NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center will observe the 2014 Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) Day on April 30th. Sustainability leader and designer William McDonough, will be participating in this year’s SHE Day. SHE Day combines traditional Earth Day activities with safety, health and environmental demonstrations and exhibits, in effort to educate members on the next level of safety. The event encourages employees to be engaged in safety, health and environmental awareness both in their work and personal lives.
Sonya Dillard, engineer in the Marshall Center’s Industrial Safety Branch and coordinator of the 2013 SHE Day, was enthusiastic about the outcomes from last year’s event:
“One of the goals of SHE Day is to encourage everyone working at the Marshall Center to not only participate in safety meetings and procedures, but to actively think about safety, health and environmental issues in new ways.”
The theme of this year’s SHE Day, energy efficiency & conservation, seamlessly aligns with the influential Cradle to Cradle® principles, co-developed by William McDonough. William McDonough’s sustainability approach to the design and production process encourages designers to think about utilizing materials part of waste-free, continuous reusable cycles. The philosophy takes into consideration not only any environmental impact but also any safety and health and impacts.
He places a strong emphasis the idea that being less bad is insufficient—we need to work toward being more good. Doing “less bad”, as described by William McDonough in an interview with GreenBiz, provides detailed insight on ways we can move beyond aiming for zero waste and aiming, instead toward abundance for all.
The Cradle to Cradle® principles have become a powerful stimulus in the sustainability movement. German Chemist Michael Braungart and William McDonough co-authored the book, Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things, based on the principles. In 2013, the team took the cradle to cradle philosophy a step further in their book, The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability–Designing for Abundance.
Resources:
Learn more about William McDonough’s vision for the future of sustainable architecture and design on OnInnovation.
Add William McDonough to your professional network on LinkedIn.
About Marshall Space Center:
Marshall’s primary mission is the design, testing and development of rocket engines and the space vehicles they power. Marshall is also working to develop safe, affordable vehicles, systems and technologies, so that astronauts can live and work safely and more comfortably in the difficult space environment.
Visit the NASA website to learn more about the Marshall Space Flight Center.
Cradle to Cradle is a registered trademark of MBDC, LLC.
