How Apple Transitioned from Corporate Luddite to Environmental Leader

Companies are showing that change is both possible and profitable. As we stare down the barrel of a dark future companies are acknowledging the emergence of a new reality that forces them to change the way they do business. Embracing sustainability makes sense even for those who were slow off the mark. Apple proves that it is possible to transition from a climate Luddite to a climate leader.

Leading corporations are helping to show the way forward and no company has come further in recent years than Apple. The tech leader has not always been an environmental leader. That changed when Tim Cook was named CEO in 2011. He then had the good sense to hire former EPA administrator Lisa Jackson to be the VP of Environment, Policy, and Social Initiatives. Since then the company has significantly improved their sustainability performance while ameliorating working conditions and transparency.

Event - Ecochem: Global Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering

The Ecochem Global Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering Event will take place at the Congress Center Basel, Switzerland, 11-13 November 2014 Apply here if you are interested in becoming a speaker. A vision for the future of the chemical industry. The world's most influential industry and government leaders, scientists and innovators from across the chemical industry and value chains, sharing new visions for the sustainable design, production and use of chemicals.

Companies Calling for Chemical Regulation

While some companies actively resist government regulation, others are welcoming it. A group of responsible consumer product companies is pushing for chemical safety reform legislation to better protect the public from toxins that are commonly found in consumer products.

This coalition was started by Seventh Generation along with the American Sustainable Business Council. Other members of the group include Annie's, and Stonyfield Farm. These companies are behind safer products and chemicals for decades. they are also leaders in transparency and accountability. A reform bill for the anemic 37 year old Toxic Chemical Safety Act, has been languishing in the Senate for months.

DIY Workshop - A Living Christmas Tree

The DIY Workshop titled "A Living Christmas Tree" will take place on Saturday December 14, 2013, from 1 pm - 2 pm at the Evergreen Garden Market, located at 550 Bayview Ave., Toronto, Ontario. A living tree is a far more environmentally sound alternative to traditional cut trees. During this workshops participants will learn how to care for and maintain a live Fraser fir in their homes, and then how to plant it in the garden or forest so that it will be around for generations to come.

The program is sponsored by Home Depot.

Course - Introduction to Environmental Chemistry

Two Day Workshop or 16 Hours Online. To protect human health and the environment, understanding the occurrence of different chemicals and their potential transformations, transport, and fate based on various physical and chemical processes in the environment is paramount. This course is designed as a general introduction to environmental chemistry. This two-day course provides participants with an introduction to chemistry principles and the release, transport, and fate, as well as sampling, analysis, and cleanup of contaminants of concern in soil and groundwater. This course is designed for environmental professionals who require a basic knowledge of environmental chemistry in their work.

Video - Green Chemistry and the Business of Providing Consumers with Safer Sustainable Materials

Green chemistry is growing in prominence in response to environmental concerns associated with traditional chemistry. Nowhere is this impact being felt more than in the area of finding replacements for endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). This video offers the latest science on the way forward using green chemistry's ability to create innovative, healthy and sustainable products. It specifically shows how companies can grab market share by responding to growing consumer interest in safer, sustainable materials.

Event - Sustainability Chemistry Summit

The Sustainability Chemistry Summit - Europe 2013 (SI Europe) will take place September, 18-20, 2013 in Brussels, Belgium. This event will bring together the various members of the sustainability research and analytics community and the corporate practitioners responsible for measuring, evaluating and reporting sustainability information and those leading successful strategies that have helped companies head towards more sustainable processes.

Greener Solvents on the Increase in Developed Countries

In developed countries solvent use is declining while demand for greener solvents in increasing. This trend is attributable to environmental and regulatory pressures, along with concerns about toxicity to humans.

Solvents are found in paints and coatings which together account for 40 percent of solvent use. Other places where solvents can be found include adhesives, inks, pharmaceuticals, chemical processing, metal and dry cleaning solutions and agriculture.

Solvents are one of the most comprehensively regulated classes of chemicals, and tend to be regulated collectively as volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOC’s are air pollutants that contribute to low-level photochemical smog. VOCs also react with nitrogen oxides to produce ground level ozone that can damage lungs crops and natural vegetation. Solvents are also implicated in high-level ozone depletion and global warming. They are often highly flammable and can have direct health impacts by absorption through the skin.

10 Green Businesses that Made It Big

Decades ago, many people didn’t care about environmentally-friendly businesses and what they had to offer. Promises of natural ingredients, sustainable practices, and social responsibility were not a priority for the average shopper. But the times have changed and people have turned a new leaf to the idea of going green and are using more natural, sustainable products. Check out these 10 green businesses that made it big.

