Ah office supplies. They keep the office humming along pleasantly, but contribute largely to its waste. Whether its legions of plastic barreled pens, rolls of paper towels or piles of binder clips, the office is certainly a culprit for extraneous landfill-bound flotsam. Luckily, there are a ton of Cradle to Cradle certified office supplies available, even more since we first published this post in 2012. Read on for our favorites.
Cradle to Cradle is a design philosophy that elegantly addresses the epidemic of planned obsolescence on a planet with finite resources (and an endless supply of innovative minds). Created by William McDonough and Michael Braungart in 2002, the method is exciting for its ability to reconcile commercial development with sustainable living, two interests that seem often at odds.
The system’s demands are simple, although implementing them requires extensive testing and research, which might explain why it’s not something we’re seeing more often. Materials that construct new products must be fed into two different “nutrient” loops: technical and biological, so that they retain their value, avoid polluting each other, and can be reused endlessly. This means that the component parts of a computer would not only be redistributed back into the technical loop for future use, but that the design stage of said computer would make it easy to separate and preserve the integrity of individual elements. Cradle to Cradle also redefines recycling from downcycling, a process where, for example, a plastic is converted into a lower grade, mixed plastic, and loses value over time until it is eventually useless.
For a great critical article on breaking down the certification process, this piece is a valuable one to read. The certification of products and materials as Cradle to Cradle was recently overturned to a third party organization, called the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, which will likely bolster the system’s credibility.
All that said, I love fall perhaps because it gives me license to participate in the annual school—ahem office—supply shop. Here are four of my favorite Cradle to Cradle certified office supplies to bring into the office.
reWRAP technology cases
A coworker of mine came into work one day with her new laptop swaddled in a vibrant fuschia felt. The case in question was from reWRAP, a Dutch company that makes beautiful technology cases (ok, the cases all seem to cater to apple technology, but so be it) out of 100% wool. They operate under a Cradle to Cradle principle, so much so that their logo is merely “stamped into the felt. The logo will slowly fade, just as the sleeve will eventually dissolve into nature.”
Satino Black Toilet Paper Super White
USPS shipping materials
The United States Postal Services green line of packaging is all C2C certified, and it doesn’t cost any more than standard packaging. We think stuff made out of paper should be biodegradable anyway so this is great news.
Stabilo GREENpoint
I love Stabilo’s .88 fineliners. They are the perfect union between marker and pen, just fancy enough for signing checks, while being nimble enough for a detailed napkin sketch. I would love for the markers to be C2C certified, but for the moment, I’ll have to settle for Stabilo’s GREENpoint, a 98% recycled pen that comes in six colors.
method foaming handwash
The best way to prevent seasonal illness in a busy office is to frequently wash hands with soap that doesn’t encourage superbugs to wipe us all off the map with their antibiotic resistance and giant pincers. As method says, somewhat less dramatically, “soap’s job is to clean, not kill.” With over 60 products at the silver level of certification, method has a lot to say on the subject. See how they approach the Cradle to Cradle method at the top of this post.