I think this video is pretty concise and draws my attention on how to walk-the-talk when it comes to sustainability. Bob Willard introduces the business case for sustainability.

After viewing the video, I am quite excited in getting to know valuable insights I can gain from his work. To view his site, click here. Does he sound convincing to you? let me know.

Its the time when u say the 2 syllable DAMNNnnn when you’re on the road…

Checking out that nice ride…. Trying to peep who is the lucky person driving such a nice car…..

And then you’ll tell yourself:” Thats my car. I will own it one day”

Oh well, enough said. Lets reveal what my dream car looks like….

There are some companies who benefited from being sustainable, eg. increased profits, save cost, better brand equity, etc.

So if that market is seems profitable, why aren’t other companies heading the same direction too? It is evident that increasingly more companies striving for sustainable development. But many other companies however, do not want to change mainly because the cost outweighs the benefits.

Many consumers are aware that presently in the market, there are brands who are becoming Green. Yes, we know that we do want to create a better place by being more environmentally friendly and buying green products, but the idea of purchasing at a premium cost for the long-term, does not fulfil the idea of sustainability.

So, the question here is: “Is there a business case for corporate sustainability?” Let me know what do you think.

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) presents a short clip on the business case on sustainable livelihood. This clip highlights the sustainable development of developing countries, especially focusing on social and economic sustainability, due to the large proportion of people still living in poverty. It also talks about the existence of a business case of sustainability in big corporations, like Daimler-Chrysler (Mercedez Benz), and BP.

Given the rising fuel cost recently, it is unsustainable to drive a normal petrol consuming car in the long run. Many has turn to Hybrid cars to curb this problem. Not only that, it is also more environmentally friendly as it emits less carbon.

I have rented and driven a Toyota Prius recently, and it is really really energy efficient. Say there are 10 units altogether for the measure of fuel. It only went down 1 unit for a 300km drive (highway throughout). It was amazing! I was told that it was energy efficient, but this totally exceeded my expectations. Therefore, it prompted me to do a little research.

From an environmentalist perspective, Hybrid cars is considered unsustainable. It still does pollute the biosphere. Therefore, it is still socially unjust to our future generations. But looking at the bright side, we are improving progressively, sustainability is a relatively new concept and it’s hard to take a big leap. What more when its dealing with the transportation system- one of the hardest, most difficult thing to change.

List of top green cars in Australia according to the Green Vehicle Guide.

The Australian Government is helping consumers to understand the impact of driving a car on the environment. Their website GreenVehicleGuide has a wealth of information of how you can contribute to a cleaner environment including fuel efficiency ratings as well as the most environmentally friendly cars as listed below.

1. Toyota Prius 
2.  Fiat Punto
3. Citroen C3
4.  Holden Astra
5. Honda Civic

 

               

Click here to download the full list. 2007_top_sellers_top_performers PDF (2MB)        

              

This is SOOOO Awesome!!

This is a Facebook Application, where you first start up as a fuel-consumptious vehicle and moving on towards renewable energy source vehicle to display on your Facebook profile!

This is how it works, you simply earn:

• 1 credit for: Each product added to your profile (up to 8), and every friend invited to use Green My Ride.
• 5 credits for: Each friend you invite that actually signs up.
• 10 credits for: Each review you write on http://greenhome.huddler.com (check out the site for more)
• 15 credits for: Creating an account on http://greenhome.huddler.com and linking it to this Facebook account.

 

 

Given I’ve recently just explored the benefits of social networking sites like Facebook as a valuable marketing tool, I really think Huddler has done a fantastic job of trying to create ecological awareness using this interface. Did you know that Facebook has over 70 million registered users? There are a variety of cool vehicles that I have never heard of before. Nevertheless, I am excited and thrilled to be able to relate this into my Facebook profile, it further enhances my identity.

This post talks about sustainable packaging.

In the past, I would pay a slight premium if some items have pretty packagings. It is a marketing strategy to make packagings as attractive as possible. For example, if you noticed, some premium price chocolates have pretty boxes. Once you opened it, there’s a bubble wrap, then you’ll see individual packed chocolates, there’s paper at the base, aluminium wrappings, etc… So yeah, there’s layers and layers to get to one particular item. But what happens to those wrappings? It goes straight into the bins.

 

Corporations spend lots of money to decorate their products, while in fact they could reduce cost by reducing on packagings (economic), save natural resources (environment), reduce the likelihood of littering in the society (social) and customers pays less for the same good because of the reduced cost. Sums up you’ve covered the 3 pillars of sustainability.  

That is why after I’ve learned about this, I tend to take into consideration on how I can save & at the same time contribute to the eco-system on my shopping trips.

 

The entertainment news is much like a life saviour in my uni life.

Who doesn’t like to keep themselves updated especially when it comes to celebrities?

Here is one of my favourite blogs, Ecorazzi! It is a fun blog! I spend lots of my time reading juicy gossips of celebs. Over here, Celebrities are being green challenged! It blogs about what celebs wear, how eco-sensitive they are, who’s green & who’s not…. Blog entries are added several times daily. I like it, and hope u’ll enjoy as much as I do =)

 

 

Check out one of their popular post about Victoria Beckham receiving a Dead turkey stuffed with Christmas Joy!

*I like her*

 

Something interesting I would like to share about. Frankly speaking, I am a true fan of Levi’s jeans. I was astonished to find that they have a range of jeans that are environmental friendly. Talk about corporations turning ‘Green’!

This range was launched in late 2006 in the U.S. Funny thing, I somehow reckon it didn’t reach Oz, because I have never seen it before. After a while, I pondered: “How eco-friendly can jeans get?”

 

It is claimed that the jeans are made of 100% organic cotton. Apart from that, the button and zippers are formed from recycled metal and natural dyes colours. External packaging is made from recycled paper using soy-based inks! Everything seems perfectly green…however….

Have u wondered how does non-organic cotton impact on landfill? & how does organic cotton impact on landfill? I can’t help but notice organic simply means without the use of chemicals. Apart from that, how sustainable is cotton afterall? EnviroZine explains the issue of decomposition of cotton in a landfill.

Ok, probably Levi’s is being environmentally sustainable, what about being economically and socially sustainable?

It was mentioned somewhere that jeans are fully hand-made. & in the planting process of cotton, weeds are removed hand-picked! I couldn’t find any information on labouring issues. Are the farmers well-being served appropriately in the process?

Many corporations realise that consumers do want to help the environment. But paying a 3-digit price does not seem to be economically viable. Majority of us are price sensitive. Even when it comes to my favourite brand, that price seems…let’s just say, I’ll give them my moral support instead.

 

 

 

 

 

Come to think of it, why are some corporations moving from selling products to providing service instead?

Companies such as FujiXerox, Interface and Carrier.

Advantages:

To my understanding, these shifts is because they realised we want a cooler working place thats why we buy air conditioners. We don’t really want to own one, its not like its some really unique deco for the place or something. That is why York used to sell air conditioners alone. Now, it offers cooling solutions for its customers.

Companies pay a fixed amount each month to lease their services. Once if they aren’t happy with the service they can discontinue. Unlike buying major units of air conditionings whereby you pay excess for maintanence, lets not forget the devaluation of such assets, and the frustration of discarding it, plus all the carbon emission and harmful environmental particals. Wouldn’t leasing provide all these a solution?

What amazes me more is that Carrier would try to save more for each penny saved in cost is every penny earned. Thats why they try to produce more efficient air conditioners, and even try to restructure the building settings, so that they could emit less heat, bringing the whole place cooler naturally. =) Brilliant!!

You could find out more information at their website