Like many people leading the way in the greening of design, William McDonough is constantly asked, when discussing his Cradle to Cradle philosophy, “is it more expensive?”. His response: “it’s usually cheaper”.

McDonough- co-author of the book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things– argues, with examples of some of his big projects like the redesign of a Ford Motor Company plant, that his way can be not only more affordable, but also an easier way of doing business.

“What’s wonderful about Cradle to Cradle,” he explains, “is that if you design with Cradle to Cradle you find that you don’t need to be regulated so the politics start to fall away.”

In this video, McDonough answers questions about his design strategies, both from faircompanies and from an audience in Barcelona. He talks about politics and business, his thoughts on death and when he expects Cradle to Cradle design to go mainstream.