Collaborative Corporate and Social Responsibility platform
To keep
up with the green trend, producing companies are now tracking the impact their
suppliers have on the environment in addition to a wide variety of other
statistics. The more responsible the supplier is, the better reputation it can
bring to the end-producer.
EcoVadis operates the first collaborative platform that
allows companies to assess the environmental and social performance of their
suppliers on a global scale. The company supports large, trans-national, and
medium-sized companies with simple and reliable scorecards, covering 150
purchasing categories and 21 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) criteria.
These scorecards help companies reduce the risks of using irresponsible suppliers
and also introduces eco-innovation into the supply chain. The existence of such
a collaborative platform is a great indication of the increasing concern companies
have for responsible products. Check out the platform here!
SixthSense technology
Reducing
product waste is a primary concern for many eco supporters. Through improving
the quality and quantity of products we produce, many people hope to not only
reduce the size of our landfills but also improve our own health and that of
our atmosphere.
SixthSense technology is a combination of a
projector, camera, and a mobile device that enables you to use almost any
surface to make numerous operations: dial a number, edit a presentation, or surf
the Internet. By combining these
elements, SixthSense reduces the
amount of hardware production costs correlated with it; with this technology
you won’t need a big screen and a keyboard to project an image, you only need a
non-transparent physical surface. The technology combines several devices: it
can be used as a laptop, mobile phone, photo-camera, or projector, thus reducing
the amount of resources involved and energy used. This break-through technology
was developed in November 2009 by an Indian engineer Pranav Mistr and is
currently going through the commercialization process; the product should be
available to the general public in the near future through different devices
and formats.
Intelligent light switches and systems
In order to affect the
energy consumption in the future, it is necessary to build awareness in the present.
American designer and engineer Tim Holley came up with a creative way to make
children into "energy champions" by creating a ghost-like light
switch, called the Tio, which changes its expression and
color when too much energy is used.
The Tio gives children a visual reminder of how
much energy they use: it starts out
green and smiling, after 4 hours it turns yellow and somewhat displeased, and after
more than 8 hours it becomes red and disappointed with frown and angry eyes. In
addition to its mood, the Tio light
switch is connected to a computer game where children can raise a green tree,
depending on the energy consumption, while parents participate by tracking scores.
Of course, there is a
target age group for Tio, but even
some adults will be happy to see a smiling green ghost reminding them that they
are consuming energy wisely.
For
those that feel the Tio is not for
them, there are numerous energy-saving options for adults. With the help of the
intelligent devices and sensor technologies, lights can be set to turn off and
on by time, light sensitivity, motion awareness, and more. For more
information, check out Steinel to have a look at the variety of intelligent
lighting solutions.
Zero-energy homes
The Energy
Information Administration (EIA) shows that
buildings are responsible for 48% of greenhouse gas emissions annually and 76%
of all electricity generated by U.S. power plants goes to supply the Building
Sector Architecture 2030. Estimating these impressive figures, engineers came up with a break-through
idea of a zero-energy home. The idea implies that this home will produce as
much energy as it will consume. If implemented world-wide, the concept of
zero-energy houses can become one of the most significant movements in
decreasing energy consumption among the households.
In
support of this movement there is already a technology called Passive Housing available to the general public. A
passive house is a very well-insulated, virtually air-tight construction that
is primarily heated by the external, passive solar energy and by the internal
gains from people and even electrical equipment. Smart construction and
positioning of the home's windows allows it to maximize heating benefits from
the sun and limits cooling, while the recovery ventilator provides a balanced
fresh air supply splitting the warm and cool air. One of the pioneers on the
North-American market, making this movement available for the average house
consumers, is the Canadian company Fab-Homes. Fab-Homes recently introduced its collection of specially designed
houses on the base of the Passive House concept. “The idea is to make the Passive House design
more accessible and affordable and present a selection of different shapes
offering flexible, ready-to-go design solutions,” says director Alexander
Maurer.
Graduate programs in Eco-Innovation and Sustainability
Any significant movement requires the support of a motivated and educated work force; as the green movement grows, an increasing number of universities and business schools are offering graduate education for individuals who want to create a socially and environmentally sustainable world .
A great indication of their fast development was given by emergence of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) organized by United Nations in mid 1980s, when the concept of sustainable development became widely discussed around the world. Every year the non-profit organization Net Impact prepares a guide of green oriented programs to help students find a best solution for future development and recruitment; here is the link to their 2011 guide “Business as UN-usual”.
Green zero and solar chargers
With electrical consumption being such a large energy aspect to consider, individuals all over the world are being encouraged to do their part in small amounts. Saving energy by reducing usage is a key factor in many energy-saving campaigns.
