Hasta La Ideas

The comments are building on Allisson Arieff’s recent piece for The Times entitled “Not New, But Improved.” Here’s a sweet spot:

Many companies are doing the important job of that “messing” by committing to product design for supply-chain management (that is, improving the fit between supply chain capabilities and product designs). Nike has been a trailblazer with their Considered line, developing shoes and apparel that use less material, incorporate sustainable materials like organic cotton and are easier to recycle, and by developing adhesives made from water instead of toxic chemicals. Notably, they’ve open-sourced much of their research, allowing other companies to make use of their advancements.

Though they hold considerably smaller market share, Simple Shoes is also working to make it better, not over, having just introduced a new collection of biodegradable footwear with outsoles and midsoles designed to break down to dirt in a landfill environment in 20 years. Furniture companies like Steelcase and Herman Miller have also been industry leaders in finding ways to replace current materials with more environmentally friendly ones, and creating products imbued with cradle-to-cradle philosophy. More and more companies are open to sharing their discoveries with others, but it’s been a slow-moving process. It needs to be a faster one.

Favorite comment so far: “How about not buying the giraffe at all? Last night, with our four-year-old son, we made a monster out of a few old socks, stuffed with pieces of a worn-out towel that he cut up himself. The exercise gave him some practice using a pair of scissors, and taught him that you don’t need to go to a store to buy a toy. Which is more fun to play with? The soy-based giraffe, or the home-made monster? Which will do more to teach our son creativity?”

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