Brand Action: Whole Foods Getting Rid Of Disposable Plastic Bags

Happy to see this initiative starting to take at least some hold on our side of the pond. Across all its stores on April 22nd (Earth Day), Whole foods will cut the "plastic" out of "paper or plastic".


The company is trying to make the transition easy for shoppers accustomed to plastic by providing an array of options:

"We make it easy by offering a wide selection of reusable bags for sale at our stores — check out our “Better Bag” — only 99 cents and it’s made from recycled plastic bottles. Helping the environment in two ways!" (from their website).

Disposable bags have long been discouraged in many European countries (Ireland recently joined the cause, instituting a tax on bags to get people motivated) and earlier this year even China stepped up.

A smart move and something that all of us can do in our collective effort to fight pollution, and fits well with Whole Foods vision on sustainability and our future.

And also, maybe it'll help offset some of the backlash that co-founder John Mackey caused with his message board blunder last year. Hope you learned your lesson, John (just remember: Transparency).

DO: "it's up to us"

Mark talks a lot around here about a growing sense of autonomy among Americans. The increased sentiment that “it’s up to me” and subsequent actions to protect “me and mine.” I grew up with a dad who staunchly believed in the right to bear arms, just in case the government went so askew that citizens needed to take up arms in correction. So I’ve had trouble reconciling my historical perception of autonomy with Mark’s more evolved version.

An article in Time magazine this week helped me bridge the gap. It profiled a new way of living, the EcoVillage at Ithaca (EVI). Liz Walker, a co-founder, describes her vision for EVI as “trying to create an attractive, viable alternative to American life.” It sounds really great. Over 150 people live in the community, and they all work together to reap benefits of communal food, daycare, and laundry.

But it’s not a commune. These are people who are dedicated to reducing their carbon footprint (and are very successful in doing so) by changing the way they live (not just planting 80 trees to make up for that vacay in Mexico).

And they’re not hippies. The community is very technologically advanced, adopting some bleeding-edge conservation concepts. Homes are “Norman Rockwell meets Al Gore,” and run up to $300k, yet there is a waiting list to join.

A second example of people getting together for change is happening in Philadelphia where crime has reached an unacceptable level. A group of concerned citizens, comprised of local executives and men who worked on the Million Man March, brought a proposal to the Police Commissioner: allow them to organize as volunteer peacekeepers. The plan is to gather up to 10,000 men to patrol the streets—unpaid and unarmed—to watch out for criminal activity. The thought is that a roving band of bystanders and witnesses will deter would-be criminals.

I guess now that I read this post, the examples aren't all that far from the essence of my dad's point of view: he was just protecting our right to take matters into our own hands and these people are taking action on that right.

via NPR

DO: Inspiration

Lots of talk about getting up and doing more lately (shout to Leland's manifesto about taking action in planning). I think part of the magic potion is finding inspiration so compelling that the spirit moves you into action. So here are a few examples of innovation and invention that will will hopefully move you in that direction.

"INDEX: is a global non-profit network organization that focuses on Design to Improve Life – e.g. design that substantially improves important aspects of human life – worldwide."

Sounds pretty awesome, doesn't it? Last week, awards were given to designers who had made significant contributions to designing differently.

Of course our favorite computer made the cut.

And the Solar Bottle, an answer to unclean drinking water. After bottling, the water sits in the sun, and pathogens are destroyed by heat. Winning designers, Alberto Meda & Francisco Gomez Paz increased functionality and practicality by adding an aluminum side to increase reflection and a handle to make the bottle portable. Simple, but brilliant.

via creativity.

The Laundry is another example of devising practical solutions. It's a paper recycling system for small businesses in London. And it's easy easy easy. Put your paper on the sidewalk, someone will take it away, and then, voile! magically, 100% recycled paper will return in its place. It completes the loop, so now recycled products are integrated painlessly into business' operations. One small step down the path that can help acclimatize companies to alternative products/uses.

Bad Time to Zag When Everyone's Zigging

Two new car commercials that tell me the industry doesn't get it.

