What's the Responsible Company? A New Book by the Founder of Patagonia, The Responsible Company

Ford: one of the corporate sponsors

In the corporate world, perception is reality and, perhaps, everything. More than ever, employees, investors and consumers are looking to the companies from which they buy, invest in, and work for to join them in addressing the critical social issues of the day in a creative manner.

We had our first NYC Green Festival last weekend, and this trend was shown by the sponsorships of mega-corporations such as Ford . Interesting panel discussions were held by experts on the various green topics. It really contrasts with the Go Green Expo that I attended back in 2010. That one was held with Home Design Show, and Home Depot was the major sponsor for the Expo. Even though many different vendors had a presence, Green Expo seemed to be a supplement to Home Design Show. However, I found great progress in this year's Green Festival, and here at Ampleen, we welcome anything better and greener.

There are some superstars in the corporate world that earned a name for the most sustainable company.  Knights Inc., the company for clean capitalism, made the 2012 Global 100 Most Sustainable Companies list. In a report titled The Corporate Reality of Consumer Perceptions by GreenBiz.com, Whole Foods, Google, Kashi and Yahoo are described as "Standouts."

From Facebook

But a recent incident with Kashi shows that a great perception can be destroyed overnight. This week, Kashi (acquired by Kellogg in 2000) made an announcement that its "organic" products contain artificial ingredients. Kashi mislabeled and misled consumers. Now there is a class-action suit against the company (and Facebook even has a page called Boycott Kashi). What did Kashi do wrong? How should we as consumers respond to corporations that mislead us to improve short-term earnings?

This month, Yvon Chouinard, a founder of the outdoor-clothing brand Patagonia, will release a new book, The Responsible Company. The book offers detailed checklists for making money without inflicting undue societal harm. To be sure, his recommended initiatives also serve as effective branding. Part of Patagonia's appeal is coming from its commitment to sustainability. Perhaps Patagonia is the only company that advocates the "buy-less" theme.

Consider the clever reverse psychology of its recent advertising. Last November, on Black Friday — the unofficial American holiday of consumer gluttony — Patagonia took out a full-page ad in the New York Times with the bold-face headline "Don't Buy This Jacket."

So, what did Kashi do wrong? Kashi initially appealed to the niche "super green" market and gained a trust from consumers. Kashi, however, dismissed its original mission and lost transparency and accountability in communicating and creating a relationship with consumers.

What we consumers need to do is to be more informed and actively share our feedback with others. That’s our power. What's the responsible company? The responsible company is one that seeks out consumers' true needs and desires and creates a space where a real dialogue is possible.

I would like to hear your opinion.  Share your thoughts!

Be Cool But Conscious? - H&M's Success with the Conscious Collection

Have you ever wondered how to be cool but conscious? Or, are you an eco-conscious consumer but find it hard to be the same when it comes to fashion?

If you do, you are not alone, dear readers! I, too, have a hard time finding organic or recycled fashion very appealing. Also, I find seeking sustainability in fashion simply confusing. A post on the blog Fashionista-at-Law from December 2009 asked: “Is Fashionista acting sustainably if she buys organic or fair trade clothes and what exactly are ‘ethical’ clothes? Fashionista would love to see those terms on labels so that she no longer has to spend her time researching a brand that claims to be ethical, green, organic, before facing the tricky question as to whether it is more ‘green’ to order the item of desire online or to check for its availability in a shop close by.” Is it that hard to be cool but conscious?

SimpleShoes, from Santa Barbara, CA, offers eco-certified shoes made from recycled products and is run with a sustainable business model. When Simple Shoes was first introduced, we were all very excited and applauded the company's philosophy and business model. Now, unfortunately, the business is closed. Simple Shoes' website said, "after 20 years of shoe making, Simple was ready for a vacation, a ‘creative re-engineering.’" But why did Simple Shoes fail? Did Simple Shoes serve a broad enough audience to keep its business going? And why don't we see similar success stories like Simple Shoes' with other companies in the fashion industry?

