--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can't imagine something being beautiful…" description: "\"I can't imagine something being beautiful at this point in history if it's destroying the planet or causing children to get sick. How can anything be b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/william-mcdonough-10055_beautiful_i-can-t-imagine-something-being-beautifu_608497.png" --- # I can't imagine something being beautiful at this point in… ![“I can't imagine something being beautiful at this point in history if it's destroying the planet or causing children to get sick. How can anything be beautiful if it's not ecologically intelligent at this point?” quote by William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/william-mcdonough-10055_beautiful_i-can-t-imagine-something-being-beautifu_608497.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/william-mcdonough-10055_beautiful_i-can-t-imagine-something-being-beautifu_608497.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/william-mcdonough-10055_beautiful_i-can-t-imagine-something-being-beautifu_608497.png) > “I can't imagine something being beautiful at this point in history if it's destroying the planet or causing children to get sick. How can anything be beautiful if it's not ecologically intelligent at this point?” [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Beauty must align with ecological health; destruction negates aesthetic value. **In simple terms:** Beauty requires ecological intelligence. Key Takeaway Prioritize sustainability in design. Themes environment ethics aesthetics Mood concerned hopeful Type ethical inspirational When to use this quote - architecture - product development - urban planning - policy making Key Concepts ecological intelligence sustainable design Questions to Reflect On - What design choices can be both beautiful and eco‑friendly? - How do we measure ecological intelligence? A Different Perspective Aesthetic appeal can be subjective, even when harmful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Beautiful Ecologically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful-ecologically-4946897/) [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Being beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-beautiful/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Destroying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destroying/) [Destroying Planet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destroying-planet-419795/) [Ecologically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ecologically-1258472/) [Ecologically Intelligent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ecologically-intelligent-4946898/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [I can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-can/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Imagine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagine/) [Intelligent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligent/) [Planet Causing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planet-causing-4946899/) [Planets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planets/) [Sick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick/) ## Related quotes > [The ecological challenges we face are the result of billions of ecologically ignorant decisions made by billions of people over centuries. To address the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-hershkowitz/the-ecological-challenges-we-face-are-the-result-of-billions-of/) [Allen Hershkowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-hershkowitz/) > [If design is to be ecologically responsible, it must be independent of concern for the gross national product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-papanek/if-design-is-to-be-ecologically-responsible-it-must-be-independent-of/) [Victor Papanek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-papanek/) > [If you're looking ecologically, then we are in very big trouble, yes. But if you're talking about people sinking, I'm not so sure that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-houston/if-you-re-looking-ecologically-then-we-are-in-very-big-trouble-yes/) [Jean Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-houston/) > [I think the world's still gonna be here in another 10, 20 years. But I'm not feeling great about things ecologically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-harrelson/i-think-the-world-s-still-gonna-be-here-in-another-10-20-years-but-i/) [Woody Harrelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-harrelson/) > [“Ecologically considered, it is not primarily our verbal statements that are "true" or "false," but rather the kind of relations that we sustain with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-abram/ecologically-considered-it-is-not-primarily-our-verbal-statements/) [David Abram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-abram/) > [ “Thinking ecologically does not mean reverting to a natural state... Such a state does not exist and never has. In \[this\] view, ecology should… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arie-altena/thinking-ecologically-does-not-mean-reverting-to-a-natural-state-such/) [Arie Altena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arie-altena/) > [“The complex system that is the body is a field of ways of knowing, all of which work together ecologically to provide the necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-bateson/the-complex-system-that-is-the-body-is-a-field-of-ways-of-knowing-all/) [Nora Bateson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-bateson/) > [“If the technology improves sufficiently, the environmental impact of the wealthiest Copy could end up being less than that of the most ascetic living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-egan/if-the-technology-improves-sufficiently-the-environmental-impact-of/) [Greg Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-egan/) > [If there is to be an ecologically sound society, it will have to come the grass roots up, not from the top down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/if-there-is-to-be-an-ecologically-sound-society-it-will-have-to-come/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [“A loner, by nature, burdens no one with their existence. By avoiding entanglements with others, they cause no harm. We are extremely ecologically friendly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wataru-watari/a-loner-by-nature-burdens-no-one-with-their-existence-by-avoiding/) [Wataru Watari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wataru-watari/) > [I think that at some level, people recognize that growing our economy is destroying us. It's destroying us as human beings, it's destroying