As an engineer for an infant car seat company, I realize the tremendous pressure of designing safe products for babies and the world. That begins with understanding of what materials to use (or not).
PVC, or polyvinyl chloride, is one such material that has gotten a bad rap. It is a polymer of vinyl chloride, a known human carcinogen. Although, just because the monomer is dangerous, it should not necessarily mean that the polymer is dangerous? However, PVC factories raise vinyl chloride emissions and exposes workers and neighboring areas to the dangers. Other emissions from the manufacture of PVC are dioxins, which are a group of chlorinated hydrocarbons. Dioxins affect the growth regulation of cells, with some causing cancer in animals and increasing the cancer incidence in all sites for humans. Dioxins were used in Agent Orange, a powerful herbicide used in the Vietnam War. Incineration of PVC also releases dioxins, as well as hydrogen chloride gas (which forms hydrochloric acid when inhaled).
Most parents, however, are thinking mainly of the effects of PVC on their children. Rightly so, because PVC is known to have other additives that tend to leach out over the lifetime, including lead, cadmium, mercury. Some additives called plasticizers help make flexible PVC more durable. The most highly publicized plasticizers are phthalates. The most common phthalate in PVC (up to 40%) is DEHP, which is possibly carcinogenic to humans. DEHP cannot be taken up easily through the skin, but children are exposed by mouthing on PVC or through contaminated breast milk. Since DEHP does not easily disappear from the environment, bioaccumulation is a concern. The easy solution to limit children's exposure to DEHP is by avoiding PVC.
What about food safe PVC? That typically refers to PVC with a low phthalate content, so heating food carries a lower potential of chemicals leaching out. Considering that the lifecycle of PVC is so chemical intensive, it is easy to see why the food industry has been slowly switching to other plastics.
And the medical industry? Rigid PVC carries less of a chemical risk because of the lack of plasticizers, but there has been a move to replace PVC tubing with other flexible materials.
Bottom line: there are healthier alternatives than using PVC, so we have no excuse not to explore them.
Friday, July 18, 2008
be brave; do good
Another speaker at Compostmodern 2008 was Scott Stowell from Open, a New York Design Studio. He spoke extensively about Good Magazine, but the one thing that stuck in my mind was their business model. Apparently the average magazine spends $40 on advertising for each new subscriber. But the founders at Good wanted to re-think that notion and spend their money on a much, much worthier cause: they're giving all of it away. It costs $40 to subscribe, and ALL the money is donated to an organization of your choice. Though they claim this is just an experiment, Good has been in business since 2004. Keep up the Good Work!!!
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Alex Steffen from WorldChanging.com
According to the World Resources Institute, the US is the largest cause of carbon gas emissions. It is almost universally acknowledged that the rising CO2 level is linked to global warming. Reversing this trend is the only way to solve our climate change crisis.
The bad news is that the earth is already reaching a breaking point. According to Jim Hansen, we've past the tipping point of 350ppm, which is the highest level of carbon dioxide the earth can sustain. It is still possible to reduce our current emissions to lower the numbers, but it certainly won't be easy. We need to reduce our impact by 90% by 2030.
The attitude that the world is embracing is one of: "Where's mine?" Developing countries are following in the footsteps of already industrialized nations. We're in no position to preach, and they don't want to listen. It will take more than simply changing our behavior to fix this problem; we need to make a systemic change.
A typical drill gets used only a total of 8-20 minutes over the course of its lifetime. But we don't necessarily want the drill--we just want the hole! We need to re-think products we want and place the emphasis on services. For example, NetFlix eliminates people driving to rental stores, which has a larger effect than just gas emissions. The impacts of driving a car start with manufacturing and spill over to maintenance aspects and road systems. Another good case study: Zipcar. Car sharing effectively takes 6 cars off the road and not only due to the space saved. People are more aware of how much they drive and because of that, it improves their driving efficiency. Being aware of use cuts use.
As designers, we need to take more responsibility for our products. We need to end the concept of ownership by taking back our products and effectively and safely close the manufacturing loop. In this day and age of the internet, there are no secrets. Transparency of our supply chain will become inextricably tied to sustainability.
But the end goal is not just about sacrificing ourselves for the environment. We want to have more time, more energy, more happiness, and more beauty. We need to redefine affluence so that it is all those things AND guilt free. What would that look like?
The bad news is that the earth is already reaching a breaking point. According to Jim Hansen, we've past the tipping point of 350ppm, which is the highest level of carbon dioxide the earth can sustain. It is still possible to reduce our current emissions to lower the numbers, but it certainly won't be easy. We need to reduce our impact by 90% by 2030.
The attitude that the world is embracing is one of: "Where's mine?" Developing countries are following in the footsteps of already industrialized nations. We're in no position to preach, and they don't want to listen. It will take more than simply changing our behavior to fix this problem; we need to make a systemic change.
A typical drill gets used only a total of 8-20 minutes over the course of its lifetime. But we don't necessarily want the drill--we just want the hole! We need to re-think products we want and place the emphasis on services. For example, NetFlix eliminates people driving to rental stores, which has a larger effect than just gas emissions. The impacts of driving a car start with manufacturing and spill over to maintenance aspects and road systems. Another good case study: Zipcar. Car sharing effectively takes 6 cars off the road and not only due to the space saved. People are more aware of how much they drive and because of that, it improves their driving efficiency. Being aware of use cuts use.
As designers, we need to take more responsibility for our products. We need to end the concept of ownership by taking back our products and effectively and safely close the manufacturing loop. In this day and age of the internet, there are no secrets. Transparency of our supply chain will become inextricably tied to sustainability.
But the end goal is not just about sacrificing ourselves for the environment. We want to have more time, more energy, more happiness, and more beauty. We need to redefine affluence so that it is all those things AND guilt free. What would that look like?
Sunday, January 20, 2008
introduction to fuh2
After attending Compostmodern 2008, I was inspired to take a stand and hold the line regarding the responsibility of designers to the world. The post title refers to the growing backlash towards the Hummer. What is "good design" and who is it good for?
But this movement is more than about the designers... it's about re-thinking our society and what "green" is. Sustainability should be about better living in all senses.
I'm still processing a lot of the ideas presented, but I think a good first step is based around the idea that we cannot manage what we cannot measure. Of course with that, we cannot measure what we do not understand. My hope is that this blog will become an open forum for learning and understanding. Please join the discussion.
But this movement is more than about the designers... it's about re-thinking our society and what "green" is. Sustainability should be about better living in all senses.
I'm still processing a lot of the ideas presented, but I think a good first step is based around the idea that we cannot manage what we cannot measure. Of course with that, we cannot measure what we do not understand. My hope is that this blog will become an open forum for learning and understanding. Please join the discussion.
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