In Part 2 of our series, Tatiana Sehring, Strategic Manager Environmental Leadership and Sustainability, gives us 5 quick, easy ways that we can minimize our environmental impact in the office.  As we celebrate Earth Day tomorrow, the world will turn its focus to issues related to the state of our environment.  With Tatiana’s suggestions, however, we can carry the spirit of Earth Day past tomorrow and integrate sustainable practices into our daily lives throughout the year.  Happy Earth Day!

by Ryan Harding

I am confident that, with Earth Day on the immediate horizon, the nation’s biggest publications have begun to compose those bannerheads that will run on April 22, as the whole news media takes up its annual tradition of, for a day, fixing its gaze on environmental issues. For one day, we will collectively turn our eye to the issue of sustainability, reading retrospectives on the environmental movement, which trace its genealogy, and connect the movement’s past to its present and future, or op-eds on environmental degradation, carbon emissions, and water scarcity. However, I have always found the practice of celebrating the Earth—that blue and green rough-skinned globular object we ride through space—one day a year to be somewhat offbeat. Throwing the Earth a party which, in terms of scale and magnitude, might resemble a Queen’s Golden Jubilee arouse in us the same sense of purpose, excitement and focus as, say, the theme of monarchy, royal nuptials. Admittedly, likening Earth Day to a celebration of the Queen’s fiftieth anniversary trivializes what the day is, and the evocative purpose it serves—Earth Day represents a day on which the world can unite not only in common purpose, but on which humanity can publicly express and reflect on its support of conservation, helping to further embolden and revitalize a movement whose object is to turn “sustainability” and “conservation” into household terms. This analogy does, however, illustrate a point: the Earth deserves more than a Day.

John Viera, Director of Sustainable Business Strategies at Ford Motors, recently contributed an article to GreenBiz plotting the trajectory of sustainability education in America, creating a cultural climate conducive to the growth of sustainability into a corporate imperative. Although, for the most part, the target of Viera’s analysis is rather narrow, his conclusions throw an interesting light on the future of sustainability in American business and education, and implicitly addresses the fleeting attention we pay to the Earth on its day, answering the question, “What happens after Earth Day?”

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by Ryan Harding

Last year, Hannah Jones, VP of Sustainable Business at Nike, wrote that businesses must adjust their sights, and begin to see sustainability as a “strategic prism.” The line of thinking Jones adopts seems to be an iteration of a familiar idea: to gain a competitive advantage in today’s progressively green-minded marketplace, sustainability must be allowed to develop into a constitutive strategic element driving and leading the commercial activities of businesses. Sustainability in the 21st century, Jones reflects, has developed into “a core strategic imperative for any company that intends to thrive and grow in the years ahead.”

Beyond labeling sustainability a “core strategic imperative”, or, translated into the rather muddled parlance in which I write, a universal social imperative, Jones underscores the transformative impact of transparency in the promotion of social movements encouraging structural changes to existing cultural paradigms. Put another way, in detailing how technology-derived and -related social pressures are not only driving corporations and governments to become more transparent, but have, in some way, directed the distribution of corporate and state-owned resources and become “a trigger for movements and political action,” Jones begins to trace the contours of a revolution that will come to define the Information Age.

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by Kelly Wenner

Imagine a vending machine that pays you for your product. For those readers living in a state with a bottle deposit law Reverse Vending Machines, or RVMs, may already be commonplace at your local public spaces.  An RVM is a device that accepts empty beverage containers and returns payment – either in money or another form of currency such as coupons or gift cards – to the user.  Businesses that are looking for ways to increase their sustainability initiatives may have found one in this incarnation of recycling. What blue recycling bins lack is what RVMs offer – an interactive element for the user and the opportunity to provide immediate rewards for recycling.  RVMs also provide opportunities for businesses to develop relationships with the public and further strengthen and encourage sustainability initiatives within communities.

A variety of institutions have taken their recycling efforts to the next level with the use of RVMs.  Universities such as Sacred Heart University in Connecticut have tied in their incentives with free goods from key sponsors like BIC and FUJIFILM.  Large event venues like the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island, encouraged by eco-minded entertainers, offer prizes to their patrons in the form of event tickets.  Even hospitals have honed in on the opportunities provided by RVMs.  Hospital staff and patients generate hundreds of used beverage and meal containers daily.  The Yale New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut, decided to use the recycling of these containers to the benefit of their employees.  The proceeds from each bottle or container placed into the machine go to raise money for the hospital’s Employee Hardship Fund.  PepsiCo created, in conjunction with Waste Management RVM, the ”Dream Machine,” to offer reward points to individuals who use the machine to recycle bottles and cans or cash donations to charities.  The points accumulate to earn rewards such as travel or movie tickets and coupons for Pepsi products.

These unique endeavors demonstrate how many different ways RVMs can be used by a wide variety of industries to incentivize people to recycle.

by Shawn Skinner

Last year “more people were killed worldwide by natural disasters…than have been killed in terrorism attacks in the past 40 years combined.”  If 2010 was the “year the earth struck back,” what will 2011 be known as?  So far in the U.S., the year 2011 has been a year of climatic record breakers—blizzards, tornadoes, floods, droughts, and most recently, heat waves.  There are few areas throughout the nation that have not been affected by intense heat this summer.  With energy costs increasingly on the rise, how can you afford to keep your home cool on a budget?  There are ways you can save money and still stay cool in this time of recession, and one place to start is the outside of your home.

If you do not already have shade trees nearby, consider planting some, particularly on the side of your home that experiences the most midday and afternoon sunlight.  Trees will block some sunlight from reaching your windows and siding and decrease the amount of heat that will build up inside, thus reducing your cooling needs.  According to the Arbor Day Foundation website, if you have an outdoor or window air conditioning unit, consider planting a tree to shade it.  Of course, trees will not grow over night, and you will want to research tree varieties to choose which are right for your unique situation.  Some fast growing varieties can be found at the Fast-Growing-Trees website.  Also, factor in the eventual need for trimming, and do not plant trees too close to your house, as mold formation is heightened and gutters can become clogged with foliage and tree debris.  Tips for pruning trees can be found at the USDA Forest Service website.  Additionally, deciduous trees may be a good choice because they will let the sun’s rays reach your home during the winter months after their leaves have fallen.  If you are currently looking to rent or buy, add shade trees to your list of search criteria.

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