It's Not Easy Being Green
By William Cooley, Elisha Maldonado,
Kriti Ashok, and Dan Lu
It isn’t easy being green. Or defining it for that matter.
As businesses have increasingly sought to portray their products as environmentally friendly, the term “green” has quickly become a buzzword in advertising and marketing campaigns.
What companies and consumers have discovered is a largely subjective and sometimes misleading language designed to attract well-intentioned buyers into buying products that are. For consumers, companies and environmental organizations, the notion of “going green” can have greatly different meanings.
Consumer Confusion
Despite the onslaught of ads touting “green,” “recycled” and “environmentally friendly” products, research indicates that many consumers are unaware of what “green” really means.
A survey conducted earlier this year by the Shelton Group, a
Although 49 percent of those surveyed said a company’s “environmental record has influenced” their buying decisions, only 21 percent said it had led them to chose one product over another.
“People are interested in being green,” company CEO Suzanne Shelton told Brand Week magazine, “but they don't necessarily know what to do specifically. When people are confused, they do nothing.”
Another question asked participants to define the characteristics of a “green” home. Forty-two percent said they didn’t know, 28 percent said solar power, 12 percent said compact fluorescent lights and 10 percent said energy efficient appliances.
In addition to highlighting the confusion felt by many consumers, the survey also found that when it came to actual buying decisions, most consumers place their needs ahead of the environment.
The survey asked, “Given a choice between your comfort, your convenience or the environment, which do you most often choose?” Thirty-one percent said they chose the environment, while 46 percent chose comfort.
While the Shelton Group’s survey indicates a serious disconnect between consumer attitudes and behavior, other data supports the notion that buyers are, at the very least, interested in a company’s environmental record.
According to a report released by the Natural Marketing Institute in September, consumers would like greater corporate transparency when it comes to the environment.
The survey presented respondents with ten areas of focus. Each area was preceded with the phrase: “Are you interested in learning about what companies are doing to…”
Sixty-two percent of respondents are interested in recycling, 60 percent in waste reduction, 59 percent in pollution reduction, 56 percent in reduced energy consumption and 47 percent in the use of renewable energy.
Although it may not directly impact consumers’ buying decisions, many companies are taking notice and making a greater effort to publicize their environmental records.
'The Green Thumbs of Silicon Valley Companies'
By Kriti Ashok & Dan Lu
The green wave has especially gripped the
These important aspects of IBM's work/life balance programs help its employees better balance their personal and work responsibilities. They also benefit the environment. “I can work from home and take care of my two-year-old daughter when my wife leaves for her office” said Sumit Ranjan, senior software engineer at IBM. “I report to my manager who supervises me from
IBM's work-at-home program conserved approximately 7.75 million gallons of fuel and avoided more than 64,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions in
Intel distributed coffee mugs to all its employees this September to eradicate the use of paper utensils in break-rooms. “It’s such a relief every time I sip coffee from my mug. We are also provided with preferred parking lots for using car-pools” said Juhi Mohan, product development engineer at Intel. “All the lights are turned off at
Oracle has tried to achieve a paperless system with Oracle Advanced Compression. A unique program that does storage virtualization consolidation and uses fewer plastic disks thus consuming much less power. Also, Oracle has been promoting programs for the protection and perpetuation of wildlife. Committed to causes like The Bald Eagle Recovery Project, Dian Fossey Gorrila Fund International and The Nature Conservancy, it has touched its employees’ personal lives too. Satish Kumar, a software engineer at Oracle said, “Oracle's food service provider donates all unused food to Turning Point Women's Shelter in Redwood City. If Turning Point cannot take all the food available, a donation is made to the Santa Clara Second Harvest Food Bank.”
Cisco has taken a few leaps further by implementing water-less urinals and motion-sensored on/off switches for lights and air-conditioning in conference rooms. Mayank Bhatnagar, the project lead in support and maintenance department of Cisco said, “Internal sharing for reusing electronic equipments has dramatically reduced e-waste in the office and it is one of the most significant steps.”
