They point out that 3 factors will contribute to the currently un-measured impact due to:

1) Non-binding geography

2) Inverse effect of women becoming economically involved vs. number of offspring produced

3) The proportion of investment into said offspring’s education.

And this is not only an opportunity for governments. Global corporations and nongovernmental organizations should also strategically assess what they can do to enable and prepare these women as potential consumers, employees, and citizens. As Center for Work–Life Policy founding president Sylvia Ann Hewlett has noted, some companies, including Goldman Sachs and Google, are building talent recruitment plans around the potential of the Third Billion. (The center is releasing a report on women in emerging markets in mid-2010.) “By investing in [these women],” Hewlett wrote in a 2010 blog entry on the Harvard Business Review website, “companies are betting on a brighter future — for a workforce just waiting to blossom, for economies whose development depends on this new crop of talent, and, of course, for themselves.”

In turn, how will be designing and accommodating for this emerging global force that will no longer be limited by culture or location?

6 Sins of Green Washing:

Fibbing

No Proof

Irrelevance

Hidden Trade-Off

Sin of Vagueness

Lesser of Two Evils

More on Climate Change and Politics.

I do worry about the looming effect that will lead to the intense social attitude of green fatigue. I am even more concerned on the state of (mis)information that continues to generate. As a society we are not comfortable with lacking final answers. We need to have clear lines of black and white but unfortunately the answers to solving climate change, pollution, resource depletion, and social change reside squarely in the gray area. There is no one solution to any of these problems just as there is not just one cause for their effects.

This article addresses a common road bump in the quest create green products, which is the overwhelming confusion surrounding product certification. The majority of this is due to misleading word use (aka greenwashing) and misappropriated recognition.

I’ll be the first to admit that when it comes to the facts and figures of global pollution and energy use I struggle to wrap my head around what those numbers actually represent. This short ad by German Watch does a great job contextualizing the current state of affairs regarding national carbon footprints and their global implications – Would love to find a US version!

-Benny Fung, the head of Hong Kong-based soap and cosmetics maker Lutex

While it’s easy to naysay WalMart’s positive impact on sustainability, it’s great to see how they are influencing otherwise indifferent manufacturing communities to step up or step out

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/26/AR2010022606757.html?hpid=topnews

That being said, the quote “Our customers care; they just don’t want to pay more” is truly disheartening but a reality. How could a large retail giant like WalMart encourage its consumers to care enough to purchase responsibly?

Listen/Download their informative Webinar here

by Peter Nicholson, Innovationist
FORESIGHT DESIGN INITIATIVE

I attended my first sustainable design conference more than 10 years ago. A fundamental difference between what I knew then, and what I do now, is how difficult this work can be. Talking recently with a fellow attendee, we agreed that we discussed bigger change back in 1998 than we do today. We also observed that we’re currently engaged in more actual projects than we were in the past. Has our vision has been tempered by the reality of trying to realize it?

For me, every day is a balancing act between cynicism and optimism. Every step forward (e.g. the possibility of U.S. cap and trade legislation passing), seems to come with two back (e.g. stalled cap and trade legislation, plus a surge of global warming skepticism). I’m learning what every experienced social change agent knows: how difficult the process can be. My fear is that the knowledge will prevent me from taking more steps forward. Naivete, as so many entrepreneurs know, can actually be a benefit. Not knowing how steep the climb will be, one is less reluctant to begin!

The challenging lesson I’m realizing is that, as heretical as it may sound, the ultimate point of this work may not be to alter the world, at least not directly. It may be to allow the work to alter me. By incorporating teaching into the mix – an addition to, not a substitution for the transformation work – hopefully others are similarly impacted. That said, what I wrestle with on a daily basis is knowing what prize, exactly, to keep my eye on. That, and that, like the world, I don’t always want to change.

January and February have been a bit of a whirlwind for me – however I have news to share:

As of this Friday I am now the IDSA Ecodesign Section Chair. This is also currently in conjunction with my duties as IDSA Minnesota Chair. Regarding our local chapter I have a ‘State of the Union’ meeting planned for March 4th. In addition, Lextant’s Marty Gage will be presenting a workshop – Catch and Release on March 24th (location pending). We are striving to increase the number and quality of events this year both from the chapter and national level – I’d love any suggestions you may have!

-k-