MATERIALS ECONOMYY

• A linear system of producing and consuming stuff on a finite planet and it wastes resources and communities.
• Extraction: Taking natural resources from the earth
• Production: Adding energy and chemicals to natural resources to make products.
• Consumption: Purchasing and using the products
• Planned Obsolescence - When a product is going to break or fail.  They are designed this way.
• Perceived Obsolescence - When a product is thought to no longer be useful, even if it still works.
• Cradle to Grave: extraction (birth) to disposal (death)
• Today’s model is “take, make, dispose”
• Circular economy: waste as food
• • Aims to keep things at best use and value at all times 
  • All waste is productively reincorporated into new production
• Cradle to Cradle = circular economy where waste from product brings new life to another product (birth to rebirth)
• Dell is using 50 million pounds of recycled materials and recovering 2 billion pounds of e-waste
• Energizer: Ecoadvanced battery, first battery made with 4% recycled materials
• Sustainability = the ability of natural systems to function, remain diverse, and produce needs for ecology to remain in balance.
• • Conservation of natural resources and reduction of impacts on ecosystems
  • Protecting natural habitats, developing eco-friendly products, conserving resources, ensuring air and water quality, reducing pollutants, reducing waste
• • Social equity 
  • Protects health of communities
  • Educates and empowers residents in process
  • Benefits to local communities?
• • Relates to cost
  • Generally: solutions/alternatives need to be close in cost to conventional methods to be successful 
  • Incentives for sustainable practices makes it more economically possible (tax credits)