William McDonough

William McDonough is a globally recognized leader in sustainable design and development. He co-authored "Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things" (2002), widely recognized as a seminal text of both the sustainability and the Circular Economy design movements. He also co-authored "The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability--Designing for Abundance," further contributing to critical discussions on resource use and sustainable practices.

He advises global leaders through McDonough Innovation and is an architect with William McDonough + Partners. His architecture firm, established in 1977, is noted for designing many primary icons of the sustainable architecture movement, including major projects for companies such as Gap Inc., Nike, and Herman Miller. Through his firm MBDC, he created the Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Products Program and co-founded the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, which administers the program. Cradle to Cradle Certified® is an independent, science-based, third-party, multi-attribute product standard recognized by the world’s leading retailers, including Amazon, Home Depot, Walgreens, and Walmart.

McDonough has been active with the World Economic Forum for 25 years and served as the inaugural chair of their Meta-Council on the Circular Economy. He has co-founded four not-for-profit organizations, including GreenBlue, Sustainable Packaging Coalition, and Fashion for Good—a joint-industry initiative aiming to transform the global apparel chain into a force for good. His leadership roles extend to education, where he serves as an Alumni Research Professor at the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business Administration and as a Consulting Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University.

McDonough received the Presidential Award for Sustainable Development (1996), the first U.S. EPA Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award (2003), and the National Design Award (2004). He was also recognized with the Fortune Award for Circular Economy Leadership (2017). Time magazine acknowledged him as a “Hero for the Planet,” emphasizing that his philosophy is “changing the design of the world.” Fortune magazine also named him one of the World's 50 Greatest Leaders in 2019, highlighting his ongoing influence in the field of sustainable design and architecture.