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Recent Posts by Joel Makower
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There's a classic, geeky science joke that "Chemists have all the solutions." That's starting to appear true from an environmental perspective, though it remains to be seen whether those solutions will actually come to market. Green chemistry, a common-sense discipline that's less than twenty years old, has been emerging in recent years from the lab and into the marketplace, making inroads in conventional chemical companies and creating opportunities for upstarts. As I've noted in the past, this has been taking place at a slow, almost imperceptible pace, with relatively little fanfare, considering the implications. And there's a long way to go before green chemistry fulfills its catalytic potential to transform the way we make things, doing so in a way that reduces risks to
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In recent weeks, former vice president Al Gore challenged Americans to commit to producing 100 percent of electricity from "renewable energy and clean carbon-free sources" within 10 years. And former senator John Edwards launched a Half in Ten campaign "to reduce poverty in the United States by 50 percent within 10 years." Two bold, audacious goals. Same starting dates. Same decade-long trajectory. So, is there any chance that Messrs. Gore and Edwards might possibly join forces? Not likely, based on what I've seen and heard to date. That their respective laudable and ambitious goals could possibly be synergistic seems beyond the grasp of these two leaders and their acolytes. I've covered this topic — the job-creation potential of clean technology and renewable
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This week's announcement by General Motors that it has joined with more than 30 utility companies across the U.S. to work on issues related to electric vehicles got a great deal of media play. But the coverage only began to scratch the surface of the complexity of bringing plug-in electric vehicles to market in mass quantities. In reality, the GM-utility conversation isn't entirely new. It began in January, at a Vehicle Electrification Workshop held at GM's research center in Warren, Michigan. I had the privilege of attending the meeting, which was facilitated by my colleagues at the sustainability strategy firm GreenOrder. The meeting included more than two dozen utility executives, including a team from the Electric Power Research Institute, the industry-funded consortium that served
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Jeffrey Hollender, the founder, CEO at Seventh Generation, published a counterpoint to my recent post, How Bad Is Greenwashing, Really? I encourage you to read it here. I just responded on his site, and thought I'd share the conversation here. To wit: Jeffrey, Thanks for your comment. I've long admired your outspokenness on the topic of the green marketplace, and your willingness to be, as you describe yourself, an inspired protagonist. I don't disagree with some of your points, but I think you missed mine. It wasn't about companies that can't handle criticism. And it wasn't about condoning companies that are being misleading or dishonest. As you well know, I have been an outspoken critic of greenwashing myself over the past twenty years. But there is a tremendous amount of
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Is greenwashing really as bad a problem as some are making it out to be? I've been thinking about this question a lot recently, as the G-word crops up more and more frequently in articles, blogs, reports, and conversations. Of course, the answer depends a lot on one's view of the potential for big companies to improve their environmental performance — and talk truthfully about it — and whether the pace of corporate change is sufficient to address the magnitude of the problems we face. Like "beauty" (and "green"), "greenwash" is in the eye of the beholder. The definition of greenwashing has changed in recent years. In the early 1990s, the term was used to describe deliberate and cynical attempts by companies to mislead the public about their
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Energy Help: A Primer for Smaller (and Bigger) Companies
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As fuel and electricity prices have ratcheted up, so, too, have the queries about what to do: where can companies, especially smaller ones, go for help?
On the one hand, that's a big, vague question. Where you go depends on what business you are in, where you're located, what you need, and how much, if anything, you're able to spend. On the other hand, there's a lot of help out there, much of it low-cost or free, if only you know where to look.
Below are just a few of the resources aimed at small and midsize companies. They will be of help largely to U.S.-based companies — apologies to those elsewhere, though there likely are analogs to these resources in other countries. This is by no means comprehensive; indeed, it probably only scratches the surface. But it points to a handful of approaches and resources that appear to be well-kept secrets for the vast majority of companies I hear from.
