EarthX Website: https://earthxmedia.com/
Laurence Carr explores how organizations support circularity by adopting sustainable practices and supporting consumers as they navigate the confusing terrain of finding trustworthy sources.
About Chez Laurence:
Designer Laurence Carr meets manufacturers and brands who are employing circular, regenerative, and sustainable practices. See how they're seeking to change the end-of-life concept with eco-friendly techniques.
EarthX
Love Our Planet.
The Official Network of Earth Day.
About Us:
At EarthX, we believe our planet is a pretty special place. The people, landscapes, and critters are likely unique to the entire universe, so we consider ourselves lucky to be here. We are committed to protecting the environment by inspiring conservation and sustainability, and our programming along with our range of expert hosts support this mission. We’re glad you’re with us.
EarthX is a media company dedicated to inspiring people to care about the planet. We take an omni channel approach to reach audiences of every age through its robust 24/7 linear channel distributed across cable and FAST outlets, along with dynamic, solution oriented short form content on social and digital platforms. EarthX is home to original series, documentaries and snackable content that offer sustainable solutions to environmental challenges. EarthX is the only network that delivers entertaining and inspiring topics that impact and inspire our lives on climate and sustainability.
EarthX Website: https://earthxmedia.com/
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#EarthDay #Environment #Sustainability #Ecofriendly #Conservation #EarthX
Laurence Carr explores how organizations support circularity by adopting sustainable practices and supporting consumers as they navigate the confusing terrain of finding trustworthy sources.
About Chez Laurence:
Designer Laurence Carr meets manufacturers and brands who are employing circular, regenerative, and sustainable practices. See how they're seeking to change the end-of-life concept with eco-friendly techniques.
EarthX
Love Our Planet.
The Official Network of Earth Day.
About Us:
At EarthX, we believe our planet is a pretty special place. The people, landscapes, and critters are likely unique to the entire universe, so we consider ourselves lucky to be here. We are committed to protecting the environment by inspiring conservation and sustainability, and our programming along with our range of expert hosts support this mission. We’re glad you’re with us.
EarthX is a media company dedicated to inspiring people to care about the planet. We take an omni channel approach to reach audiences of every age through its robust 24/7 linear channel distributed across cable and FAST outlets, along with dynamic, solution oriented short form content on social and digital platforms. EarthX is home to original series, documentaries and snackable content that offer sustainable solutions to environmental challenges. EarthX is the only network that delivers entertaining and inspiring topics that impact and inspire our lives on climate and sustainability.
EarthX Website: https://earthxmedia.com/
Follow Us:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/earthxmedia/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/earthxmedia
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EarthXMedia/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@earthxmedia
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@EarthXMedia
How to watch:
United States:
- Spectrum
- AT&T U-verse (1267)
- DIRECTV (267)
- Philo
- FuboTV
- Plex
- Fire TV
#EarthDay #Environment #Sustainability #Ecofriendly #Conservation #EarthX
Category
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TVTranscript
00:00🎵
00:28🎵
00:32Whether we are at home, work or even on vacation,
00:3790% of our lives are spent indoors.
00:41And though we live alongside furniture, insulation, upholstery, flooring and paint,
00:48we are mostly oblivious to what they are made of
00:51and the damage they inflict on people, the environment and even our health.
00:57How do consumers know which products are safest?
01:01How do they see past savvy marketing campaigns
01:04and truly understand whether a company is committed to making healthy choices
01:10or simply greenwashing the message?
01:13As a designer, one of the most important things I look for
01:18is transparency, certifications and third-party endorsement
01:23to find healthy, sustainable products.
01:26Organizations such as the Sustainable Furnishing Council
01:30and the International Living Future Institute
01:33are at the forefront of conquering this challenge,
01:37publishing data on materials, manufacturing processes and distribution methods.
01:44They help manufacturers and companies adopt sustainable practices
01:48and consumers navigate the confusing terrain of finding trustworthy sources.
01:55In fact, providing education and transparency
01:58is the first and most critical step towards protecting consumers, workers and the environment.
02:05🎵
02:11Recently, I was invited to High Pond Market in North Carolina
02:15to moderate an educational panel discussion about circularity and sustainable practices
02:21for their Sustainability Stories program.
02:24As an ambassador for the Sustainable Furnishing Council,
02:28I invited their Executive Director, Susan Ingalls,
02:32to talk about her work educating companies and manufacturers
02:38in the furnishings and interior design industry on better practices
02:44and providing information that the trade and consumers can trust.