1. Mitsubishi L200 "for people who love the country"
uuuh. it's a truck. I am guessing there are about three people in the UK who actually need to drive around the countryside in a gas guzzling (aka Earth killing) vehicle of this size.

via pirate geek

2. Kia "save the greenbacks"
Nothing quite like mocking our fragile environmental situation to sell a few cars.

See the spot on Transbuddha

Now, I know I'm going a little Al Gore here, but seriously, A) as an industry, we can play a role in influencing public opinion (by not letting work like this get out the door) and B) car companies are already in hot water. Why risk exacerbation? And okay, C) I'm reading The Omnivore's Dilemma and it's freaking me out.

I'm waiting for a model with organic fabric seats, cupholders made of recycled plastic and maybe even electronics powered by a solar panel on the roof. And no, not in a hybrid SUV.

Trash Talk: Transparency

Derek Lerner at GHAVA Twittr'd me this interesting clip as it reminded him of the Trash Talk initiative (note to self...behind on photo posts, where's dat cord? Doh.).


On the same note, this link about transparent rubbish bins from PSFK gives me other food for thought around the urgency of making our trash more transparent if we are to spark a change in personal action. We, collectively and individually expend great efforts to hide and disguise trash. Since childhood, we have come to know trash only as something that goes down a magic tube and "away". We hide the smells, we hide it out back, we never have to face it full on and truly deal with it. So the pile builds under our figurative carpets.


Ambient Devices offers ingenius products that re-envision everyday data...in these examples - a desktop glow-orb that depicts real-time stock trends, or a wall meter that displays real-time energy consumption. How might this work in a trash can connotation? Tap our toilets and actually assess the damage we inflict? Tap our drains and confront the volumes we channel down the pipes?

More interesting is the Hive Minding potential that Frog Design's Trash Talk Initiative begins to reveal to me: toss up an idea (or a problem, aka a "brief") and invite bright minds to brew on the subject and blog insights and experiences.

Conscientious Consumption: The 11th Hour and Air Travel

Last weekend, Leonardo DiCaprio's The 11th Hour was released in select cities (Minneapolis: August 31). The film's promotional web site is interesting. (Well, aside from the lame Planet Green game sponsored by Starbucks; reminds me of "fun" children's PSA activities—how many forms of pollution can you find in this picture?—or of Captain Planet.)


A brief quiz lets you assess your carbon output. While that service isn't new, this is a clean and easy way to assess your lifestyle. I don't drive, so my biggest output is air travel. I admire people like John Grant who have cut their impact by reducing travel, but would find it hard to follow suit for both personal and professional reasons. Mine are typical issues: far-flung family and friends, out of town clients, and the not insignificant (and not unselfish) love of travel and exploration (if only I'd been to Climate Camp, perhaps I'd feel otherwise). Purchasing carbon offsets would be a good first step, but that ultimately doesn't solve the problem, it simply incorporates true cost of the service.

So if we can't cut out travel, what to do instead? We have low emission vehicles, why not low-emission planes? And low-emission airports (think of all the trash created while we eat our way to departure time, moving walkways, 24/7 lighting, etc.)? Yet as McDonough and Braungart note in Cradle to Cradle, "being 'less bad' is no good." Is there a completely clean solution? Unlike mass consumer technology, the design of commercial planes—and most major forms of transport—has remained relatively stagnant over the past 50 years, concentrating on improving the existing model versus revolutionizing the idea itself. The physical air travel infrastructure is relatively minimal compared to other modes of transport (beyond airports, there aren't thousands of miles of track or road that must be maintained; fueling stations are centralized); can that be leveraged in a redesign?

Easy questions to pose when you're not an engineer, but as someone whose life has been greatly shaped by air travel, I sincerely hope the eco-vs.-airplane game isn't zero-sum. And if so, perhaps by the time we've reached that conclusion the physicists will have figured out how to make Apparition a reality.

Trash Talk: Wasted

Travel Trash Update. Again, I have fallen off the wagon due to travel and conferences. 3 hail marys and all may be forgiven, rite?

