Vote for Student Loan Forgiveness on Change.org

Change.org will soon begin the final round of voting on, “Ideas for change in America.” The final round opens on January 5th and on January 16th Change.org will host an event in Washington, DC to announce the top ten ideas and then begin an advocacy campaign for the winners.

So have you voted for your favorites? While many of the ideas are great and much needed, I have to give a shot out for Student Loan Forgiveness. As a budding entrepreneur, one who wants to create jobs and stimulate the economy, I can’t, because I just graduated and have to start thinking about loan repayment. I know I’m not alone out there either.

USAToday ran a story about student debt back in June 2006 that pretty much sums up how I feel as well:

“Palazzolo, 25, graduated on Mother’s Day from Rutgers University with a master’s degree in public policy and student loans exceeding $116,000. His payments will average about $800 a month. It could have been worse: Because of his top grades, Rutgers paid Palazzolo’s tuition for his final year of graduate school.

At a time when his friends are thinking about buying their first homes, he’s looking for roommates to share a three-bedroom house so he can limit his rent to $600 a month. “I feel like I’ve done everything I was supposed to do, and at the end of the day, I’ve got this huge debt,” Palazzolo says. “What did I do wrong?””

If you sympathize with me at all, then please go vote on Jan. 5th and check out the Facebook group.

Dr. Seuss The Lorax: You Need a Thneed

It’s a good thing there’s no such thing as Thneeds. Oh wait, I get it.

A Beautiful Case For Social Media – Slidshow

Why are we even arguing about this?

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: socialmedia innovation)

As companies move into social media and the transparent realm of business 2.0 the implications for social and environmental sustainability are huge. What level of transparency will be considered a norm in five years? Twenty?

A social network for Earthdance Global

Earthdance is a global event that happens every year in September. The event has grown to over 200 locations worldwide. The music festival culminates by playing a Prayer for Peace track. The event has grown significantly over the last 15 years. Now they have a social network for the festival goers to connect the other 364 days of the year. Members are encouraged to upload their media including music, photos and video. Members are also encouraged to add event to the global event calendar. Here is a taste of Earthdance!

The 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment

Stockholm, June 1972- A movement was set in motion. Let’s look back and remember our roots, shall we?

The video on the historic 1972 United Nations Conference on Human Environment (UNCHE), held at Stockholm, Sweden. Hosted by the Swedish Government, under the Prime Minister, Olof Palme, the conference globalized the environmental movement. The conference owed its success to Maurice Strong, Secretary General of UNCHE.

-From Google video

A social network for greening tourism

With 151 joined members, Greening Tourism is a growing social network of people who are sharing best practices in the industry.

IS AMAZON A GREEN COMPANY?

IS AMAZON A GREEN COMPANY?

…it came in the mail…

I’ve never really paid attention to the mail. I know I can count on it everyday. I don’t get it on holidays. Half of it goes straight to the recycling. Stamps cost 41 cents (check out Yoda). I never know if I can recycle the clear film, and that’s about it.

I recently set up a carousel widget on our Green MBA’s social network. It included every title for the coming semesters booklist, all hosted by Amazon Associates. I had considered that Amazon might not be the most ecofriendly way of students getting their books, but it took an email from another student to pose the question for me to examine my assumptions.

It turns out Amazon is not such a bad deal.

They aren’t screaming at the top of their lungs about their policies either.
Negatives:

1. No GRI report
2. No CSR report

Reporting is important! It communicates what the company is doing and it allows other companies to learn from. It raises the bar. It also tells the public what the company is doing, as long as it is not all BS and PR.

Positives:

1. Packaging- Increased recyclable materials and using less packaging. New software helps determine “right-sized” box.
2. Packaging- Corrugated containers are 100% recyclable and are made from 43% recovered fiber content.
3. Packaging- Air pillows are 100% recyclable and non-toxic.
4. Operations- In use is a Kaizen program used to inspire employees to take action. They call them “Earth Kaizens.” “In 2007, 88 separate Earth Kaizen projects were completed.”
5. Operations- In 2010, Amazon will open its new campus in Seattle which will meet LEED certification.

