Blogs & Ecology

Image: Patrick Dalton

*Written by new contributor, Megha Mohan*

It could have been a story-line straight from a Sci-Fi or Bond movie: A world on the brink of environmental disaster, saved by the creation of a polymer, (or plastic, to you and me), that can be melted by water into a compound, which can be used to harvest seeds. That’s the science bit. The sexy bit is a touring fashion exhibition, called Wonderland, a project that marries couture with conscience.

It is one thing to start a green by design eco-fashion company, and an entirely different thing to direct a ~$16B clothing retailer that employs 150,000 people to reduce its environmental impact and operate more sustainably. This is exactly the job of Kindley Walsh-Lawlor, Gap Inc’s Senior Director of Social Responsibility and Environmental Affairs. I got the chance to discuss with Kindley how she landed where she is, what Gap Inc’s brands (Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic) are doing to “go green”, and the ins and outs of retail corporate social responsibility (CSR). Gap Inc is a social responsibility leader, having spent 12 years working on ethical sourcing and human rights.

Image: Adrian Pingstone

This week, leading professional and corporate consultancy Spada released new research on environmental reporting, which shows FTSE100 companies are more than vague when using environmental terms and concepts.

Only two of 79 leading corporate organizations were able to define what they meant by sustainability – BP and British American Tobacco – while the others claimed “operational flexibility”, and so avoided a concise definition.

It seems that the word “sustainable,” or variants thereof, is never far away these days. It's been on the minds and lips of scientists, environmentalists, environmentally conscious politicians, policy advocates and “green” public relations agencies for many years now.

Image: jgraham

Mixing a sense of humour with a sense of environmental responsibility, Creative Paper Wales (CPW) has shepherded in the latest in its line of Sheep Poo Paper products – flower-fragranced Poo Pouri Air Freshener. The company claims to make all its handcrafted papers and paper gift items using eco-friendly materials and methods, but Sheep Poo Paper takes the ingenuity biscuit for exploiting the droppings of Wales’ most ubiquitous animal. New Zealand must be kicking itself it didn’t get there first.

Once again, the call for international entries is out for the Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy, due October 21, 2008. If you don’t know much about the Ashden Awards, these prestigious prizes are given out every year to innovative entrepreneurs and organizations developing local sustainable energy projects in developing nations. Entry is free, with up to seven winners receiving £20,000 each in prize money for project development, and one Energy Champion awarded £40,000 – there’s even a documentary film that will be made about the winning projects.

Paying attention to the news lately, you can't avoid hearing about the economy and who needs to be bailed out next. What I haven't seen, though, is a discussion that takes a step back and asks, "What would an economy look like that doesn't need to be bailed out or 'fixed' every x number of years?"

Sigur Rós is coming to Japan later this month, and his concerts are already sold out. Here in Tokyo, they will play one extra gig, that's how popular this band has become all over the world. Yet, as we all know, Iceland is a small country in big economic trouble. Sigur Rós and Björk tried to raise awareness earlier this summer, preparing for the crisis. Below the fold is a Youtube clip from their Náttúra Concert on June 28, 2008 in Reykjavik. ...

The green networking space is getting crowded. Countless online resources are available where green-minded professionals can connect and interact. But you know that a profession has truly arrived when bona fide professional associations arise to support and promote it. Several niche organizations have sprung up to serve professionals in specific areas like CSR or supply chain. Marsha Willard, the Executive Director of the International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP), believes her organization goes beyond niche to address the entire profession:

This is a re-printed letter from Co-op America, that we find extremely important! It takes just a few minutes to send out letters to all the candidates in this election, Presidential and local. We just did it ourselves! So make sure your environmental concerns are addressed and click on the Take Action Button today!!!!!!

Thousands of main streets have banks which resemble the one pictured here. Many of you will recognize the one like it in your town, with it's massive marble plates and columns. The design was intended to impart an air of permanence and/or to resemble the graphical depictions on coins or bills. For a picture of the literal First Bank of the United States in Philadelphia, where this tradition likely began in the USA, look here.

SustainLane's rasison d'etre has always been elusive, but one thing they've done consistently well, and improved upon year after year has been their various city rankings - including the sought after award of "most sustainable city in the US". This year they've outdone themselves with a lot more in-depth reporting, more explanation of how the rankings were derived, and a nifty new look and feel for their website to boot.