I am, however, increasingly conscious of avoiding needless paper plates and plastic bags. Ever notice how everyone wants to give you plastic bags for any and everything? And those dumb stirrers at the coffee condiments table.
Airplanes, don't separate out the cans and organic compost. What's up with that NWA?
Airports, not a recycle bin in the whole complex.
Hotel events and luncheons...hotel rooms...no assistance for this reforming wastemaker.

On a related note - I now realize that I love my Escape Hybrid. More specifically, I love the "score" meters in-dash that show me just how much MPG I am saving this moment when I drive slowly enough to remain in the "green" (aka electric mode). Staying steady in the green racks me up the savings "points". Driving speedy and erratically shows me the consequences immediately. And I stop, because seeing 20 MPG is a bummer. However, seeing that I am racking up 30-40 MPG makes me feel good. These green meters in my dashboard compel me to change my driving habits and rack up more MPGs. These point meters remind me of a video game score, and moreso provide me the perception of "progress". And reward. I am compelled to beat my driving score from last time, and top my all-time-high MPG score. I realize this is probably not the intention of the green designers at Ford.


I'd like my trash can to note my scores, too. Why can't the cans tell me just how toxic (or not) my trash currently is? I'd like my garbage can to function better and tell me how well I am progressing at this very moment, every moment.


Flickr compiles

Trash Talk: Aki Update

Theater, Travel and Tradeshow trash edition.

Took the wifee to Spamalot! on Saturday and decided to leave the trash in the car (hey, I had a good excuse!). The attendent makes you trash your cups before entering to be seated (whew!). Theaters have lots of useless plastic cups forced upon you even though you're only ordering an Orangina which already is in a perfectly useable bottle. I guess the plastic cup is somehow more chic than the bottle?


Travel creates loads of useless trash to be avoided, from the half-eaten sandwich that you knew would taste nasty yet still purchased anyway to the double layers of bathroom paper towels ("I ain't touchin' nuthin' in here!") to the bottles and tickets and countless little slips of paper. Interestingly, for all the containers proffered, DAMN FEW AIRPORT CONTAINERS ARE ACTUALLY CONDUCIVE TO STREAMLINED TRAVEL! Everything is damned bulky and chunktified (yes, a made-up word) requiring great pockets to keep it all together.
Was at FoodSmarts Conference in Chicago for past 2 days..additional photo forthcoming. I admit, I did a bit of cheating these 2 days. Between the laptop and the bags of samples and brochures and camera and notes and miles of walking the floor - I let some of the trash go (like the half-eaten turkey sandwich and some Red Bull cans and some food sample cups and plates). Tradeshows, with all their lame pens and lights and trinkets and mints and flyers and brochures are probably the posterchild for wasteful disposability. Everything you're handed is headed to the trash. Best to just not take most of the crap, maybe exhibitors will quit buying them and provide more engaging and memorable experiences to draw crowds in lieu of trash trinkets.

And another thing: NOT ONE DAMN RECYCLE BIN ANYWHERE IN THE AIRPORT OR CONVENTION HALL. Can a wasteful consumer get any help on trying to reform?

Needless to say, my actual trash generation at the tradeshow is a bit more than the photos depict. Minus 10 points on cheating. Doh!

And yes, I have added a man-bag to keep my trash ever so stylish.

One napkin can, indeed, last all damn day (especially when you don't want to haul napkin trash all day). Perhaps I may invest in a handkerchief (gramps was onto something there).

Flickr compiles

Trash Talk: Aki Day 01

Met Ashley Menger at Frog Design a few days ago and was introduced to their Trash Talk Initiative.

As an attempt to research our (dis)connections with the trash we create (and hopefully evolve some solutions), Trash Talkers commit to a few weeks of living with the trash they create daily. Common wisdom insists that it takes 3 weeks to actually change human behaviour so I will take on the Trash Talk challenge for 21 days and keep my daily trash with me everywhere I go.

Here's my first day's trash...

Direct mail did me in. 1 week of direct mail at that. Travel Tomorrow. Tickets to the theater tonight...lemme think about how I'm gonna get my trash in the show. Doh!

Burger? Salad? Maybe the Sustainably Raised Chicken?

