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Reducing Material Use Through Packaging Innovation: Aveda's Journey
WASTE NOT - As a leading producer of premium personal care products committed to environmental and social responsibility — articulated as Earth & Community Care — Aveda has long been focused on reducing the environmental impacts associated with product packaging. The sustained commitment has evolved over 35 years but can be summarized in three main themes:
C2C Thinking Helps Shaw Redefine Sustainability in Flooring Industry
WASTE NOT - Twelve years ago, in response to growing demand from our customers, Shaw Industries set out to create a more environmentally responsible product alternative to the traditional PVC-backed carpet tiles prevalent in the commercial market.
Ecofiltro: Quenching Thirst in Guatemala One Family at a Time
PRODUCT, SERVICE & DESIGN INNOVATION - To prepare for this year's Sustainable Brands Innovation Open (SBIO) competition, we're catching up with some of our favorite entrepreneurial ventures from competitions past ...In most of the developed world, few of us give much thought to where our drinking water comes from. When thirsty, we need only to walk to the nearest faucet for an endless supply of fresh, potable water. Studies show the average American household wastes 100,000 to 200,000 gallons of water every year, while 780 million people in developing countries lack access to reliable drinking water — about one in nine people on the planet.
NYC Center for Materials Reuse Quantifying Benefits of Product Reuse in Urban Environments
WASTE NOT - Product Reuse is the exchange of secondhand or surplus products between individuals and/or organizations. This exchange is often performed by social service agencies looking to distribute goods to their clients or to raise funds for their operations.
How Preventing Household Waste Can Be Fun and Profitable
WASTE NOT - Ask a room full of consumers, “Who here hates to see things go to waste?” and every hand will go up energetically. But if everyone hates to waste, then how come we generate so much of it? And what can we do to prevent waste from being created in the first place? Answering these questions can be profitable and fun.
Marketing “Sustainability”: Don't Forget the Green Guides
MARKETING AND COMMS - In October 2012, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued its revised “Green Guides,” which are designed to help marketers ensure that the claims they make about environmental attributes of their products are truthful.
The North Face Launches Recycling Program for Apparel, Footwear
WASTE NOT - The North Face has announced a new initiative aimed at reducing the amount of clothing and footwear going to landfills.
Is Your Brand RAD? Partnering with the EPA’s Responsible Appliance Disposal Program
WASTE NOT - In 2012, EPA’s Responsible Appliance Disposal (RAD) program celebrated six years and 50 partners. EPA launched the RAD program in 2006 as a voluntary partnership program to help protect the ozone layer and climate system. In its first year, RAD partnered with nine utilities.
Coke, Sainsbury’s Among First To Achieve Carbon Trust Water Standard
SUPPLY CHAIN - Water scarcity has been recognized by the United Nations as one of the most pressing problems facing the 21st-century world. Although 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is water, nearly 1.2 billion people, or one-fifth of the human race, live in areas of physical water scarcity, and another 1.6 billion face economic water shortages.
Sonoco Lightens Materials Load with Cradle-to-Cradle Approach to Packaging
WASTE NOT - Sonoco, one of the largest diversified global packaging companies, has always prided itself on ‘closing the loop.’ Our company began recycling in the 1920s, before recycling was even a buzzword. Today, we successfully offer a full range of services from creation to reclamation that separates Sonoco from its packaging peers.
FlashFood Mobile App Diverts Restaurant Food Waste To Feed the Hungry
WASTE NOT - The statistics are staggering: One in five children goes to bed hungry every night in America, while 40 percent of food in this country is sent to the landfill, according to a recent report from the Natural Resources Defense Council. There is an immediate solution to redirecting this excess wasted food to families in need, but fear is choking the supply chain.
Paper Supplier Suspends Forest Clearance After Losing Disney, Levi’s
BEHAVIOR CHANGE - In response to its recent abandonment by nearly 100 international corporate customers, Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) has announced an immediate end to the clearing of natural forest across its entire supply chain in Indonesia. Disney, Levi’s and Mattel were among some of the major brands to jump ship after years of criticism over the paper company’s role in harming Indonesia’s endangered rainforests and communities.
Communicating Sustainability: How Do We Go From Talking to the Wall to Preaching to the Choir?
MARKETING AND COMMS - Calling all innovators and creatives! During April 2013, Sustainable Brands will be publishing a new “Issues in Focus” editorial package highlighting the most effective and engaging examples of sustainability communications.
By-Product Synergy Networks Offer Zero-Waste Solutions for Businesses, Cities Worldwide
WASTE NOT - By-product synergy (BPS), a process that turns one company’s waste into valuable raw materials for another, offers an innovative, collaborative way to divert waste from landfills, cut costs and improve the environment.
Curtis Packaging Partners with NativeEnergy to Bring Clean Water to Rural Kenya
PRESS RELEASE - 2013 carbon offset project to prevent deforestation and carbon emissions from wood burning by providing water filtration systems
Solar Panels and Schoolyard Chickens: A Net-Positive Campus
WASTE NOT - This post first appeared on GOOD on January 22, 2013.
Strong, Flexible Leadership Drives Sustainability at Caesars Entertainment
LEADERSHIP - Amidst the wanton extravagance of the Las Vegas Strip, Caesars Entertainment is making notable strides in reducing its environmental impact. Estimates find that for every $10 million in revenue earned, Caesars produces fewer than 1,300 metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which monetize at less than $28,000 in environment costs (compared to an average 3,800 metric tons for S&P 500 companies, which monetize at over $80,000 in environmental costs).
PUMA Introduces C2C-Certified, Recyclable Track Jacket, Backpack as Part of InCycle Collection
WASTE NOT - Did you know that 31 waste-disposal trucks are needed to clear the waste that 100,000 pairs of conventional sneakers create during the production process and consumer life (until their owners throw them away and they end up in landfills or incinerators)?
Solazyme and Mitsui Enter into Multi-Year Agreement to Jointly Develop a New Suite of Tailored Algal Oils
PRESS RELEASE - New suite of sustainable, highly functional oils brings significant breakthroughs to the oleochemicals and functional fluids industries
Dell Reconnect: Turning E-Waste into a Community Resource
WASTE NOT - Irresponsible destruction of electronic waste can be a nasty business. Dell recognized many years ago that our customers wanted a convenient, safe and secure program for disposing their used electronics. We also recognized that our responsibility to our communities and the environment extends beyond simply building a product with the Dell name on it.
