What is the focus of the sustainable design technique known as Product stewardship?

Product stewardship is a sustainable design technique that emphasizes the responsibility of manufacturers, retailers, and consumers to consider the environmental impact of a product throughout its entire lifecycle. This approach encourages collaboration among various stakeholders to reduce the negative impacts associated with a product from raw material extraction through production, use, and disposal.

By focusing on voluntary partnerships, product stewardship aims to promote best practices in sustainability, encouraging businesses to take accountability for their products, including their design, manufacturing processes, and end-of-life management. This collaborative approach can lead to improved environmental outcomes, such as reduced waste and enhanced recycling efforts, ensuring that products are designed with consideration of their full lifecycle implications.

In contrast, maximizing short-term profits, promoting governmental policies on recycling, and enhancing product features for competitive advantage do not capture the essence of product stewardship, which is fundamentally about shared responsibility and long-term sustainability rather than merely economic or competitive interests.