Every human activity generates a stream of solid waste such as municipal garbage, recyclable materials, hazardous waste, electronic waste, and hundreds of other classifications. Managing or mis-managing this material risks contaminating the natural environment and our own surroundings with heavy metals, micro-plastics, greenhouse gasses, pharmaceuticals, and uncountable other contaminants. In this seminar, we will look at the life cycle of our material world. Beginning with design and material choice, production, repair and reuse, recycling, and disposal. We will take field trips to local facilities to see waste processing. And we will produce projects that analyze a waste stream and offer methods to improve it. Topic areas include landfill design, incineration, municipal recycling, composting, plastic recycling, construction debris, industrial and hazardous waste, animal and agricultural waste, medical waste, radioactive materials, coal ash, mine tailings, right to repair, reuse and upcycling, and many others. Our focus will be on the US, but international transportation will also be considered, and global issues will be integral to the discussion.
3 units · Satisfactory/No Credit
Every human activity generates a stream of solid waste such as municipal garbage, recyclable materials, hazardous waste, electronic waste, and hundreds of other classifications. Managing or mis-managing this material risks contaminating the natural environment and our own surroundings with heavy metals, micro-plastics, greenhouse gasses, pharmaceuticals, and uncountable other contaminants. In this seminar, we will look at the life cycle of our material world. Beginning with design and material choice, production, repair and reuse, recycling, and disposal. We will take field trips to local facilities to see waste processing. And we will produce projects that analyze a waste stream and offer methods to improve it. Topic areas include landfill design, incineration, municipal recycling, composting, plastic recycling, construction debris, industrial and hazardous waste, animal and agricultural waste, medical waste, radioactive materials, coal ash, mine tailings, right to repair, reuse and upcycling, and many others. Our focus will be on the US, but international transportation will also be considered, and global issues will be integral to the discussion.
Offered in Autumn 2026 at Stanford University.