Cradle to Cradle, Library-style

Remember when I mentioned reading Cradle to Cradle last week? It appears that authors McDonough and Braungart, together with their own organizations (McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry and the Environmental Protection Encouragement Agency) and Material ConneXion, a firm dedicated to scouting out innovative building and design materials, have at last opened the doors to their NYC Cradle to Cradle library. A home for all things sustainable, the library holds more than 4,000 C2C materials, including non-chemically treated hardwoods and PVC-free carpet backing, according to TreeHugger’s Peter Scholtus.

Most of these materials still carry hefty price tags, which make them out of reach for the general public. But, if these sustainable materials — ones that either can be recycled into materials that maintain structural and chemical integrity, or can safely return to the soil or the air after they have outgrown their usefulness — become the norm, perhaps the prices will drop, making them viable for more folks.

Now, my question is this: will “Cradle to Cradle” be the new “green”? Will we all buy leather shoes tanned with veggies instead of chromium? Will we truly recycle, as opposed to downcycle?