The Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, a non-profit organization, administers the Cradle to Cradle Certified Product Standard. It was created to bring about a new industrial revolution that turns the making of things into a positive force for society, economy, and the planet. The continuous improvement quality standard was gifted to the Institute by William McDonough andMichael Braungart after more than 20 years of development with some of the world’s leading brands. The Institute is governed by anindependent board of directors and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Bridge funding for the Institute’s work is provided by foundations and individuals who share common values and hope for the future. Self-sustaining revenues will result from training programs and certification and licensing fees. Initial support has been provided by the Nationale Postcode Loterij and the Schmidt Family Foundation, established by Wendy and Eric Schmidt.
ENERGY STAR is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) voluntary program that helps businesses and individuals save money and protect our climate through superior energy efficiency.
The ENERGY STAR program was established by EPA in 1992, under the authority of the Clean Air Act Section 103(g). Section103(g) of the Clean Air Act directs the Administrator to "conduct a basic engineering research and technology program to develop, evaluate, and demonstrate non–regulatory strategies and technologies for reducing air pollution." In 2005, Congress enacted the Energy Policy Act. Section 131 of the Act amends Section 324 (42 USC 6294) of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, and "established at the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency a voluntary program to identify and promote energy–efficient products and buildings in order to reduce energy consumption, improve energy security, and reduce pollution through voluntary labeling of or other forms of communication about products and buildings that meet the highest energy efficiency standards."
Under EPA's leadership, American consumers, businesses, and organizations have made investments in energy efficiency that are transforming the market for efficient products and practices, creating jobs, and stimulating the economy. Now in its 20th year, the ENERGY STAR program has boosted the adoption of energy efficient products, practices, and services through valuable partnerships, objective measurement tools, and consumer education.
IDSA is the voice of the industrial design profession, advancing the quality and positive impact of design.
UL is a safety consulting and certification company. They are an independent, not-for-profit product safety testing and certification organization.
BIFMA is the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Association. It was founded in 1973 with a mission to lead, advocate, inform and develop standards for the North American office and institutional furniture industry.
We serve businesses that are primarily engaged in design, development, marketing and fulfillment of office and institutional furniture products.
BIFMA is a not-for-profit organization that provides an effective forum for members to cooperate and collaborate on appropriate industry issues.
We develop voluntary product and industry standards that support safe, healthy and sustainable environments; publish key industry statistics; advocate for legislation and government regulation that has a direct impact on the health of the industry; and facilitate meaningful dialog and education to support our core services and the industry we serve.
EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE) works in partnership with industry, environmental groups, and academia to reduce risk to people and the environment by finding ways to prevent pollution. For more than 15 years, through partnership projects, DfE has evaluated human health and environmental concerns associated with traditional and alternative chemicals and processes in a range of industries. These analyses have empowered hundreds of businesses to select safer chemicals and technologies. DfE focuses on industries that combine the potential for chemical risk reduction with a strong motivation to make lasting, positive changes.
More recently, DfE has been helping consumers and industrial purchasers make wise choices by identifying safer and effective products. It has evaluated and allowed more than 2,500 products to carry the DfE logo.
Every year, DfE programs reduce the use of chemicals of concern by hundreds of million pounds.
Material ConneXion is a materials consultancy that helps companies source advanced materials to enhance the performance, aesthetics and sustainability of their projects.
The State Government of Michigan is actively involved in promoting and coordinating green chemistry activities in Michigan through the Michigan Green Chemistry Program, managed by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).
The Michigan Green Chemistry Program (also known as the “Michigan Green Chemistry Support Program”) was created in October 2006 through Executive Directive No. 2006-6, the first Executive Directive in the USA specifically addressing green chemistry, as reflected in its title: "Promotion of Green Chemistry for Sustainable Economic Development and Protection of Public Health." Executive Directive No. 2006-6 was issued by the former Michigan Governor, Jennifer Granholm; in remains in effect with the incumbent Michigan Governor, Rick Snyder.
Executive Directive No. 2006-6 recognizes that, to benefit the State of Michigan, green chemistry must both (i) protect public health by fostering the use and development of new chemicals and chemical products that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances; and (ii) stimulate sustainability economic developmentby producing high quality products through safe and efficient manufacturing processes.
The IDEA Awards have been running for 32 years with a 20 year media partner in the business press. Until last year we published the results of the IDEA Awards in Business Week, but for this year we are pleased to announce our new media partner is Fast Company Magazine. In addition the IDEA Awards have a very special difference from this year on. We have partnered with the Henry Ford in Dearborn and all finalists from this year will go into the permanent collection of the museum and from next year all winners will go into the permanent collection