OSI Soft’s
Another company has been making an effort to keep the environment free of waste and pollution. Linear Technology in Milpitas was recently audited for Environmental Management System and its effort to keep the environment clean. On their website regarding audits,
it states, “We strive to conduct annual Safety and Environmental audits at each of our manufacturing facilities. We promptly implement any necessary corrective actions.”
Joe Riquelme, a product engineer for the Milpitas high-tech firm which designs and manufactures integrated circuits for all electronic products, was able to summarize some of the things the company does to keep our region clean. “We conduct our operations in a manner that reduces pollution and maintains protection of the environment. We strive to reduce and eliminate wastes,” said Riquelme.
Some of the objectives for Linear Technology’s office include reducing paper usage by 5 percent, recycle toner and ink cartridges, reducing energy use at lighting fixtures, eliminate Styrofoam use in the cafeteria and coffee stations.
On the manufacturing of their products, the company has a long list of things they do to reduce waste and pollution. Linear Technology has increased the volume of lead-free products, increased recycling of PVC tubes and aluminum canisters, reduce water use at air scrubbers, eliminate antimony and bromine in packaging fire retardants, improve offsite waste disposal site selection, evaluate environmental aspects and impacts from significant L.T.C. Projects (i.e. Construction).
At another Silicon Valley company, Yes Video in Santa Clara, also does its part in being environmentally friendly. Yes Video does media-to-DVD transfer services from the private consumer level all the way up to corporate archiving, legal archiving, and government archiving.
Customer Service Rep. Jon Mendez said, “Our company consumes a lot of paper and plastic goods as well as several thousand DVD discs a week. The waste we accumulate is usually plastic and cardboard and we take great measures that everything is disposed of properly - calling different types of waste and recycling companies to pick up the cardboard, the plastic, and hundreds of discarded DVD media.”
The company continues its quest in being green by doing a large amount of hardware recycling. Batteries, DVD burner towers, server towers, multimedia decks, printers, and computer hardware are the many things the company recycles along with making sure that different waste management companies pick up the company’s waste as well. In terms of electricity, the Santa Clara company has reduced light usage over the past several years; only at night will certain departments utilize full illumination.
Every measure to stay environmentally friendly has been carefully evaluated by each department head at Yes Video, including Mendez, and the various executive staff members. If a new method of being environmentally sound is available to the company, they plan to make every effort to incorporate it into the company's daily procedure.
Back at Linear Technology, Riquelme states that when Linear’s products are produced with the environment in mind, they are, “More expensive, but more customers are demanding green products which in turn increases our sales.” What he learns from his company, he does in his own home, which is recycling cans, paper, and bottles. “We need to preserve what's left of our ozone layer, clean air, plants and animals to ensure the quality of our future generations' lives,” said Riquelme. At Yes Video, a cost efficiency evaluation of their company’s procedures with environmentally friendly methods has shown there has been no adverse fiscal impact to the company or the services they provide said Mendez.
In the Mendez household, to stay environmentally friendly, his family would limit the use of the heater as well as careful management of light usage in the house. All of the light bulbs have been replaced with energy efficient bulbs. Biodegradable food is recycled into compost which is used in their home gardens. Old hardware is donated to recycling and waste management companies and he does the standard recycling of paper and plastic products.
Mendez concludes by saying, “Consumption of our planetary resources is extremely limited. Large companies should be at the forefront of environmental impact awareness and therefore should also be taking greater measures to make sure our resources are used wisely and efficiently.”
(Note, Some Names Have Been Changed)
Activist Angst
Despite the efforts of many companies in
Since 2006, Greenpeace has published the “Guide to Greener Electronics,” a survey and critique of electronics producers based on environmental responsibility.
The guide’s 10th edition was published in November and ranks companies based on their use of toxic chemicals, attempts to reduce energy consumption and efforts to handle E-waste generated by the companies’ products.
