The Toxies Awards Recognize Worst Chemicals of the Year
Posted by Jace Shoemaker-Galloway March 11th, 2010 
View Comments
Millions of people around the world tuned in to last weekend’s Academy Award show, bringing another Hollywood award season to a close. While nabbing an Oscar or Emmy is considered an honor, another lesser known red carpet event took place last weekend where winning an award is not recommended.
The Toxies were held at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood on March 3, 2010. Awards were given to Bad Actor Chemicals, chemicals and compounds found in everyday products that affect our health. There are over 80,000 synthetic chemicals currently registered for use in the United States. Many of those chemicals have not been adequately tested. 1,400 chemicals in use today that have been studied, have known links to cancer, birth defects and other health-related problems.
The Chasing Arrows Recycling Logo – The Biggest Greenwash Label of Them All?
Posted by Tom Szaky March 11th, 2010 View Comments
In recent years, after the initial honeymoon of broader consumer interest in all things green, it’s now settled squarely in the space of “prove it to me.” Yet proving something’s greenness, sustainability, fair trade status, organic certification, carbon footprint has resulted in a dust storm of competing certifications, labels, very few of which are gaining traction with the public as credible or recognizable. For all they know, the company could be making it up, doing it themselves, or something similarly “greenwashy”.
And yet, right under our nose is perhaps the most deceptive label of all: the chasing arrows “recycling” symbol.
You know, the triangular shaped graphic with the number 1 to 7 inside. Much like labeling a fruit cholesterol free, it has become at best largely meaningless and at worst deceptive. What am I talking about? The fact that for the majority of categories, 3 and beyond generally, most recyclers don’t process them.
Audi’s Green Police Ads. Hilarious, But What About Audi?
Posted by Nick Aster January 28th, 2010 View Comments
I have to hand it to Audi. Their upcoming “green police” advertisements (destined for the super bowl) are absolutely hilarious. This could be the first big environmental meme of 2010 – the perfect mix of “Reno 911″ style comedy and enough subtle cynicism to actually get people to think. If you haven’t seen them yet, just watch. I can’t stop laughing at this one:
The only problem, what does this have to do with Audi?
Did H&M Knowingly Pass Off GMO Cotton as Organic?
Posted by Gina-Marie Cheeseman January 27th, 2010 View Comments
Some of the certified-organic cotton clothing sold by leading European brands and retailers contains genetically modified (GMO) cotton from India, according to the German edition of the Financial Times as reported by Ecouterre.com. Roughly 30 percent of the samples tested by Impetus, an independent German lab, contained GMO cotton. The European retailers exposed by Financial Times include H&M, C&A and Tchibo.
India is one of the largest producers of organic cotton. Sanjay Dave, the head of the Indian agricultural authority, Apeda, told the Financial Times that fraud was occurring on a “gigantic scale” and fines were issued to third-party certification agencies like EcoCert and Peterson Control Union last April.
“The fashion chains were not vigilant enough,” Monika Buening of Germany’s Federal Consumer Affairs Agency, told the German newspaper, Frankfurter Rundschau.
This Just In: Hybrids Will Not Save Us
Posted by Mary Catherine O'Connor January 14th, 2010 View Comments
We nominate two analysts from financial services firm Raymond James for the Downer of the Year (so far) Award. The analysts, J. Marshall Adkins and Pavel Molchanov, did some number-crunching that revealed hybrids aren’t making much of a dent in our demand for oil, reports the New York Times.
The research does not rocket science make, and the analysts admit as much, calling their findings “blindingly obvious.” They took the numbers of hybrids sold domestically and globally in recent years, extrapolated out to 2020 and determined that even if hybrids’ market share (including plug-in hybrids) continues to rise aggressively, the amount of oil savings they’ll represent will remain minuscule when compared to demand.
More Plastic Packaging and Less Product–Are Wallaby and O Organics Simply Greenwashing?
Posted by Scott Cooney January 7th, 2010 View Comments
When an organic food retailer markets a product that looks and tastes similar to its competitors, but offers a lower price, one has to wonder, how do they do that? In the organic yogurt field, where pioneers such as Stonyfield and small, local producers like Straus Family Creamery offer products side by side with lower cost competitors, such as Wallaby and O Organics, health conscious consumers are faced with a choice. Pay 30 cents extra for Stonyfield, or pay 30 cents less for Wallaby?
