Typically focused on a single product

Cradle to Grave approach to design: The product life-cycle ends with its disposal in a way that limits or reduces environmental impact; There is no "new life" for the product or its component parts.

Short Timescale: Strategies are focused almost exclusively on the product itself and not a great deal on the systems or people around it. Strategies that support a short timescale are typically easier and cheaper to implement for manufacturers. 

Small changes to a product are required to make it green. For example:

• Switching to a recyclable material, 

• Reducing packaging

• Reducing materials (light-weighting)

• Reducing energy consumption

Typically more complex and challenging to achieve.

Focused on the systems around a product

Cradle to Cradle (C2C) approach to design: Design decisions are not focused exclusively on the product, but on the resources used to create it, it's manufacture and distribution, and the social and economic systems it supports (or creates).

Long Timescale: Sustainable design typically requires much more research into the materials, processes, systems, etc. At minimum, sustainable approaches need to be embraced at the company or industry level--simply focusing on one product cannot achieve recognition as sustainable design.

Significant changes to systems are usually needed to achieve sustainable design goals. For example:

• selecting materials that are sustainably and equitably harvested or extracted

• reduction of the environmental impact of manufacturing and distribution of the product (i.e. solar powered manufacturing, local as opposed to international manufacture and distribution)

• Shift from a business model that prioritizes financial reward to one that is focused on triple bottom line (TBL)  factors such as Social Benefits, Economic Benefits, and Environmental Benefits.