Cradle to Cradle | From eco-efficency to eco-effectiveness.

Saving energy, being economical, making production processes more efficient and less harmful - for Prof. Dr. Michael Braungart, these principles of sustainability as we understand them today do not sound particularly attractive, nor are they target-oriented. His vision is a different one: He wants to develop products and production processes so that waste is no longer a problem. They should be completely harmless to people and nature. Even more: man should be useful for other material cycles with what he does. His products should function in material cycles so that there is no useless waste, but only useful raw materials. That this can work is demonstrated by several thousands products in the world that have been developed according to this principle. It is called the Cradle to Cradle design concept ("From Cradle to Cradle"), and Michael Braungart developed it together with the American architect William McDonough.

Thus, while the traditional strategies of "eco-efficient" approaches seek to reduce and minimize the unintended negative consequences of production and consumption processes from a quantitative point of view, Braungart's eco-effective approach is a quality approach based on improving the industry's capabilities in such a way that nature- and environment-friendly products and processes become possible. The functioning interactions between natural systems suggest that the establishment of sustainable systems of production and consumption is not a question of reducing the size of our "ecological footprint", but rather the challenge is how to establish this "footprint" as a never-ending source of support for natural systems.

(source: Cradle to Cradle: Einfach intelligent produzieren (Deutsch) Taschenbuch – 17. Februar 2014, Michael Braungart, William McDonough; Intelligente Verschwendung: The Upcycle: Auf dem Weg in eine neue Überflussgesellschaft (Deutsch) Taschenbuch – 6. Juni 2014, Michael Braungart, William McDonough; website: www.braungart.com)

1. products produced and services provided according to the Cradle to Cradle principle are healthy for you, your employees and our environment.

2. you can fulfil your Corporate Social Responsibilty and also meet your own requirements for environmentally conscious behaviour as an entrepreneur.

3. manufacturing products and providing services according to the Cradle to Cradle concept does not always have to be more expensive. It can even be less expensive.

4. following the Cradle to Cradle concept also can help to successfully differentiate your company from the competition (USP).

Have you as a company decided on the path to increased environmental friendliness and a circular economy? And the Cradle to Cradle Design Concept inspires you?

Now it is time to put your vision into practice in a sustainable way. In cooperation with Professor Dr. Michael Braugart, Colourful Excellence will accompany you in the implementation. Colourful Excellence focuses on the sustainable integration (Change- & Transition-Mangement) of Cradle to Cradle into your corporate strategy and values. The implementation of the necessary changes in production processes and in the provision of services is accompanied by C2C Experts from the team of Michael Braungart. Your employees will be enthusiastic about it and your customers will appreciate you even more in the future.

1. Information & Screening

• C2C Information & Inspiration
• Situation analysis (brand image, market, competition)

2. Analysis

• Deep dive into possible problem areas
• Evaluation of concrete needs for change (Product, Service, internal & external Communication)

3. Goal Defintion & Concept Development (design thinking)

• Development of possible solutions (in cooperation with Michael Braungart, Cradle to Cradle)
• Using creative techniques (design thinking)

4. C2C Design Concept Integration

• Implementation of concrete changes in production processes and Service-Design (Braungart)
• Conviction & activation of the management & all team members/employees
• Realisation / implementation of the solution approaches / process redesign (in cooperation with Michael Braungart, Cradle to Cradle)
• Anchoring in the corporate values
• Development & implementation of a communication concept (internal communication & external brand communication & public relations)
• Development of Key Performance Indicators (KPI) to measure success after implementation phase

5. Monitoring & Continuous Improvement (Production & Communication)

• Continuous Transformation of production processes
• Monitoring of the defined KPI's
• Internal and external surveys
• Correction of objectives & actions if necessary