Although many companies have seen an improvement in ranking over the past two years, results are largely negative.
Nokia has regularly topped the list. In the guide’s 10th edition, the company pulled in a 6.9/10 based on Greenpeace’s criteria.
Runners up include Sony, FSC, Samsung and Sony Ericsson, which all receive scores between 5 and 6.
For complete information, download the guide here: http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/guide-greener-electronics-november-241108
Green Washing Slide Show:
(Click link to view)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25265322@N03/sets/72157610809688761/show/
Students were asked two questions and here are their video responses:
Questions:
1. What do you think are the necessary criteria a company should fulfill before it calls its products GREEN?
2. Would you go ahead and buy something GREEN/Eco friendly/ Environmentally healthy even if its expensive?
Video #1 - Dipti Khasnis, Sem I, Civil Engineering
Video #2 - Dipti Khasnis, Sem I, Civil Engineering
Video #3 - Chanell Williams, Sophomore, Chemistry
Video #4 - Chanell Williams, Sophomore, Chemistry
Video #5 - Jasmine, Senior, Sociology
Sidebar:
'Opposing Views on Green Living'
By Elisha Maldonado
She may not have a green thumb, she says, but she certainly has a green mind.
Lisa McKay, a SJSU alumni and mother of two, says she voraciously recycles everything. Her children help by matching the item to the special bin she made just for them: paper goes in the paper bin. Plastics go in the plastics bin. Glass -- though she mainly handles this one -- goes in the glass bin.
It is almost impossible to miss McKay's "recycling center," the fluorescent bins lining the wall are in your face.
But McKay does more than just recycle. She always brings her own canvas bags to the supermarket. She unplugs any electronic device from the home outlets unless they are in use. She and her family don't watch television. And walks with the children involve lessons on not littering and cleaning up one's environment.
"I want to live a green lifestyle for my children," McKay said. "I want them to be able to enjoy the world I grew up in. Actually, I want them to have a better one."
Although her children are her main point in going green, McKay says she does it because she has “a great love for the world I inhabit.
“I don’t want to witness, firsthand, its destruction.”
McKay, however, isn't the only one trying to change her thinking and lifestyle. In a new nationwide Harris Poll, 2,602 U.S. adults were interviewed, between May 5 and 12, on the environment and their thoughts on playing a part.
The results found that women, like McKay, are much more likely than men to believe their actions are significant, the poll says, by a 77 percent margin to 67 percent.
But not everyone is doing something to change his or her lifestyles, the poll states. The primary reason is that people don't know what to do, it furthered. But, that isn't always the case, especially for Jill Howard, a senior at SJSU.
Howard says she isn't green, and doesn't plan on being green, as long as people tell her to do it.
"I think that every time someone tells me I need to be more green, I feel obligated to throw something on the ground and litter, leave all the lights on and drive a suburban," Howard says. "It's not even a green movement anymore, it’s a religion."
Though Howard says she thinks she would probably do it, because she is "all for being responsible," she can't stand all of the people making it a "moral issue."
"I would rather do it because I wanted to, rather than by moral compulsion. It is like a secular version of going to Sunday school."
Sidebar: 'Recycle, Reduce, Reuse' By Dan Lu
After reading the stories about green washing and green companies, you are probably wondering what can you do to help out the environment. The first thing you can do is to recycle aluminum cans, plastic bottles, clear shampoo bottles, cardboard and paper. Many recycling centers offer cash for these items. A check of the 'Bottlesandcans' website (www.bottlesandcans.com), lists six recycling centers near the San Jose State campus (95192).
