I had the pleasure of attending the 2008 Leadership awards for the Partnership for a Sustainable Georgia (P2AD) last week in Atlanta.  I was pleasantly surprised at the number of businesses and organizations that have made the commitment to become sustainable.  The biggest surprise was the US Army and more specifically, Fort Benning, who took the top prize.  Their self-described “tree-huggers” explained that the Army has always been about sustainability.  Even the Army’s insignia features: Sustain, Support and Defend. 

The Fort Benning presentation reminded us of the sacrifices our parents, and for some of us grandparents or great-grandparents, made during WWII.  Rationing and recycling was not only about providing sustainability, it was patriotic!  It’s amazing to think back to 1942, if you had an “A” sticker you were allowed only four gallons of fuel per week.  If you were lucky enough to have a “C” sticker, you had to have your tire pressure checked every three months. 

I drive a Prius and get 45 mpg. I have to admit that limiting myself to four gallons of fuel a week is a little scary, but I’d get by.  I like to play this game where I drive as long as I can without filling up (drives my wife crazy). Well, this past weekend I was driving back from a trip and stopped at an exit near Chattanooga. It was disconcerting to pull up to gas station after gas station and see the plastic bags over the nozzles as a result of Hurricane Ike.

Maybe $4 a gallon gas and fuel shortages are a reality check.  After all, we will eventually run out of gas.  Perhaps Climate Change gives us a taste of the future.

Too often companies talk about being “Green”, “Sustainable” or “Environmentally Friendly”. What is lost on many of these claims is that many of these companies can tell you what they did but not the green effect. For example, we can all agree that recycling is a positive step or having employees who walk to work. However, it is very difficult to assess the overall value. We may be able to estimate tons of waste that are no longer being sent to the landfill. Even this number has significant variability.

We want to do the right thing for the globe – but we are often not able to gauge our actions. One of the best things about Carbon Emissions is that one can calculate a level for their footprint. This sets a baseline that opens a way to quantify actions taken. If you know you are creating 500 metric tones then a year from now when you change to energy efficient lighting, add solar panels, start recycling and composting you can see the benefit.

People are motivated by knowing how what their actions are worth. Companies can set goals and  motivate employees to turn off lights, carpool, and recycle. Motivating Humans: Goals, Emotions, and Personal Agency Beliefs by Martin E. Ford (Published by SAGE, 1992) covers this as does many other studies about motivation. The point is that when people feel connected to an action and can appraise its effect they are more likely to meet goals.

Every year my sons school has a clean up of a local creek. The first year it was a tremendous undertaking. The second year, we began to focus away from just trash and into vegetation. What was abundantly clear was that all the people who were involved were motivated by looking at the difference in the area around the creek. Is the creek clean up “more important” than recycling? No, but it is much more clear of the effect on the local environment. The energy for doing more comes from reinforcement of the benefits and the ability to celebrate successes.

I just saw Richard Sandor, Chairman and CEO of the Chicago Climate Exchange, speak with Clint Coghill of Coghill Capital Management in a presentation at the Fall Meeting of the NMS Investment Forum for Endowments and Foundations.

The discussion was extremely interesting as they pointed out that currently, CO2 contracts have more open interest than Soybeans as a commodity. After only a few years of trading in Europe the market is exploding. It has become clear that CO2 contracts will be the largest commodity in the world. This is an easy calculation given that the US, China and India have yet to implement Cap and Trade but represent more than half all global GHG emissions.  This map shows countries GHG emissions as of 2000.

Source=wikipedia made using data from the World Resources Institute and a blank map by Canuckguy and others

The growth of these markets will only increase as more countries begin to manage their emissions. The opportunities created from using these markets are already amazing. Clint Coghill pointed to many technologies, including solar panels, that pay for themselves and create more efficient electricity use. Another is the invention of a new algae that collects CO2 and can be burned in place of coal as fuel.  Mr. Coghill further discussed other countries use of waste to create electricity.  Electricity is the number one source of greenhouse gas emissions.

The key takeaway was that you don’t have to be be unprofitable to be green. That reducing CO2 can make a company more efficient and make them money. The creation of markets helps cultivate ideas and technology.

Move over Fred Flintstone!

Richard Sandor cited a quote from one OPEC oil minister, “The Stone Age didn’t end because of a shortage of stones.” The fossil-fuel age won’t end because we run out of fossil fuels but because we find a better, cleaner way to fuel the economy.

We are seeing the emergence of a new market that will be global and has the potential to dwarf all others. It is encouraging to think that there are solutions just on the horizon.

It’s easy to do and it saves money, reduces your effect on the environment and who can tell the difference: Compact Fluorescent  Lights (“CFL”).

According to ENERGY STAR, qualified bulbs use about 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs and last up to 10 times longer. They last 6,000 to 15,000 hours compared to 750 to 1,000 hours for incandescent lights.  The bulbs can save between $30 and $40 in electricity costs over the lifetime of the bulb.  CFL’s produce about 75 percent less heat, which can be safer.

Watts

1 Energystar, 2 GE lighting

According to Energystar, if every home in America replaced just one incandescent light bulb with an ENERGY STAR qualified CFL, in one year it would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of more than 800,000 cars.

Popular Mechanics reviewed the CFLs, they liked them all (with lowest getting a B) and the best, the N:Vision Soft White , getting an A.

Prices taken from websites for 1 Bulb:

Lets break it down; how much do you save on electricity?

Service Lighting has a calculator. If you use this calculator the real savings is clearer. If you change your outdoor/overnight light bulbs then you can save around $33 over the lifetime of the bulb. For a bulb that is on 10 hours it is more like $14.  

However, it is so easy to do. If you just buy the bulbs and change the old ones out when they burn out you will see a difference.

We went to the MAGIC fashion show in Las Vegas August 25 - August 27, 2008 and they had a special section for ECOLLECTION. This area was the busiest, friendliest and highest energy portion of the show. The companies tended to fall in three groups: recycled products, natural inputs, and re-investors.

Recycled products mean people who take used objects to make their products. For example, rice bags and create purses, used sails and create bags, or stores that sell these objects.

Natural inputs means organic cotton (Anvil Corporation), hemp, bamboo, etc.

Re-investors are those that take a part of their money to good causes like 1% for the planet , Kart Apparel, Me to We Style

The takeaways from the show:
• Overall the show was slower but not the ECOLLECTION, it was crowded and clearly a growth area
• People want products they can feel good about; buyers are willing to buy items that have more than style but a positive twist
• Just saying your green without follow through does not work – a couple of booths were faux green and empty in a generally active area

Lastly, the most successful products are those that combine reinvestment with their existing products.