Despite what we see -- a slow development of sustainability in mainstream fashion -- sustainability in fashion is becoming one of the key concepts for success. Vanessa Friedman, the Financial Times fashion editor, says words such as “sustainability,” “green,” “eco,” “organic” and “ethical” are increasingly a part of the fashion conversation. Mintel, the international market research company, notes: “As consumers demand more from the companies they do business with, they’ll want . . . more scrutiny on ethical claims than ever before.” So why hasn’t the fashion world sought more sustainable business models?

The answer is partly because a concept of luxury doesn't sit well with environmentalism. Why? Because an industry based on not need but desire is one that is often associated with indulgence and excess. It sits at the opposite end of table from the concept of collaborative consumption that I introduced in my previous post.

On my search for a cool summer dress for my recent vacation in South Beach, Miami, I finally found the answer. The answer had a label on it; it reads the H&M Conscious Collection. H&M, a global fashion house, is trying to revamp the image of its eco-friendly line, the Conscious Collection, into something that’s going to appeal to consumers who cannot compromise on their sense of style, even for a worthy cause. Despite the huge success of the line, the Conscious Collection had failed to capture the attention of the few who live and breathe fashion. And H&M knows how to communicate its effort with us cool-but-conscious consumers. But did you know that H&M is the biggest users of this eco-aware fabric in the world? No longer is the Conscious Collection the domain of tree huggers and hemp fetishists pretending to be trendy.

Finally, sustainable fashion is becoming a legitimate option for the true-blue fashionista. We can continue being cool while being conscious and smart about our choices.

Do you have any sustainable fashion stories to share?

I am wearinga a dress from  the H&M Conscious Collection
 in South Beach, Miami (via Instagram)

"De-Central" Park in the City - Richard Louv Talks about Spreading Green in the City

East 18th Street in NYC

Walking down NYC’s tree-lined 18th Street, my street, I was thinking how grateful I am for how the street is. Grateful for being a part of this beautiful Gramercy community. Grateful for trees on the street.  Grateful for trees entertaining my eyes with blooming flowers and touching my soul with their overwhelming energy and bringing back life after long cold months. Even in winter, I enjoyed the trees’ presence in front of my apartment.
Trees are the integral part of the urban environment. "Why Trees Matter," the most emailed article of the New York Times on April 12, says, "We take them (trees) for granted, but they are a near miracle." As a matter of fact, I wonder if we underappreciate our limited nature in the city or underestimate the power of trees.

This week, I was invited to attend to a lecture, "Richard Louv on ‘Nature-Deficit Disorder,’" hosted by Columbia University’s School of Continuing Education program for Master of Science in Landscape Design. Richard Louv is the author of eight books about the connection between family, nature and community. Last Child in the Woods is his landmark bestseller that became an international force for change. And he just released a new book called The Nature Principle: Reconnecting with Life in a Virtual Age.  

At the lecture, he discussed a new meaning of sustainability -- "creating" better cities, rather than sustaining or maintaining the present condition.” We do not want to "sustain" friendships or marriage -- we want and expect beyond that. I think this is very true for the environment. We want to change for the better, not tomorrow, but today. Planting trees in the Amazon is a great idea, but we can start from where we live, Louv passionately argued.

Throughout the evening, the message "we do not want to wait for Congress to sign" was repeatedly shown. Rather, we can start from our backyard, Louv said. He used a phrase, "De-Central Park" in NYC, as a play off of “Central Park.” Similar to the topic of parklets I wrote about in one of my earlier posts, Louv suggested utilizing every inch of open space in the city. While listening to him, I thought of a number of open spaces in the city that are not currently being optimized for green -- unlimited possibilities!

Imagine if we could fill every possible space in the city with plants and trees. What would that be like?  How would we and our children feel in such a greener and healthier city?

 <More Information about Richard Louv>

http://richardlouv.com/blog/

With Richard Louv