On Amazon, $20 buys you a thousand (or one for every year it takes a plastic bag to decompose). The result is that many modern buildings have become the architectural equivalent of a plastic bag: cheap and disposable. How might sustainable buildings become as common as the Trader Joe’s tote, the reusable alternative to the plastic bag? It’s estimated that roughly 30% of building materials are touched by hands of people whose labor is exploited. Maybe then our buildings will age with dignity and grace—less like a plastic bag and more like a favorite, well-worn tote.