National Design Awards

William McDonough's work arises from the goal of creating buildings, spaces, and places with completely positive intentions. Time recognized him as a "Hero for the Planet" in 1999, stating that "his utopianism is grounded in a unified philosophy that - in demonstrable and practical ways - is changing the design of the world." McDonough is the founding principal of William McDonough + Partners, a design firm practicing ecologically, socially, and economically intelligent architecture and planning in the U.S. and abroad. He is also the co-founder and principal, with German chemist Michael Braungart, of McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry, a product and process design firm assisting companies to design profitable and ecologically intelligent products and systems. Both partnerships are based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Clients include companies such as Ford Motor Company, Herman Miller, The Gap, IBM, and Nike; cities such as Williamsburg, Virginia, Chicago, Illinois, and Chattanooga, Tennessee; and institutions such as Oberlin College, the University of Michigan, and Fuller Theological Seminary.