2010 is the International Year of Biodiversity, and world leaders are poised to meet for the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10) in Nagoya, Japan, October 18-29. 

At first glance, it may not be intuitive as to why your business should care. However, this United Nations declaration and the COP10 talks provide some of the most powerful opportunities for businesses to send the right messages to their clients and consumers that they are firmly committed to the protection of the variety of life on Earth – biodiversity. These are strong messages easily incorporated into your company’s business plan that will not only improve your bottom line, but also the future of our planet. This year. And beyond.

Insuring robust biodiversity is essentially insuring our “Web of Life.” As with most business practices, knock out a step or two and the whole process may not suffer significantly for anyone to notice, but take out a key step and the product or service is doomed and fails. And so it is with the seemingly magical stuff of life. The biological diversity of our planet is what helps sustain us. We rely on this diversity for not just food and wealth, but medicine, fuel and vital services such as oxygen, decomposition and more. In many regions of the world, we know that our systems (both plant and animal) are fragile and some are in peril.

E.O. Wilson, a well-known American biologist and researcher on the area of biodiversity, and other experts say we are facing some of the greatest mass extinctions of animals and plants since the age of dinosaurs, and no one knows which “keystone” species” might be the crucial ones. The mission of Wilson’s Biodiversity Foundation is “to preserve biological diversity in the living environment by inventing and implementing business and educational strategies in the service of conservation.”
 It reinforces that “commerce and conservation can and must be made compatible.” Threats to biodiversity include human over population, habitat destruction, overharvesting, invasive species and pollution. So the best approach in the 21^st century and beyond is to play it safe, go for a green bottom line, and protect as much of our native habitats and wild places to give as many species, including our own, a good chance at survival.

No matter what your industry, develop and promote long-term internal plans for your business that sustain biological diversity from your financials to your production in- and out-puts. As you become more aware and protective of the natural world, you further a movement that is increasingly critical for the health and well roundedness of our children and future leaders. In the long term, having this connection with the Earth and supporting biodiversity efforts will yield big returns for your business and our big blue planet. It’s easy, and it’s just outside your door…

Five Ways Your Business Can Help Promote Biodiversity In Your Community Right Now

 

1. Landscape for Pollinators

Pollinators (bees, butterflies, bats, etc.) play a critical role in our environment but most have been on the decline in recent years. Scientists still do not know the cause of the bee colony collapses they are seeing in record numbers since 2006. According to a 2007 Q&A with Leeanne Alonso, director of Conservation International’s Rapid Assessment Program, “In the U.S. alone, pollination by domesticated honeybees is worth almost $15 billion a year, and by native bees roughly $3 billion a year.” The loss of bees would not only affect business, but our day-to-day lives as well. Insects are responsible for pollinating one out of every three crops we eat. Foods including strawberries, tomatoes, almonds, and, of course, honey to name a few.

To help, conserve the habitat of native bees and pollinators, and learn what plants you can add to your commercial landscaping to aid pollinator survival with these pollinator-friendly planting guides from the Pollinator Partnership. Be sure to also follow these tips for pesticide use from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

2. Know Your Invasive Exotics and Help Eradicate Them

In some parts of the U.S., species like kudzu or the Nile monitor lizard may seem like something from a bad sci-fi movie or Carl Hiaasen novel; however, the damage they can cause to our economy and environment is real. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that one-in-seven non-native species introduced in the United States becomes an invasive exotic plant or animal, which creates more than $138 billion each year in damage and control costs.

Help fight these alien invaders before they cause economic, environmental or human harm by being informed and willing to help. Learn about the invasive exotic plants and animals in your area, and how to help control them by contacting your state and local authorities. Have your workplace participate in local events/efforts to control and eradicate invasive exotics so that natural habitat can be restored and protected.

3. Xeriscape with Natives

“What businesses do with their own landscapes impacts not only biodiversity in urban areas, but also the biodiversity of natural environments outside of the city,” says Mark Hostetler, an Urban Wildlife Ecologist with the University of Florida.  He adds, “Using native, indigenous, plants in landscaping helps provide habitat for wildlife and it decreases the need for fertilizers, pesticides, and water.  This reduces the amounts of pollutants in stormwater runoff, lessening impacts on nearby natural areas.”

Xeriscaping is a form of landscaping that conserves water and reduces the need for fertilizer. It includes the use of plants adapted to a particular region.  By using native plants in your xeriscaping, you can create beautiful planted areas that also provide useful habitat for native animals like birds, lizards and butterflies. Work with a local plant nursery or county extension service/Master Gardener to find a wide variety of native plants that work with the soils in your landscape and that provide habitat for native animal species in your area. Minimize turf grass because it is like concrete to biodiversity.

