CHRISTMAS CHEER! (or.. the TAKE BACK SPECIAL!!)

(this is true of my web site too.. i have a special version for large-boned people)

so... we all have a bunch of shit we don't need. admit it. you do too. i can tell because you're reading this BLOG. you must feel guilty.

now IMAGINE, if you will, being able to get rid of all the stuff you dont need. only, rather than throwing it 'away' (LANDFILL) or 'recycling' (aka DOWNCYCLING) or trying to find a 'good home' (probably not that good after all...) for your old junk, you could actually send it back to the manufacturer to be made into new-fangled, fancy, brand-spankin-REnew products. well - that's kinda what its like these days in GERMANY for some products. first off, ALL ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS put on the German commercial market must have a "take back guarantee." which means, basically, that they have to take back the product after you are done with it and make sure it is disposed of "PROPERLY" - i.e. they need to make sure everything toxic is not just thrown into the ground. in MANY cases, this is very expensive.


(see? there's a lot of it)

this leads many companies to find new, innovative ways to disassemble, recycle, or even reuse electronic parts - a much less expensive solution than disposing of electronic wastes as what they truly are - hazardous waste. given this endgame scenario, the new German product policy has encouraged the full-scale re-imagining of the electronic industry, forcing companies to think AHEAD OF TIME about how the product can be most easily and inexpensively disposed of. the result has been products that have been "DESIGNED FOR DISASSEMBLY" - products that are made to be taken apart, and, for a large part, reused or directly recycled. take this picture of a new German car as an example:


this picture was first showed to me during a lecture by WERNER SOBEK , principle architect for the Institute of Lightweight Structures and Conceptual Design (ILEK) as an illustration of the changing industrial climate in Germany (they make buildings designed for disassembly too) sounds a bit like the CRADLE TO CRADLE design we have all heard so much about. (Haven't heard? look HERE )

although the "cradle" paradigm has not been fully embraced yet, the new German legislation has really encouraged the electronic industry there to start moving in that direction. once again, German engineers are leading the way to the future of great products. funny, how countries with NO STANDING ARMY tend to be the most economically progressive and successful these days. perhaps we should TAKE A HINT!

oh yeah.. merry christmas USA!!