We at D2E have been fans of the Forbes Loft project for a while now, so it was great to see this article in the Globe today by Erin Ailworth. Besides outlining all of the innovative features that will help Forbes be a great example of sustainable living, the article also bring up an interesting point about the LEED certification. Though this certification was created to avoid greenwashing and to help consumers identify a real green building from one that just markets itself to be one, Forbes is not going to seek LEED certification. They have decided that they would rather put that money and time into the building and let it speak for itself. Like any new venture in life, there are kinks to be worked out and it seems that LEED has some growing up to do.

“This is, in part, why LEED even exists today,” Hicks said. “If you look back in the early ’90s, there were all these buildings being built that were saying they were green and all they had were photovoltaics on the roof. And that’s not a green building. Green buildings are more comprehensive than that.” – Tom Hicks quoted in the Globe article

On the other hand…

 

Galinsky said the Forbes Park team is “not anti-LEED,” but he doesn’t believe the project needs the certification. The LEED process can be “slow, confusing, and frustrating,” he said, adding costs to a project’s bottom line. Galinsky said he would rather use that money on conservation and renewable-energy efforts.

Take a look at this article on Grist.org by Auden Schendler.

We’re concerned that LEED has become costly, slow, brutal, confusing, and unwieldy, a death march for applicants administered by a soviet-style bureaucracy that makes green building more difficult than it needs to be, yet has everyone genuflecting at the door to prove their credentials. The result: mediocre “green” buildings where certification, not environmental responsibility, is the primary goal; a few super-high-level eco-structures built by ultra-motivated (and wealthy) owners that stand like the Taj Mahal as beacons of impossibility; an explosion of LEED-accredited architects and engineers chasing lots of money but designing few buildings; and a discouraged cadre of professionals who want to build green, but can’t afford to certify their buildings. A growing number of LEED veterans have, or soon will, throw in the towel. LEED is broken. This article explores what went wrong, and begins a discussion of how to fix it.

We are not architects here at D2E. We are critical consumers trying to navigate this gray zone – looking for ways that we can live a more sustainable life. So the complications with LEED certification just make it harder for us. We’d like to think that if a building is deserving of a LEED stamp of approval, it would be easy to aquire. It is unfortunate that this is not the case and this is more reason for us to host D2E. We research each exhibitor and they have to pass our criteria before we allow them to participate. We do the homework for other critical consumers that are busy with their families and jobs, as they should be.
 

 

Back in May I wrote an entry about greenwashing. In this entry, I questioned the Sierra Club’s criteria for their endorsements, specifically talking about the Chevy Tahoe.

“How is the Sierra Club determining which products to endorse and should we trust them?” – D2E Blog, May 14, 2008

When we saw that the Sierra Club also endorsed Green Works by Clorox, but not any other great cleaning products (like D2E exhibitors Shaklee and Seaside Naturals, or Method or Mrs Meyers) I started to loose faith in their brand. It started to become clear that the Sierra Club was not using their brand as a stamp of approval based on open criteria, but more as a marketing tool.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a capitalist 100%. I like to see nonprofits and for profits working together for a common goal. I see all three parts of sustainability as equally important; environment, social and economic. But we have to be transparent about our dealings and the goal is to create a new and improved environment for commerce. At least that is how we see it here at D2E. We see our weekend of exhibitors as the future of business. These people are doing business the way it has to be done in order for us to evolve. (See D2E Criteria here and D2E 2008 footprint here.)

So I was pleased to finally learn some details about the Sierra Club endorsements. Anya Kamenetz lays it out for us in the September issue of Fast Company. I recommend you read the whole article since Kamenetz does a good job reporting. She confirmed my suspicions about the Sierra Club, and she confirmed my belief that consumers are smarter than many marketers think. Apparently the Sierra Club has been taking an undisclosed amount of money from Clorox in exchange for the endorsement, and it made no demands for Clorox to offer recycled packaging or change the environmental profile of any other Clorox products.

“The take-home message for the Sierra Club and other nonprofits may be that they need to draw a careful distinction between two types of nonprofit/for-profit relationships: cause-related marketing and endorsements. …. In endorsement relationships, on the other hand, a group such as the Forest Stewardship Council or the Sustainable Fishery Advocates puts its seal of approval on a product that claims some mission-related benefits. No money should be involved, or that seal isn’t going to be worth much.” – Fast Company, September 2008

My take on this whole issue is that we are moving one step forward and two steps back. I am happy to see nonprofits working with for profits. But obviously they need to be careful about how they do this. I am also happy that a large company like Clorox is working to create products that are better for the environment and better for people. These large companies can touch more people, thereby expanding the natural market and educating more consumers. There is a moral to learn from the Sierra Club’s story, and hopefully it will help us move that one step closer to becoming a sustainable economy.

By the way, in the same issue of Fast Company there is an interview with Jeff Swartz, CEO of Timberland. We are big Swartz fans here. This is a business person that is walking the walk.

When Betty and I started talking about producing Down:2:Earth, it came from our desire to cut through all the bull. We are both skeptical consumers that want to support businesses that are conducting themselves in a way that is good for the community and the earth, as well as their pockets. We also wanted to learn how we could make a difference ourselves as individuals, as consumers and as small business owners. So we hired a young, enthusiastic environmental major from Tufts (Jennifer Baldwin) and we put together a list of criteria. We also enlisted a board of advisors that consists of some great local sustainable experts.

Considering how much hype the whole green movement has received it is hard to decipher between what is really making strides to improve our life and what is just marketing. So we were pleased to see Beth Daley’s story in today’s Globe. See excerpt below.
“Just how green should you feel driving the new Chevy Tahoe hybrid sport utility vehicle?

The eight-passenger vehicle is plastered with “hybrid” labels. An automobile magazine panel that included the executive director of The Sierra Club named it the “Green Car of the Year.”

But the Tahoe gets only about 20 miles per gallon – not much better than the nonhybrid Honda Pilot SUV, which also seats eight. The celebrated Toyota Prius gets around 46 miles per gallon.

“How a 6,000-pound behemoth can be the green car of the year is beyond me,” said David Champion, director of Consumer Reports Auto Test Division. “It’s a marketing exercise rather than reality.”"

Unfortunately this brings up another question to be answered. How is the Sierra Club determining which products to endorse and should we trust them? The Sierra Club has a great reputation, as far as I know, but now I wonder. Perhaps I am looking at this from the wrong angle. Some people really need powerful vehicles to climb over mountain passes in snowy conditions and haul heavy loads. So perhaps this is a great alternative for that person. This sounds like a job for our research intern. More info to come later.

In the meantime, we will continue navigating this great gray space working to set the bar high and promote the companies that are helping us move to a more sustainable future.