What design strategy focuses on the environmental impact of materials, energy use, and waste?

The design strategy that emphasizes the environmental impact of materials, energy use, and waste is eco-design. This approach integrates environmental considerations into the design and development process, aiming to minimize negative impacts on the environment throughout a product's life cycle. Eco-design encourages the use of sustainable materials, efficient energy consumption, and strategies for reducing waste and pollution.

It also considers the entire lifecycle of a product, including extraction of raw materials, manufacturing processes, transportation, use, and ultimate disposal or recycling. By prioritizing these aspects, eco-design helps to create products that are not only functional and aesthetically pleasing but also sustainable and responsible in terms of their environmental footprint.

Other strategies, while related to sustainability, may not focus as comprehensively on the various elements of the design process that eco-design encompasses. For instance, cradle to cradle typically promotes a circular economy approach, but it's one of many frameworks within the broader scope of eco-design. Life cycle analysis evaluates a product’s environmental impact over its entire life but does not necessarily guide design choices. The product cycle is a more general term that does not specifically address environmental considerations.