So what’s the catch? A cursory inspection of the Wallaby and O Organics labels shows all the right certifications. They’re organic, and each promotes commitment to sustainable agriculture, sourcing locally, and offering healthy products. Wallaby is even Kosher. And when you’re holding a Stonyfield product in your right hand and a Wallaby product in your left, you’d never notice, unless you look really, really closely, that with Wallaby and O, you’re paying MORE per ounce of actual product, and in fact, what you’re buying is more plastic packaging, and less product.
Top Five Greenwash Posts of the Year
Posted by Ashwin Seshagiri December 22nd, 2009 View Comments
Dear Readers,
Triple Pundit has had a heck of a year. With your help we’ve grown to be one of the most widely read online publications about sustainable business, brought in many new contributors, and helped stoke the fires of a new, green economy in many new places. We hope you’ve had a great time reading and engaging with us and we’re ready to kick of January with a lot of new features, partnerships, and content.
To celebrate the end of the year, our crack team of editors has put together a few top-five lists for the year, including this one…the top five greenwash stories of 2009.
New Data on EU Carbon Trading Fraud Undermines Climate Fight
Posted by BC Upham December 15th, 2009 View Comments
In what is sure to provide additional ammunition for climate denial suicide bombers*, Europol, the European Union’s top law enforcement agency, has announced that more than $7.4 billion in tax revenue has been lost from schemes involving the trade of carbon credits.
The extent of the fraud is unclear, but when France, the Netherlands, the UK and Spain changed their tax code to prevent the fraud, trading activity dropped 90 percent, according to Europol.
The fraud threatens to make a punchline out of carbon trading, just as the US is considering its own carbon market — and the EU system is showing signs of working.
Employees* Rage Against the Coke Machine in Copenhagen
Posted by 3p Guest Author December 14th, 2009 View Comments
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on Grist, and is re-posted with permission.
COPENHAGEN—Two Cola-Cola* employees urged people in Copenhagen to never drink the soft drink again, denouncing their company’s environmental and human rights record in a highly unusual press conference* in the Hopenhagen LIVE area in City Hall Square.
The public relations* workers from Atlanta* said their consciences compelled them to speak out against the soft-drink conglomerate, inviting onlookers to make a public pledge against Coca-Cola’s water use, labor practices, and environmental claims.
Travelocity’s Green Hotel Directory Highlights Earth-Friendly Properties
Posted by Jace Shoemaker-Galloway December 10th, 2009 View Comments
Travelocity is getting serious about sustainable travel. Besides offering free carbon offsets for the 2009 holiday season, the online travel agency also provides a convenient and simple Green Hotel Directory as part of its Travel for Good Program.
Alison Presley, manager of Travelocity’s Travel for Good Program, told Triple Pundit, “What makes our Green Hotel Directory so unique is that we flag green hotels across the site. If you shop for a hotel in San Francisco, all of the green options will be marked with our green leaf tag. For the customer, that means it’s easy and affordable to go green. Not only can you compare prices among the eco-friendly options, but you can even add a green hotel to a vacation package. We’re the only major online travel company with that functionality and we’re very proud of it.”
Greenwashing’s Two-Edged Sword
Posted by Bill Roth December 10th, 2009 View Comments
Thank you to those who wave the flag of “Greenwashing” at companies who are not walking their talk. I work with businesses across the country and I can confirm that the fear of being tarred with the greenwash label is a motivating force firmly in place inside Corporate America.
However, I’m also beginning to see evidence from my national network of “going-green” businesses that the fear of being branded as a greenwasher is also means they’re slow in adopting more sustainable practices. The following quote paraphrases something I hear a lot from within my network: “We don’t want to advertise what we are doing for fear of being labeled as greenwashers by environmentalists.”
McDonald’s Gets Green…In Its Logo
Posted by Audrey Khuner December 7th, 2009 View Comments
McDonald’s is doing things a little backwards. Usually, how it works is: companies go green, and then change their logo to reflect these new, sustainable practices.
But McDonald’s Europe has decided to go ahead and make that logo switch first. An Associated Press article reports that European McDonald’s is exchanging its traditional red color for a deep hunter green in an effort to project a more environmentally friendly image.
Carbon Offsets: Angels Or Devils?