02:47🎵
02:49Our members are companies that are involved in this industry in various ways,
02:56including many that are exhibiting here and many that are buying here.
03:02Each of these companies has made their own public and verifiable commitment
03:07to sustainability, to transparency and to continuous improvement.
03:14We are more than anything an educational organization
03:19and we are helping companies in all areas of the furnishings industry
03:26reduce environmental footprint and we are helping consumers
03:32find the more environmentally safe furnishings.
03:37So a benefit is access to our expertise and our resources.
03:43We have six different working groups that cover six different aspects of sustainability.
03:51They include reducing carbon emissions and maintaining health and wellness,
03:59ensuring social equity and reducing waste,
04:04managing water and incorporating circularity,
04:09which is actually really where all these things come together.
04:14Could you give us more examples?
04:16Where should our audience just think about when they go and purchase,
04:21whether they are from the trade or just consumers who want to decorate their interiors?
04:27There are many, many, like tens of thousands of harmful chemicals
04:32used in a variety of consumer products.
04:35In the furnishings industry, there are five of them that we frequently use
04:41and those are VOCs like formaldehyde and flame-retardant chemicals
04:47and the PFAS chemicals that we use for performance fabrics
04:52and antimicrobials and PVC, which is our most common plastic in the world.
04:59All of these things are prevalent.
05:01All of them will still be here for a long time to come.
05:06All of them are linked directly to harm to human health and other life on the planet.
05:16If the product smells that new product smell,
05:20what you are smelling is the finish volatilizing.
05:25I recommend that you put it out of doors and wait because it will eventually off-gas.
05:33The flame retardants are most often in residential furnishings in the foam
05:40and there is fortunately legislation pushing for the removal in certain states.
05:47The PFAS chemicals are those known as the forever chemicals
05:52and they are frequently used in performance fabrics.
05:55Performance fabrics are much touted these days
05:59and it is little known how much our waters are being polluted
06:04by the manufacture of these chemicals.
06:07Would you please elaborate on other initiatives that you might have,
06:11such as what's made of and how they benefit both the members as well as the general public?
06:19We're the number three user of the wood resource
06:22after the construction industry and after the paper production industry.
06:28So we have an initiative to encourage us to take responsibility
06:34for helping to save the forests of the world.
06:38Our supply chains are long and complex
06:44and that means that it is easy to hide materials
06:48such as illegally logged or otherwise unsustainable wood.
06:53And so the best way to ensure that you do not have any of it in your own supply chain
07:01is to have a written policy for sourcing wood products.
07:06And you might say that you are going to require
07:10that your vendors at a minimum show you they have not contributed to deforestation.
07:18This will indicate that you are doing your due diligence.
07:25When we publish this scorecard every year,
07:29we celebrate companies that are doing particularly well in their wood sourcing policies.
07:37So indeed it is like a guide.
07:39It is like a really truly serious reference that consumers can refer to when they make their purchase.
07:47And it has effectively made a difference in reducing illegally logged wood that comes into our industry.
07:55Did you notice an acceleration of industry interest in sustainability recently?
08:02Yes, and for one thing we can see it at the high point market
08:06where there is a big theme about sustainability.
08:10But what else I think is driving this acceleration is consumer concern.
08:17One of the silver linings of the COVID era
08:22is our growing awareness of how we impact our environment.
08:27When people stopped commuting for a while and could see the clearing air,
08:33that made a huge impact on us.
08:35And we have realized that there are benefits to reducing our hubbub.
08:42Yes, and the other one consequently was everybody staying home
08:47and realizing the importance of actually surrounding ourselves with healthy materials and furnishings.
08:54Being at home for longer hours,
08:56we were more exposed to more of those volatile organic compounds for instance and more aware of them.
09:04You have a unique window into vendors for sustainable products.
09:08What stands out for you?
09:10When we started doing our consumer research and asking consumers
09:15about how worried they were about the range of sustainability issues,
09:19we found that about half of them were concerned about any issue we would ask them about.
09:24And they're taking action out of their concern.
09:27Now, we find that over 90% of consumers are concerned about any individual issue we ask them about
09:39and that more of them are taking more action.
09:43These days, 97% of us would choose an eco-friendly product in our furnishings,
09:51provided we like the look of it and we can afford it.
09:55So that's huge.
09:56What it is that consumers should be looking for?
