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How Vinyl Can Fit Into Actionable Idealism
At Greenbuild this year, I had the opportunity to hear from renowned architect Jeanne Gang in her keynote presentation. Gang is a powerhouse in the building industry, having been named the 2016 Architect of the Year by the Architectural Review, and most recently named to the TIME 100 Most Influential People of 2019. She is passionate about creating buildings that also foster relationships and communities—a practice she has coined “actionable idealism.”
In an interview with CRAIN, Gang described actionable idealism as the way her studio is attempting to tackle global issues. “We like to zoom out and try to see how design can be part of that dialogue,” Gang told CRAIN. “But then we like to focus on something that can be achieved and try to help get that first step going. So in a way, it’s kind of a global attitude, but also an idea about how important it is to make incremental success and action.”
In her keynote, Gang discussed the spheres of architectural influences connecting people, environments and communities. You can look at the spheres in two ways, starting at the most personal level and getting larger, or beginning with the big picture and narrowing it down until you reach the individual impact. According to Gang, the spheres include:
- Earth
- Humanity
- Communities
- Friends
- Family
- Self
While listening to her presentation, it made me consider if vinyl materials could fit into these spheres and this concept of actionable idealism. After some thought, I believe it does—here’s how.
Earth
When you start to design and build something and step back to see the bigger picture and how it impacts the environment, you might consider how it impacts greenhouse gas emissions. Considering your material options, vinyl has a lower carbon footprint than many alternatives, so by choosing vinyl, you’re already mitigating this impact of the built environment.
Humanity
Moving a little bit deeper, I considered a specific, albeit large—and important—industry that impacts all of humanity: healthcare. From its use in flooring and furniture in hospitals to blood bags and intravenous tubing, billions of lives are saved by using vinyl. But we can even zoom out a little bit larger than a specific industry if we want to consider how vinyl impacts humanity overall; billions of lives are being enhanced by fresh drinking water supplied in vinyl pipes—just take a look at how PVC pipe has impacted Honduras.
Communities
When we think about how vinyl can impact humanity, that may not directly impact you daily, but we can go even further to how vinyl impacts our communities that we touch, and I bet it does in ways you may not realize. Vinyl can provide quick, attractive, and durable renovations of the existing building inventory with easy to install vinyl floor coverings, wall protection systems and surface wiring for electrical and communications enhancements.
Friends
Let’s get even more narrow though. How does vinyl foster the relationships among friends? With all of us so tied to our electronic smart devices nowadays, vinyl-insulated cables connect our phones, tablets, computers and more that enable our broader communications so we can stay connected to our favorite friends.
Family
And one relationship closer than friends are our families. When it comes to family, vinyl building products help to provide affordable housing. Vinyl materials can be used in flooring, windows, siding, roofing, decking, and more, and it’s a reliable, yet more affordable material option than many others.
Self
Finally, how does vinyl impact you personally? At the most individual level, vinyl impacts our lives in ways you may not have had any idea. From vinyl films that protect your food from spoiling, to vinyl gloves that prevent the spread of germs, to vinyl credit cards that simplify purchasing, vinyl is extremely impactful for us all.
As we say at VI, vinyl is the material for life. It impacts us daily in ways we may not even realize, and it can connect us to our loved ones, improve our communities, and enhance our sustainability within the environment. I wholeheartedly believe vinyl materials are one way to realize actionable idealism.