Waste-Not Philosophy
The Creativity of Keeping, Mending
& Repurposing Material Objects
There is more creativity in keeping, mending, and repurposing the material objects we love than in throwing them away, seeking something new. We live in a disposable culture where 'newness' is worshipped as superior to 'oldness.' But in process philosophy, the 'new' comes in keeping the old in new ways. This creativity mirrors the consequent nature of God, the poet of the world, who is perpetually new by keeping, mending, and repurposing what has been, forever fresh and forever new.
- Jay McDaniel
- Jay McDaniel
Keeping, Mending, Repurposing
Waste-not philosophy begins with affection for the material world. It affirms the value of keeping things, repairing things, and repurposing things: clothes, furniture, buildings, bicycles, cell phones. tableware, and knick-knacks. Where some might argue that emotional attachments to material objects is a bad thing, waste-not philosophy says that it can be a good thing. It is a healing alternative to throwaway culture and, so I suggest below, a way of participating in the divine life.
This philosophy is not tiresomely moralistic. It is not preaching to us or at us, telling us that we must stop being so wasteful, that we must break free of the idea that everything is disposable, or that we must —every one of us—become minimalists or declutter our lives in the manner of popular lifestyle gurus. Of course, there is truth in these ideas. But the waste-not philosophy is more positive in its tone.
It does not begin with guilt but with love. It is the warmth you feel in the presence of your favorite coffee cup—the one you reach for every morning. You keep the cup not because it is perfect. but because it holds memory, comfort, and continuity. It is the same spirit you feel in an old sweater that warms you in ways no new garment could, or a family chair worn smooth by generations of use. Consider the old photographs that you keep in your home. The waste-not philosophy suggests that we can approach much of the material world in exactly this way: that we can keep objects, mend them when they need repair, and repurpose them when they cease to be useful.
You find it clearly articulated in Christine Harold’s Things Worth Keeping: The Value of Attachment in a Disposable World (University of Minnesota Press, 2020), and you find a philosophy of design for it in Jonathan Chapman’s Emotionally Durable Design: Objects, Experiences and Empathy (Routledge, 2015). You see an artistic rendition of it in Song Dong’s Waste Not installation (first exhibited at the Beijing Tokyo Art Projects, 2005). [1]
Waste Not was created in memory of Song Dong’s mother, who had lived through famine in China and saved virtually everything—soap fragments, toothpaste tubes, bowls, clothes, buttons. The installation displayed over 10,000 of these household objects, filling an entire gallery space with the intimate debris of an ordinary life. The work is at once deeply personal and universally resonant, a meditation on memory, care, survival, and the quiet dignity of keeping.
This philosophy is not tiresomely moralistic. It is not preaching to us or at us, telling us that we must stop being so wasteful, that we must break free of the idea that everything is disposable, or that we must —every one of us—become minimalists or declutter our lives in the manner of popular lifestyle gurus. Of course, there is truth in these ideas. But the waste-not philosophy is more positive in its tone.
It does not begin with guilt but with love. It is the warmth you feel in the presence of your favorite coffee cup—the one you reach for every morning. You keep the cup not because it is perfect. but because it holds memory, comfort, and continuity. It is the same spirit you feel in an old sweater that warms you in ways no new garment could, or a family chair worn smooth by generations of use. Consider the old photographs that you keep in your home. The waste-not philosophy suggests that we can approach much of the material world in exactly this way: that we can keep objects, mend them when they need repair, and repurpose them when they cease to be useful.
You find it clearly articulated in Christine Harold’s Things Worth Keeping: The Value of Attachment in a Disposable World (University of Minnesota Press, 2020), and you find a philosophy of design for it in Jonathan Chapman’s Emotionally Durable Design: Objects, Experiences and Empathy (Routledge, 2015). You see an artistic rendition of it in Song Dong’s Waste Not installation (first exhibited at the Beijing Tokyo Art Projects, 2005). [1]
Waste Not was created in memory of Song Dong’s mother, who had lived through famine in China and saved virtually everything—soap fragments, toothpaste tubes, bowls, clothes, buttons. The installation displayed over 10,000 of these household objects, filling an entire gallery space with the intimate debris of an ordinary life. The work is at once deeply personal and universally resonant, a meditation on memory, care, survival, and the quiet dignity of keeping.
