mercy mercy me
Oh, things ain’t what they used to be
No, no
Radiation in the ground and in the sky
Animals and birds who live nearby are dying
Oh, mercy mercy me
Oh, things ain’t what they used to be
What about this overcrowded land?
How much more abuse from man can you stand?”

Mercy, Mercy me………………..

—Patrcia Gaylor