Following their hugely successful and influential book, William McDonough and Michael Braungart’s Cradle to Cradle textile certification is now launching the second generation of its sustainable rating system for the greenest fabrics out there. Their sustainable design consultancy group McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC) will launch the new and improved Cradle to Cradle programs in September 2007, with new criteria based on information gathered during the first two years of the existing standards, and a ‘Basic’ level to sit alongside the Silver, Gold, and Platinum levels of certification.
Luna Textiles, Mezzanine Fabric, 100% Eco Intelligent Polyester (Cradle to Cradle Certification Gold)
The Cradle to Cradle design concept is based on the Intelligent Product System (IPS) pioneered by chemist Michael Braungart and his colleagues at EPEA.
Braungart’s design team was instrumental in developing Climatex Lifecycle Fabrics made from compostable natural fibers that include sustainably grown ramie and wool from free-range, humanely sheared sheep. Their Climatex Lifecyle Felt has also gained popularity with cutting-edge product designers who are attracted to the “waste equals food” aspect of the material.
MBDC defines part of the Next Industrial Revolution as “products that, when their useful life is over, do not become useless waste, but can be tossed onto the ground to decompose and become food for plants and animals, rebuilding soil; or, alternately, return to industrial cycles to supply high quality raw materials for new products.”
In addition to the much-anticipated re-launch of industry standards for Cradle to Cradle product evolution, Professor Braungart will also present at this year’s RITE (“Reducing the Impact of Textiles on the Environment”) Group conference to be held in London during October 2007.
+ MBDC Cradle to Cradle Design
+ Cradle to Cradle, the book, by William McDonough and Michael Braungart
Flip over a USPS Priority Mail and Express Mail package. They recieved a silver rating
what scholarships or grants do you offer for students of fashion who are interested to using reusable or sustainable fabrics? Please say you have something!
“humanely sheared sheep”? What does that mean?
Re: “humanely sheared sheep”? What does that mean?
Good question! In a lot of instances there is actually a difference between “conventionally sheared sheep” and “humanely sheared sheep”. The wool industry is sometimes like the egg and dairy industry where wool-bearing sheep are factory farmed so to speak, and the wool is procured as a slaughterhouse product. There are instances where sheep are not simply shorn when their wool or fleece is long enough, but rather mutilated, overcrowded in pens, shipped en mass, and in some instance killed for their byproduct alone. I won’t go into the gruesome details, but given the delicate nature of sheep shearing, there is big difference in how the animals get handled, particularly in the large groups that move through the shearing pens.
I grew up on a small family dairy and sheep farm, and even with the care that we took in shearing our flock each season, it was difficult to keep some animals from being cut and severely knicked by very sharp shears.
Granted this is inevitable in some cases, but a large operation does not always tend to these cuts and the infections that result, and subsequently the animals are disposed of.
When a designer mentions that the use humanely-sheared wool – they really mean it!
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