our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/i-think-that-at-some-level-people-recognize-that-growing-our-economy/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [“Capitalism is destroying the planet. The two old tricks that dug it out of past crises--War and Shopping--simply will not work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/capitalism-is-destroying-the-planet-the-two-old-tricks-that-dug-it/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [It's not an investment if its destroying the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vandana-shiva/it-s-not-an-investment-if-its-destroying-the-planet/) [Vandana Shiva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vandana-shiva/) > [We speak often of 'destroying the planet' when what we mean is destroying its habitability for humans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/we-speak-often-of-destroying-the-planet-when-what-we-mean-is/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [Even if we are destroying this planet, we are playing our role perfectly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-kest/even-if-we-are-destroying-this-planet-we-are-playing-our-role/) [Bryan Kest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-kest/) ## More by William McDonough > [Honor commerce as the engine of change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/honor-commerce-as-the-engine-of-change/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [I am very focused on large-scale deployments of renewable power and how we're going to get this done. Imagine our military bases covered with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/i-am-very-focused-on-large-scale-deployments-of-renewable-power-and/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [You don't filter smokestacks or water. Instead, you put the filter in your head and design the problem out of existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/you-don-t-filter-smokestacks-or-water-instead-you-put-the-filter-in/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [If design is the first signal of human intention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/if-design-is-the-first-signal-of-human-intention/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [ You need that same creative force that exists in a building like Disney \[Walt Disney Concert Hall\] to actually tackle that most prosaic of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/you-need-that-same-creative-force-that-exists-in-a-building-like/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [And to use something as elegant as a tree? Imagine this design assignment: Design something that makes oxygen, sequesters carbon, fixes nitrogen, distills water,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/and-to-use-something-as-elegant-as-a-tree-imagine-this-design/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [I'd so much rather have exciting architecture that causes one to stop, breathe, and reflect on the potential of the human mind, the craft,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/i-d-so-much-rather-have-exciting-architecture-that-causes-one-to-stop/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [To eliminate the concept of waste means to design things-products, packaging, and systems-from the very beginning on the understanding that waste does not exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/to-eliminate-the-concept-of-waste-means-to-design-things-products/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [We are not a green standard, we are a quality standard. We're different, we're multi dimensional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/we-are-not-a-green-standard-we-are-a-quality-standard-we-re-different/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [Don't get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It's just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there's an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/don-t-get-me-wrong-i-love-nuclear-energy-it-s-just-that-i-prefer/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [If anybody here has trouble with the concept of design humility, reflect on this: It took us 5,000 years to put wheels on our luggage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/if-anybody-here-has-trouble-with-the-concept-of-design-humility/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [The problem I have with carbon as a bad thing issue, is that people go out and say they want to be zero carbon.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/the-problem-i-have-with-carbon-as-a-bad-thing-issue-is-that-people-go/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [If you don't have an end game of something delightful, you're just moving chess pieces around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/if-you-don-t-have-an-end-game-of-something-delightful-you-re-just/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [“Ultimately a regulation is a signal of design failure...it is what we call a license to harm: a permit issued by a government to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/ultimately-a-regulation-is-a-signal-of-design-failure-it-is-what-we/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [I just think it is so delightful to see people, let their elbows free. I think the exuberance of it all is really exciting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/i-just-think-it-is-so-delightful-to-see-people-let-their-elbows-free/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) [Explore all 68 William McDonough quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) ## More Beautiful quotes > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) > [Being beautiful comes naturally!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-beautiful-comes-naturally/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) [Tumblr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tumblr/) > [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/) [Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/) > [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [Sometimes it's about less is more. It's about the seed. Thinking about this gigantic tree that you think is so beautiful but it started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/sometimes-it-s-about-less-is-more-it-s-about-the-seed-thinking-about/) [Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/) > [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/) [Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/) [Browse all 17,976 Beautiful quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I can't imagine something being beautiful at this point in history if it's destroying the planet or causing children to get sick. 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