As a part of Google’s Environment Day on April 25th, we invited architect, designer, thought leader, and author William McDonough to Google NYC for a talk on "Design as Optimism." Moderated by Mary Davidge. Design is the first signal of human intention. We are all designers because we all have intentions. What if our intention is to do good and make the world better because we are here? William McDonough shares real world examples of materials, products, buildings, communities, and economies that were designed in the search for good. About William McDonough William McDonough points the way toward “more good, rather than less bad” values and practices for businesses in all sectors at all scales—showing how a positive future of continuous improvement is possible now. He is an architect, a global leader in sustainable development, and serves on the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Future of Environment and Natural Resource Security. For more than 40 years, McDonough—through McDonough Innovation, William McDonough + Partners, Architects, and MBDC—has defined the principles of the sustainability movement. He is co-author of Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things (2002) and The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability—Designing for Abundance (2013). He also co-founded the not-for-profit Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute; and in 2012, he became the subject of Stanford University Libraries’ first “living archive.” McDonough has received the Presidential Award for Sustainable Development (1996), the first U.S. EPA Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award (2003), and the National Design Award (2004). In January 2017, he was awarded the Fortune Award for Circular Economy Leadership at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting where he was hailed as “the father of the circular economy”. In 2009, he co-founded the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, to scale up the rigorous product certification program. Time magazine recognized him as a “Hero for the Planet,” noting: “His utopianism is grounded in a unified philosophy that—in demonstrable and practical ways—is changing the design of the world.”

Watch their full talk here: http://bit.ly/2lTHbh5 Extraordinary award-winning poets, performance activists and cultural architects Alixa Garcia and Naima Penniman of Climbing PoeTree explore the network of mutuality that binds our existence through the ricochet of oppression and the reciprocity of liberation. Their art is a tool for catalyzing action, cross-pollinating solutions, getting at the root of our most pressing social and ecological issues, and reminding us that we all belong to each other. This speech was given at the 2016 National Bioneers Conference. Since 1990, Bioneers has acted as a fertile hub of social and scientific innovators with practical and visionary solutions for the world's most pressing environmental and social challenges. Subscribe to the Bioneers Radio Series, available on iTunes and other podcast providers and on your local radio station. Support Bioneers today: www.bioneers.org/donate Please join our mailing list (http://www.bioneers.org/subscribe), stay in touch via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/Bioneers.org) and follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/bioneers).

Amy Roberts, Vice President, Government Affairs of Outdoor Industry Association sat down for an interview by Christine Arena of 3BL Media at the 2011 Ceres Conference held May 11th and 12th 2011 in Oakland, CA.  Ms. Roberts addresses the large scale changes companies are going to have to make in their supply chains using the apparel industry as one example. She references their eco-index tool available for free on the Webite.

Architect, scientist, and humanitarian Sergio Palleroni zooms out to remind us of the great imabalances that we as humans have created on our planet, and how through local, community-generated actions and most importantly, education and the implication of students in real projects, have the power to slowly but surely mend the fabric of socities, preserve indigenous communities and improve the living standards of every human being. Event organized by www.blog.arkinet.com in collaboration with www.Elisava.net.

Streamed live on February 28th 2017

Published on Sep 15, 2016

Published on Nov 6, 2014

As the world grapples with what some have deemed “the age of urbanization,” affordable* housing has become a great concern. Dr. Joan Clos, executive director of UN-Habitat recommends that housing should be a big part and at the center of the urban planning and design conversation. He means by that, that housing should come back to the center of the urban strategy: urban planning, design, and urban strategy. Published on Mar 19, 2015

When I moved into the Old Town/Chinatown neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, I saw within a three block area many buildings, two within a block, with a "U" as in unsafe.  The neighborhood I am told has the highest concentration of  such buildings.  It is a sad situation for a City that prides itself on its built environment. (April 2014)

UPDATE: December 2014 presentation about Unreinforced Masonry Buildings (UMB) here.