I read a few months ago an editorial from Gourmet magazine’s editor in chief, Ruth Reichl, wherein she discussed the idea of “Occasional Vegitarianism.” “Isn’t it time we realized that eating vegetarian meals is neither penance nor virtue, but simply another mealtime option?”, she asks. As part of her case, Reichl pointed out that we now consume more meat than any other society in history, and that our grazing and feed production uses 30% of the surface of the planet.




Makes me wonder if she’s correct in her assumption that it’s not a penance nor virtue to consume wisely. It’s becoming just duty. This week, the NYT reported on the popularity of certain varieties of fish and its impact on sushi consumption; US consumers believe salmon and tuna rolls are the end all be all, and the rise in sushi’s popularity has placed a strain on these species. The article suggests that sushi lovers expand their orders into a wider range of sushi options.

When Americans sit down at a restaurant—from the sushi bar to Applebee’s—their method of evaluating menu choices has changed. We have become more conscientious of what we want to eat versus what we should be eating. We saw it in the tiny salad selection growing into an array of main dish options for patrons interested in a tasty dining experience without three days’ worth of fat and calories. Menus developed further with the proliferation of a rainbow of symbols to tell us exactly what made food healthy—low fat, low carbs, lactose-free. Today, as demonstrated in the Times, Americans are becoming more aware of their food’s origins—an organic farm locally grown, or from a sustainable resource? So should we be thinking one step beyond ourselves when we sit down at the diner, to consider what we should be consuming? And should restaurants be pushing this agenda by clearly labeling menus with a revised edition of the symbols to help customers make the right choice?

Tell it like it is

Outlaw Consulting recently published the results of a Gen Y trendsetter study. 21-27 year olds were asked which brands they trusted most, and here's the outcome.

1. Apple
2. Trader Joe's
3. Jet Blue
4. In-N-Out Burger
5. Ben & Jerry's
6. Whole Foods
7. Adidas
8. American Apparel
9. Target
10. H & M clothing stores
11. Levi's
12. Volkswagen
13. Converse
14. Vitamin Water
15. Red Stripe Jamaican beer

Sometimes I feel like all we do is harp, harp harp on how brands need to be authentic, and this is good evidence to make me believe we're not wasting our time. These brands are alike in that they are FRANK. They speak like Gen Y speaks, they live where they live, and they are fast on the move to stay fresh. And it works. People are buying it.

Pollution Penance: Adventure Ecology Floods Second Life

I'm late to this, but seems organization Adventure Ecology (in conjunction with Ogilvy UK) subjected London, Amsterdam, Ibiza, Tokyo and other regions in Second Life to a sudden flash flood which thankfully lasted for only a few hours. The flooding of the areas was done to show the financial, and more importantly, environmental implications of global warming. David de Rothschild, a London-based environmentalist and founder of Adventure Ecology, spoke about the event saying that "Our message was, you may have a second life, but [you still need to] offset your second life in real life."


via MMORPG Blog and GreenNormal"

I like toys and candy, what of it?

In a world of more choice, and more complicated choice, are we taking shelter in behaviors and preferences whose simplicity offers comfort?

Benjamin Barber believes that pressures from society today and our insatiable consumer culture are making us revert to childhood familiarity. I heard him speak about his book, "Consumed: How Markets Corrupt Children, Infantilize Adults, and Swallow Citizens Whole” on National Public Radio. He sites three years of Superman and Shrek movie blockbusters, and the number of adults reading Harry Potter books, among other examples (a listener phoned in to comment on the candy-flavored drinks now offered at Starbucks) to prove that our capitalist society has finally cracked our rational being.
While I don’t agree with Barber’s citations (Shrek has plenty of humor and messages unintelligible to 9 year olds), nor his point on capitalism, I think the notion of our instinct to revert is interesting. In certain ways, I can see that coming to life online, in smiley faces that stand in the place of a complex thought, and in the escapism of virtual worlds (Avin and I have an ongoing debate about whether Second Life fits here). The internet is home to endless choice, and yet it’s a sanctuary where people can exist simply, childishly, without someone razzing them about it.

Just something to chew on, I guess.

