A good friend of mine Matt Grigsby has been at the forefront of blending design and entrepreneurial energies in Providence. He started Designawareness, a industrial design consultancy before partnering with Joe Gebbia to start the world's largest database of sustainable materials called ECOLECT. Both Matt and Joe graduated in 2005 from RISD in Industrial Design and Joe with an additional Graphic design degree.

Building upon their success, they aim to bring the company to the next level in 2009.

About Ecolect

We house the largest most comprehensive online database of
environmentally considered materials in the world, educate, and provide top-notch consulting services to give your business the strongest competitive advantage possible. We are a team of designers, chemists, and architects dedicated to getting your products on the cutting edge of sustainability, and keeping them there. It is our passion and our mission to help companies design and produce in the most environmentally sound way possible, and to create tools and services which address the challenges of moving towards a better, truly sustainable future.

Material NutritionLabel™

We have created the leading Material NutritionLabel™ which is based on proven facts that can determine the environmental impact of a product or material. With more and more companies claiming that products are green, consumers are now asking the question "what shade of green?" Consumers today are buying products which they research and talk about. Our Material NutritionLabel™ makes the decision easy with its trusted research and analysis of environmental properties. It simply and clearly tells consumers exactly how green a product is, why it's green and what the company is doing to improve the overall performance.

GreenBox™

We've created GreenBox™, the first eco-friendly materials subscription service for those who are ahead of the curve. Our forward thinking package is designed for trend-setters and innovators in the creative industry who work the environment in mind. We know that materials are the foundation of design and architecture, this quarterly kit will equip you and your team to design sustainably with more confidence while providing information and physical samples. Every 3 months, we release a sampling of 12 cutting-edge materials, packaged in a durable box that can also function as a catchy display. The criteria is that the materials must be innovative, environmental solutions ideal for design, engineering, and marketing teams. The chosen samples will highlight trends that other material producers are setting, and serve as inspirational and informational reference for you when initiating new projects. After an entire year subscription, your studio will have their very own eco-materials library of nearly 50 different products.

Materials PettingZoo™

We cater the Petting Zoo™ to the large community designers, engineers, and business professionals, eager to learn about the latest and greatest in alternative eco-materials. It is a chance to speak with designers, engineers, developers, and the business owners one-on-one about material needs, options and ideas. Ecolect combines ecology and intellect by shining light on alternative material solutions that minimize the creative communities impact on the environment. We empower designers and architects with the tools and resources they need to create environmentally friendly products, services, and spaces. The Petting Zoo™ is exhibited at conferences, seminars, in-office events, trade shows, corporations, studios and educational institutions. Every sample in the Petting Zoo is accompanied by information about production, usage, technical specs and environmental
properties.

Visit ECOLECT here