Waste-Not Spirituality
In a process theology frame, to keep, mend, and repurpose things is more than an ethic of frugality. It is a spiritual practice. Each act honors the intrinsic value of material things, the labor and energy embedded in them, and the continuity of their stories. To resist the disposable mindset is to align oneself with God’s lure toward beauty, harmony, and intensity—the creative advance into novelty.
- Lured by God: In every moment, the primordial nature of God offers fresh possibilities for care, creativity, and reverence. When we choose to mend rather than discard, we actualize one of those possibilities.
- Partaking of the Consequent Nature: At the same time, our keeping and repurposing resonate with God’s consequent nature—the divine receptacle of the world’s stories, where nothing is lost. Just as God takes into account every event, weaving it into the ongoing harmony of divine life, we too weave continuity by letting things live on in new ways.
The Spirit of the Consequent Nature in Daily Life
When you repair a chipped coffee cup, sew a patch on an old coat, or turn scrap wood into a new shelf, you’re doing something God-like in miniature:
- Remembering and honoring what has been.
- Saving and transforming rather than discarding.
- Folding the past into the future, so that beauty emerges out of continuity.
Waste Not Installation
Song Dong
"His 2025 installation Waste Not brought together over ten thousand items accumulated by the artist’s mother over five decades. Both a literal and psychological unpacking, the installation included quotidian objects including bottle caps, shoes, toothpaste tubes, and much more. Given the scope of such works, perhaps it’s not surprising then that when Song moved into his current studio his new neighbors thought the space had become a storage facility for detritus."
"Song Dong’s installation Wisdom of the Poor: Living with the Tree captures the ingenuity of everyday ecological wisdom. Set in a Beijing courtyard house, it depicts a small room where a tree grows straight through the bed. Rather than remove the tree, the space adapts around it, preserving its life while accommodating human use.
With humor and irony, the work shows that harmony between people and nature does not require domination but balance. It offers both a playful reminder of daily resourcefulness and a warning against destructive practices like cutting down trees or blasting mountains for construction."
(Published in Lagoonscapes: The Venice Journal of Environmental Humanities and based at the New Institute Center for Environmental Humanities in Venice)
With humor and irony, the work shows that harmony between people and nature does not require domination but balance. It offers both a playful reminder of daily resourcefulness and a warning against destructive practices like cutting down trees or blasting mountains for construction."
(Published in Lagoonscapes: The Venice Journal of Environmental Humanities and based at the New Institute Center for Environmental Humanities in Venice)
Things Worth Keeping
The Value of Attachment in a Disposable World
Christine Harold
"Rampant consumerism has inundated our planet with pollution and waste. Yet attempts to create environmentally friendly forms of consumption are often co-opted by corporations looking to sell us more stuff. In Things Worth Keeping, Christine Harold investigates the attachments we form to the objects we buy, keep, and discard, and explores how these attachments might be marshaled to create less wasteful practices and balance our consumerist and ecological impulses.
Although all economies produce waste, no system generates as much or has become so adept at hiding its excesses as today’s mode of global capitalism. This book suggests that managing the material excesses of our lives as consumers requires us to build on, rather than reject, our desire for and attraction to objects. Increasing environmental awareness on its own will be ineffective at reversing ecological devastation, Harold argues, unless it is coupled with a more thorough understanding of how and why we love the things that imbue our lives with pleasure, meaning, and utility.
