Current Event: Creating a Cradle-to-Cradle Economy

Looming resource shortages, rising and volatile commodity costs, new technologies, extending producer responsibility regulations, landfill bans, and changing customer preferences are driving a shift in our economy's current business paradigm. We are experiencing an exponentially growing population and the scarcity of non-renewables. Acknowledging these issues and more, it is imperative that businesses move from a "take-make-waste" business model into a circular economy business model. These circular economy business models are based on longevity, renewability, reuse, repair, upgrade, refurbishment, sharing and dematerialization. Lessening the impacts on the environment, this new way of conducting business presents a completely different view on the mission of a business. 

Not surprisingly, the supply chain is the area of a business in which the greatest amount of improvement and waste reduction can be made. From sourcing to manufacturing to distribution to retailer to customer...the possibilities are endless. These kind of improvements require thinking from the bottom up, rather than making incremental resource efficiency improvements as time goes on. Creating a closed loop is important for many reasons including: development of new markets, creating a continuous improvement platform, building value-added customer relationships, achieving cost savings, and building brand a reputation. 

So what does it take to make these changes?? It certainly starts with the mindset of the business and involves a future-looking model. It starts with management and executive commitment. It involves a strategic business plan that involves essentially the entire supply chain. It involves investment into R&D and establishing relationships with suppliers...

This is all much easier said than done, but the payoff represents the future of our economy. No longer can we continue to risk resource shortages, natural resource depletion and waste of surplus resources. 

For me, this is an exciting time to be entering the business world. There are numerous advancements and improvements to be made and though I do not necessarily have the answers, I look forward to making moves towards the solutions. 

source used: http://www.greenbiz.com/article/how-circular-economy-could-end-take-make-waste-businesses

Current Event: How Can We Control Food Waste?

I very much dislike wasting food for two main reasons: I see it the same as wasting money. I love eating food.
I am sure that there are many other Americans that feel the same way as I do. But even with this so-called food-waste-contentiousness do we REALLY know how much food waste we have? According to Mary Hoff in her article Everybody hates wasting food- so why do we do it and how can we stop?, the average American family of four throws away $1,500 worth of food in a year and the average American individual throws away $369 worth of food in a year (that's two months worth of car loan payments for me!!). Furthermore, more than twice as much food is wasted at the consumer level than at the retail level. Why do we this? How does this happen? Hoff says that it is due to the lack of awareness of food waste as well as the unawareness to the societal and personal costs we incur that leads us to the amounts of food waste over time. Consider this: from an environmental perspective, food waste results in the literal throwing out of our natural resources. According to a 2009 study from the journal PLOS ONE, fully one quarter of the water used in the U.S. goes to produce food nobody eats!
How can we control this large area of waste in our society? Hoff says we first must start with awareness, but that awareness will not solve all of the problems. Practical solutions need to be offered as well, such as cookery classes, putting leftovers to use, budgeting and planning support, knowing when food is bad, storage information on packaging, etc. Even something as simple as checking what you have in the pantry before you go grocery shopping can make a big difference.
I hope to continue to increase my food-waste-contentiousness as I only buy what is really necessary and encourage others to do the same!

Current Event: Europe Trip CO2 Emissions

This December,  I will be traveling to Europe with some girlfriends for a post-grad celebration. We will be traveling through France, Italy, and Spain...I cannot wait! Just the other night, I decided to look up my flight details in hopes of extending the duration of my trip (whether or not I can actually afford to extend my trip is a different story). I was mainly searching for the extra dollar value that this would cost me to change my return flight, but instead, I found a link to calculate the CO2 emissions that I will be imposing on the environment when I fly to France. Here are the calculations that were generated:

The transportation sector is the second largest economic source of CO2 emissions, following electricity and heat generation. Of this transportation sector, global aviation accounts for 11% of all transport CO2 emissions. International flights account for 62% of these emissions while domestic accounts for 38%.
I am appreciative of Air France's encouragement and transparency to calculate my CO2 emissions. Upon further research on their website, I found that Air France is constantly working to invest in the world's most technically advanced aircraft as well as implementing the most efficient ground and in flight procedures in order to reduce their overall fuel consumption.
I continued to research other airlines (such as Alaska Airlines and Delta) to see if they too had environmental impact awareness, and was pleased to find similar results!


