3p Contributor: Bobby
Recent Articles
Burgerville and Local Burger: Two Locally-sourced Burger Joints, Two Different Business Models
Here in Lawrence, KS, we have a special restaurant called Local Burger that serves local, organic, and natural fast food – burgers, hot dogs, fries, milkshakes. Local Burger founder, Hilary Brown, and her restaurant have been featured by Outside, Gourmet, Bon Appetite, Vanity Fair, the Sundance Channel, Sprig.com, and elsewhere. Local Burger is loved by people and critics alike, including myself, for its unique business model. So when I heard about Burgerville, a burger chain with 39 locations in the Northwest that uses local and seasonal foods, I wanted to find out more.
IBM’s offers software to green IT.
You might think updating hardware would be the best option for reducing energy consumption when it comes to computers, but software can play a large part as well. At IBM’s PULSE 08 conference, the company said it was pushing IT clients to adopt their energy-saving software. IBM’s Tivoli software, a systems management tool, is reported to manage power better and by extension lower carbon emissions and lower costs for the client. IBM’s WebSphere software is also reported to lower energy costs by using virtual applications. IBM also offers Rational Team Concert, software that enables collaboration on multi-site development.
Virtual collaboration should reduce the need for excessive travel. IBM is also offering “self-assessment tools” which would allow clients to set goals and monitor success. IBM says that reducing people’s need to travel, making software more efficient, and making applications virtual are the three main components to reducing the environmental impact of the IT world. With multitudes of servers using so much energy, the IT world is probably looking for software solutions.
Green PC: Corsair Greens its Power Supply Line
Corsair is one of the leading providers of gaming-grade, high performance memory and power supplies. They offer products like a 1000W power supply fit to power three video cards, and the DOMINATOR line of memory built for processor overclocking, a power-hungry process of maximizing computer performance.
As you may have guessed, computer gaming has never been about conserving energy. But Corsair realizes energy efficiency means more reliable computers and money saved on electricity, both of which are important to gamers. With that in mind, they made the entirety of their power supply line 80 PLUS certified. 80 PLUS certification reduces wasted energy by requiring the unit to use 80 percent of energy at various levels of power loads. That is to say if the computer is using 1000 watts, no less than 800 of those must be used for processing. 80 PLUS products reduce heat output, increase reliability, and reduce the need for loud fans, all of which Corsair is touting to its customers. The certification is not just for one or two units; Corsair brought it to their entire line because of the benefits. It proves you don’t have to sacrifice performance for efficiency.
This is not to say the company has gone green across the board. When your business is high end computer gaming, that’s a difficult thing to achieve. Using a 1000W power supply and three video cards is excessive, no matter if it plays the latest games with no lagging. Additionally, Corsair is lacking a take back program for recycling parts. There is also little to no information given on the materials in the units, meaning there is no way to know if the units contain lead or other environmentally sensitive materials. 80 PLUS is an excellent standard for the company, but it shouldn’t be the last of their green initiatives.
Google ends eco-search engine support
Sydney-based Ecocho founder Tim Macdonald had an idea; build a search engine based on Google and Yahoo technology and use the ad revenue to plant two trees for every 1,000 searches, offsetting tons of carbon dioxide.
However, the practice of “compensating users for viewing ads or performing searches, or promise compensation to a third party for such behavior” is a violation of Google AdSense policy and Google decided to pull support of the site, on Earth Day no less. Macdonald claims Google is not enforcing its rules to other “green” search engines such as Blackle, though Blackle is not making the same claims.
Pablo has addressed the effectiveness of Blackle in the past. And while stopping support for Ecocho on Earth Day may seem heartless, rules are rules. And besides, Google is addressing energy and carbon issues on a much larger scale. Google claims their data centers use half the energy of a similarly sized data center and that they are conducting energy audits and investing in carbon offsets. They made a big splash in November when they announced an R&D team was working to produce 1 gigawatt of renewable energy at a price cheaper than coal. They are giving grants to renewable energy companies like eSolar Inc. and Makani Power Inc. to meet this goal. Killing off smaller, seemingly well-intentioned search engines may make Google look monolithic and draconian, but Google is able to fund sustainability initiatives in ways Ecocho would never be able to. It’s not really about who is greener anyway; it all boils down to an untimely and unfortunate violation of policy.
Green Electronics Made Not So Easy: How Companies Are Marketing EPEAT
EPEAT, the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, is like LEED certification for electronics; it monitors the environmental impact of electronics much like LEED monitors buildings. Products are ranked either bronze, silver, or gold, depending on how many of the 51 criteria they meet. Criteria include recycling programs for products, the labeling of plastic parts for recycling, the elimination of “environmentally sensitive” material, ENERGY STAR®, RoHS, and WEEE compliance, among others. Companies are taking a serious look at the certification now that at least 95% of federal agency electronic purchases must be EPEAT-registered.
Naturally, the EPEAT website has a list of all certified products on their site, but now Softchoice, a major IT provider, is including the EPEAT ranking within the technical specifications of all available products. Softchoice is making an important step here; increasing the visibility of EPEAT as well as explaining its importance.
Computer manufacturers are doing a great job of implementing the EPEAT standards. HP, Dell, Toshiba, and Lenovo all have EPEAT gold certified products. But much like the Eco TV, marketing does not seem geared toward these environmental efforts.
Brenthaven: What Makes A “Zero Impact” Computer Bag Company?
The sustainability of computer bag companies probably hasn’t been one of the eco-movement’s largest worries, but it is great to see some companies giving it a shot. Brenthaven is a popular computer bag company, especially among Apple owners. The company’s new slogan is “zero impact,” a philosophy that centers around the protection of your computer, your health, and the environment.
Sure, Brenthaven bags will protect your computer in a fall and are good for your back, but how is Brenthaven helping the environment? The company has committed to a number of green projects including the reduction of packing, the conducting of a carbon audit of the company, the printing of marketing materials on recycled paper with soy-based inks, and the investment of 5% of profits into “green projects.” All purchases with Brenthaven are offset by carbon credits purchased from terrapass.com. Brenthaven was founded on wilderness packs used in outdoor activity and supports many environmental organization such as Leave No Trace.
But what about the actual bags?
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