- Manufacturing Extension Partnerships. This is a national network with hundreds of specialists who understand the needs of manufacturers. The network sits within the U.S. Commerce Department's National Institute for Standards and Technology. There are 59 MEP centers in 443 locations in every state and in Puerto Rico, providing manufacturers with an array of services that focus on growth, productivity, and efficiency.
From the MEP site:
MEP center specialists provide an array of services to companies, from initial assessments prioritizing opportunities for improvement, to implementation projects guiding companies through process improvements, productivity increases, and growth. Centers provide companies with access to training resources as well as specific project assistance. Some engagements are short-term classes or basic projects. Other companies engage in multiple projects with their local field specialist — as one improvement project often leads to several others.
- Industrial Assessment Centers is another federal program, this one under the U.S. Energy Department, that provides manufacturers with an in-depth assessment of a plant site — its facilities, services and manufacturing operations.
The program is administered by Rutgers University, which coordinates teams composed mainly of engineering faculty and students from 26 participating U.S. universities. The teams conduct energy audits and provide recommendations to manufacturers to help them improve productivity, reduce waste, and save energy. Recommendations from industrial assessments have averaged about $55,000 in potential annual savings for each manufacturer, according to DOE.
- U.S. EPA voluntary programs include some 200 programs to help companies reduce their environmental impacts and costs; someone once told me that the agency doesn't know the exact number of such programs (only select programs are listed at the link above).
The best known among these are Energy Star, which helps companies measure their energy performance, set goals, and track savings; National Environmental Performance Track, which recognizes company facilities that have strong environmental programs and records; and Climate Leaders, which works with companies to develop comprehensive climate change strategies. Other programs cover everything from laboratories to landfills. BSR recently published a directory of EPA's climate-related voluntary programs (Download - PDF).
The programs vary widely in terms of what they do (and how well they do it), but several offer some kind of technical assistance or mentoring; for example, Performance Track's mentoring program allows participants to seek guidance from other members.
- State and county programs. Of course, it's not just the feds. Nearly every state, county, and large city has one or more programs to help companies, particularly smaller ones, reduce energy, waste, water use, and other things. Some, like the Green Business Programs in each of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties, reward companies that have reached some level of environmental achievement and performance; many of these provide consulting to companies to help them reach those goals. Some of the programs are run by nongovernmental groups — for example, Minnesota Waste Wise, run by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, which offers technical and informational services to help companies reduce waste.
A great number of these programs provide financial or technical assistance to companies to implement energy efficiency and renewable energy programs — everything from tax deductions to loans to subsidies to rebates. There's a comprehensive directory of them here.
- Local energy utilities. Last and certainly not least are local utilities, a growing number of which offer consulting and technical assistance to companies in their service area, including audits to identify opportunities for savings. For example, Seattle City Light, the city-run utility, offers facility assessments to help companies monitor, manage, and control their electricity and other utility costs. In the Midwest, Alliant Energy offers business energy audits that cover the full spectrum of energy-using appliances. Even smaller utilities are stepping up: tiny Muscatine Power and Water, which serves the Iowa town of the same name (population: 23,000) offers audits.
There are still other resources, notably the growing number of local green business networking organizations, such as those in Austin, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Rochester, San Francisco's East Bay, Washington, D.C., and the states of Colorado and Wisconsin, among many other places. These vary widely in usefulness. Some are loose networks aimed at providing fertile ground for job-seekers and consultants, others focus on strategies to help eco-entrepreneurs market their businesses, while still others have organized mentoring programs in which companies can learn from their peers. (A few, based on my experience, aren't much more than drinking clubs, though none of the ones mentioned here.) Some trade associations also offer peer-to-peer mentoring programs, too, though only a handful are aimed specifically at providing assistance on energy and environmental issues. (About a decade ago, I authored a guide to such programs, available here.)
And, of course, you can always hire a consultant.
Bottom line: When it comes to optimizing your company's energy use, there are fewer and fewer excuses for doing nothing.
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