CO2 Impact

Current Event: Ditch The Microbead Body Care Products!

Believe it or not, body care products with microbeads in them are not good for you OR the environment. Why am I not surprised??

These care products contain small plastic particles that are under 5mm in diameter. The particles are used for the purpose of exfoliation for the skin, but as soon as they go down the drain, they are released into sewage treatment plants and eventually, lakes, rivers and oceans. Adidas has recognized and taken action on this discovery. Jochen Denninger, VP of Strategic Partnerships at adidas, was personally disappointed by the discovery of the harmfulness of microbeads, and come January 1, 2016, adidas will have completely eliminated microbeads from their products. Denninger has also established a partnership with Parley for the Oceans, an organization on a mission to protect and clean the world's oceans, which has led to other sustainable goals such as footwear made from upcycled ocean waste, elimination of use of plastic bags, and reduction of material usage in design and production.
Though I am not a frequent consumer of adidas product, I am pleased to see a company that is attempting to be transparent to the unsuspecting customer. Many environmentally unfriendly products are unknown to be so by the consumer and thus, "not an issue". With the exposure of these harmful products and the dedication of a company to do something about them, consumers are better informed and can make more environmentally sound purchasing decisions.

Adidas Kicks Microbeads To The Curb

Current Event: Britain Aims to Rid of Coal-Fired Power Plants

Britain has recently called to close all coal-fired power plants by 2025. In preparation for the United Nations climate change conference in Paris on November 30, Britain has marked itself as a leader in carbon dioxide emissions reduction efforts. Assuming success of this movement, Britain will be the first of the developed countries to deliver on a plan to cut out coal usage. Could this possibly lead to other countries catching on to this movement and also working towards reducing their usage of coal? Furthermore, the British minister for energy and climate change has cut back subsidies for renewable forms of energy such as wind and solar power with the argument that these technologies are not cost-effective. Her solution is to use natural gas, which has been met with much opposition. The specific details of Britain's plan will be published this coming spring. It will be interesting to see what proposal Britain gives and their plan of execution. If Britain is able to succeed, they could easily set the pace of what other countries could do as well. Everybody has to start somewhere in the battle against climate change, and the first place is to start is ridding of coal.

Britain Calls for Closing of Coal-Fired Power Plants by 2025

Environmental Footprint Update

In September, I found out that if everyone were to live like I do, we would need 3.3 Earths to provide enough resources. Though this number of "earths" is on the lower side of most EF calculations, it is still an unreasonably large number that should be reduced! Besides services, the majority of my EF came from my food consumption (I eat A LOT of dairy, and frequently consume meat). The picture below represents my initial EF: 

I set out to reduce my EF by some simple goals: turning off the water while I brush my teeth, unplugging my the extension cord that connects my blow dryer/straightener when they are not in use, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and cutting out my consumption of beef.

Well, a couple months later and I have recalculated my EF only to find that it is the exact same as before...

Though I am sad to see that EF calculations do not seem to show any progress, I am confident in saying that I have personally reduced my environmental impact! Though the numbers don't say it, I now am consuming meat less, unplugging appliances when not in use, turning off running water when it is not in use, and am refraining from using the elevator. The BIGGEST impact I have had has been the simple awareness of sustainability and its role in our world today. Becoming aware of different sustainability movements has allowed me to share with my friends and family what I am learning, and become genuinely interested and mindful of what I can do as a consumer to reduce my impact. I will most definitely be able to continue these practices in my "life outside of class" and am looking forward to bringing what I've learned to the attention of others as well. 