Posted by Gina-Marie Cheeseman November 24th, 2009 View Comments
In George Monbiot’s book, Heat: How to Stop the Planet from Burning, he compares buying and selling carbon offsets to “pushing the food around on your plate to create the impression that you have eaten.” Responsible Travel might agree with Monbiot’s statement. Last month the company canceled its carbon offset program saying that it was not helping to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
“The carbon offset has become this magic pill, a kind of get-out-of-jail-free card,” said Justin Francis, the managing director of Responsible Travel. “It’s seductive to the consumer who says, ‘It’s $4 and I’m carbon-neutral, so I can fly all I want.’”
A Quick Interview With Nick Corcodilos of Ask The Headhunter
Posted by Jen Boynton November 24th, 2009 View Comments
I had a chance to do a quick email interview with Nick Corcodilos, author of the Ask a Headhunter Blog and a frequent contributor to Fast Company. My questions for Nick concern the rise of so-called “green” recruiting firms and other folks capitalizing on the rise of green jobs – are they for real? or just jumping on a trend?
Jen Boynton: I’m concerned by the idea that “green search firms are a racket playing on a theme,” I’d assumed that they were just new firms targeting my demographic but I see from reading your book that a headhunter doesn’t need to know how to do a job to find a good candidate- he just needs to be a great networker. However, given that sustainability is a completely new field with a new set of parameters is their any use at all for search firms that specialize in environmental jobs?
Nick Corcodilos: I’m sorry to say that I keep finding more opportunistic use of “green” than legitimate use in marketing. I think this will change, but I fear the term “green” is lost already. It’s an empty slogan that sells product for many companies — but too often seems to have little to do with environmentalism. I’m sure there are some search firms that are trying to really be green… but what’s the point? A good search firm that handles all sorts of positions can create a “green” area within its practice. The challenge that “green” search firms face is… doing search properly to begin with. If I were looking for a green job, I’d try to hook up with the best search firms, period, and emphasize what I’m looking for.
What’s New
Where We’re Going
NY: Mar. 24
FT Investing in a Sustainable Future - Learn how investors are using new techniques to generate returns on responsible investments and hear about the latest trends in CSR activities.
SF: Apr. 14-16
Navigating the American Carbon World - Looking at the status of climate policy in 2010 and how climate initiatives will move forward with or without new policy.
Chicago Apr. 28-29
LCA Sustainable Supply Chain USA How To Measure, Prioritize And Reduce Social And Environmental Impacts In The Most Effective Manner
April 28-30
SF: Social Enterprise Summit/World Forum
SF: May 20-21
Microfinance USA 2010 - The place where microfinance practitioners, investors, and enthusiasts meet.
Monterey: Jun. 7-10
Sustainable Brands 2010 - Explore The Power of "And" at this year's highly anticipated SB10 conference - a 3p favorite since it's inception. Join more than 700 business and brand strategists, designers and sustainability executives for three days of extraordinary conversation.
July 29-30
GRI Certified Sustainability Reporting Course - Get the tools needed to fully assess the sustainability of business activities and to reduce the negative impacts of day-to-day operations.
LA: Sept. 1-2
Women in Green Forum - Recognizing the achievements of women across the vast range of environmental industry sectors.
Partners
University of Kansas Green Jobs Tweets
- RT @BluePractice: Just back from inspiring, fun day with @simransethi and her KU students. Check out and follow #greenjobsku, they're the future of green.
- RT @simransethi: Incredible graphical representation of all the water we're sucking up. Share widely: http://bit.ly/cGpPXx #greenjobsku
- Incredible graphical representation of all the water we're sucking up. Share widely: http://bit.ly/cGpPXx #greenjobsku
- http://twitpic.com/19nolg - This superplant grew 8 ft tall because of nutrients in greywater #greenjobsku
- No longer are the issues of environmental justice intangible, they were palpable in east Oakland. Clean air and water 4 all! #greenjobsku
- Nominations Now Open for 2010 Corporate Engagement Award of Excellence
- The Abbott Fund, Boston University School of Medicine and Leading Health Institutions in Vietnam Inaugurate the Abbott Fund Institute of Nutrition Science at Bach Mai Hospital
- PepsiCo Marks World Water Day 2010 with Global Water Goals
- CBRE Teams with The Green Standard
- Mannington's 25% Postconsumer Recycled VCT Honored with Environmental Stewardship Award
Recent Comments