The term “upcycling” was coined by William McDonaugh and Michael Braugart in their book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things.
It’s also a much cooler way of saying, ??finding a way to use it again – preferably before recycling it.?
Most of us have been upcycling our whole lives. Ever scribble a shopping list on the back of an old AT&T envelope before tossing it in the recycle bin? Or maybe your kids have made rainy day art projects with odds and ends from the craft drawer. The point is, if you look around you?ll start to see it everywhere – and that’s important.
But it?s more than that.
There?s a larger definition, a bigger human picture ? we upcycle every time take something that has been used up and turn it into something that is useful; something that appeared valueless and give it a renewed purpose.
And sometimes we recreate a treasure.