Current Event: Organic Valley Uses Parody Marketing Strategy

Last February, a well known dairy brand called Organic Valley released a parody marketing video to hone in on a specific target market: bros. This video advertises the company's new organic protein drink, Organic Fuel, while adding a hilarious twist. Its ad campaign is to "save the bros" by preventing them from drinking "junk" that is in regular protein drinks. This new organic protein drink is advertised as free of artificial flavoring, sweeteners, GMOs, toxic pesticides and antibiotics.
Click here for a watch of the first ad campaign Organic Valley released:
Save The Bros

In a more recent ad campaign of Organic Valley, they released a video titled "The Bronoymous Hotline". This hotline incorporates Twitter as a means to increase awareness and sales of the organic protein. Consumers are encouraged to submit their Bro's Twitter handle and explain what makes him a bro. From there, the bro is tweeted at by Organic Valley and receives a personalized video an a coupon for Organic Fuel.
Click here to see the newest ad campaign:
The Brononymous Hotline

A very funny, and engaging entrance into a target market that might otherwise be standoffish and reluctant to change. I think that Organic Valley could further their advertising by explaining more the negative impacts of regular protein drinks and further promoting what makes organic protein THAT much better, all while keeping the parody alive.

Current Event: VW On The Route To Recovery

I bought my first car in May 2015. It was (and is) a sleek, black, Volkswagen Jetta 2008. I come from a family of VW owners and was stoked to be buying a reliable car that many of my friends and family had had a great experience with.
When I heard about the VW emissions scandal this past September, my immediate thoughts were, "I still love my Jetta". I am a bit biased, but maybe these thoughts would be different if my car was a diesel engine, and therefore, I was directly affected by the scandal. Who knows? What I WILL say, is that it is still important to me as a consumer to invest in a company that is an ethical and honest one.
My view of the company as a whole has not changed, but rather, I have developed an understanding of how one person (or several) can misuse their leadership and management role for their own personal (and sometimes greedy) desires.
See this New York Times article for a good read on the route to recovery that VW is making after news of the scandal:
Volkswagen, Hit by Emissions Scandal, Posts its First Loss in Years
Yes, VW just reported its first quarterly loss in YEARS.
Yes, many VW customers are outraged.
Yes, VW is recalling and repairing about 9 million cars in order to repair the illegal software.
Yes, VW still cannot quantify the effects of the fallout due to the scandal awareness happening in the last two weeks of the third quarter.
Yes, there is a possibility of job cuts due to the increased spending that VW will have to make on the scandal and new projects.

But, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and VW will have to work for it. New CEO, Matthias Muller, has a new vision in sight for the company: VW will no longer be focused on becoming the world's largest carmaker. He is set on figuring out the details of the scandal and learning from them. The previous CEO, Martin Winterkorn, had a relentless drive for growth, and, perhaps fell into the pattern of cheating to get to the top of the market. Muller's statement marks a clear break from Winterkorn and his management style.
This scandal has hurt VW's reputation and financials, and as time goes on, they will feel the full force of the affects. VW has been a very profitable company in past years, which has helped to mitigate this scandal. As Muller has stated, "The financial burden from the diesel crisis is enormous, but manageable."
As a customer of VW, I am not turned away. BUT, I would like to see them not only fix this current issue with the diesel engines and the mitigation of angry customers, but also to instill a game plan going forward of preventing this issue from happening again and gaining their trust and reputation back.

Update to EF Reduction Plan

I am about 5 weeks in of carrying out my ecological footprint reduction goals. So far, so good.
My initial goal of reducing my beef intake to 2x per month has been achieved and surpassed. Since making this goal, I have not eaten any beef! I plan to continue on with not eating beef for the remainder of this school quarter.
My second goal of unplugging the extension cord that plugs my blow dryer and straightener in has been met about 90% of the time. Though I sometimes have forgotten to unplug the cord (and I get seriously upset with myself when I do), I have managed to turn the power button off on my straightener every time since forming this goal. That is quite the feat for me, coming from the girl who left a burned imprint of a straightener on a nice wooden dresser due to leaving the power on all day...my mom was not happy.
My third goal was to turn the water off while I am brushing my teeth, and similar to the above, I would say this has been achieved about 90% of the time. There have been a few instances of which I find myself brushing my teeth and just chilling with the water running full force, but I plan to get this goal to 100%!

