This resource also helps us teach future generations that the decisions and trade-offs we make today will affect the environment tomorrow. Supported by a grant from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the publication helps students make the connections between Earth s limited natural resources and the products we use daily. It is based on the concept of life cycle assessment, a process of evaluating the environmental impact of the total life of a product. Similar to dissection in a biology class, The Life Cycle of Everyday Stuff asks students to dissect a telephone. For instance, the plastic cover of a phone protects the inner components but is also easy to clean.
Students soon learn that product design has a big influence on every stage in the life cycle.
Subsequent chapters offer a look into the second and third stages of a product s life cycle raw materials and manufacturing. In these units, students are encouraged to discover what products are made of and why, and also how raw materials are manufactured into the items we use every day. Students then evaluate the useful life of a product the fourth stage of life cycle assessment. This chapter examines issues of product durability, depreciation, and waste. For example, compared to a pencil or paper cup, a telephone is more durable, made from more expensive raw materials, and takes more time to manufacture.