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October 26, 2007 Hot News, Cool Trends in Sustainable Design Home | Climate News & Ideas | Connections | Events | About

Toyota Launches YouTube Green Design Channel Toyota's new Green Design channel features a series of minute-long videos highlighting environmental innovations from a wide range of sectors. Read more... Car Makers Strive, Stumble Toward "Sustainable Zoom-Zoom" A series of Reuters reports from the Tokyo Autoshow this week show car makers confronting the harsh reality of a carbon-constrained world — and still coming up short. Manufacturers are struggling to develop new alternative engine technologies despite the knowledge that failure may result in extremely hard times for the sector. Read more... Dell Seeks Help Designing "Green Computer of the Future" Dell has announced a global design contest seeking fresh ideas to help its engineers design the world’s most environmentally responsible computing technology. Read more... Design's Green Leap Forward Got an eye for green design? Dig into the October 2007 special edition from Metropolis Magazine. We loved "7 Steps in the Lifecycle of a Green Product," a series of features that map to each stage of a product's development, from materials selection and production to use and end-of-life. "What It Means to Be Green" offers a much-needed breakdown of the latest green-design certifications (even we were surprised at the length of the list) and "Made to Last" makes a compelling case for excellent craftsmanship as the ultimate green strategy. You'll read this one from cover to cover! A Primer on "Cradle to Cradle" This MSNBC article comes in the wake of the introduction last month of a new international partnership designed to boost visibility for the Cradle to Cradle certification scheme pioneered by McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry. It's a good overview for those new to the topic, although we're not crazy about MSNBC's applying the term "hyper-green" to C2C-certified consumer products. Even if this stuff is old hat to you, it's still worth a look at the "Fact File" box at the bottom of the article, which describes a few current products that have earned Cradle to Cradle and why. More Greener Design News... Forward to a Friend! Johnathan Goodwin: The Patron Saint of Green Cars Fast Company calls him the "motorhead messiah," others are content with the relatively humble "patron saint of green cars." The point is, Johnathan Goodwin can get 100 mpg out of a Lincoln Continental while cutting emissions by 80% — and double the horsepower while he's at it, according to this profile of a true green design pioneer. Growing the Greenest Plastic Bottles The increased availability of bio- degradable or recycled materials has contributed to a global rethink among food and drink manufacturers and retailers about the type and quantity of packaging they use. And it's is not just vanguard organic retailers such as Wholefoods that are switching to more sustainable packaging. (Financial Times) Read more... Find Peers and Partners If you haven’t already joined the fastest growing online sustainable business community, create a profile now and start connecting. Solution Providers

Sustainable Life Media is home for business professionals looking to build new value and competitive advantage by innovating more sustainable processes, practices and products. We bring you top stories related to the what, who and how of environmental and social innovation, and help you connect with thought leaders, peers, partners and solutions providers that can help you quickly reach your goals. This work is licensed under a CreativeCommons License. Copyright Sustainable Life Media Inc. 2007

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