775 Lincoln Ave
San Jose CA 95126
(408) 292-3333
1.10 miles
NexCycle/Safeway #1483
1530 Hamilton Ave
San Jose CA 95125
(909) 796-2210
1.40 miles
NexCycle/Safeway #3108
1305 S Winchester Blvd
San Jose CA 95128
(909) 796-2210
1.87 miles
San Jose Metal Inc
1032 N 10th St
San Jose CA 95112
(408) 293-4032
2.19 miles
TOMRA Pacific Inc
1303 Story Rd
San Jose CA 95112
(408) 293-9817
2.19 miles
Tung Tai Group
1726 Rogers Ave
San Jose CA 95112
(408) 573-8661
2.19 miles
Also on the same website, you can use their California Refund Value calculator to see how much you would get back for your recyclables. If you had 100 CRV aluminum cans and 100 PET plastic bottles, you would get back $5.29 for the aluminum cans and $6.50 for the PET plastic bottles, with a total of $11.79 for your stash.
CRV calculator: http://www.bottlesandcans.com/dev/calculator.cfm
2. Second step - Reduce
Silicon Valley companies have taken a step in reducing waste, pollution, and energy as stated above. Consumers and SJSU students can do their own part in reducing waste, pollutants, and energy as well.
1. SJSU students can skip their automobiles and use the VTA pass which comes with their tuition. Riding public transportation will reduce vehicles on the roads, reduce emissions, reduce our dependcy on gas and oil, and reduce traffic.
2. Some of the Silicon Valley companies stated they turn off the lights at a certain time. Do your part by turning off unneccessary lights and appliances when not in use. It reduces energy usage and reduces your energy costs.
3. Reduce your waste by using your biodegradable leftovers such as produce and bread as compost for your garden. Or you can place recycling bins in your backyard and sort out junk mail, cans, and bottles for recycling. It reduces the waste you produce and reduces the amount of trash in our landfills.
3. Third step - Reuse
The Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park has a special exhibit going on from now till April 19, 2009. The Golden Gate Express is a unique exhibit which incorporates model trains and famous San Francisco landmarks. But the catch is, the landmarks are completely made out of recycled, reclaimed, and reusable materials.
The Transamerica Pyramid which is a downtown San Francisco landmark stands 853-feet tall. However, pictured left is the model version which is made completely out of 600 computer keyboard keys, 30 floppy disks, and other keyboard parts.
From the Conservatory of Flowers' website:
"The artists of San Francisco's Figureplant, a leading prop and model making company in San Francisco, have taken a very creative approach to fabricating the scaled down landmark buildings."
http://www.conservatoryofflowers.org/insidetheconservatory/special.htm
Ultimately, the special exhibit takes a look at a unique approach how consumers can reuse some of their waste and make it into something everyone can appreciate. One man's trash is another person's treasure.
Note: Click on any pictures in any story to enlarge
Below are some extra links for more information about green washing and to help you get started on recycling, reducing, and reusing:
http://www.recyclestuff.org
Fortune Magazine – 10 Green Giants (Companies that implement “Green” measures)
http://money.cnn.com/
2008 Guide to Greener Electronics
http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/
http://www.greenwashingindex.
FTC Guidelines for “Green” Products
In an effort to help consumers better understand “green” advertisements, the Federal Trade Commission has produced a fact sheet defining the following terms and concepts as they relate to advertising.
“Recycled” – Items bearing this title must be made of post-consumer waste removed from the standard “waste stream.” These include products produced from paper, plastic and metal that has undergone a recycling process.
“Recycled Parts” – Any item that includes “used, rebuilt, reconditioned, or remanufactured parts” must say so on the item itself. Failing to include this information constitutes false advertising, especially if the item contains used mechanical parts.
“Less Waste” – Products advertising that they use less waste or contain less of a particular item, such as plastic, must be clear and explain how much is being reduced. If the plastic use is 15 percent less, it should say “15 percent less.”
“Non-Toxic” – Products advertised as such must be free from toxic chemicals and reasonably safe for the environment. Although this does not mean materials must be biodegradable, it prohibits any chemical that would do harm to the environment if introduced.
“Eco-Friendly” – According to the FTC this means that a product has little or no impact on the environment. It should not be toxic, lead to water or air pollution, or be harmful to animals.
Download the complete guidelines here: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/general/gen02.pdf
