Citywide Green Business Program
The Sundance Channel will have some interesting shows coming up this month. Take a look below for a small list of programming:There is a revolution in the consciousness of consumers that is transforming the way each of us shops. It is not just that more of us are doing it on the Internet, nor that there is an infinitely wider array of companies and products to choose from. The revolution is in what we know about what we buy. Conscious consumers are building markets for conscious businesses, and this is transforming the very nature of what it means to do business.
Consider the nutritional labelling of foods. These labels may seem as timelessly present to us today as, say the ubiquitous cell phones and Internet. But it was not until 1990 that the FDA mandated the labelling of nutritional information on food packages with 1990 Nutrition Labelling and Education Act. The law did not go into effect until May 8, 1994. Since that time we have experienced a revolution in the health food industry which only seems to grow stronger with each increase in consumer consciousness. The more we measure, the more things will count.
Almost two decades since the passage of the 1990 Nutritional Labelling Act, the Internet has taken over where the FDA left off. Every passing month seems to bring with it the appearance of another website dedicated to ranking and reviewing products - http://www.ethiscore.com/, http://www.huddler.com/, and yours truly, http://www.visionaryvalues.com/, still in our infancy. Most focus on the social and environmental responsibility of products. And most span across multiple industries. These sites promise to radically transform the way each of us shops.
Like the early nutritional labels, it may be only a small percentage of shoppers who use these sites. But a measly 3% of shoppers is enough to create a substantial market for new products in most industries. And those same 3% can be enough to stain the reputation of habitual green washers. It may be the case that 2 or 3 or 5% of shoppers create not only a base for new products but for new shopping habits as well.
Someday, many of us will shop the aisles of our favorite stores with Blackberries and iPhones in hand, looking up, perhaps scanning, the social and environmental scores of new products in the same we we now read the reviews of books on Amazon or count the stars on Netflix films. Nutritional labels are only the start. Next will come environmental and labor scores, personalized scores according to our values, and ecological impacts. The sites are being developed along with the habits to use them. The question is: how many of us will be doing this, and how will it transform industry?
It seems that recent massive increases in energy costs will soon have a positive impact on how energy efficiency gurus interact with IT people and corporate decision makers and government agencies. 
In a recent online edition of The Earth Times, I came across a press release that indicates that many professionals in the natural beauty industry may be poised to take a giant step forward in establishing standards for that industry. For too many years consumer health has taken a back seat to the bottom line and lack of fortitude on the part of most beauty aid companies.
How many of you lament the sale of your favorite small companies to much larger and more corporate entities? How many of you know if those small companies have been able to maintain their uniqueness, the pieces that made them special to you? Well, that question is addressed in a recent Inc. Magazine article. The article focuses on the recent sale of 40% of Honest Tea to Coca Cola. in the article Seth Goldman, founder of Honest Tea argues that the move is good business and good for the natural products industry. What do you think? Do you support these sales? Are there ways in which this dynamic can have an overall positive effect on the natural products industry and mainstream supermarkets?
Despite your feelings on the reasons for the huge increases in global prices of grains and feed (from $200 per ton up to $500 per ton), the fact is that the pressure is on. Even if we immediately back off the support of ethanol and other bio-fuels that many believe has caused these price increases and shortages, we still must address today's needs. Organic Valley has recently attempted to stabilize prices for their milk and egg suppliers by reaching out to organic grain producers and inviting them to join the cooperative ranks. The hope and desire is that buyers and sellers involved in a cooperative agreement will be more apt to settle on fair prices that respect the symbiotic relationship inherent in agriculture.
We all should put our own needs and preferences into perspective from time to time and in doing so, it sometimes makes it easier to have a bit of fun during that process. I was reviewing the current offerings on the website of a great magazine called Ode (see link below) and I came across a little game that might interest a few (I hope more than a few!!) of our Visionary Values readers. Take a few minutes to play, improve your vocabulary and give a little to those in great need.
Check out this fully functional and quite attractive bamboo bicycle by Calfee!
What is your personal shopping protocol when re-stocking your kitchen? Do you have preferences that are driven by deeply held eco-philosophies or do you feel somewhat obliged to shop a particular way due to the shopping habits of your friends?
It is time to begin talking about sustainable business. The more that we understand where our products come from, the more we can ensure life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for every person on earth, and the safe water, air and land needed to sustain our lives.