Due to this Marketing and Sustainability class, I have recently been convicted of my elevator usage. I am USUALLY the girl who pokes fun at people who use the elevator, but now, thanks to the massive hill I walk up every day, I am one of those people who uses the elevator (I am not proud of this). I use the elevator in the Viking Union for going up AND for going down. The elevator makes sense in my route to class, it's convenient, it's easy, it prevents me from sweating as much when trekking up the hill...and it's also an unnecessary addition to my ecological footprint. So my new goal that I am adding to my EF reduction plan is that I will not be using the VU elevator anymore.
Maybe I can kill two birds with one stone by reducing my footprint and gaining some minor health benefits from the added hill to my commute : )

Current Event: A Meat Alternative

One of my goals for this quarter in order to reduce my carbon footprint was to reduce my consumption of beef to only 2x per month. Since making the goal, I have decided to completely take beef out of my diet the reasons being (1) I don't eat beef that often anyways, so why not just kick it out of my diet? and (2) Livestock farming is one of the biggest contributors to a person's carbon footprint.

Impossible Foods, a sustainable food company in California, recently raised their funding by $108 million, and they are continuing to rise. They are focused on producing meat and dairy that are strictly made from plant ingredients. The greenhouse gas emissions that come from livestock farming are greater than cars, trains and airplanes combined, which is a huge reason why the shift to plant-based diets is important. Impossible Foods uses heme in their meat, a molecule found in hemoglobin and other proteins that gives blood its red pigment. Heme is considered the "secret" to meat flavor. Impossible Foods has raised enough money to bring their new product to market, and in the process, they are influencing other food companies to try producing alternatives to meat as well. These alternatives are both tasty and sustainable, giving an incentive to take the plunge and make the change.
Meat production will eventually have to change, and with that, so will meat consumption. Our meat consumption cannot be sustained forever. Impossible Foods is forward thinking and sustainably geared towards the future. It will take investing in more companies like Impossible Foods in order for the world of meat and dairy consumption to truly take a turn. We will be seeing burgers from Impossible Foods coming in 2016 across the U.S. I look forward to giving one a try : )

Source: http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/startups/hannah_furlong/investors_gave_sustainable_food_startup_108m_do_impossible

Current Event: Education & Empowerment Will Lead to Sustainment

Moving towards a sustainable world starts with education, investment, and empowerment. It is crucial that businesses and individuals are not only moving towards sustainability, but that that they are pairing with others to create a network and movement towards it as well.
The Business Call to Action (BCtA) is a multilateral alliance that challenges companies to develop innovative business models that achieve commercial success and development outcomes. It is a UN-supported anti-poverty program that has a commitment to provide income-earning opportunities and expand access to services to disadvantaged populations in Africa and Asia.

A food-processing company called Equator Kenya recently joined the Business Call to Action in goal of improving their production process of the African Bird's Eyes Chilies, Equators primary crop. The Business Call to Action promises to provide climate-smart technologies, training and market linkages to 8,000 smallholder farms along the Kenyan coast.
The stimulator behind this partnership is the objective to reduce crop risks due to climate change. Reducing crop risks will in turn increase farmer incomes as well as their farm yields and quality. Currently there are about 7,000 smallholder farmers and in some areas nearly 80% of the farmers are women. Most have a low seasonal income and are illiterate.
Through the joining of BCtA, Equator Kenya has introduced a low-cost water-effiicient drip-irrigation kit to it's farmers. The results of the kit are huge:

• Production up 54% since the introduction of the kits in 2014
• Kits have created year-round income for farmers, allowing them to produce 10 months of the year (as opposed to 4-5 months)

These results are expected to increase farmer yields by 20 fold.
Furthermore, Equator will distribute 8000 more kits that incorporate environmentally sustainable blended fertilizers and bio-pesticides. This movement will progress as Equator educates and trains their farmers on pest management, soil fertility management and erosion control to protect against the threats of climate control.

