The carbon footprint of assets will increasingly be of importance to obtain beneficial, economic, social and environmental outcomes of design and engineering projects. Inclusion of a Next Life strategy at asset or product end-of-life can significantly reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of First Life assets and Next Life reuses compared to the same uses made from virgin material or recycled content. Traditional engineering design and asset management often only plan for initial use and the management or maintenance strategies necessary to extend First Life, where the First Life is the primary engineering role of the asset. Critically missing from this picture are the costs and environmental impacts incurred throughout the asset or product lifecycle, especially associated with the end-of-life of an asset. A Next Life optimization process for these decisions is described herein that can aid in maximizing the overall Materials Sustainability and Materials Utility (i.e., longevity of fruitful usage) embedded in assets. It consists of appraisal, brainstorming, partnering and evaluation of beneficial impact for particular Next Life options allowing the benefits they can provide to First Life and Next Life opportunities. These benefits can include a reduction in carbon footprint over a lifecycle, cost savings related to GHG emissions, cost savings related to reused material/labor for Next Life assets, or other beneficial impact (even if increased financial cost). The process includes a qualitative conceptual assessment that can feed into a more detailed quantitative assessment for optimization of Next Life materials usage.