As today’s highly mobile knowledge workers spend more time than ever in a seated posture using electronic devices like PCs, laptops and smart phones, the need to mitigate the effects of sitting increases. Physiologically the human body is not made for sitting; back pain is among the top-five ailments effecting modern workers.

For many years Method has challenged consumers to question what laundry detergent is and could be—in particular, it doesn’t have to be a huge water-filled jug of detergent made from non-sustainable petroleum surfactants. With the release of its Smartclean Technology formula, detergent is now concentrated to its greatest level yet—8x, removing most of the excess water in the formula with no loss of efficacy. The bottle’s small size makes it easy to hold, and the pump dispenser makes it easy to measure just the right amount.

Nike Considered Footwear is a sustainable line of shoes that has also served as a template for ecologically sensitive design principles. In 2006, Nike adopted the Considered product ethos—create products that are made with less toxins, less waste, more environmentally friendly materials and sustainable product innovation—and later created a sustainability index to measure the level of ecologically sensitive design and manufacturing in all new products.

Credit: Andreas Harlow, IDSA, Richard Clarke, Steve MacDonald, Mike Aveni, Brad Long and Steven Ploem of Nike