10:01In wood, looking for certified wood, looking for reclaimed wood.
10:06In finishes, looking for low VOC finishes.
10:11In textiles, looking for recycled and content is good.
10:17Natural fibers, you're going to find it.
10:20There is a lot of recycled metal in our industry.
10:24And I will say that looking for a product made of a material near the manufacturing plant
10:34dramatically reduces the transportation footprint and it is building the local economy.
10:42How do you think the home furnishing industries
10:45may change its approach to sustainability in the next 5 to 10 years?
10:50I think we will see more certified product on offer.
10:55More of those robust third-party certifications.
11:00More recycled and reclaimed materials.
11:04And I think we are going to see more businesses offering services in repair and refurbishment,
11:12which I think is going to make a difference in the economies of the communities
11:17where those products or where those businesses are operating.
11:20I think that we have to be more mindful of water.
11:24The textile segment of our industry is going to lead raising our awareness about water shortages.
11:30And also a trend that we have seen is the consumer's willingness to shop with their values.
11:38Consumers are willing to pay a bit more for those eco-attributes that mean a lot to them.
11:48What is a home?
11:54Homes are more than simply a collection of things.
11:58The building in which we live largely determines our carbon footprint.
12:03In America, for example, the average person will own 3-4 houses in their lifetime.
12:10But how those buildings use electricity, fossil fuels, chemicals and indisposable materials
12:18affects not just the inhabitants but the entire community for generations to come.
12:25At its core, the International Living Future Institute challenges the building industry to do better.
12:32And they provide educational programs and share resources and inspiration all over the world
12:39to help make it happen.
12:41CEO Lindsay Baker envisions a future in which the built environment provides more than just shelter
12:48but can actually create meaningful change.
12:54Would you please give an overview of the International Living Future Institute?
12:59Living Future is a mission-driven non-profit organization.
13:03We've been around for about 10 years.
13:06Our mission is really to catalyze the transformation of society
13:10towards communities that are socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative
13:17which we do primarily through transforming the building industry.
13:21So it's all sorts of architects and engineers and real estate owners and people like that.
13:27We bring people together to really think about how we can transform our world.
13:32Net Positive is a concept that kind of gets to this idea
13:37that we are working on not just having buildings or products that are neutral in their impacts on the world
13:46but that are really having a positive impact.
13:49And this is a huge evolution.
13:50If you look 10 years ago, most of the conversations about product, manufacturing, buildings, all of that
13:58the idea was to just kind of make it less bad.
14:01It was like, let's try to reduce the amount of chemicals we're using.
14:04Let's try to be more efficient in our energy consumption.
14:08That was the goal.
14:10And some of us started asking a different question, which is,
14:13hey, how about we don't just continue to do harm?
14:17How about we focus on doing good?
14:19For example, that means things like taking the rainwater from a building
14:23and cleaning it and putting it back out into the world.
14:27The building is producing more energy through solar panels or wind turbines
14:32or other things on site than it uses.
14:38Your Living Building Challenge that you mentioned and the Living Product Challenge programs.
14:44Would you explain what these programs are and how they work?
14:50The Living Building Challenge is the world's most holistic and aspirational standard for buildings.
14:57It's a set of goals to ensure that a building, when it's built or as it's being operated,
15:03well, both, are having a positive impact on the environment, on people's health and on society,
15:10which is a pretty challenging thing to do, actually, because buildings use a lot of extractive resources.
15:17They have typically a lot of toxic chemicals in them.
15:21There's a lot of things that they can also do that have sort of negative social impacts
15:26in the supply chains of how they get built, how the labor works, all of those things.
15:32And so to make a goal to have truly net positive buildings is a formidable challenge.
15:39And it's a very rigorous program.
15:42It's truly an aspirational project.
15:46And it's one that really gives us this opportunity to work with people in the building industry,
15:53people in manufacturing, to ask that big question of where do we want to get to in the world?
15:58And how do we actually make those things? How do we have that happen?
16:02At the Institute, we really love biological metaphors.
16:06There are different facets of these programs, different areas of performance.
16:11And we call those petals, as in the petals of a flower,
16:14to really signify that all of these things must come together into one
16:19to make a truly beautiful and impactful building or a truly beautiful and impactful product.
16:26There's energy, for example, which is all about using completely renewable resources,
16:32so no fossil fuels of any kind.
