Let’s Talk Some Trash

Sustainable Travel International recently posted the following article about Live Earth and the trash generated at New York’s Giant Stadium, one of its venues. Guiding Question: Events like Live Earth are great at raising awareness about our environmental footprint, but once the event is over, it seems like we go back to business as usual. What are some simple things we can do to sustain environmental awareness after major events to promote behavioral change after the crowds leave?

Live
Earth recently rocked the green world as it relates to waste and carbon
reduction, but what happens next at these venues, and in these cities?

At
New York City’s Giants Stadium, for example, a successful triple waste
stream management program geared toward separating compost, recyclables
and ‘other’ materials, resulted in an estimated 50% reduction in waste
for that event. However, it cost a lot relative to standard waste
removal. Why is this? Why does NYC, one of the most densely waste
populated and least landfill available cities on the planet, charge $50
per ton in tipping fees for standard waste being dumped in landfills,
and an $80-90 per ton tipping fee for recyclables? Shouldn’t it be the
other way around? Consider GHG emissions associated with waste versus
recycling: for each pound of trash recycled it reduces an average of
one pound of carbon dioxide equivalent from going into the atmosphere.
Now, I don’t know exactly what NYC’s waste stream is, but here are some
figures on Google:

"NYC currently produces about 11,000 tons per
day of residential waste, 10,000 tons per day of commercial waste, and
26,000 tons per day of construction and demolition debris." (Source: www.weact.org/mts/wasteexport.html)

Just
looking at residential and commercial waste, it totals 21,000 tons per
day, or over seven and half million tons per year!!! If half were
recycled, you’re looking at 3,832,500 tons of carbon dioxide reduced
each year, not counting the added emissions savings from the fact that
much of this waste is now exported out of state. Recycling this amount
would be equivalent to taking about three quarters of a million cars
off the road for a year, or about 28,500 acres of avoided
deforestation. Bearing in mind emissions reduction targets set forth by
many cities, we look forward to hearing more about how NYC is tackling
climate mitigation as it relates to waste management.

For
businesses looking at climate mitigation, better waste management is a
great way to go, as shown by the example above. If you’re interested in
learning more, STI and its sustainable advising team can help, so
please contact us.

Source: Sustainable Travel International 

Americans Want More from Business & Seek it Online

More than two-thirds of Americans say they consider a company’s business practices when deciding what to buy.

Increasingly, Americans, both as customers and as employees, are seeking more from business, according to the 2007 Cone Cause Evolution Survey.
They want companies to be socially and environmentally responsible, and
this desire is increasingly affecting their purchasing decisions and
expectations of their employers.

More than two-thirds of
Americans say they consider a company’s business practices when
deciding what to buy. And Cone believes that long-term support of
social issues has become a major brand differentiator - something SRB
Marketing as seen with our mostly small and mid-size clients for years
now. That brand differentiator is a big reason many of our clients and
their colleagues have been snapped up by Fortune 1000 companies (e.g.,
Ben & Jerry’s, Cascadian Farms, Stonyfield Farm).

Americans’
expectations of companies are at an all time high: 83 percent say
companies have a responsibility to help support causes, and 92 percent
acknowledge they have a more positive image of a company that supports
a cause they care about.

In many areas, Americans are more
likely than ever before to reward companies for their support of social
issues. Eighty-seven percent are likely to switch from one brand to
another (price and quality being about equal) if the other brand is
associated with a good cause - an increase of more than 31 percent
(from 66%) since 1993.

American employees’ expectations of
companies have also increased, and quite dramatically: 72 percent wish
their employers would do more to support a cause or social issue. This
has climbed 38 percent (vs. 52%) since Cone’s last survey in 2004.

Advertising
and the Internet are the two main ways Americans prefer companies to
communicate their social and environmental issues and practices (45%
and 41% respectively). Americans are also using technology proactively
to learn about and support social and environmental issues and causes.
More than one third are searching for information on issues (37%) or
are forwarding important messages to family and friends (38%).

"Consumers
have always relied on word of mouth recommendations to influence their
decision making, and the increase in prominence of viral communications
has made this form of idea exchange even easier," explains Julia Hobbs
Kivistik, executive vice president of Cause Branding, Cone, LLC. "When
a company communicates its cause activities in relevant, emotionally
compelling ways and highlights the related social impacts, consumers
will pass along the message to those around them."

Source: Conscious Clicks, SRB Marketing, Inc., Sustainable Travel International