Page 37 from: Recycling International May/June issue 2023

INTERVIEW

37recyclinginternational.com | May/June | 2023

Revisiting how we’re
remaking our world
Only a few names come to mind when considering the pioneers of sustainability and German chemist

Michael Braungart is a notable example. His hit book ‘Cradle-to-Cradle’ set out how humans can make

a positive environmental impact by redesigning industrial production. Twenty-one years after the

book’s release, Recycling International catches up with the author who believes the younger genera-

tion, including those in the recycling industry, is increasingly taking the circular economy to heart.

‘The world has welcomed the circular
economy with open arms. It’s amazing
to see and, to be honest, I didn’t
quite expect positive change to take
such a big leap in such a relatively
short time.’ Despite the upbeat asser-
tion, Braungart starts the conversation
by acknowledging innovation doesn’t
happen overnight, not even the inter-
net. ‘And it took about 500 years for
mankind to understand that the earth
is not flat,’ he adds with a laugh.
‘People can be really stubborn.’

TIDAL WAVE OF EFFORT
‘I’m both humbled and proud at the
rate of our success. There are some
200 companies officially listed by our
Cradle-to-Cradle Centre representing
almost 16 000 certified products.
Many new frontrunners are filing pat-
ents for innovative products every
year.’
Yet Braungart insists: ‘Please don’t
think it was all my doing. I have a
great team, including my business
partner William McDonough. And let’s
not forget the hard work Ellen
McArthur has done with her founda-
tion – it has helped inspire people
around the world.’
Braungart recalls how McArthur raised
funds and used her popularity as a
prominent sportswoman to promote
his ideology. ‘I would say about 80%

of circular economy legislation is
based on her passion and public
appeal. She got the message through
to politicians in a way I never could
have, by translating the science about
biosphere and the technospere
(anthroposphere) into a social idea
that captures people’s imagination.
‘The momentum we witness in cradle-
to-cradle thinking today is absolutely
a direct result of everyone’s combined
effort.’

THE JOY OF DOING NOTHING
But there is still a long way to go.
‘People mostly interpret my book as
being about materials and products.
Sure, that’s part of it if you take my
words literally. But at the core it’s
about how we appreciate life and our
connection to nature. I get it that
companies want to decrease their
impact on the planet but how can any-
one really live in a way that is climate
neutral? It’s an impossible exercise
focussing on what not to do. Where is
the joy in that?
‘I don’t want people to strive to be
“less bad”. I want them to live with
positive intent, authentically. How is
wanting to be neutral a good objec-
tive? You can only be neutral if you
don’t exist.’
According to Braungart, the average
person emits about 168kg of carbon

dioxide a year just by breathing while
asleep. ‘I’ve measured this in my lab
by conducting an experiment with my
students. We were discussing the guilt
people feel for indulging. But you’re
polluting the world even if you do
nothing.’
A single tree offsets 21-31kg of car-
bon dioxide per annum. ‘The tree is in
perfect balance with the world around
it; it gives and takes. We’d be wise to
learn from this instead of thinking we
know better that nature herself.’

‘PERFECTLY WRONG’
The cornerstone of cradle-to-cradle
thinking is in celebrating the value of
nutrients, as Braungart calls them. ‘We
don’t have to get rid of waste. It’s part
of the circle of life and there will
always be waste. Just make sure it
serves a purpose in a way that makes
sense.’ The approach is suggested in
his book’s subtitle: ‘Remaking the way
we make things’.
‘My biggest enemies are people run-
ning sustainability departments,’ he
laughs. ‘These managers want to build
a fleet of electric company cars, install
insect hotels in the employees’ rest
area, reduce the number of plastic
bottles used or to boost the company
recycling rate by another 5%. They
don’t want to fundamentally change
things. They just want to boost the

Fotobijschrift

KADERKOP
??A U T H O R Kirstin Linnenkoper

36-37-38-39_michaelbraungart.indd 37 03-05-2023 16:54