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What is William McDonough + Partners?
William McDonough + Partners (WM+P) was an architecture, community design, and consulting firm known for grounding its work in the Cradle to Cradle philosophy. That framework, developed by William McDonough, framed sustainability as designing for "more good" rather than simply "less bad"—buildings and products that generate positive environmental and social value. The firm operated for more than 40 years and closed in 2025; its website now serves as an archive of its projects and ideas.
What the firm was known for
- Cradle to Cradle design thinking. WM+P treated buildings as part of material and energy cycles, aiming for outcomes such as energy-positive and water-positive performance rather than only reduced harm.
- Flagship sustainable projects. The archive lists work including NASA Sustainability Base in Mountain View, California; a YouTube headquarters building in San Bruno, California; a Ford truck plant in Dearborn, Michigan with a large green roof; and the B/S/H headquarters at Park 20|20 in the Netherlands, described as part of the world's first circular economy development.
- International and mixed-use work. Projects span academic, corporate, industrial, and community settings, such as Universidad EAN in Bogotá, Colombia, and Apex Plaza in Charlottesville, Virginia, noted as a large mass timber building.
How to use the archive
If you are researching circular economy or regenerative design precedents, the project pages are the most concrete starting point: they show how broad principles were applied to specific sites, clients, and building types. For current thought leadership and consulting, William McDonough's work continues through McDonough Innovation. For broader context on Cradle to Cradle, the official McDonough Innovation site is the relevant reference.
What is the Cradle to Cradle design framework?
The Cradle to Cradle design framework is a way of designing buildings, products and systems so they create a positive footprint rather than merely reducing harm. William McDonough + Partners describes it as a "positive, hopeful vision of a world of abundance," with the goal of designing things that create "more good" for the world, not just "less bad." In practice, that means treating materials as nutrients that can be safely returned to nature or endlessly cycled through industry, powering buildings with renewable energy, using water carefully, and designing for adaptation over long lifetimes. The firm says it created the framework and grounded its architecture, community design and consulting work in it.
What it looks like in real projects
The archive on William McDonough + Partners shows how the ideas translate. NASA's Sustainability Base in Mountain View, California is described as energy- and water-positive. The Ford Truck Plant in Dearborn, Michigan has a 10-acre green roof at the center of the Rouge's revitalization. The YouTube headquarters in San Bruno, California is conceived as "a building like a meadow," designed for flexibility over time. Hero Motocorp's Garden Factory in Neemrana, India is a factory designed like a garden, and the B/S/H headquarters sits within Park 20|20 in the Netherlands, described as the world's first circular economy development.
An example for a specific reader
If you are planning a building and want to test whether a Cradle to Cradle approach fits, start with two questions: where do the materials come from and where do they go at the end of the building's life, and can the building produce more energy and water than it consumes? A reader comparing design approaches might use the NASA base as a reference for energy-positive performance, the Ford plant for green infrastructure, and Apex Plaza in Charlottesville, Virginia—the largest mass timber building on the East Coast when completed in May 2022—for a mixed-use, lower-carbon structure.
How to go further
William McDonough + Partners closed in 2025 and the site is now an archive of its work. For current work on the framework, the firm points to McDonough Innovation, where William McDonough and his team continue to provide thought leadership, product concepts and solutions for sustainable growth. The Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute at Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute runs the certification program for products, a useful next stop if you want to see how the framework is applied and verified in practice.
What projects did William McDonough + Partners design?
William McDonough + Partners designed a portfolio of buildings and concepts tied to the Cradle to Cradle philosophy, spanning academic, corporate, industrial, and government work. The firm closed in 2025, and its site now functions as an archive.
Representative projects named on the site
- Universidad EAN — Bogotá, Colombia: a new academic building for exploring Circular Economy possibilities.
- NASA Sustainability Base — Mountain View, California: described as energy- and water-positive, NASA's first space station on Earth.
- YouTube Headquarters — San Bruno, California: a building like a meadow, designed for flexibility over time.
- Innovation and Research Center — The Netherlands: a solar orchard concept for an energy- and food-positive facility.
- Hero Motocorp Garden Factory — Neemrana, India: a factory like a garden for the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer.
- B/S/H (Bosch Siemens) Headquarters at Park 20|20 — The Netherlands: located within what the firm calls the world's first circular economy development.
- Ford Truck Plant — Dearborn, Michigan: a 10-acre green roof, the largest of its kind, as the centerpiece of the Rouge's revitalization.
- Apex Plaza — Charlottesville, Virginia: completed May 2022, described as the largest mass timber building on the East Coast and a mixed-use project; it received a 2023 AIA DC Chapter Design Award in the Energy and Resources category.
How to read the list
The projects cluster around two ideas: making large industrial and corporate facilities behave more like living systems (green roofs, solar orchards, garden factories), and treating buildings as long-lived, adaptable assets rather than fixed objects. If you are researching a specific building type, start with the closest analogue — a campus building, a headquarters, or a factory — and look at how each handles energy, water, and material reuse. For current consulting or thought leadership rather than archive material, William McDonough's ongoing work continues through McDonough Innovation.
Why did William McDonough + Partners close?
