See Which Companies Are Taking Climate Change Seriously

For years, Climate Counts has been tracking and scoring companies' climate impact performance.  Using 22 criteria, Climate Counts determines if a company has measured and reduced its impact, supported progressive climate legislation, and has been transparent about its climate actions.  Companies are scored on a 100-point scale and the more points, the better.  For example, in the Media sector, GE has the highest score (74) while Viacom has the lowest score (3).

The goal is to make this information available to consumers so they know they have the power to support companies that take climate change seriously and avoid supporting companies that don't.  Climate Counts even offers a pocket guide that you can take with you when you go shopping, so you'll know which companies are climate responsible and deserve your support. 

Now Climate Counts has a new iPhone app.  The cool app gives you accesss to the same information so you can make responsible choices on the go.  Don't have an iPhone?  Then you can text GREEN[company or brand name] to 66937 and you'll receive the company's score.  Or you can still get your pocket guide!

USGBC Supports Haiti "Relief & Recovery"

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has announced it will help rebuild homes, schools, hospitals, and infrastructure in Haiti.  The USGBC has helped build new green communities following natural disasters in New Orleans, LA and Greensburg, KS.  Individuals and companies can support this effort through donations of machinery, building materials, or money through the Clinton Foundation.

Is Your Green Marketing Message Reaching Your Customers?

Guest post by Erin Edwards

A recent study found that people with the highest level of awareness of environmental issues were those ages 18 to 24 known as Generation Y. Though researchers were excited about this growing trend, the study also found that Generation Y is the biggest waster of energy and water in the country. Many people in this age category are aware of the environmental issues, but are not certain of the steps they should take to become green in their own lives. Maybe companies are marketing towards this consumer group in the wrong way.

After conducting research for a client, Adam Kustin, vice president of Shelton Group Inc. came to the conclusion that consumers ages 18 to 24 were seeking information regarding green products; not from the Internet but from some unlikely sources. The wireless generation makes decisions regarding green products from passive methods, such as ads, news stories, product labels, and word-of-mouth. Marketing techniques such as television and radio advertisements make it easy for consumers to listen to information without having to actively search the Internet to learn about green products. And if companies design products with labels advertising it as environmentally-friendly, it is more likely to sell to those consumers interested in more environmentally-friendly products. The wireless generation is concerned with comfort, wellness, and convenience, so they are more likely to purchase products or services that are marketed in these ways.

Keeping Up with the Joneses (in Energy Efficiency)

Guest post by Lori Shivey

Who would have thought that adults would still act like they are in high school? A startup company, called OPower, has found this out. People are still influenced by what others do and are doing. It seems that all it takes is No. 10 envelopes and smiley faces.


OPower, an industry leader in Energy Efficiency and Smart Grid software, mails utility users a personalized report about their energy consumption. In this report, OPower compares the utility user to his or her neighbors. In doing this, people can be persuaded to lower their energy consumption, which in turn helps fight global warming as well as reduce emissions. People who are using less energy get a smiley face, which motivates them to want more. People who are using more energy than their neighbors get to know that they are being more wasteful.

Dan Yates is the man responsible for this startup. After selling his first startup, at $20 million, he was able to travel the world and this led him to become an environmentalist. After his travels, Yates and Alex Laskey started OPower with the help of Dr. Robert Cialdini, who is a renowned social psychologist.

So far the company has done well. Customers who receive these personalized reports have cut their energy consumption by 1.2 percent to 2.8 percent on average. The company’s reports are currently being used by 1 and 2 million people through 24 different utility companies.

OPower hope sto combine its data analysis with smart grid technology, which will help get the information out to more people. People will then be able to see whether they are conserving energy or not, much like they compare other daily spending habits.

Listen to a podcast (or read the transcript) of a recent interview with founder and CEO, Dan Yates.

Students Join Us As Guest Bloggers

You may notice lots of guest posts over the next 4 months.  Students in the Sustainable Business Practices course at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock will be sharing their wisdom with us this semester.  Students have been invited to blog about issues related to sustainable business practices and to also contribute to our ongoing Sustainable & Responsible Business of the Week feature.  We look forward to learning from the young bright minds of our future business leaders!

Sustainable Forestry Initiative Releases New Standard

Guest post by Tamessia Green

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) has updated its certification standard with a new version. SFI is one of the world’s leading third-party forest certification programs.

There was an 18-month public review process which included updated information. The new SFI 2010-2014 standard consists of changes that deal with conservation of biodiversity in North America, climate change, illegal logging, logging training, etc. The SFI requires participants of the program to support and connect with non-certified forest owners that supply wood fiber, and also perform risk assessments on those suppliers to avoid illegal harvesting operations.

According to the SFI press release, the new standards are expected to:

• Improve conservation of biodiversity in North America and offshore, and address emerging issues such as climate change and bioenergy.
• Strengthen unique SFI fiber sourcing requirements, which broaden the practice of sustainable forestry in North America and avoid unwanted offshore sources.
• Complement SFI activities aimed at avoiding controversial or illegal offshore fiber sources, and embrace Lacey Act amendments to prevent illegal logging.
• Expand requirements for logger training and support for trained loggers and certified logger programs. Since 1995, more than 117,000 loggers have received training through SFI-supported programs.

 

SFI 2005-2009, the previous standard, had 9 core principals, 13 objectives, 34 performance measures, and 102 indicators. The new SFI 2010-2014 in comparison with the old standard has 5 more core principals, 7 more objectives, 5 more performance measures and 12 indicators. The new set of principals took place January 1, 2010 and each participant will have one year to meet the requirements.

 

More Reasons to Reduce Use of Fossil Fuels: Premature Birth, Low Birth Weight, & Male Infertility

Guest post by Herbert-LaVance Cunning II

Recent studies suggest there are serious effects of air pollution towards human reproduction. The two reports from Brazil examined male infertility and women's complications in pregnancy and connected them with exposure to air pollution.

One study examined 748 male workers who inhaled the air from major public roads and reconstruction of highways.  Of those 748 men, 500 illustrated some negative change in fertility.  The cause is the heavy metals used in the fuel burned in vehicles; exposure "directly affects the body."  The study concludes, "air pollution is one of the modern causes of infertility male."

Another study examined 13,660 births in an area with high air pollution and calculated pollution exposure of the mothers. The results found that 9.1 percent of children born were below the ideal birth-weight and 7.4 percent were born prematurely.  The cause is exposure to high levels of ozone (O3), airborne particulate matter (PM10), and  sulfur dioxide (SO2).  The researcher concludes, "air pollution contributes significantly to premature birth and low birth weight."

Our Top Stories of 2009

Thank you to all our readers for another wonderful year.  In case you missed it the first time around, check out our top stories of 2009 (based upon number of hits):

1. Sustainability Conferences for 2009
2. Starbucks - Sustainable & Responsible Business of the Week
3. Online Business Degrees in Sustainability
4. Best Business Programs in Sustainability
5. Top Ten Greenwashing Companies
6. Coca-Cola Company Introduces Innovative Bottle Made From Renewable, Recyclable, Plant-Based Plastic
7. Birdbath Neighborhood Green Bakery - Sustainable & Responsible Business of the Week
8. Free College Course: Introduction to Sustainable Engineering
9. A TOMS Shoes Offer for My Friends
10. Green Merchant Alliance - Sustainable & Responsible Business of the Week

Sustainability & Green Business Webinars - January 2010

Here is a list of some great sustainability and green business webinars still coming up this month.  Sign up and login!  Remember, save the emissions...do it online!

Measuring Campus Sustainability: Reaching for the STARS (Jan. 19)
Beyond Grades: The College Sustainability Webinar Series: ADMINISTRATION (Jan. 20)
Sustainability Consulting 301 - Building Customer Relationships (Jan. 21)
Product Supply Chain Environmental Traceability (Jan. 23)
Sustainability Consulting 401 - Creating Better Proposals (Jan. 28)
The Basics of Climate Change (Jan. 29)

The Dream Reborn: The New Opportunities of a Green Economy

In celebration of this day honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I would like to share with you  the new video, The Dream Reborn, by Markese Bryant (aka Doo Dat) and produced by Green For All.

The rap video is about the unfinished business of the civil rights movement, the green initiatives of our current Presidential administration, and the opportunities associated with the green jobs movement. 

If you are inspired, create your own artistic expression supporting green jobs or a green economy and enter to win $1000.

Eliminating Blueprints, Saving Trees

Every year an estimated 42,000 trees are chopped down to print blueprints. Laid end to end, this is the distance from New York City to Washington DC. Software Advice wants to see the construction industry "go blueprint-less" in 2010 by replacing their paper prints with electronic plans.

Blueprints are a 167-year old technology. Today, the same blueprint-based activities can be achieved using onscreen takeoff and construction estimating software. Contractors can view plans, measure lengths and volumes, and markup plans on a computer screen.

So what will be the driving force to get the construction industry to move from paper to software? For starters, the US Green Building Council could offer a LEED credit for it. Additionally, the government could offer incentives for construction companies that switch from blueprints to software, similar to their program for doctors that switch from paper charts to electronic health records. So what do you think? Feel free to leave a comment over at the original post: The End of Blueprints.

Christmas Trees: Real or Artificial?

Which is more environmentally friendly?  A real tree or an artificial tree?  You'll have to read Ask Pablo for all the scientific life cycle analysis details, but if you purchased a live tree that was grown on a tree farm, you made the best "green" choice.

Save the Date: FT Investing in a Sustainable Future International Conference

Building on the success of the inaugural event in March 2009, the 2nd annual FT Investing in a Sustainable Future international conference (March 24, 2010) will reveal how some of the top minds in today's corporate, financial and investment arena are generating bottom-line profits by putting sustainable and ethical investment strategies at the heart of their organizations.

This international conference will be of particular interest to:

CEOs, CIOs, Institutional Investors, Asset Managers, Public and Corporate Pension Funds, Investor Relations Directors, Chief Responsibility Officers, Sustainability Directors, CSR Directors, Foundations and Endowments, Financial Advisors, SRI Funds, Investment Banks, and NGOs.

FT Investing in a Sustainable Future

March 24, 2010
Hudson Theatre
145 W 44th St, New York, NY

For more information, please contact Chrissy Sexton at chrissy.sexton@ft.com or (212) 641-6369.

Clean Energy Ph.D. Fellowships Available at UCLA

The "Clean Energy for Green Industry at UCLA" is a brand new fellowship program that just started this year for students pursuing a Ph.D. at UCLA. It is an interdisciplinary program for first year graduate students and is funded by the National Science Foundation. The program focus is on clean green science as well business and policy. You can find more information at the program website, http://cleanenergy.ucla.edu/

Georgia-Pacific PSO™ Program Increases Client Profitability in Tough Economy

Press Release

Georgia-Pacific PSO™ Program Increases Client Profitability in Tough Economy

Comprehensive Evaluation Enables Packaging Process Optimization

Atlanta, GA (April 6, 2009) – Georgia-Pacific is helping industrial and consumer product companies through this tough economic environment with its Packaging Systems Optimization (PSO™) program, which identifies opportunities to streamline packaging operations to reduce total supply chain costs.

PSO is an assessment tool that looks for sources of inefficiency and waste across the entire packaging supply chain, from manufacturing to distribution. The program comprises a rigorous process, wherein a team of packaging engineers analyzes areas including package design, material optimization, shelf impact and SKU consolidation, as well as line productivity, material handling and distribution.

After an initial analysis, the Georgia-Pacific PSO team delivers a detailed report that clearly outlines areas where cost-savings may be achieved. Recommendations may include anything from developing new box design concepts and refining packaging prototypes to automating manual processes. A Total Cost Analysis (TCA™) report is then developed, which quantifies the total cost-savings for those opportunities that have been identified.

“If comprehensively evaluated for efficiencies, the packaging process can be a source of considerable cost savings,” says Pat Smorch, director, packaging sustainability at Georgia-Pacific’s Innovation Institute®. “The PSO program was developed to look across the entire packaging supply chain, providing a holistic perspective on where modifications may be made.”

The PSO process also supports sustainability efforts. Recommendations to streamline material handling and warehousing practices can lead to significant energy efficiency improvements and greenhouse gas reductions.

The PSO program draws on the extensive in-house expertise and resources of Georgia-Pacific’s Innovation Institute, a creative, collaborative package design and innovation lab that simulates retail, warehousing and transportation environments. Georgia-Pacific’s engineering and design experts work together to identify opportunities to reduce supply chain costs, optimize package designs, increase shelf velocity and measure sustainability factors.

About PSO

Georgia-Pacific’s PSO program was developed at Georgia-Pacific’s Innovation Institute, which simulates retail and packaging environments, allowing customers to experience sustainable innovation and novel package design solutions in action. Designed to facilitate break-through thinking and next-generation packaging solutions, the Innovation Institute helps customers realize the full value of their packaging investment. For more information on Georgia-Pacific’s Innovation Institute visit www.gpinnovates.com.

About Georgia-Pacific

Headquartered at Atlanta, Georgia-Pacific is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and marketers of building products, tissue, packaging, paper, cellulose and related chemicals. The company employs more than 45,000 people at approximately 300 locations in North America, South America and Europe. The familiar consumer tissue brands of Georgia-Pacific Consumer Products LP include Quilted Northern®, Angel Soft®, Brawny®, Sparkle®, Soft 'n Gentle®, Mardi Gras®, So-Dri® and Vanity Fair®. Dixie Consumer Products LLC, a Georgia-Pacific company, manufactures the Dixie® brand of tabletop products. Georgia-Pacific has long been among the nation’s leading manufacturers and suppliers of building products to lumber and building materials dealers and large do-it-yourself warehouse retailers, with brands such as Plytanium® plywood, DryPly® water repellent plywood, Ply-Bead® panels and Wood I Beam™ joists offered by Georgia-Pacific Wood Products LLC and DensArmor Plus® interior drywall, DensGlass™ Exterior Sheathing and ToughRock® wallboard offered by Georgia-Pacific Gypsum LLC. For more information, visit www.gp.com.