i really don’t know what to think

Lately, I have been reading a lot about Wal-Mart’s to be a more sustainable company; switching to CFL’s, lowering air conditioning, new buildings being LEED certified, and the list really does go on and on.

I just read an article about Wal-Mart’s Personal Sustainability Project (PSP). It is program where employees are encouraged to live a more sustainable life, even going so far as ‘vowing” to do something, or not do something.

Since 2007, all Wal-Mart employees in the US have been asked to take a simple, concrete step to benefit their health, their local community, or the earth. PSP pledges, which can involve work or home life or both, have included vows to drive the speed limit (to save gas), clean up trash, quit smoking, switch to a reusable bottle, or turn off the tap when toothbrushing.

Wal-Mart has reported that 45% of its employees enrolled in the program, and this is with no financial incentive to them. However, maybe there should be? In many cases employees have found things that the stores can do to improve their sustainability (i.e., turning off lights in the breakroom). These changes have saved the company over $1Million dollars.

The criticism is that yes, these employees are doing this on their own, as encouraged by the company. But, the company has a long history of demanding things from their employees without any gain to the employee. So, do you praise the company for implementing green initiatives or do you criticize the company for bullying its staff to change how they live without any benefit except they don’t get fired?

It is an interesting debate. I, personally, have had trouble with ‘ends justify the means’ attitude. We saw with gas prices, that when the cost was high, people were trying to incorporate ‘green’ ideas to keep the personal cost low. Now that prices have gone back down, they are back in their SUV’s having not learned a thing about being sustainable.

I think we will see more and more of this in many other companies, with many more examples. It will be interesting to see what effect it has….

You can find the article HERE, via MotherJones.

Coca-Cola v. Pepsi…. good gosh, if I had toooooo….

I do not condone the drinking of sodas. I know. Bold statement. But in my book, “Of all Things Being Equal”, I liken soda to heroin. I know. Bold statement. However, I think the proliferation of High Fructose Corn Syrup is addicting and the leading reason we are obese, and soda seems to be the substance of choice in getting that “fix”.

All of that being said, if I HAD to choose between Coke and Pepsi…. because of THIS article, I choose Coke.

Do I like the fact that it takes almost 3 liters of water to make one liter of Coke? No. Do I like the fact that number is actually better than it was last year? Yes. Coke has continued to show that it is making every effort possible to reduce its footprint. It has extensive recycling programs, energy efficient coolers and electric delivery vehicles.

In conclusion… don’t drink soda. If you have to, and really who does?… but, if you have to, drink Coke.

sometimes I get depressed

I mean, does this really surprise me… no. But, I would like to think more highly of people, and sometimes they just really let me down.

I have written a lot about BPA (bisphenol A), and if you still use products with it, I ask you to stop. It is bad, very bad.

And then came this news:
Soon after scientists Frederick Vom Saal and Wade Welshons found the first hard evidence that miniscule amounts of BPA caused irreversible changes in the prostates of fetal mice, a scientist from Dow Chemical Company showed up at the Missouri lab. He disputed the data and declared, as Vom Saal recalls, “We want you to know how distressed we are by your research.”

“It was not a subtle threat,” Vom Saal says. “It was really, really clear, and we ended up saying, threatening us is really not a good idea.”

and this addition:
Earlier this year, the industry spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to defeat a California legislative proposal to ban BPA in food packaging. The Chemistry Council and allied companies and industry groups hired an army of lobbyists. Tactics included an industry email to food banks charging that a BPA ban would mean the end of distributions of canned goods for the poor.

I highlighted the last statement because of the impact that truly exists in this statement. I know that Dow and the likes want to make it seem like disadvantaged people are going to suffer without canned goods… but tell me this, how are they going to suffer because of canned goods?

But, I also want to say… when a chemical company launches this kind of campaign, we know that BPA is as bad as the scientist want us to know. Protect yourselves people… we know corporations won’t.

You can go HERE for the article

what’s a country to do?

A very worthwhile article on Wall Street, the Economy, the fallout and of course… GREEN-ness.

An excerpt:
The growth of the financial sector as the engine of the economy over the past 25 years has corresponded with a “de-industrialization” of our economy. The result: we don’t make anything anymore. Instead, we’ve become infatuated with highly speculative forms of investment that don’t produce anything except bubbles and burst bubbles.

click HERE for the whole darn thing.

now this is a day I can get behind, 9.27.08

GREEN JOBS NOW launches the National Day of Action.

Check out the site, see if there is an event near you. Don’t depend on the government to help you. Be an active citizenry and DO SOMETHING!!!!

green is the new black

This is great!

The Center for American Progress released a new report by Dr. Robert Pollin and University of Massachusetts Political Economy Research Institute economists, in which they demonstrate how a new Green Recovery program that spends $100 billion over two years would create 2 million new jobs, with a significant proportion in the struggling construction and manufacturing sectors.

This paper shows the impact of a swift initial investment in climate solutions that would direct funding toward six energy efficiency and renewable energy strategies, including:

* Retrofitting buildings to increase energy efficiency
* Wind power
* Solar power

As well as:

* Create 2 million new jobs nationwide over two years
* Create nearly four times more jobs than spending the same amount of money within the oil industry and 300,000 more jobs than a similar amount of spending directed toward household consumption.
* Create roughly triple the number of good jobs—paying at least $16 dollars an hour—as spending the same amount of money within the oil industry.

You can read the article HERE.