2Sustain

Last week, President Obama directed all federal agencies to make at least $2 billion worth of energy efficiency upgrades over the next two years –at no up-front cost to taxpayers.

From the presidential memorandum:

The Federal Government owns and operates nearly 3 billion square feet of Federal building space. Upgrading the energy performance of buildings is one of the fastest and most effective ways to reduce energy costs, cut pollution, and create jobs in the construction and energy sectors. We have a responsibility to lead by example, reduce our energy use, and operate our buildings efficiently.

Meeting that responsibility requires executive departments and agencies (agencies) to evaluate their facilities, identify potential savings, and appropriately leverage both private and public sector funding to invest in comprehensive energy conservation projects that cut energy costs. The Federal Government can do so by increasing the pace of the implementation of energy conservation measures, and improving the results from its energy efficiency investments.

This directive will be paired with another $2 billion effort in the private sector to upgrade energy efficiency at commercial and industrial properties.   (more…)

Business today relies on electronic technology. Computers, cell phones, tablet devices and the like are now integral to how we do our jobs.

Ultimately, though, this dependence comes with a heavy cost. Every year, the US alone produces some 2.5 million tons of used electronics, all made from valuable resources such as precious metals and rare earth materials, as well as plastic and glass.

As a global leader in the design, development and consumption of new and improved electronic technologies, shouldn’t we be doing more to curb e-waste and advance a more sustainable approach to the design and manufacture of electronic products?

Fortunately, the US recently took a significant step in that direction.

Late last month, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),  along with Sprint, Dell and Sony Electronics announced the “National Strategy for Electronics Stewardship,” an exciting new private-public partnership aimed at curbing e-waste, encouraging sustainable electronics lifecycle management and promoting the domestic electronics market.

This new strategy includes the first voluntary commitments made by Dell, Sprint and Sony, and also commits the federal government to take specific actions that will encourage the more environmentally friendly design of electronic products, promote recycling of used or discarded electronics and advance a domestic market for electronics recycling that will protect public health and create jobs.

As outlined in the strategy report, the federal government will take the following steps: (more…)

Forming a partnership that illustrates the current trend towards non-profit/for-profit sustainability alliances, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has teamed up with The Coca-Cola Company to improve the water quality of the Yangtze River in China.

In many ways, the Yangtze has taken the brunt of China’s colossal economic growth, and even though the river provides China with 35 percent of its fresh water, it now ranks number one on WWF’s list of the ten most-threatened rivers in the world. For Coca-Cola, which operates 39 bottling plants in China, the partnership with WWF represents an opportunity to strengthen its commitment to water stewardship while mitigating its water risks.

A recent post at Knowledge@Wharton explains how non-profit/for-profit partnerships such as this one can be mutually beneficial: (more…)

Two leading non-profit sustainability institutions –the World Environment Center (WEC) and the Center for Corporate Sustainability Management at IMD –have joined forced to form a partnership that will assist global companies in implementing sustainable development in their business strategies and operations.

Announced last week, the new partnership aims to: (more…)

Starbucks wants mayors and other municipal leaders to evaluate and improve local commercial and residential recycling systems, so that the company can develop what it calls a “comprehensive recyclable cup solution” by 2012.

Starbucks made the pitch last week at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C.

As I’m sure you realize, current recycling capabilities vary considerably from city to city and county to county. So, Starbucks is looking  to partner with a variety of groups –including municipal governments, raw materials suppliers, cup manufacturers, retail and beverage partners, recyclers, environmental NGOs and experts from the academic sector –to rethink recycling programs and create sustainable systems that can work across its entire nation-wide value chain.

“Scalability is critical. We can only achieve it if we take a holistic approach and join forces with our entire value chain,” says Jim Hanna, Starbucks director of Environmental Impact. “Mayors are uniquely positioned to mobilize stakeholders at a grassroots level and help drive solutions that will make our cups and other packaging more broadly recyclable in form and in practice.”

(more…)