IDSA recognizes the following ecological principles

Human society and the biosphere are interdependent.
Nature can survive without humanity but society is dependent on the biosphere for crucial services. Society's systematic destruction of the biosphere threatens nature's health and its capacity to sustain human society.

Our biosphere requires protection on several levels.
Destructive substances from the Earth's interior must not accumulate in the biosphere (toxic metals, CO2 from fossil fuels, etc.). Persistent synthetic substances must not be allowed to accumulate in the biosphere (PCBs, CFCs, radioactive isotopes, and so forth). The Earth's major habitats, productive natural cycles and biological diversity must not be destroyed.

Meeting society's basic needs and reducing consumption is necessary.
Enabling people in less industrialized societies to meet their basic needs is required to slow population growth and to protect habitats. Fair and efficient use of resources can enable all people access to water, food, shelter, basic health care and education. Environmentally friendly technologies can be developed to both meet basic needs in all societies and to reduce resource consumption in more industrialized societies.

IDSA recommends the following ecodesign practices

Use ecodesign strategies appropriate to the product

Reduce overall material content and increase the percentage of recycled material in products
Reduce energy consumption of products that use energy
Specify sustainably grown materials when using wood or agricultural materials
Design disposable products or products that wear out to be moredurable and precious
Eliminate unused or unnecessary product features
Design continuously transported products for minimal weight
Design for fast, economical disassembly of major components prior to recycling, and
Design products so that toxic components (electronics, etc.) are easily removed prior to recycling.

Perform comprehensive environmental assessment

Consider all of the ecological impacts from all of the components in the products over its entire life cycle, including extraction of materials from nature, conversion of materials into products, product use, disposal or recycling and transport between these phases
Consider all ecological impacts including global warming, acidrain, smog, habitat damage, human toxicity, water pollution,cancer causing potential, ozone layer depletion and resourcedepletion
Strive to reduce the largest ecological impacts, and
Conduct life cycle impact assessment (LCA) to comprehensivelyidentify opportunities for improving ecological performance.

Encourage new business models and effective communication

Support product 'take back' systems that enable product up-gradingand material recycling
Lease the product or sell the service of the product to improvelong-term performance and end-of-life product collection
Communicate the sound business value of being ecologicallyresponsible to clients and commissioners
Discuss market opportunities for meeting basic needs and reducingconsumption, and
Present superior product quality claims ('energy saving','contains less toxic waste', etc.) along with other performancefeatures.

The IDSA Ecodesign Section distilled these practices and principles and the IDSA Executive Committee adopted them in November 2001.