To help save energy companies have developed "intelligent" chargers for your mobile phones. Claiming to be the "most eco-friendly and efficient way to charge mobile devices," Braketron's GreenZero chargers automatically shut off once your device is charged, eliminating stand-by energy consumption. The series supports all main mobile and handled technologies including smartphones, GPS, tablet/PC, MP3, and satellite radio. Officially they are set to appear on the market in the summer 2012.
In addition to green zero chargers, designer Vivien Muller has proposed a new product to the market, Electree - the creative solar energy tree that is capable to charge your mobile device . The tree shape is made of 27 solar panels, installed on the tips of branches, making it an effective way to capture solar rays. After its initial charge for 35 hours ,prior to its first usage, you can start charging your devices through a USB connection. It can charge your phone and recharge itself in just a few hours.
Car sharing
We are lucky to live in a time where you do not necessarily need to own a car yourself, if you live in or near a city you can easily share a car with the other citizens like you. Car sharing can be found in most large cities in North America and Europe, providing evident benefits for users by eliminating the costs of car ownership. Broadly used, this concept is a revolution in personal transportation and urban mobility of the 21st century. This approach is not only convenient and attractive to one's wallet, it also very eco-friendly, reducing gas greenhouse emissions and the number of cars on the road.
Car sharing first appeared in Europe in the 1940’s and became more popularized in the early 1990’s; now car sharing operates in over 600 cities across the world sharing more than 11,000 vehicles. Car sharing members typically pay through hourly rates and subscription-access plans, with 24/7 access and real-time vehicle tracking. As more and more car share companies emerge, costs become competitive and even further benefits can be realized by users. In Vancouver alone there are already three car-share companies: Car2go, Modo, and Zip Car. Car sharing associations also have directories to find out if there is a car sharing service in your region, such as carsharing.org.
Reusable Bags
Reusable bags are one of the most prevalent green products today because they are highly practical, for a variety of purposes, and are fairly inexpensive and easy to produce, purchase, and use. Reusable bags can be found at most grocery and retail stores and are now even being used as take-out bags for restaurants.
The company 1 & Bag at a time even boasts that you can plant your worn out bag in your garden and allow it to decompose! It can even be customized with any design you want.
Eco-friendly fashion
As one of the most popular fabrics in the textile industry, it may be surprising to many people to learn that approximately 25% of all pesticides produced in the world are used to stimulate the growth of cotton. A large amount of these chemicals are retained on the clothes we wear and are often accompanied by un-natural dyes and other artificial elements. As the world begins to demand cleaner, more natural, and healthy products, the fashion industry is slowly introducing eco-friendly fabrics and methods of production.
Most people say their purchase of eco-friendly and socially responsible clothes strongly depends on the price. In order to combat this obstacle the France-based company Veja has developed a new approach in footwear production. A group of talented entrepreneurs decided to provide the best of the best by launching comfortable, fashionable, and reasonably priced shoes with a label of “responsibility” towards the environment. With organic cotton from Brazil, wild Amazonian rubber, and eco-friendly leather, Veja is inventing new methods of work in terms of ecological inputs, fair-trade practices, and workplace management. Keeping in line with their unique approach, Veja's strongest promotion tool is the word-of-mouth; the company does not spend a penny on the traditional means of advertising and instead chooses to save this money for proper materials and research and development projects.
Watch the making of their Volley here!
Eco-night club
Utilizing a common
activity to capture energy is the idea behind most kinetic devices. Products
such as exercise bikes, treadmills, sports equipment, and much more have been
eco-fitted to incorporated energy harnessing systems, but what if you didn't
have to buy anything new to get your energy working for the world?
The first eco-club was opened in London in
2008 where
electricity was captured from people dancing at the
specially modified dance floor. When compressed
by dancers, it produced electricity that would be stored in batteries and used
further to cover the electricity burden of a nightclub. In addition to capturing the natural energy of
the guest, before entering the club people were asked to sign a pledge
promising to work towards curbing climate change. This idea is not only utilize
renewable energy but also to inspire youth to be more concerned of global
warming and become more eco-friendly in their daily lives.
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brundtland_Commission
http://netimpact.org/docs/Business_as_UNusual_2011.pdf
Shaheen, Susan and Cohen, Adam,
“Worldwide Car sharing Growth: An International Comparison: http://www.carsharing.net/library/UCD-ITS-RR-06-22.pdf
http://www.architecture2030.org/
http://www.builderonline.com/green-products/seven-green-trends-for-2010_4.aspx
http://www.veja.fr/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1027362/Britains-eco-nightclub-powered-pounding-feet-opens-doors.html