16:35There's water, which is actually about water cycles and how we use water
16:40and how it's reused, reclaimed, and hopefully left cleaner at the end of the day.
16:47We've got health and happiness, which is about the impact that the buildings or the products have on people.
16:54We have beauty, and that really speaks to the need for buildings and for products
17:01to uplift people and to have a positive impact on our souls.
17:06Equity is a big petal for us.
17:09Some of these issues of human rights in the supply chain,
17:12it deals with the impact that buildings have on the community around them.
17:17To what extent are they having a positive economic impact on communities?
17:22So the last petal is site, which is really about place.
17:27It's really about where the building is or where the product is made,
17:32and it's all about understanding the interaction that a building, for example, has with the community around it.
17:40Yeah, that's a beautiful description and such a holistic way of encompassing all these areas for a program.
17:48I love it.
17:49How does the concept of transparency and accreditation play into the mission of the International Living Future Institute
17:57and to the Living Building and Living Product challenges in particular?
18:02Before some of these systems came along in the world, it was very easy for just anyone to say,
18:07oh, this building is very green because it has solar panels on it.
18:10You have to be very transparent about what is in your product,
18:15and then someone else is going to decide if they're healthy, if they're good for you,
18:18if they have a positive impact on the world.
18:21I wish it were easier.
18:23I wish that it were more straightforward and that you could just trust when someone sort of sells you something
18:29that it's very healthy and green and good for the world.
18:33But sadly, the way that the world works now, it's not that easy.
18:37So you really have to gather this data and set up systems like the ones that we run
18:43to make sure that those labels are being used responsibly.
18:48By defining buildings and defining products in these truly aspirational ways,
18:54it's really something that translates and can be utilized all over the world in whatever way it is useful.
19:00Can you talk about what you are seeing regarding the demand for your programs and certifications?
19:07What do you think is driving growth?
19:10The real thing that's been pushing us is the higher level of accountability.
19:15It's that at this point, if you're a company out in the world and you have something to do with buildings,
19:20your stakeholders, your shareholders, your investors, the market,
19:26sometimes governments are going to require that you put work into improving
19:33the environmental, social, and health impact of your work.
19:37There is a lot of momentum across sectors right now in one particular area, which is around carbon.
19:44There's the talk of fossil-free steel, and these things are actually becoming real
19:50and are cost competitive and are out there in the world and making a really big difference
19:55to reduce the carbon emissions of buildings.
19:59Water has become a huge priority.
20:01It's a tricky one because we take water for granted, clean water, sewer systems, all of that stuff.
20:09In the Living Building Challenge, for example, one of the things that we require
20:14is that buildings treat all of their own wastewater on site,
20:18which is by far one of the most difficult aspects of the challenge,
20:23but it's also one of the most profoundly impactful ones.
20:27So we're really kind of at that stage of looking for what's next.
20:30How is the industry going to change?
20:32The end goal of our conference, which is an annual conference,
20:36I would say is to inspire our community to keep going.
20:40It's about sharing inspiration, sharing tactics, sharing lessons learned.
20:46We're going to be really rolling out a much more expansive approach to our membership
20:51that is for anyone that just cares about shelter and good buildings
20:56and healthy buildings.
20:58So one of the big places that we're going to be investing a lot in the upcoming years
21:02is in policy and advocacy because we really believe that we need to change the rules
21:07of how buildings are made and how products are made
21:10so that we can achieve the transformation that we need in the amount of time we have.
21:14And once you can show that it's possible, then it means you can get society, culture, policy,
21:21all aligned to make this transformation happen really quickly.
21:26There's nothing stopping us except ourselves and we can get out of our own way
21:31and it will be beautiful.
21:40Navigating the maze of materials choice for our interiors
21:45and discerning which are sustainable and healthy can be daunting.
21:50Organizations like the Sustainable Furnishing Council
21:54and the International Living Future Institute
21:57offer refreshing transparency and trustworthiness
22:02when seeking dependable brands with environmental integrity as their core value.
22:08These committed manufacturers often go far beyond protecting the earth and her resources.
22:15They extend their commitment to the protection of native communities,
22:20independent artisans and cultural traditions.
22:24Whether you're looking for a furniture brand or an architect for your next home,
22:30the Sustainable Furnishings Council and the International Living Future Institute
22:36offer educational programs, tools, resources and legitimacy
22:42for providers committed to more sustainable practices and consumers seeking them out.
22:50Until next time, I am Laurence Karr, designing a more circular future.