Reusing the Planet = Sustainability

Reusing the Planet = Sustainability

At times I question new product production which introduces new material as being a truly "green" product. With such a wealth of existing materials of all sorts available from all over the planet, I really get excited when material and product designers integrate a truly sustainable mesh of reclaimed and reused materials.

Initially, I was thrilled to be invited to the West Coast Green Conference as a recipient of the Lifecycle Building Challenge Award for the company I co-founded www.planetreuse.com . I dreamt up PlanetReuse as a source for architects and designers to request materials from the database of professionals who deconstruct and house reused building materials. It's been over a year since we started and now we have turned it into a successful company used by designers all over the US.

So I (of course) love seeing a company that creatively solves the worlds problems (or the ones next door) by using reuse practices to create their products and start their business.

One of the great products I saw at West Coast Green was an insulation company that repurposes reclaimed carpet and makes them into building insulation with minimal water and energy investments.

Another company was from Canada who reclaim old buildings wood products, which isn't all that uncommon, yet using sustainable practices of refining the wood into useable building materials really made them stand apart.

On the long plane ride home, I got to thinking about the future of the green industry as just that, an industry. Drifting in and out of conciousness between peanuts and .99 (no longer free) coffee, I began thinking about my company particularly and got to thinking about new green jobs for my company. Our team which consists of an architect, contractor and web designer - turned green startup clearly redefined all of our professions.  But new jobs, especially in this economy and the potential for expanding green markets is really exciting.

In my own business, we have seen a rise of existing material harvesters all over the world who focus on reclaiming materials and selling them to product manufacturers. We've also seen a rise in Contractors who clamor over deconstruction projects because now instead of materials destined for the landfill, they see building parts that equal millions of dollars and are willing to deconstruct sustainably for free.

The last is the exciting opportunity for green companies to network with other green companies such as green shipping companies, who work in green buildings, designed by green architects, who use clean tech commerce. Call me an idealist but I really think that as Bill Clinton says, "We are faced with the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century in environmental and sustainable initiatives." and the more these green companies work together the more everyone else will do so until it just becomes good business...