2Sustain

A blog focused on sustainable business issues and challenges

Nissan Announces Six-Year Environmental Plan

November 02, 2011 | No Comments →

Last week, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. announced the Nissan Green Program 2016 (NGP 2016), a new six-year environmental plan that will help the company reduce its carbon footprint, shift to renewable energy and increase the diversity of resources it uses.

By the end of fiscal year 2016, the company wants to be a leader in: (more…)

Companies Say They’ll Select Low Carbon Suppliers in the Future

October 03, 2011 | No Comments →

Citing increased pressure from shareholders, half of the multinationals in a recent study said they expect, in the future, to select their suppliers based upon carbon performance.

The research, commissioned by Carbon Trust Advisory, consisted of phone interviews with 100 organizations that have at least 1,000 employees worldwide. The data shows that: (more…)

Google Releases Its Carbon Footprint Information

September 12, 2011 | No Comments →

For the first time ever, Google has released information about its carbon footprint.

Last week, the company revealed that in 2010 it generated a total of 1.46 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. As The Guardian points out, those emissions are slightly higher than the country of Laos in south-east Asia and about equivalent to the UN’s operational footprint.

However, Google says its ultimate carbon impact is zero –because the company: (more…)

Is Cloud Computing the Green IT Solution for the 21st Century?

July 25, 2011 | No Comments →

According to a survey released last week by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), cloud computing can both save American businesses billions of dollars in energy costs by 2020 and help their information technology (IT) operations run more efficiently.

The study, Cloud Computing–The IT Solution for the 21st Century, polled 11 global firms that have used cloud computing services for at least the past two years. This new research, conducted by Verdantix and sponsored by AT&T, includes analyses that demonstrate how business can use cloud solutions to decrease carbon emissions while simultaneously improving the bottom line.

For example, the data shows that: (more…)

UPS Expands Carbon Offset Option

January 17, 2011 | No Comments →

I first wrote about UPS’s carbon neutral shipping option when it was first launched in the US back in 2009. Last week, the company announced that it is expanding the availability of this popular program.

Now, customers in many countries in Europe, Asia and the Americas can select carbon neutral as an option within the UPS WorldShip shipping system.

For those who aren’t familiar with it, WorldShip is UPS’s full-featured, Windows-based shipping software designed for customers who ship five or more packages per day. With more than 550,000 installations worldwide, WorldShip is one of the most widely deployed transportation software applications in the world.

UPS’s recent announcement means that the majority of the company’s WorldShip customer base now have the option of paying a small fee to calculate and offset the carbon emissions associated with their shipments. (more…)