Read more about Amazons Earth Kaizen case studies and read the case study that explains some of the benefits of the online shopping model on Amazon.com and the Environment.

WHAT ABOUT SHIPPING?

The US Postal Service is thinking forward as well. They have a website for their green initiatives. Their packaging is Cradle to Cradle^SM certified. That’s damn good! Also, they come to your door 6 days a week anyway, so they aren’t making an extra trip.

Personally, I think Amazon needs an option for carbon offsetting your purchase, but I like what they are doing and where they are going. All this of course doesn’t take into account getting a healthy bike ride in down to the bookstore, global dominance in retail, lack of personal interaction, and the materials going into what you buy.

Sustainability Profile – IKEA

IKEA’s Vision:
Our vision is ‘to create a better everyday life for the many people.’

People I know love IKEA. With good reason too, the furniture giant provides interesting, quality items with quirky names like, LAXVIK and VIBBYN, for low prices (But they add up!). Usually when I hear, “At low prices,” I think ‘ok, but at what cost?’ IKEA see this different and makes it know in their tag line, “Low Price But Not At Any Price.”

Have you seen Walmart: The high cost of low prices?

IKEA also stands for something else which should give buyers confidence in shopping there. They’re in it for the long run, they get sustainability. Taking into account products and materials, suppliers, energy and transportation, and community involvement. Yet, only as of late with more talk about “going green,” have they been making this known. Here is a brief snippet of their policies and then a list of “chatter” around IKEA on the web.

View the brochure, IKEA- People and the Environment

Products and materials – “we first decide what price the item will have when sold in IKEA stores. However, in offering low prices we must never compromise the quality or safety of IKEA products.”

Suppliers –
“trading service offices are responsible for implementation and follow-up of our code of conduct and we have 70 specially trained auditors who audit suppliers.”

Energy and transportation –
“we are going to make sure that all IKEA Group stores, warehouses, distribution centres, factories and offices are heated and cooled using renewable fuels such as wind power, solar power, biofuels and geothermal energy.”

Community involvement –
“Our projects take a holistic approach: improving the health of women and children, creating access to a quality education, and empowering women to create a better future for themselves and their communities.”

Blogs Buzzing about IKEA
Ecologic- Too Bad IKEA Doesn’t Sell….Solar Panels?
EcoGeek- Get Your Futon, and Solar Panels, at IKEA – 13 August 2008
Ecocurious – Sustainable shelves, furniture and flooring – 26 July 2008
Treehugger- IKEA Lighting The Way To Warmer LED Lamps

I like IKEA as the “Quite Green Leader,” and I hope they continue to drive their supply chain towards sustainability. It will help other small scale furniture companies develop sustainability initiatives. I also hope they increase their transparency with their initiative as it helps others develop a guiding light for their own companies.

Amazon Green – Shop environmentally friendly products

A good step in the right direction. However I am a bit concerned over a how environmentally friendly some of the products are. I mean there are many shades of green, you know what I mean? But hey, if a light green, or a spring green, gets more people considering alternatives, then I guess it’s not a bad thing. You could call it a gateway to moss green.

“Welcome! Today we announced “Green 3″, a challenge to Amazon’s customer community to help others go green by creating the most authoritative list of eco-friendly products available for purchase on the Web.”

Pick 3 green products you wish everyone had by clicking below.

Comment back and share your Green 3.

EPA launches new website to help kids identify healthy fish to eat

The EPA has launched an interactive website, targeting families with young children, to educate which fish are safest to eat. The website uses story as a very effective way to deliver the fish advisories. Each story links to the fish advisory page on the EPA’s website. Therefore giving parents a way to follow up after story time.

I like how they sliced it into categories such as the camping trip, shopping trip, and sport fishing trip. Each has a unique story and is relevant to different lifestyles. You do have to wait about 30 seconds for the site to load.

“Our new Web site is a fun way for kids and parents to learn about the importance of fish in a healthy diet and how to choose the healthiest fish to eat,” said Benjamin H. Grumbles,

You can check it out here:
http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/fish/kids/