Many audience members wanted our solution implemented across the Triangle to jump-start awareness and increase recycling. HumanCentric is very excited about the community support and would love to have our vision for a better recycling system become a reality. If you would like to join our campaign for a greener Triangle please contact Alexander Hussain at HumanCentric. HumanCentric’s next steps are to connect local government officials to present our improved recycling solution.

I love Craigslist. With a regional filter, it provides a window into the lives of the single, the unemployed, and the junk ridden people you never knew lived all around you. For me it is a constant source of entertainment. But more than entertainment, it has changed the way I think about buying the things I need, and how I think about product lifetimes.

The free section of Craigslist has become my go-to first attempt at finding anything I’m thinking about buying. And I can say from experience that if you look often enough, you can find anything! I’ve seen boats, photo booths, TVs and plenty of free dirt and firewood. Granted there is a reason these things are free. Sometimes it’s because they need a little work, but many times it’s just situational and their owner just needs them gone, pronto. But, these days I have a hard time thinking that I will ever actually buy a couch when I passively turn down free ones every day.

The way Craigslist connects the needs of people in a specific area is really what impresses me about it. The way it promotes sustainable consumption is the cherry on top. It is a stark contrast to the business models of IKEA and the clothing manufacturers at Forever 21 who produce cheap disposable goods by taking advantage of the environment and 3^rd world labor markets. Craigslist makes responsible consumption look easy by leveraging people’s social nature and their love for discount goods.

I remember learning about how much thought and effort went into designing the Aeron chair by Herman Miller. It was designed for disassembly with 94% of its materials being recyclable. That’s pretty impressive. But what percentage of Aeron owners will take the time and energy to disassemble and recycle (if they even know they can) when the chair has reached the end of its lifetime?

I think something more impressive that Herman Miller has accomplished is a chair designed for resale. Right now I can find the Aeron chair for sale by 3 different posters on Craigslist. And I would guess it’s easier to post an add and have someone come to pick it up than it is to disassemble and recycle. Not to mention that that person pays you for the chair, rather than throwing their money back into the system.

Craigslist not only provides potential buyers with a diverse local discount market, but it is also creates a responsible way to dispose of products that are no longer useful to their current owners. Sustainably keeping money in my pocket and discouraging the production of crappy products makes me love Craigslist. That, and the missed connections.

Less than four miles from our office, McDonalds has built its first “earth-friendly” restaurant which opened on July 14^th. I love everything this new place represents. I can charge my electric car at a charging station while I eat my burger at a table made from sunflower seed board. I’ll have the benefit of natural light provided by solatubes while I enjoy the educational video kiosk on the restaurant’s design features. The exterior materials are just as healthy as those used on the interior. For more details, check out http://www.mcnorthcarolina.com/7501/.

It’s great that McDonalds is taking this step. Now if they would just make the food as healthy for me as the table I’m eating on is healthy for the environment, they might see me swing by for lunch from time to time.

There are two big cellphone trends right now: touchscreen smartphones and dirt-cheap Earth-friendly cell phones. Both of these trends are great; one is pushing the limits of the mobile experience and the other is encouraging responsible manufacturing practices. Both are appealing, but generally the Earth-friendly phones do not have as many features and their user interfaces look like they were designed in the 90s.

My new iPhone 3GS was delivered to the office Friday (June 19th) around lunchtime. It’s shiny, has an internal compass, voice commands, video recording, and is very fast. But, it’s not perfect. After all, it doesn’t have a solar panel on the back of it like the Samsung Crest E1107. And, it isn’t 100% recyclable and made of recycled water bottles like the Motorola Renew W233.

That’s not to say that Apple is ignoring environmental issues. The iPhone 3GS has smaller packaging and doesn’t contain chemicals like mercury, arsenic, PVC, and BFR. The major environmental flaw of the iPhone is that the user cannot replace the battery. By not having a user-replaceable battery in iPhones or iPods, Apple is encouraging them to be thrown in the trash. In response to this concern, Apple started their iPod recycling program (which works with iPhones too).

It’s only a matter of time before recyclable smartphones made of recycled material hit the market. If the next iPhone has a solar panel, I’ll be first in line.