Charlottesville, Virginia (July 9, 2014) — The World Economic Forum (the Forum) has announced the appointment of globally recognized designer, author, and thought leader William McDonough as Chair of the Forum’s Meta-Council on Circular Economy. The newly formed Council represents the Forum’s multi-sector initiative to accelerate business-driven innovation to scale the circular economy. As stated in the charge to McDonough: “The Meta-Council on Circular Economy, which will be comprised of members from other Global Agenda Councils and have its own mandate and outputs, will focus on the redesign of policy ecosystems needed to allow systems-level change and widespread adoption of circular models—in developed, emerging and developing regions.”
As Chair of the Meta-Council, McDonough will oversee the Forum’s effort to establish proof of concept of the economic, social, and environmental benefits of a circular economy through targeted programs that aim to elevate the discussion and actions to a global audience. Under the guidance of McDonough’s vision and strategic insights, the Meta-Council on Circular Economy will convene top-tier international companies, stakeholders, policymakers, and other business influencers over a two-year period to identify systemic changes needed to facilitate the shift to a sustainable global economy.
The Cradle to Cradle® design framework that William McDonough co-developed is an underpinning philosophy of the circular economy and the new Council. At the Forum in Davos in January, McDonough led the first CEO workshop around sustainability—focused on Cradle and Cradle, the upcycle, and the circular economy. McDonough was chosen to lead the Meta-Council on Circular Economy due to his decades of design innovation and thought leadership dedicated to developing safe and healthy products, architecture, and communities. In addition, his ability to effectively communicate Cradle to Cradle principles makes him an ideal leader for rendering visible the beneficial opportunities of the circular economy. McDonough will enable business innovators to design a better world “for all children of all species for all time,” as he says.
McDonough held appointments on previous Global Agenda Councils and formerly served as the Special Advisor on Sustainable Development to President Clinton, and has advised corporations such as Walmart, Waste Management and others. In addition to running three companies (McDonough Innovation, MBDC, and William McDonough + Partners), McDonough has also led the creation of the growing Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, which administers the Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Products Program, as well as other influential nonprofits.
“We are delighted that Bill has agreed to chair this Council,” says Dominic Waughray, Head of Environmental Initiatives at the World Economic Forum. “He not only brings invaluable experience and knowledge in the circular economy space, but also the creative intelligence of a designer- a role which is as central to designing objects and buildings as it is to designing collaborations and encouraging systems thinking.”
McDonough calls the appointment a deep and abiding privilege: “I am honored to be asked to take on this very important role—as a designer,” he says. “Design is the first signal of human intention. A beautiful way to wage peace is by design, through commerce. The Forum, which engages major influencers in the global economy, is a wonderful platform for this dialogue.”
The work is under way. McDonough is already building the team and will be working virtually with the Meta-Council before its gathering at the Forum’s Summit on the Global Agenda in November in Dubai, UAE.
About William McDonough
William McDonough is a globally recognized designer, thought leader and sustainable growth pioneer and a pre-eminent voice for the world-changing power of ecologically intelligent design. Architect of highly acclaimed icons of sustainable design; co-creator of Cradle to Cradle®, a global standard for the design of safe, healthy products; advisor and business strategist for leading Fortune 500 and entrepreneurial companies; he often attends the World Economic Forum; he is a special advisor to the Clinton Global Initiative; author of The Hannover Principles: Design for Sustainability (1992); co-author of the widely influential Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things (2002) and The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability—Designing for Abundance (2013), McDonough has set the terms and defined the principles of “design for sustainability” for more than 30 years, creating its seminal buildings, products, texts and enterprises and preparing the ground for its widespread growth. Time magazine recognized him in 1999 as “Hero for the Planet,” stating that “his utopianism is grounded in a unified philosophy that—in demonstrable and practical ways—is changing the design of the world.”
William McDonough’s current design work includes product and packaging design as well as architecture at many scales. Current active architecture projects include Park 20|20 in the Netherlands and AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles; these build on flagship projects that include Ford’s RiverRouge revitalization and NASA’s new Sustainability Base, a beyond-LEED Platinum federal facility just recognized with the “Good Design is Good Business” award from Architectural Record magazine. His current industrial designs are focused on designing products and redesigning packaging, including food packaging for Walmart. In recognition of his visionary work, McDonough has received the Presidential Award for Sustainable Development (1996), for exemplary leadership and public service; the U.S. EPA Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award (2003), for groundbreaking innovations in product development; and the Smithsonian’s National Design Award (2004), for outstanding achievement in environmental design. (www.mcdonough.com). Cradle to Cradle® and C2C® are registered trademarks of MBDC.
About the World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is an international institution committed to improving the state of the world through public-private cooperation in the spirit of global citizenship. It engages with business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. Incorporated as a not-for-profit foundation in 1971 and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the Forum is independent, impartial and not tied to any interests. It cooperates closely with all leading international organizations (www.weforum.org).
