NEW YORK, NY -- ECO™ by Cosentino, a leading line of eco-friendly countertop and surfacing material composed of recycled raw materials, has announced it will continue its two-year-long partnership with Make it Right by donating product to the Bancroft School Project in Kansas City. This new initiative underscores Cosentino's commitment to social responsibility and the advancement of sustainable architecture and design.

ECO™ by Cosentino, a leading line of eco-friendly countertop and surfacing material composed of recycled raw materials, has announced it will continue its two-year-long partnership with Make it Right by donating product to the Bancroft School Project in Kansas City. In keeping with the objective of sustainable design, EcoTM by Cosentino had originally partnered with the Make It Right Foundation to donate Eco countertops for the new homes being built in New Orleans' Lower 9th Ward to help families return to the area post Hurricane Katrina.

Originally founded by actor and activist Brad Pitt to build 150 affordable, green, storm-resistant homes in New Orleans' Lower 9th Ward to help families to return to the area post Hurricane Katrina, Make It Right is now extending its reach to Pitt’s hometown of Kansas City, MO, with the vision of transforming the historic Bancroft Elementary School. Located in the Green Impact Zone, a 150-square-foot block area that has experienced severe abandonment and economic decline, the school -- once the jewel of the neighborhood -- has been neglected and boarded up for more than 12 years.

The Make It Right team believes the school building and adjacent landscape can be revitalized into an affordable, mixed-use neighborhood resource once again. "We are proud to continue and extend our partnership with Make It Right to Kansas City," said Lorenzo Marquez, Vice President of Marketing for Cosentino North America. "The organization has an inspiring vision for Bancroft School and the surrounding neighborhood. The site will be a showcase for sustainable design and community across the country and worldwide." Make It Right projects have earned the highest distinction for energy efficiency and sustainability, LEED Platinum, by integrating and aggregating a variety of cutting edge construction materials and techniques.

Product selections are strictly evaluated based on C2C (Cradle to Cradle) thinking, which suggests that everything we create can contribute positively to society, the economy and the environment. Both the products and construction methods used must be safe for people and the environment. ECO by Cosentino is an innovative countertop and surfacing material composed of post-industrial and post-consumer recycled raw material, including: mirrors salvaged from houses, building and factories; glass from windows and bottles; porcelain from china, tiles, sinks, toilets and decorative elements; industrial furnace residuals from factories in the form of crystallized ashes; and stone scrap from mountains, quarries, manufacturing and fabrication.

The raw materials are bonded together with a proprietary eco-friendly resin made in part by corn oil. By utilizing these recycled materials, Cosentino is "upcycling" products that have reached the end of their lifecycle -- meaning that they cannot be incorporated in to any other industrial product and would otherwise collect in landfill sites. ECO by Cosentino is C2C and GreenGuard certified, making it a natural fit for Make It Right and the Bancroft School redevelopment.

"On behalf of Brad Pitt and Make It Right, we are thrilled to be a part of ECO by Cosentino's continued ventures," said Tom Darden, Executive Director of Make It Right. "We rely on the generous product donations from companies like Cosentino and cannot thank them enough for helping us to transform this former neighborhood beacon into a thriving, sustainable community."