If you’re a marketer, or a conscientious citizen for that matter, chances are sustainability is a consideration everyday. So, in preparation for the year ahead, I’ve identified my top three words to live by to ensure fruitful campaigns and a sustainable future.
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Be Transparent:
In the wake of Wal-Mart’s 2009 announcement about their Sustainability Product Index that will require all suppliers to disclose data about material efficiency, natural resources, energy use and employees – I am willing to bet this year, CMOs, COOs and Sustainability Officers will be hustling to identify plans to achieve full transparency. Author and Sustainability Leader, Andrew Winston said it beautifully in a Harvard Business Review article on the very subject, “let’s be clear: this kind of sustainability data collection is good for business, and it’s definitely good for Wal-Mart. And while it may seem like a total pain to suppliers, it will be good for them as well. The logic is simple: knowing your business better makes it easier to find hidden value.” Growing retailer and consumer demands for transparency have spurred new trends like full Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) and Building Information Modeling (BIM) Initiatives like these not only promise transparency, but also increased authenticity across marketing communications efforts and new product development. Deloitte published a white paper on this very subject that’s worth a read: Lifecycle Assessment: Where is it on your sustainability agenda?
Aim for Specificity:
The fear of greenwashing, the rise of the Greenwashing Index and the criticism of many big brand’s “Green” campaigns can be chalked up to one serious flaw: everyone is rallying around a word that has no true definition. We should have listened to Kermit from the start when he famously said, “It’s not easy being green.” Now that new systems for data collection are finally being put into place like LCA and BIM, environmental responsibility can be quantified – something green never had going for it. Expect to see new terms, that have data to back them up, like “cradle to cradle,” low VOC and net-zero to be on the rise this year. To help support clear, specific messaging more brands are likely to treat environmental attributes much like the food industry does with ingredient disclosure and nutrition labeling – listing everything that goes into the product and what it’s affect on the consumer will be. This is a concept SC Johnson has already began to explore – many more brands are sure to follow.
Prepare for Adaptation
According to the environmental protection agency, Global Climate Change is may result from: natural factors, such as changes in the sun’s intensity or slow changes in the Earth’s orbit around the sun; natural processes within the climate system (e.g. changes in ocean circulation); or human activities that change the atmosphere’s composition and the land surface (e.g. deforestation, reforestation, urbanization, desertification, etc.) ozone, perfluorinated carbons, and hydrofluorocarbons. No matter what’s is causing Global Climate Change, its happening – and faster than scientists first predicted. So as hard as we try to reach net-zero without having to significantly change are lifestyles, we’re realizing it’s probably not going to be good enough. Leaders like Sarah Susanka are leading the charge to adapt with her “not so big philosophy” and the economy has jumpstarted a trends from luxury to moderation – with more meals at home, smaller cars and a return to the outdoors as opposed to the manmade – Glacier National Park saw visitors increase 12% in 2009 and Yellowstone reached an all time high of 3.3 million visitors pass through the park. It’s a good thing we are beginning to adapt because the environment will begin to demand it. According to Union of Concerned Scientists, Sea level could rise by 3.5 to 34.6 inches between 1990 and 2100, making coastal groundwater saltier, endangering wetlands, and inundating valuable land and coastal communities; changes in precipitation patterns could cause increased droughts and reduced water supply across the globe; severe stress on forests for rapid and greater warming; and serious human health impacts, such as from increasing heat stress, worsening air pollution, declining water quality, and the spread of infectious diseases into regions previously free from them.