From Marie Kondo’s method for decluttering that asks whether the things in our lives “spark joy” to the advent of emotionally durable design, which seeks to reduce consumption and waste by increasing the meaningfulness of the relationship between user and product, Harold explores how consumer psychology and empathetic design can transform our perception of consumer products from disposable to interconnected. An urgent call for rethinking consumerism, Things Worth Keeping shows that by recognizing our responsibility for the things we produce, we can become better stewards of the planet,"
Christine Harold is a professor of communication at the University of Washington and the author of OurSpace
Although all economies produce waste, no system generates as much or has become so adept at hiding its excesses as today’s mode of global capitalism. This book suggests that managing the material excesses of our lives as consumers requires us to build on, rather than reject, our desire for and attraction to objects. Increasing environmental awareness on its own will be ineffective at reversing ecological devastation, Harold argues, unless it is coupled with a more thorough understanding of how and why we love the things that imbue our lives with pleasure, meaning, and utility.
From Marie Kondo’s method for decluttering that asks whether the things in our lives “spark joy” to the advent of emotionally durable design, which seeks to reduce consumption and waste by increasing the meaningfulness of the relationship between user and product, Harold explores how consumer psychology and empathetic design can transform our perception of consumer products from disposable to interconnected. An urgent call for rethinking consumerism, Things Worth Keeping shows that by recognizing our responsibility for the things we produce, we can become better stewards of the planet,"
Christine Harold is a professor of communication at the University of Washington and the author of OurSpace
Interview with Christine Harold
"The value of things: At a time when many of us are sorting through Christmas presents, both wanted and unwanted, Laurie Taylor explores the value of attachment in a disposable world. Christine Harold, Professor of Communication at the University of Washington, asks why we hang on to certain objects and discard others. How might our emotional investment in things be harnessed to create less wasteful practices? Also, clutter in our homes, from the meaningless to the meaningful. Sophie Woodward, Professor of Sociology at the University of Manchester, challenges the moralistic view of clutter, one which sees it as a sign of individual failure to organise one’s domestic life. Instead, she argues, it is central to the ways we negotiate and manage our intimate relationships."
Producer: Jayne Egerton
Producer: Jayne Egerton
Emotionally Durable Design:
Objects, Experiences and Empathy
Jonathan Chapman
Emotionally Durable Design: Objects, Experiences and Empathy by Jonathan Chapman proposes a new approach to sustainability that focuses on building strong emotional connections between people and products to reduce waste. The book challenges the "throwaway society" by offering design tools and strategies to create products that users want to keep for longer, moving beyond traditional sustainability concerns like energy and materials to address the psychological drivers of consumption.
Key Concepts
Why It Matters
Examples of Emotional Durability
The book explores various examples, including:
Key Concepts
- Emotional Durability:
The core idea is to design products that foster deep, meaningful relationships with users, making them cherished and less likely to be discarded. - Beyond Traditional Sustainability:
Chapman argues that focusing solely on material and energy efficiency isn't enough; we must also address the psychological reasons people discard functional items. - Consumer Psychology:
The book delves into the deep motivations and emotions that influence our relationship with objects, providing insights into why we form attachments or become detached from products. - Design Strategies:
Chapman introduces practical strategies and frameworks for designers to create products that are not just functional but also emotionally resonant, leading to longer lifespans and reduced waste.
Why It Matters
- Reduces Waste:
By encouraging people to keep products longer, emotionally durable design directly combats the growing problem of consumption and waste. - Fosters a Deeper Connection:
It aims to create a more meaningful material culture where products are valued for their stories, experiences, and the connections they represent, rather than being seen as disposable. - A Hopeful Alternative:
The book offers a positive and hopeful vision for the future of design, moving away from the often-negative rhetoric of sustainability to a more resilient and cherished form of material culture.
Examples of Emotional Durability
The book explores various examples, including:
- Smartphones:
Designing them to be repairable or upgradeable to extend their functional life. - Clothing:
Creating garments that age well, develop character, and become imbued with personal history, like a well-worn pair of boots. - Furniture:
Crafting pieces that are unique, well-made, and designed to be passed down through generations.
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