Pedalling towards a greener world (29-Jul-07)
From Lauraibm
MI Summary
It is widely agreed that business is the biggest single emitter of carbon, accounting for about 50% of the total. On the face of it companies do appear to be taking action, both in their own practices and in the goods they produce, however the impact of corporate initiatives isn’t always known or quantified.
John Blackwell has advised hundreds of businesses on environmental policy, he claims that some businesses generally believe that there is an active role they ought to play, however a larger group of companies take environmental issues as a fashion and marketing point of view. However, this sort of approach may damage the corporation; a recent survey found that three out of four British families would boycott firms that didn’t take steps to reduce their environmental impacts. Blackwell also believes there are good reasons for companies to take the environment seriously as it provides the business with a more sustainable environment and allows them to make more money. Sun Microsystems is a good example of a company who is considered very environmentally responsible in the way it is run and in its products.
In contrast to Sun other businesses have simply just tried to portray a green image without actually acting proactively with regards to green issues. A recent survey found that a mere 14% of business leaders had a clear strategy for tackling climate change.
This article highlights some of the benefits of executing a responsible environmental policy; however, it is important to be aware that there is a large representation gap between the number of companies who claim to act in a green manner and those who actually do.
Main Text
Reducing the carbon footprint of your company will make it much more attractive to customers and to prospective staff
Mary Braid IT is widely agreed that business is the biggest single emitter of carbon, accounting for about 50% of the total. So the push for business to do something to reduce global warming seems reasonable.
On the face of it, companies do seem to be taking action, both in their own practices and in the goods they produce. In December, for example, Ikea’s Christmas gift to each of its 9,000 staff was a fold-up bicycle, part of its wider campaign to discourage staff from driving to work.
In March, Walkers Crisps became one of the first British companies to sport the new carbon logo, a sign of its partnership with the government-funded Carbon Trust and its commitment to reduce the carbon emitted in crisp production.
In addition, firms claim to be cutting company travel and restricting company cars as well as reducing power consumption. The number of corporate environmental posts is also rising � BT has a head of climate change and Barclays Bank has a head of environmental management.
But the impact of the current rash of corporate initiatives isn’t always known or quantified � for example, a spokesman for Ikea said the company doesn’t know how many staff have switched to cycling to work. So how many of these company environmental initiatives are genuine and effective? And what exactly is driving the trend? Is it a desire to recruit environmentally conscious employees or a dash for brand edge as consumers become increasingly environmentally conscious? Or does a lot of what’s taking place simply boil down to a vacuous following of fashion?
John Blackwell, chief executive of JBA, a professional-services company that has advised hundreds of businesses on environmental policy, doesn’t trust much of the current corporate activity. “There are businesses that genuinely believe there is an active role that they ought to play,” he said. “Then there’s a larger group of companies that take a fashion and marketing point of view. They’re approaching the issue very cynically.”
Consumers seem to agree that a lot of “greenwashing” is going on. More than half of those surveyed by the advertising agency MPG in June said they were sceptical about corporate commitment to the environment and that they believed superficial changes were being made to curry public favour.
The survey also found that three out of four British families would boycott firms that didn’t take steps to reduce their environmental impact, supporting claims that changing consumer attitudes play a big part in the current business trend.
But Blackwell believes there are good reasons for companies to take the environment seriously � doing the right thing environmentally also means creating a more sustainable business and making more money. “The environmentally aware will become more ‘brand visible’ and more profitable,” he said.
Blackwell said corporate environmental strategies ought to consider infrastructure, and question the building of “glass palace” headquarters that look impressive but waste so much energy and are often less than half occupied. Companies ought also to assess the energy wasted on unnecessary air conditioning and lighting, and overpowered, short-life computer systems.
Blackwell added that companies should consider the environmental impact of their people. Is it necessary for thousands to commute to the same building every day? Flexible working should be adopted and meetings ought to take place only when they actually matter.
The IT company Sun Microsystems is one of the companies with which Blackwell has worked. It is considered very environmentally responsible in the way it is run and in its products � computer systems that have a long life and consume little power.
“We’ve developed many environmental policies,” said Richard Barrington, Sun Microsystems’ head of corporate affairs. “We run buses from our Farnborough campus to the railway station and shops in conjunction with our neighbour company Nokia.
“We also have 60% of our staff working up to three days a week at home and 12% working full-time at home to reduce commuting. We’ve even been able to close offices in some parts of the country. It’s mutually beneficial. The environment benefits and we have also seen productivity benefits. People work better in flexible arrangements.
“We think that having good social and environmental policies also helps us to attract and retain staff. Employee interest in the environment isn’t overstated.
In fact, they get frustrated when they think a particular green policy is moving too slowly. If you have to divide your refuse at home into five bins for recycling, then naturally you ask why that isn’t happening at work.”
Sun Microsystems went for early implementation of a European directive that forces electronics companies to recover and recycle a percentage of the goods they produce in a bid to reduce landfill. “We will take back anything ever made by us,” said Barrington. “And our business customers are really taking us up on that. We’ve changed the way we make computers � moving from plastic to metal � to make recycling more profitable.”
But does Sun Microsystems’ production of low-power, long-life computer systems not mean reduced profit as well as less landfill and a smaller carbon footprint?
“Obsolescence was built into business strategy for many years,” said Barrington. “But consumers want environmentally sound products and we benefit from increased market share. Our low-carbon technology is our best and fastest-selling product.”
It’s not all plain sailing for Sun Microsystems, though. Barrington said selling low-power products can be difficult when client firms have a weak environmental strategy. “The person responsible for IT doesn’t pay for the firm’s energy, so how do you convince him to care about the carbon footprint of the technology he’s buying?” said Barrington.
And it’s certainly not all plain sailing in the wider corporate world either. Euan Murray, general manager of carbon footprinting at the Carbon Trust � set up by the government to help companies reduce their carbon emissions and create a low-carbon economy � said the trust worked with 500 companies last year and that these companies recognised the real business opportunities involved in environmental initiatives.
Other businesses, however, are clearly just painting themselves green and hoping nobody scratches the surface. Last month a survey of business leaders by YouGov found that only 14% of them had a clear strategy for tackling climate change and that a third of senior executives saw environmental initiatives as an exercise in guarding a company’s reputation.
Another study by the communications consultancy Headland revealed that many fund managers believed that environmental policies were primarily motivated by business’s desire to get the “green fraternity off their back”.
Clearly, we need more companies to show a genuine interest in the environment.