Using drought tolerant natives also improves your bottom line. Encouraging your employer/grounds keeper to use native plants in landscaping in and around your office building reduces fertilizer and watering costs. Go further and use a rain barrel for needed watering and compost organics on site to use in place of fertilizer to enrich soil.

4. Participate in the Audubon Christmas Bird Count

According to the 2007 Audubon WatchList website, “One quarter of U.S. birds need our help to keep them from slipping toward extinction.” Helping with the Audubon Christmas Bird Count, the longest-running wildlife census, keeps track of birds that are endangered or at risk of being endangered and helps guide actions for conservation.

Further help our feathered friends by working to conserve Important Bird Areas, and by putting up a birdfeeder and a birdhouse in a wild place outside your office.  Go further and become involved with a year-round bird monitoring and/or insect monitoring program.

5. Mix Green Business with Green Pleasure

Getting in that game of golf is a perfect way to reconnect with your clients and the environment and to support biodiversity. Take the Green Golfer™ Pledge, visit Green Certified golf courses and do your part to encourage your local courses to participate in the Audubon International Golf and Environment Initiative.

According to this Audubon initiative, “Surveys have shown that golfers report that playing quality is maintained or even improved as a result of steps taken to manage a course in harmony with the natural environment.”

Further, the U.S. Golf Association knows the game of golf can “green” up and be more sustainable. Golf course benefits for both the business and the environment include fewer resources used for watering, fertilizing, pesticides and mowing, as well as providing natural areas for native plants and animals.

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Are leaders who push people to do their bidding demonstrating leadership?

Earlier this week, on my radio show Your Triple Bottom Line, I spoke to Michael Stallard, author of a fascinating book, Fired Up Or Burned Out, and we had this discussion around how leaders create a culture of empowerment in the organization.

I have been using the word ‘culture’ flippantly sometimes, implying that it is always a good thing, talking of highly engaged companies as having a robust culture. But they could have a robust negative culture as well. So I asked Michael how does a company such as Facebook, with such a strong, identifiable culture sustain something that was created when it was a 3-person company? Michael had a great response. You could either listen to the whole show here.

Or you could listen to a short a clip of that exchange, using the player below.

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Over the weekend I was at DEMO, the Fall 2010 conference, held in Silicon Valley. Here are my favorite products -and if you watch till the end, you’ll see my pick of the ‘DEMO Dog’ as well!

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On last week’s radio show Derrick and I  took up what some may think is a terribly dry topic, and poked sharp objects at it with some social media questions.

There seems to be a insatiable appetite for measurement and tools that add more  transparency to how companies perform. Everyone wails about the lack of transparency, and the erosion of trust. There has been talk for ages about how CEO’s need to become “see-through CEO’s.” But what about see-through financial reporting? The topic that’s been around for awhile, including more recent moves by the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has embraced social media. (It’s called Regulation FD.)

Our guest was Michael Muyot, who created a sustainability index for NASDAQ, and he naturally had a lot to say about how much more transparent financial reporting could be. But as we talked about the rush toward transparency –or the lack thereof — the conversation quickly turned to trust. And why not?

Trust and transparency are two sides of the same coin. He noted that (and I paraphrase what he said for brevity)

“From a political, business and investment level, the need of the hour is trust. The regular American worker has completely lost trust in everything….”

He spoke of KPI’s – Key Performance Indicators — and how social media can point to KPIs with laser-like focus. Listen to a short clip from that conversation, below.

Derrick asked him what might make innovation come back, and create the environment for, say, the next Google? Does Cap and Trade have anything to do with the reluctance of investors? Michael’s responses were enlightening! Use the player below to listen to the conversation.

And if you like to catch our next show, you could steam it live from your computer or phone here. Wednesday at 7PM (Pacific).

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We’ve been on radio for the past 6 weeks, and we didn’t tell you?

Oops, sorry!

Derrick and I started our own live radio show, every Wednesday at 7.00 pm. It’s called Your Triple Bottom Line. (I said live because unlike so many other formats, YouTube and podcasting included, it’s a whole new animal. )

And no, we didn’t miss the irony (as Phoenix Business Journal noted) about taking to what might seem like old media, having hosted podcasts here.

Our guests have been terrific. Book authors, film directors, and ‘leading voice from Wall Street to Main Street’ as Derrick often says.

Like to catch the show?
This week we bring back Cyndi Laurin, and a special guest, Andrew McKeon, the person behind BusinessClimate 2010 conference next week.