Pollution Pennance:Batman Drives Green

Even Batman has eco-friendly intentions. Seems that gigantic jumping Batmobile-thing that he used in the last movie is just getting too expensive to drive, even for the super rich Bruce Wayne. So, meet his new ride: The Bat-Pod!

via AutoBlogGreen

Pollution Penance: "Column B"

glumbert.com - The Most Terrifying Video You'll Ever See

Eco Future: Cage-free is the way to be

"Why shouldn't cows and pigs feel sunlight on their backs, grass under their feet?...Yes, they'll be killed for food--but until then, they should have a nice stay on Earth."

Sounds a little ridiculous, but the premise behind Wolfgang Puck's new philosophy (and business practices) will help him continue to ride the tide of popularity. 25 years ago, he opened Spago, and the empire was borne. Today, his products feed over 10 million people a year. His company's growth is easily attributed to consistent innovation and the ability to respond to what people want (like the genius introduction of grocery store frozen pizzas).

Today's adaptations include promises to use organic ingredients and fish and game that were raised under humane conditions. Not sure if it'll be as rosy as his "grass beneath their feet" ideal, but chickens will be raised cage-free. He also plans to change packaging from plastic to recycled paper.

Another important detail: he's not planning to raise prices.

And good for him. It's not a revolutionary idea (Chipotle), but the equity he gains in brand affinity and positive perceptions will certainly offset the costs associated with this adaptation.

Via Newsweek

Conscious Consumption:Recycle Bank Rewards You for Recycling

Doin' good sometimes needs incentive. How 'bout points for buying stuff?

"The initial launch in the West Oak Lane and Chestnut Hill neighborhoods of Philadelphia included 2,500 households where the recycling rates were 7% and 30% respectively. Within two months, recycling rates had doubled in both neighborhoods. Additionally, participation rates in both neighborhoods rose to 90%. These improvements and statistics remain the standard for RecycleBank in that typically recycling rates rise to 40% and participation in the RecycleBank program hovers around the 90% range."

Recycle Bank website, news video, more info

Conscious Consumption:Design Can Change

"Sustainability and good design do not have to be mutually exclusive." Designers may examine how practices impact the environment here.


via Treehugger and Greennormal

Pollution Penance:Yahoo Green

Yahoo launched a campaign called, Be a Better Planet, which aims to find the greenest city in America and provide that city with a fleet of hybrid taxis. The promo ties in Yahoo services like Yahoo Answers, and they’re launching a site called Yahoo Green, which aims to be a hub for all things green.

*Though at this moment, I see this Green search engine as little more than a shell - the searches don't net you anything organized by "green" per se. Some of this may be a bit of bandwagoneering, while adding little unique value. This is a green promotion (cute), whereas the intuitive killer app would be a truly Green Search Engine (as the name implies!). Whattup with dat, Yahoo?


via Mashable

Eco Future: Two airline approaches

Two press releases last week from the airline industry, one from Delta and one from Virgin Airlines. Both announce changed business practices to be more green, but the messages the announcements sent were quite different.

Virgin signed a multi billion dollar promise to buy 15 of Boeing’s fuel-efficient 787s, and announced it intends to fly the world’s first bio-fueled commercial airplane.

Delta now offers fliers the option to make a $10 donation per ticket purchase to The Conservation Fund to help offset their carbon footprint (which goes up significantly with flying).

As someone who is evermore environmentally conscientious, I think of solutions in two frames: correcting the now and protecting the future. Virgin is clearly taking strides toward both, and in significant ways. But the more I thought about it, Delta is doing neither—test this out: carbon offsetting is simply allowing us to sustain our current habits--instead of correcting the damaging action.

It gets back to the issue highlighted in Mya Frazier’s cautionary AdAge article this week. If you’re going green, make sure it’s for real. My opinion is that everyone (not ‘if’) should be going green, but companies’ fear of public backlash when they don’t go far enough-- being called out as “greenwashing”—is legitimate.

And for that reason, there’s a lot of opportunity in the “protecting the future” variety of solutions. It’s creating a vision. Virgin has made awesome announcements about its intent for the future, and it’s basking in goodwill now.