By Diana Mosher Materials Future Every product choice has consequences for design clients and the planet It's been nearly 20 years since William McDonough and Michael Braungart co-authored Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. Since it was published in 2002, this seminal book in the sustainability movement has provided a blueprint for transforming industry through ecologically intelligent design. While we have not yet achieved a circular economy-where all manmade products are comprised of biological nutrients that return to the environment and technical nutrients that remain within closed-loop industrial cycles-the quest to do so continues. Interior designers play a critical role by understanding the composition and implications of the materials they specify-and by educating clients. During the pandemic, commercial and residential end users have been asking questions about the antiviral features of the materials with which they interact. This is a perfect time to widen that materials conversation, including aesthetics. Healthy materials come in nearly unlimited colors and patterns-it's not just beige anymore. i+D - May/June 2021 29