Tune in tomorrow -- the show is streamed live here at this link: http://bit.ly/Your3BL

Listen to the past three shows:

Show # 6:   Michael Muyot

Show #5: Park Howell and Donna DiFrancisco

Show #4: Tom Szaky

Show #3:  Kathy Miller and Marty Metro

Show #2: Joe Turturica and Stan Alpert

Show #1: Cindy Laurin and Andrew Nisker

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As many of you know, I recently wrote a piece titled Gaming for the Greater Good: How Social Gaming Can Advance Sustainability for Triple Pundit on how to utilize the upward trend of social gaming in our culture to do some good – specifically, to harness the collective minutes and efforts currently spent on gaming for sustainability. The piece spread virally, with glowing comments like, “Imagine my surprise and delight when one of the websites I launched in another life (Gamasutra) finds its way to be mentioned by one of my favorite bloggers in my new life!”

Imagine my surprise(!) and delight(?) when a major advertising agency took my article and “recycled, reused and repurposed” it by “republishing” it on their blog as their own. But don’t get me wrong, I couldn’t be more flattered.

This experience triggered another idea. Just as gaming has transformed over the years into a social experience, is journalism and writing changing just as dramatically? Is this new virtual world, one where we share…everything? Collective and open source knowledge, photos of our weekend, thoughts on the newest restaurant, the location of the bus stop of which we are standing and even the words that we write? Should we anticipate—even expect—others to use…take…anything that we put up on the web for their own—even our personal experiences and thoughts in a written work published on major online publications?

Stanley Fish, a professor of humanities and law at Florida International University and author of 13 books, revealed a similar experience in his August commentary in The New York Times and was torn with this very dilemma. Standing there with blocks of brightly highlighted text, he showed his colleague exactly where thoughts from his book had been “reused” in the colleague’s new book (the colleague/author was mortified,  pointed his finger at his co-author…who in turn pointed at graduate researchers).

My piece, titled Gaming for the Greater Good: How Social Gaming Can Advance Sustainability, was published August 24, 2010. And the ad agency’s article? Play Your Way Into a Better World was published on the agency’s blog on September 1, 2010.

 Click on each thumbnail to read the article.

(If you would like to see the highlighted stories side by side, click here.)

What do you think? Should “rewriting, recycling and republishing” be expected in this new digital day and age?

(Side note: This post was written without hard feelings toward Saatchi & Saatchi, but rather to pose the larger question to our readers about what we all post to the internet. Thanks to Saatchi & Saatchi for picking up on the story.  After all, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.)

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I thought I might as well pose the challenge (below) in the form of a video.

The winning video response will get this! It’s a DVD of the brilliant documentary, Garbage, by Andrew Nisker. Some of you may recall I spoke to Nisker on my radio show a few weeks back if you like to hear the back-story of the documentary. Act now!

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Just a few days ago, I came across the 100-Thing Challenge at www.GuyDamedDave.com and was really taken by it. Essentially Dave’s idea is to reduce his personal possessions down to 100 things and live for a year without exceeding 100 possessions. It’s an interesting concept – one that bucks modern day consumerism and promotes a sustainable existence. For the past couple years, I have been thinking about consumption, my impact and what my personal possessions say about me and my commitment to ecology and theology for that matter. So over this past weekend, inspired by Dave, my wife and I decided we would take a first step and each get rid of 100 possessions.

 It was much easier and more satisfying than I ever anticipated.

Over the past eight years, my wife and I have moved six times:  five times here in Arizona and one time across the country from Pennsylvania. In each of those moves we thought we had lightened our load of stuff.  But consumption will get you if you keep buying and never getting rid of more than you consume. You end up in a situation like we had last fall when we moved into our current house. Our problem was easily defined and boiled down to exactly four 26-foot U-Haul trucks, eight hours with our friends and three professional movers. Since that time, we have tried to be more conscious in our consumption, thinking more about durability and how often we would use an item instead of just the price.

But we still have a problem with stuff. In many cases we have created an emotional bond to it. It was interesting this weekend how many times I felt bad getting rid of something because I had attributed some intrinsic, emotional or sentimental value to an item, of which I probably have not seen or cared about in years. Had those items been stolen, I would have never known or cared, but since I had them in front of me and was considering ridding myself of them, my mind was trying to convince me of why I needed them.

One epiphany I had was that each item I held on to was an item I was withholding from someone else. If I had the DVD, then someone out there that wanted that same DVD would need to buy a new one. If I had a file full of old newspaper clippings, then when the newspaper needs paper they have to cut down a tree to get it.

