Cradle 2 Cradle, The new paint innovation!

http://www.duurzaamheid.nl/cradletocradle/

Good news for all Dutch and Belgian people keen to contribute to a sustainable world: a Dutch edition of 'Cradle To Cradle - Remaking the Way We Make Things', the trailblazing book by Michael Braungart and William McDonough, has just been published as 'Cradle to Cradle – Afval = voedsel' [Cradle to Cradle – Waste = food].

The Netherlands and Belgium can now put Braungart and McDonough’s ideas into practice: adopting an entirely new premise for the design and development of products and buildings based on safe and fully reusable raw materials. Waste thus becomes food in an endless loop.

Source: http://www.schildersblad.nl/Compleet-artikel/17788/221063/Experimenten-met-C2C-verf-in-pilots.html

Heroes of the planet


Michael Braungart and William McDonough have deservedly been designated ‘heroes of the planet’. They have developed a revolutionary vision of sustainable design, production and reuse. But Cradle to Cradle is more than that; it is a new economic model and business concept. Cradle to Cradle challenges decision-makers, industry, politicians, innovators and ‘cultural creatives’ to put an end to the depletion and pollution of our planet.
Visionaries

Michael Braungart and William McDonough are visionaries who, by their concrete, very workable concepts, also demonstrate that they have both feet firmly on the ground. Their Cradle to Cradle philosophy could pave the way for the next industrial revolution.
William McDonough is an architect and the founder of the firm of architects William McDonough + Partners, Architecture and Community Design, in Charlottesville, Virginia (US). Between 1994 and 1999 he was dean of the faculty of architecture at the University of Virginia. In 1999 Time magazine hailed him as a ‘hero of the planet' and declared that ‘his utopianism is grounded in a unified philosophy that - in demonstrable and practical ways - is changing the design of the world.' In 1996 he was awarded the Presidential Award for Sustainable Development, the highest environmental honour awarded by the US.
Michael Braungart is a chemist and the founder of EPEA (Environmental Protection Encouragement Agency) in Hamburg. Before that he headed the Chemistry Section at Greenpeace. Since 1984 he has been delivering lectures at universities, businesses and institutions all over the world on crucial new concepts for ecological chemistry and the management of flows of materials. Braungart has received a number of honourable mentions, prizes and fellowships from Heinz Endowment, the W. Alton Jones Foundation and other organisations.

MBDC

In 1995 the authors set up McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry, a company that develops products and systems to help their clients to implement their unique Cradle to Cradle protocol for sustainable design. Their clients include the Ford Motor Company, Nike, Herman Miller, Procter & Gamble, General Electric, BASF, DesignTex, Pendleton, Triumph International, Volvo and the city of Chicago. The MBDC website can be found at http://www.mbdc.com./

Looking at Nature as Model, Measure, and Mentor..Listen to Janine Benyus and natures answers!

One example of the Biomimétic Technology in the paint industry: 

http://www.asknature.org/product/b3a96e92b68e9de4226c40e058409d30#changeTab

http://www.sto.co.uk/25779_EN-Facade_paints-StoLotusan_Color.htm

What is an earthship?

A few years ago I got in contact with the concept the first time when I was browsing on the internet. I found out there where people in Spain building an Earthship and after some emails with the lady of the house Lisa-jane, I made an appointment to visit them near Valencia. http://oscarlisabuild.blogspot.com/
It was a really pleasant stay and I was surprised by the kind hospitality of this family. Together they had a fantastic goal, to finish there own earthship to be completely independent regarding energy supply and on top of that they where contributing for a better environment by using only recycled and ecological products.


Defined an earthship house is made up of rammed earth and tires. The tires are stacked (staggered) like bricks. Each tire has earth pounded into them until firmly packed. Once the tires are packed, they are very difficult to move and form quite a dense wall. The walls are load bearing and provide thermal mass which is an important attribute to any energy efficient house. Thermal mass stores heat and releases the heat slowly. This keeps indoor temperature constant while outside temperatures fluctuate. Once the walls are in place, the walls are quite often plastered over and appear very similar to an adobe style house.

Michael Reynolds a Southwestern US architect is credited with building the first earthship. His wife coined the phrase because the house was self-sustaining, requiring no outside source of water nor electricity. The house just kind of sailed around, hence the name earthship. The house was built out of discarded materials such as automobile tires and aluminum cans and finished with natural adobe.

What are the advantages of building an earthship?

Energy Efficiency - Earthships provide a large amount of thermal mass. This helps keep the house cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Most homes of this type have been built in the southwestern part of the United States although I did visit a house under construction in Bancroft, Ontario. I don't recall if the owners were going to insulate the outside at all, but it may not be a bad idea for northern climates.

Self-Sustainability - The homes are designed to take advantage of natural resources. The homes are typically built in rectangular form and oriented to take advantage of passive solar radiation. Rainwater is also stored in cisterns and gray water is recycled.

"Buildability" - Earthships can be owner built. There is obviously, quite a bit of labor involved but if time is not a factor, a house of this type could be built with just a couple of workers. Basic carpentry, plumbing and electric skills are required.

Easy Availability - Not only are tires easy to get, some places will pay you to take them away! There are plenty of tires, bottles and aluminum cans around

For more information about earthships have a look on:

http://www.earthshipbiotecture.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthship
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ENIhmDskmY&feature=fvw