Video: Journey of Sustainable Business

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

Video: Sustainability - The Movement of Our Time

The Sustainable Business Network has partnered with film and campaign management company, Borderless Productions to produce a short film that celebrates the growing success of the sustainability movement in New Zealand. The five minute video entitled, Sustainability The Movement of Our Time opened the NZI National Sustainable Business Network Awards, bringing together a line up of sustainability entrepreneurs who shed light on the journey of sustainability over the past two decades.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

Highlights of the Opportunity Green Conference 2011

Opportunity Green is an annual business conference in Los Angeles and according to organizers, the November 2011 edition was the best conference yet. It was the "gathering place" for individuals and companies committed to building profitable and sustainable enterprises while solving some of the world's toughest problems. The conference reviewed new trends, critical knowledge and winning partnerships for a world where profits, people and the environment are truly interconnected.

The Most Important Green Business Stories of 2010

On December 21, Bloomberg Business published Harvard Review's most important stories affecting the greening of business in 2010. Here is a rough summary of the review.

US Politicians Fail to Pass Climate Legislation

The US Senate's failure to pass climate change legislation impedes global efforts to address climate change and undermines the competitiveness of American companies. The Republicans midterm election victory in the House of Representatives have definitively killed any hope of US climate legislation for at least two years. While the American legislature dithers, governments in the rest of the world are helping businesses to make the transition to a low carbon economy.

China

China has assumed a leadership role in renewable energy. China is now the world's largest solar producer and they now control almost half of the $45 billion global market for wind turbines. While China's support for its renewables companies may violate the WTO accord, there can be no doubt that China is investing massively in the low carbon economy through technology and innovation driven development that focuses on energy saving, environmental protection, and the low-carbon economy.

Declining Resource Availability

Climate change is impacting on countries around the world and this is directly effecting the availability of resources. Russia had the worst drought in 1,000 years and Pakistan was inundated by flooding. These weather events directly affect resource availability. The drought in Russia destroyed 40% of its wheat crop, pulling 1/6 of the world's trade in the crop off the global market, driving up wheat prices. The floods in Pakistan helped double the price of cotton. There is also evidence that rare earth metals, so vital to green technologies, may soon be in short supply.

The Growth of Electric Vehicles

A number of electric vehicles are now available in America and around the world. The Nissan LEAF and the Chevrolet Volt are amongst a plethora of electric vehicles that entered into the marketplace in 2010. An increasing number of companies are greening their fleets. This year GE announced that it would purchase 25,000 Electric vehicles including the Chevy Volt.

The Growth of Renewable Energy

The market for renewables is growing fast, in countries like Portugal almost half (45%) of the countries electricity comes from renewables. HSBC says the market for clean tech and climate change solutions will top $2.2 trillion by 2020.

The Growth of Sustainable Supply Chains

Despite the recession, there were numerous green supply chain announcements in 2010. These announcements include Wal-Mart which said it would eliminate 20 million metric tons of GHG emissions from its supply chain. We also saw major supply chain announcements from companies like IBM, Pepsi, Tropicana, P&G, and Kaiser Permanente.

Corporate Waste Reduction

Many corporations are working hard on waste reduction. GM announced that 62 of its plants now send zero waste to landfill, and UK retailer Marks & Spencer reached a 92% diversion rate on the way to its zero goals. Sony set a goal of zero environmental impact across its operations by 2050.

Sustainable Corporate Goals

Many large corporations are setting aggressive targets. Panasonic said it wanted its GHG emissions to peak by 2018 and it would greatly increase sales of eco-products. Unilever has announced that it would double sales by 2020 while halving its environmental impact the company has also announced other big goals.

The Greening of Small Business

Small companies are also seeing the value of going green. The fact that California's Bowman Design only has 10 employees and just 2,000 square feet of office space in Southern California has not prevented it from reducing the companies GHG emissions by 65% and saving $9,000 savings annually.


Related Posts
THE GREEN MARKET's Top 25 Environmental Stories of 2010
Top 10 Predictions for Sustainable Business and the Green Economy in 2011
Best Green Tech Innovations of 2010
10 Best Eco-Inventions of 2010
Odd Yet Effective Green Inventions
Time's Top 5 Green Energy Inventions of 2010
Video: Planet 100's Top 5 Green Inventions
Greenpeace's Best Green Electronics
Greenpeace's Ranking of Electronic Companies
Best Green Automotive Innovations of 2010
Best Green and Sustainable Business Twitter Feeds
Top 20 Green and Sustainable Business Facebook Groups
Newsweek's 10 Greenest Companies in 2010
Time's Top 5 Green Energy Inventions of 2010
Sierra's Top 5 Insider Reader Stories from 2010
Environmental Leader's Most Read Stories of 2010
Portfolio 21's Top 10 Green Investments for 2011
Video of the Top 10 Green Reads of the Decade