The other thing that struck me was the percentage of items I owned that were made in China and other countries known for their human rights challenges. Keeping these things was not only a burden to me; it was harming the environment and causing suffering of other human beings. No thanks!

So how did we do?  Well, in total, I estimate we got rid of around 400 items (between Goodwill and the local book store that bought some of our DVDs) and that is not counting hundreds of items we recycled (mostly cards from our wedding and past events). It was about 2 ½ SUV’s full of stuff—but this is just the beginning, once things cool down (it is still summer in Arizona) we can tackle the garage and backyard do a lot more.

Take a look. (Check out a few of the “things” we gave away on our flickr photo stream.)

Do you think you could do without 100 things?

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So says Brown Russell, advisor at GreenNurture. The “free your feet” line is the tag for Teva sports sandals, so it’s not surprising that Brown, a good friend of Mark Thatcher, inventor and founder of Teva, invokes it just about daily.

So I took him up on it during our afternoon meeting and kicked off my signature stilettos. I not only lost 4 inches, but I lost some “stuck in the routine” inhibitions. After I was done worrying about what may be lurking in the nap of our carpets, I allowed my mind to wander, go to my creative space and then focus on the questions at hand.

About 30 minutes into the meeting, off went our CEO’s size 12s. (Now that’s a lot of unfettered creativity in one room, folks).

White boards were filling up. Ideas were flowing. Strategy was formed.

Uncramping our feet, uncramped our minds.

So, if you stop over and see us walking around barefoot…it’s just another brainstorming session at GreenNurture. Kick off your shoes and join in.

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This is Part II of Make Your Professional Wardrobe Work for Your Wallet and the Environment: The New (Eco-friendly) Laundry List

You can further lighten your load on the environment and your wallet when you launder your professional couture. Follow this laundry list and you will have your wardrobe “pegged” for good for both you and the environment:

• Wash only full loads of laundry. Not a full load? Adjust the water level accordingly.
• Reduce the energy used to heat water by up to 90 percent by using cold water to wash clothes, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
•  Use concentrated detergent (2x or 3x) for cold water specifically formulated for your washer (e.g. HE for a high efficiency washer vs. regular for a top loader), and use the recommended amount. 
• When you can, line dry your clothes using the ultimate dryer – the sun!
• Use any energy saving features your dryer may have. Settings like “auto dry” or “sensing” allow the dryer to automatically turn off when the clothing is dry and are more energy efficient than setting a timed cycle where clothes may be over drying.
• Properly maintain your washer and dryer. Clean any lint traps in your washer periodically. Clean the lint trap in your dryer after each load and check the vent to the outside periodically. A clogged lint trap in your dryer will restrict airflow and reduce dryer performance and can even lead to a fire.
• Avoid purchasing clothes that need to be dry cleaned with conventional dry cleaning (perchloroethylene or “perc”) methods. Be aware of “green” claims and find safe dry cleaning alternatives. 

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This is Part I of Make Your Professional Wardrobe Work for Your Wallet and the Environment: Walk the Eco-runway this Fashion Week

As I rummage through the clothes in the Junior League Thrift Shop, I can just hear Tim Gunn saying, “Make it work!” And so I do, guilt-free, as I add a basic black skirt to my wardrobe. After all, I am reusing and helping to support my local economy, and like others, I want to look and feel my best. We all do, especially as professionals in the workplace.

Well, it’s that time of year: Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week (September 9 – 16) with all the latest styles for Spring 2011. And it always reminds me of the struggle I face personally with this highly alluring, not so eco-friendly and yet necessary arena of our lives – clothing.

According to The Museum at FIT’s Eco-Fashion: Going Green exhibit now on at The Fashion and History Gallery through November 13, 84 pounds of textiles are consumed per person each year in the United States. And while worldwide, 30 million people are employed by the fashion industry, many of these folks do not receive fair wages. Not to mention the pesticides used and damage caused to the environment and ourselves that can occur when creating new fibers for the process of making textiles.

The fashion industry is not unaware of these problems of how fashion has impacted the environment in the last fifty years. In fact, to counter, many runways have been walking the walk with the environment for a while now. Nancy Judd’s Recycle Runway has been touring the country since 2003, and her recent airport installations are continuing to educate and inspire visitors across the nation about environmental stewardship. Many designers offer sustainable and recycled fabrics. “Green” was touted as the new “black” at New York Fashion Week this past spring when the Bryant Park location of the Fall Fashion 2010 preview went carbon neutral (because it was, after all, fashionable), and The Green Shows counted down all the latest eco-trends. 

