Tuesday, May 26, 2009

GreenBuzz :: Greener by Design Recap, McD's Golden Keys to Green Success, and More...


GreenBuzz :: May 26, 2009
May 25, 2009
In This Issue GreenBuzz
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  » GreenBiz Radio: Wal-Mart's Journey Toward Sustainability
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THIS ISSUE'S SPONSOR


Taking Care of Business

By Joel Makower


Greener By Design is now in the books, a highly successful two-day event last week. We were grateful for the high-quality audience, top-notch speakers, generous sponsors, and all of the others who contributed to the rave reviews we've been getting.

If you were one of the unlucky ones, there's plenty of reports and blog posts left behind, from my opening remarks and William McDonough's opening keynote to the closing panel on designing for energy efficiency. In between are nearly a dozen other reports, all found here. In the coming days, we'll post video excerpts and other resources.

Meanwhile, the world of green business goes on. And on.

I'm Lovin' It. One of the more impressive documents I've seen come out of corporate America lately is one from McDonald's. Yes, the burger-and-fries folks. (I'm well aware that praising McDonald's not popular among the green set, but that's never been a driver for me.) Last week, the fast-food chain published a booklet documenting more than 80 green practices from locations and operations worldwide. Having followed McDonald's environmental activities for twenty years, I knew about some of these. (In the early 1990s, the company documented more than a hundred waste-reduction activities it had undertaken, the most prominent of which was banishing the polystyrene foam hamburger packaging.) But many were new to me.

Example: The company had been unable to source potatoes from India despite the fact that India is the third-largest potato-growing country. Farmers there simply couldn't produce high-quality potatoes due to outdated farming and irrigation practices. By working with its supplier there to teach farmers how to use high-efficiency irrigation and other techniques, McDonald's helped producers there grow the crop with far less water. And the company is now sourcing potatoes locally, shipping far shorter distances, cutting energy use and greenhouse gases.

In another instance, after Greenpeace published a report indicating that ... Read More


   The Latest News on Sustainable Business Practices
McDonald's Reports on Its Best Green Efforts From Around the World
By GreenBiz Staff

McDonald's - CC license by Flickr user theotherway

McDonald's 2009 Global Best of Green compiles more than 80 practices instituted by McDonald's locations and operations from around the world, covering all business aspects including energy, packaging, restaurants, food and transportation.... Read More



Google Partners with Eight Utilities in Smart Meter Projects to Track Energy Use Online

Greener By Design: Nature's Rights, Nutrients and Quality Design

U.S. Government Wastes Over $440 Million per Year in Printing: Report

Coca-Cola, Toyota, France Telecom Among Top-Scoring CSR Reporters

Get Ready for New Auto Mileage and Emissions Rules

Greener By Design: How Intel and Frog Design Remade the Cash Register Kiosk

Cisco Queues Up Smart Grid Technologies

Greener by Design: Can We Build Efficiency Into Products and Systems?

2008 U.S. Fossil Fuel CO2 Emissions See Biggest Drop in Nearly 30 Years


   Featured News
Greener by Design: Terracycle's Ultimate Solution
By Matthew Wheeland

Tom Szaky, the founder and CEO of waste-to-product company Terracycle, demonstrated how waste is nothing more than poorly managed resources, and the many benefits of turning trash into products.... Read More


         
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   GreenBiz Radio
Wal-Mart's Journey Toward Sustainability and Greater Value
By Leslie Guevarra

Almost four years ago, Wal-Mart announced three major goals that have since driven the company's operations internally and externally. Today, Rand Waddoups, Wal-Mart's senior director of Business Strategy and Sustainability, provides an insider's update on Wal-Mart's efforts toward sustainability, its progress and its next big challenges.... Listen


         
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   Columns and Blogs
Karen Barnes
You Can't Expect Consumers to Know What Green Means If We Don't Know Ourselves
> Read more...
Marc Gunther
The Evolution of Laundry Detergent
> Read more...
Matthew Wheeland
Greener by Design: Big Ideas from Small Companies
> Read more...
Amie Vaccaro
Greener by Design: Rethinking Waste with Plastiki, the Plastic Boat
> Read more...

      FEATURED RESOURCES

Making Your Impact at Work: A Practical Guide to Changing the World From Inside Any Company

This guide is designed to empower current and aspiring social intrapreneurs to find ways to integrate sustainability into their day jobs.

The Reach and Richness of Green IT

This survey of 143 organizations from Australia, New Zealand and the United States finds that some elements of green IT practices are taking off at companies of all sizes, but as a whole there is significant room for improvement.




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