William McDonough + Partners closed in 2025 after more than 40 years of practice. The firm's own site frames the closure as the end of a chapter rather than a failure: it describes itself as an archive of the work, thanks the clients, collaborators and staff who built it, and points to William McDonough's continued activity through McDonough Innovation, which carries on the thought leadership, product concepts and consulting side of the practice.
What the archive says, and what it doesn't
The site states the closure and the transition of McDonough's work into McDonough Innovation, but it does not give a single stated cause such as retirement, market conditions or a merger. That is worth reading carefully. A founder-led design firm's identity is often inseparable from the founder, and when the founder moves into advisory and innovation work, the architecture practice can wind down even while the intellectual framework continues. The Cradle to Cradle Design Framework, developed at the firm, remains the through-line.
Where the work continues
- McDonough Innovation — the successor vehicle for advisory work, product concepts and sustainability strategy for organizations.
- The project archive — built work documented on the site, useful for anyone studying circular-economy design in practice.
What the archive is good for
If you are researching sustainable architecture, the project list is the practical value here: Universidad EAN in Bogotá as an academic building exploring circular-economy possibilities, NASA Sustainability Base in Mountain View as an energy- and water-positive facility, the YouTube headquarters in San Bruno designed for flexibility over time, the B/S/H headquarters at Park 20|20 in the Netherlands within a circular-economy development, and the Ford Truck Plant in Dearborn with its large green roof. For a student, specifier or developer, these are precedent studies rather than a source of current services.
For current engagements on circular-economy strategy, approach McDonough Innovation rather than the archived firm. If your interest is architectural precedent, treat the site as a reference library and note that the practice that produced it no longer takes commissions. Related context on circular design and materials is available from Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute and U.S. Green Building Council.
How can I get sustainable design consulting after the firm closed?
Sustainable design consulting in the Cradle to Cradle tradition is still available through William McDonough's continuing practice, McDonough Innovation, which the firm's own archive points to for thought leadership, product concepts and solutions on sustainable growth. For project work, look to architects and consultants who trained in or collaborated with the firm and now practise independently.
What the archive itself tells you
The site is an archive of the work of William McDonough + Partners, which closed in 2025 after more than 40 years. It documents flagship projects rather than offering new services: a circular-economy academic building for Universidad EAN in Bogotá, the energy- and water-positive NASA Sustainability Base in Mountain View, a flexible YouTube headquarters in San Bruno, a solar orchard concept in the Netherlands, a garden factory for Hero Motocorp in India, the B/S/H headquarters at Park 20|20, and the Ford Truck Plant in Dearborn with its 10-acre green roof. Treat these as reference cases and precedents, not as an active consultancy.
Practical routes to help now
- Continuing practice: McDonough Innovation is named as the vehicle through which William McDonough and his team continue to advise leaders and organisations.
- Former staff and collaborators: Alumni of the firm now work across architecture, materials and circular-economy consulting. Ask for named individuals on comparable projects rather than a firm's general sustainability page.
- Framework-literate consultancies: Cradle to Cradle is a published framework with its own certification bodies and accredited assessors, so you can hire expertise without hiring the original firm.
- Academic and research partners: For circular-economy buildings, universities and research institutes often combine design advice with funded research.
Choosing the right route
| Your need | Best fit |
|---|---|
| Strategic vision, product concepts, executive advice | Continuing practice of the founding team |
| A specific building designed in this tradition | Architects who worked on the archive projects |
| Material health and certification | Accredited Cradle to Cradle assessors |
| Research-led or publicly funded project | University or institute partners |
A useful next step
Write a one-page brief before you approach anyone: your site, budget range, whether you want certification, and the outcome you are measuring (energy, water, material health, occupant wellbeing). Then ask each candidate for two projects of similar scale and a named reference. A short conversation about how they would approach your specific constraints will tell you more than a portfolio of awards.
What does the William McDonough + Partners archive include?
The archive documents the built and conceptual work of William McDonough + Partners, the architecture and community-design firm that closed in 2025 after more than 40 years. It is a portfolio-style record rather than an active practice site: projects, news of awards and milestones, and a statement of the firm's Cradle to Cradle design approach.
What you'll find
- Project profiles spanning architecture, community design and consulting, with locations and short descriptions. Examples include Universidad EAN in Bogotá, NASA Sustainability Base in Mountain View, the YouTube headquarters in San Bruno, a Ford truck plant in Dearborn, and the B/S/H headquarters at Park 20|20 in the Netherlands.
- Concept work, such as a solar orchard concept for an energy- and food-positive facility.
- Awards and recognition, including an AIA DC Chapter Design Award for Apex Plaza in Charlottesville, described as the largest mass timber building on the East Coast at completion.
- Firm history and philosophy, including the Cradle to Cradle Design Framework and a closing note thanking clients, collaborators and staff.
- A pointer onward to McDonough Innovation, where William McDonough continues consulting and thought-leadership work.
How to use it
Treat it as a reference library, not a services page. If you are researching circular-economy or regenerative design precedents, start with the project list and read the descriptions for the design intent behind each building. If you need current consulting or speaking, follow the McDonough Innovation link rather than expecting new project commissions here.
For comparable archives of sustainable architecture, see U.S. Green Building Council and American Institute of Architects.
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