There is even an entire show dedicated to such fashions: Eco Fashion Week begins September 27 in Vancouver.

In honor of Fashion Week, this daughter of a fashion designer and a practical scientist offers up some tips for looking and feeling your best in your “professional” wear without putting a huge dent in your wallet or the environment.

When adding new pieces to your wardrobe:

Reuse!  Shop at second hand stores.

In an Spring 2008 article about the plastic-vs.-paper-bag debate, Robert Lilienfeld, Editor of The ULS Report, says, “research indicates that up to 99 percent of environmental burdens created by retail purchases are not caused by shopping bags, but rather by the stuff put in those bags and the energy it takes to create, transport, and store that stuff!” Reduce the amount you consume, and reuse as much as you can.

You’ve heard it before, but one person’s trash IS another’s treasure. Vintage clothing is always trendy and business basics can nearly always be found at local thrift stores.

When things get tough, go swapping!

Hold a swap meet dinner party with friends and/or co-workers and exchange business attire that you are tired of.

This allows you to revitalize your business attire with just a few “new” items and accessories. Have your willing swap-meet guests bring unwanted, but in good condition, business clothing and accessory items and even a covered dish to share for a fun evening that’s a win-win for everyone and the environment.

Separate the items by size and style. Hang the clothes on racks or neatly fold them on a table. To be fair, be sure all guests limit their trades to the amount of clothing/accessories they brought in, and donate any unclaimed clothing at the end of the evening to charity.

Read the labels.

Speak out, speak up and vote with your wallet!

Conscious consumers must research their options and labels when purchasing new clothing. Having an understanding of what goes into the products we purchase is an important first step. From our personal care products to our clothing, there are many steps along the way that may or may not be the best for the environment or workers. Sometimes there will be no real advantage to one product over another when even one step along the way falls short of being eco-friendly or fair. Just a few items to look for in clothing and accessories that are more sustainable:

•   Organic Cotton
•   Fair Trade
•  Recycled Content (so cool when you know your fibers are recycled #1 PET soda bottles and/or recycled cotton fiber)

And just in time to make this research easier, a new Eco Index tag (be sure to check out the interactive “Greener Jean”), that will work much like an Energy Star rating of the fashion world, has launched this month with a coalition of 100 participants onboard, including Patagonia, Levi Strauss & Co., Timberland Co., Target Corp., and Nike. While not perfected, it is a great start, and the new labels should be super helpful once they are widely used and understood. The aim – help us, and the participating brands and retailers, measure the human rights and environmental impacts of items from raw material to final resting place.

Invest for the long term.

While most of us do not sport haute couture, perhaps it is also something to consider. Fashion has not always been so disposable. It was once revered as a lasting commodity. From time to time, it may actually be wise to invest in garments that are made from eco-friendly fibers, ethically crafted and that will last a lifetime and become family heirlooms. You may even choose to invest your own time in sewing your original designs.

Accessorize.

Since many trends last only a few months, new trend-setting looks can be achieved with staple, basic business attire you find with the methods above adorned with recycled accessories that you make or purchase through a fair trade provider.

When discarding pieces from your wardrobe:

Donate business clothing in good condition to help disadvantaged women and men take charge of their lives and have successful careers.

Not-for-profit organizations, like Dress for Success or other clothes closets/thrift stores in your community, help those in need with the professional clothing they need to make a successful career. 

This is a great way to put unwanted items from your own closet to good use and a good cause. Sometimes the only thing in the way of a good job is the clothes on your back.

Recycle items that are on their last legs.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Americans threw away 12.4 million tons of textiles in 2008. Textiles can be recycled. From our discards, bales of clothing can even make their way all over the world to some of the tiniest and remotest of villages. If your unwanted clothing is in good condition, be sure it gets to a reuse center, but if it is truly in bad shape (all torn up and irreparable), recycle it through a local textile recycling company, which can transform it into rags, new textiles, insulation, and even paper. Just in time for Fashion Week, New York City is rolling out a new textile-recycling program this month.

Don’t forget, clothing is just a second skin:

Be sure that your personal care products are safe for you and our environment.

Every model uses them, and so do we. The  Environmental Working Group estimates that we each use up to ten personal care products each day; however, our personal care products can contain chemicals that can not only unintentionally harm us, but also end up in our waterways with unknown effects on our plant and other animal ecology. You can learn more about how the things we use to keep our skin safe, like sunscreen, and other personal care products (everything from toothpaste and shampoo to deodorant, shaving products and cosmetics) rate with the Skin Deep Cosmetics Safety Database.

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