Who’s Who in Green - William McDonough

William McDonough, along with last week’s Who’s Who in Green, Michael Braungart, developed one of the most important eco-concepts of our time: the Cradle to Cradle design philosophy. McDonough, a Hong Kong-born American architect, is also the founding principal of William McDonough + Partners, a sustainable design firm with clients like IBM, Nike and Gap Inc. Through McDonough’s work over the years, we’ve all come to realize how important it is to keep the environment in mind when building new structures.

McDonough has won three U.S. Presidential awards: the Presidential Award for Sustainable Development (1996), the National Design Award (2004) and the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award (2003). He’s been recognized by TIME Magazine as a ‘Hero of the Planet’, and enjoys world renown for his work as an architect and designer.

Along with German chemist Michael Braungart, McDonough founded McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC), a product and process design firm that emphasizes their concept Cradle to Cradle design and the implementation of eco-friendly design principles. Cradle to Cradle products and services are designed to mimic processes in nature, eliminating the concept of waste to instead give something back to the earth when the item’s usefulness has passed. Since McDonough and Braungart published their co-authored book, Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things in 2002, the concept has been eagerly embraced as an innovation that could very well help us save the earth from a future clogged with trash.

The Nike European Headquarters and the Chicago City Hall Green Roof, by William McDonough + Partners

In February of 2005, McDonough addressed a crowd in Monterey, California about signs that our planet is in danger, what motivated him to join the environmental movement and how Cradle to Cradle can help us move in a better direction. Check out the video below:

McDonough spoke of his limited scientific knowledge and how he gets around that, and what he’s most excited about to the Architectural Record in a 2007 interview:

I rely on a chemist for chemistry, and I need a multi-disciplinary team to do my work, but I don’t have to know chemistry. I think the important thing for architectural education is to teach that we need multi-disciplinary teams to do the green work. Not every firm can have a chemist, but they can rely on us for chemistry. We’re doing the chemistry of products and materials. We’re looking to create a cadre of thousands of designers who use the same index for ecological intelligence.

Two aspects are exciting to me in terms of my work. One is that many people are adopting cradle to cradle and the specific strategies that Michael and I are proposing. It’s a framework that can be understood by anyone. Things go back to nature; they go back to industry. The result is clean water, clean air, people being treated fairly, and life goes on. The other is that with so many people taking this up, I can now move on to the next level. Clients have become sophisticated, which allows us to continuously push the envelope. So we don’t market ourselves; we respond to the marketplace.

McDonough may not be a scientist, but he’s one of a very promising new crop of environmental leaders who are helping to get our society back on track. The Industrial Revolution is deeply flawed, and we’re only beginning to see the consequences of 20th century manufacturers’ lack of consideration for the waste factor. Cradle to Cradle and other eco-friendly design principles are going to help us move forward in a way that’s responsible and sustainable.

If you’d like to hear William McDonough speak in person, check out the Green Festival in Washington, DC on November 8th.

William McDonough’s Green Score: 79,593

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