Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things

Chapter 3 opens with a “tale of three books” (68). The authors describe three possible ways of making a book: the traditional way, the “eco-friendly” way, and then an entirely new way, based on methods devised by the authors. Drawing out the differences among these three methods show flaws in the current book manufacturing process, while also offering a vision for the future.

In traditional book manufacturing, the paper is made of wood pulp, which comes from trees. The authors assess the traditional book object as beautiful but impermanent: “Yet attractive, functional, and durable as it is, the book will not last forever—nor, if it is ‘beach reading,’ do we necessarily expect it to” (68).Even when book pages are recycled, the ink printed on the paper can cause damage to natural water sources if it is recycled improperly, so manufacturers are left with two bad options:“What a quandary: pollute rivers or chew up forests” (69). With the third book—“the book of the future” (70), the authors call it—it is made from synthetic material that can be recycled infinitely as a book, without causing any harm to the environment. The authors see this third book as a way of honoring the industry’s needs, the environment’s needs, and people’s needs: