Archive for October, 2008

The term “green” can seem rather ambiguous these days, with many assigned meanings and different uses.  It’s tough for the average consumer to distinguish between legitimate green messages and those that should be considered greenwashing.  Greenwashing is an ever-prevalent technique used in marketing and advertising to help companies develop a persona that appears to be environmentally friendly, when in reality they are merely creating a façade without any tangible value.  Many companies see an opportunity to charge a premium for products that can be labeled green, so they stretch the concept as far as they can.  Consumers need to be increasingly savvy when purchasing these products, and be aware that many companies are simply capitalizing on a trend.

By Michael Morris, at The Element Agency in New York

The New York League of Conservation Voters made a statement last week, donating $175,000 to Democrat Brian Foley’s campaign on Long Island.  This is the most the non-partisan organization has ever put behind any candidate.

“We wanted to be active in a race where environmental issues play well,” says league spokesman, Dan Hendrick.

The League of Conservation Voters is dedicated to bringing environmental issues to the forefront of American Politics, by endorsing candidates with strong environmental policies and commitments.  They accomplish this by direct mail and television ads.

With this monumental maneuver in NY, LCV is hoping to push Democrat Brian Foley past 36 year incumbent Republican State Senator Caesar Trunzo.

This race could very well decide who controls the state Senate.

By Grant Draper, at The Element Agency in New York

If Fabian Pattberg’s Top 5 Sustainability and CSR News Stories is any indication, this was a green week.  All five were centered around climate change and the environment.  “This was not intentional,” he says.

As always, Keith Johnson offers up premier green blogging at the Wal Street Journal, covering a range of topics this week, from Wal-Mart in China to Emissions permits in the EU.

Over at The Green Parent, discussion sparked at a green blogging conference led to a query about Green Business Cards, with some helpful tips and suggestions in the comment section.

On the technology front: The Green Car Congress delves into the promising but difficult field of Algae Biofuels, Mini is looking to unveil an electric car, while Zac Goldsmith launched ecoConnect - a “facilitator and promoter of innovative green technology” in the UK.

J.Ottman Consulting asks the question many are wondering: “Does a Weak Economy Mean Weak Green Sales?”

The official blog of SWANA, the Solid Waste Association of North America, takes a look at Terrence Gellenbeck’s presentation on behalf of the city of Pheonix Public Works Department, at the Green Marketing and Outreach Campaign.

And if you’re looking to green your small business, then Scott Cooney’s new book is just the ticket for you.

By Danny Mendlow, at The Element Agency in Vancouver

Who would have thought that oil prices falling from $147 a barrel to under $70 would be a huge blow to the renewable energy movement?  But, as the Wall Street Journal reports, that’s precisely the case. 

The reason is two-fold.

Despite the global crusade to change this fact, right now, energy is oil. And most energy investment comes either from oil, to oil, through oil or because of oil… not in spite of it.  So when the barrel and the pump nosedive, so does investment in the energy sector… and the first place to see cuts is new, untested projects and businesses.  Even more importantly, with oil prices returning from the stratosphere, the main financial incentive to invest in alternative energy has the wind taken out of its proverbial and literal turbines.

The second reason is intertwined with the first.  The credit crunch means that banks and investors aren’t going to be helping out smaller energy businesses, leaving cash strapped entrepreneurs to either collapse or be bought up by state-run energy giants, here or abroad.  

Inarguably, when oil prices skyrocketed, so did investment in renewable energy.

So, in one of those odd circumstances, in order for new, cleaner forms of energy to be developed so they can replace those dirty, archaic fossil fuels… it appears as if it is what we need, more than anything, is for oil prices to shoot back up to ridiculous levels.

By Danny Mendlow at The Element Agency in Vancouver

In a landmark move, California became the first state to propose a comprehensive plan to reduce greenhouse gases in the absence of federal regulation. 

In a prepared statement, Governor Arnold Schwarzennegger said that “Despite a difficult economy, it is important that we move forward on our environmental goals, which is why I am pleased that in California we have put together a plan for reducing our greenhouse gas emissions that also boosts our economy.”

This should come as no surprise, as California has long been setting the standard for turning climate change into an economic opportunity.

Northern California is the home of TechNet, a far-reaching organization devoted to driving innovative policy and business practices across the United States.  Founded in 1997 by leading CEO’s in the high-tech field, this bi-partisan tour de force has members representing IT, clean technology, biotechnology, e-commerce and finance.

In Oakland, a vision has become reality with the creation of a thriving green economy after the “Green Jobs Now” movement swept the city.

Led by Van Jones, whose vision has been embraced by Al Gore, Robert Kennedy Jr. and House Speaker Pelosi, to name a few, the movement inspired his hometown to rise up and demand the building of a new, green economy that will also fight poverty.

The Green Jobs Corps, began putting their plan into action this month by training and employing uneducated, at-risk and troubled youth in the green sector jobs of the future.

By Don Millar, President of The Element Agency

While the public demands corporate sustainability programs, online communities form quickly around shared interests and a fourth evolution of non profits emerges.
Speaking of online communities, Facebook users were offered the ability to weigh in with suggestions for new Green IT solutions, courtesy of BearingPoint.

Over on the business opportunities web blog, Jay Welsh, the Director of Mygreenscene.com, delves into the emerging world of highly profitable home-based green businesses.

Onward with the home front, some Practical Green Cleaning Tips will help you clean, while staying green… and the NY Times gives some insight on various enviro-friendly bathroom options.

On the campaign trail, Environmental Economics dissects the candidates’ energy policies in relation to job creation, and the validity of some of their claims.

In Academia, an accidental Harvard discovery could revolutionise the capturing of solar energy.  

For a diverse array of Green blogging though, you just can’t beat TreeHugger.Com this week, covering everything from a heated debate on Sustainable Christianity, to the building of a Hydro-electric dam in Tibet by China, to the absurd tale of Canadian raw-food chocolate “smugglers.”

By Danny Mendlow, at The Element Agency in Vancouver

With a chaotic and irrational marketplace, the first reaction is always “Where can we cut?”  But before companies start snipping those renewable energy initiatives, they would be wise to pull back and look at the bigger picture.

Recently, the United Nations reported that an investment of $630 billion by 2030 could translate into some 20 million new jobs in renewable energy. 

Governments around the globe, including China, Japan, and the USA, are injecting huge stimulus packages into their economy that involve infrastructure investments in roads, bridges and education. 

By 2010, a resurgent global economy could very well be greener than ever.

However, it’s not only stimulus packages that will pump up the renewable market in the coming years; necessity will eventually be the engine that will drive the growing green economy.  The reality is, as the cost to heat your home and drive your car grows exponentially, the consumer is increasingly looking to reduce their own energy costs.  That means investing in energy efficient methods and products, for their home, transportation and day-to-day needs.

Another spinoff of the financial crisis will be more stringent regulation.  And with increased regulation, comes more incentive for the world’s leading economies to go green. 

By Don Millar, President of The Element Agency 

A couple of quick facts before we get going, courtesy of Environment Canada:

- About 70% of the earth is covered in water.

- The total amount of water in the world is approximately 1.4 billion km³, of which 97.5% is saltwater and 2.5% is fresh water.

- Of the 35 million km³ of freshwater on earth, about 24.4 million km³ are locked up in the form of glacial ice, permafrost, or permanent snow.

- Of all fresh water not locked up in ice caps or glaciers, some 20% is in areas too remote for humans to access and of the remaining 80% about three-quarters comes at the wrong time and place – in monsoons and floods – and is not always captured for use by people. The remainder is less than 0.08 of 1% of the total water on the planet.

- Expressed another way, if all the earth’s water were stored in a 5-litre container, available fresh water would not quite fill a teaspoon.

So, with our most valuable resource as scarce as it is, especially when you factor in contamination and population growth, it becomes abundantly clear that making a conscious effort to preserve what little fresh water we have is as inevitable as it is necessary.  However, it is also leading to some tremendously innovative products and services in the global marketplace. 

Down under, the website WATERSAVINGTECHNOLOGY.COM.AU  offers a plethora of water saving products divided conveniently into categories for Automotive , Bathroom , Books, Garden, Home, Laundry , Pools, Rainwater Tank Accessories , Specials, Water Diverters and Waterless Products . 

Meanwhile, the Caroma Toilet is a relatively simple design that has been proven to reduce water consumption by over 50 per cent in restaurant and office washrooms, while cutting nearly 70 per cent from single-family dwellings. 

By allowing the user the option of a ‘dual-flush,’ choosing between a 3-litre mini-flush or a 6-litre full flush, Caroma has got the jump on what’s sure to become a competitive field of water conserving toilets.

In the UK, Thomas Dudley Ltd. offers a wide variety of Water Saving products, including a similar dual flush system.

By Danny Mendlow at The Element Agency, in Vancouver

Congress’ move to turn the economic bailout green by extending the renewable energy tax credits has been a saving grace to the industry. Though the extensions will greatly benefit the green economy, the clean tech industry is not clear of financial turmoil yet.

The renewable energy tax credit extensions will no doubt have a positive affect on the industry. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi stated that the extensions could have saved and created nearly half a million jobs while solar and wind industries argued that the had the credits expired the tax credits could have cost the industries a combined $19 billion.

However, the new legislation far from a long-term renewable energy plan. The legislation affords an 8-year extension to the solar energy industry’s investment tax credit but only 1-year extension to the wind energy industry’s production tax credit.

The lack of a long-term energy plan hinders investment in the renewable energy sector. Next year, the U.S. could face a similar battle to get the renewable tax credits renewed, and the foundation on which the wind industry is built could again become fragile.

As well, with the loss of major investment banks such as Lehman Brothers, smaller companies will have a harder time finding start-up capital. This lack of capital could weed out smaller companies, or as Forbes’ William Pentland speculates, it could cause smaller companies to build alliances with larger energy companies. A long-term energy plan will provide stability to the renewable energy market and help investors plan when they might see a return.

By Don Miller at The Element Agency in New York.

This week the blogging world saw much speculation of the green energy’s economic state.

While the San Francisco Chronicle sounded the warning bell that the economic crisis could threaten green tax credits, Thomas Friedman argued that now is the time to build a green infrastructure and to start by “greening the bailout.”

Later in the week, the Senate did just that, as Forbes reported, by sneaking an extension of renewable energy tax credits into the $700 billion economic bailout plan. However, Forbes suggested that the economic crisis would still negatively affect the clean tech sector.

Earth2Tech updated its “ethanol death watch map”.

TheStreet reported that renewable energy production is up 5% and CleanTech highlighted 19 solar deals this week.

TriplePundit underscored that cutting greenhouse gases is good for the economy.

Greenbiz published the UN report that clean energy could create 20 million jobs by 2030.

By Teresa Herrmann, The Element Agency

From Big Blue’s ad campaign touting the benefits and return on investment to businesses going green to the many recent “Green” software and hardware product launches, the information technology and telecom sectors are getting serious about embracing eco-friendly ideas and solutions.

This week Sony Ericsson announced the creation of their GreenHeart phone and launched their environmental warranty for recycling products. As well, rumors that Apple will soon be selling an eco-friendly aluminum notebook have Mac devotees already cueing in lines in front of their stores.

Although these two new green products are likely the result of consumers’ growing environmental IQ, we should never underestimate the impact of stakeholders like Greenpeace who work diligently to keep companies honest.

For example, Greenpeace’s “A Greener Apple campaign” has contributed to Apple’s starting to develop products using more eco-friendly processes.

The Greenpeace campaign’s faux-Apple webpage describes how Apple creates unnecessary waste and calls on consumers to hold Apple accountable. In response to thousands of Apple users voicing their protests through Greenpeace’s interactive letter campaign, Apple’s founder and CEO Steve Jobs announced that the company has had a “change in policy”, and consumers can expect the company to go green.

If a technology titan like Jobs can succumb to the Greenpeace’s pressure, one must ask, who’s next on the green activist’s radar?

By Grant Draper at The Element Agency in New York.