The results that come from this partnership benefit all parties involved: the business (Equator Kenya), BCtA, the farmers, and the greater scope of people and land surrounding them. The focus on education and empowerment is key to developing and progressing towards a sustainable world and BCtA is just the start.

Source:
http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/ict_big_data/mike_hower/climate_smart-tech_improving_livelihoods_kenyan_women_farmers

Current Event: Will Awareness Produce Results?

This picture symbolizes the 10 global food companies that recently pledged to accelerate business action on climate change. Amongst some of these companies are Mars, Ben & Jerry's, Kellogg and General Mills, Inc. Through this movement, they have written a letter and urged leaders of the U.S to take action on this movement of preventing global warming, as it greatly affects the food industry. Global warming has affected and will continue to affect crop yields, water availability and infrastructure integrity. 
This letter goes further to spell out the efforts that these companies are making towards fighting global warming as well as exposing their best practices for the benefits of other companies. The letter finishes with: 
"We are ready to meet the climate challenges that face our businesses. Please join us in meeting the climate challenges that face the world." 
This movement and marketing of the awareness of climate change is just the place to start in moving towards a sustainable world, but I will be interested to see how much a simple pledge will actually do. 


Source: http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/collaboration/hannah_furlong/food_companies_congress_step_bold_enforceable_climate_ag

The bareMinerals Hype

I am a loyal bareMinerals customer, as I have purchased their make-up products since I was in high school. I usually purchase their face products including foundation and primer. For this blog, I decided to look into the details of the face primer that I use. The bareMinerals website lists the following ingredients in the primer: 

Water (Aqua/Eau), Silica, Adipic Acid/Neopentyl Glycol Crosspolymer, Sclerotium Gum, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, Calcium Silicate, Dimethicone, Vp/Va Copolymer, Amodimethicone, Zinc Pca, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Sodium Hydroxide, Chlorphenesin, Phenoxyethanol.

When researched on the Cosmetics Database, I’ve found the primer to be a fairly safe product, as you can see in the picture below. 

As their name suggest, bareMinerals uses naturally derived minerals in their products. They market their product by advertising that minerals nourish the skin and make it look new and fresh. I searched the website in order to find the EXACT listing of minerals that bareMinerals uses, but I did not have much luck. I found many promises of “cell renewing power” and “beauty benefits” and “glistening pigments”, but no specific names of the minerals that are used. My further research about mineral based make up led me to find that it is not necessarily what is in mineral make up that makes it desirable, but what is NOT in it. The left out ingredients in mineral make up include preservatives, parabens, mineral oil and chemical dyes.  Mineral make up leaves out lots of the ingredients that might irritate sensitive skin. Coming from a girl who has sensitive skin, this is good enough for me!

Zinc is one the ingredients listed in the primer that I use on my skin. I looked up the use of Zinc in make up and it seems to be a very common and harmless ingredient. It is primarily used as a bulking agent (increases the volume of a product) in make up products. Zinc also works as a sunscreen agent by reflecting and scattering UV radiation.  The FDA has assessed and approved safety regarding the use of zinc in products.

Following the research of ingredient usage of bareMinerals products, I most definitely will continue to be a customer. I am pleased with my experience so far and am relieved that the Cosmetics Database analysis came up with positive results! : )

Resources:

http://www.bareescentuals.com/PrimeTime-Oil-Control/US58927,en_US,pd.html

http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/product/219171/bareMinerals_Prime_Time_Foundation_Primer_%282010_formulation%29/

http://www.cosmeticsinfo.org/ingredient/zinc-oxide-0

http://www.webmd.com/beauty/makeup/the-lowdown-on-mineral-makeup