By now, everyone is aware that the future of our planet to sustain life is being threatened. Human activities have resulted, and continue to cause, problems which are not going away. In the developed world, we tend to blame shift. After all, we say, look at the disastrous conditions in impoverished countries. It looks pretty clear that they must be the ones contributing to most of the world's problems. Why should we choose a bicycle ride over a drive in our own SUVs when they are burning tires for profit?
Well the bad news for us is that residents of the poorest countries on Earth contribute significantly less to problems such as global warming than us here in Canada, or in any other developed country for that matter. We love our individual businesses, our wedding photographers, fast food companies, and convenient packaging. We love to drive, we love to be the ideal temperature, and we love our landfills. All of that convenience means we add a staggering 20 tonnes of carbon to the atmosphere each year (individually.) Compare that to .1 tonne for each person in the poorest Asian and African countries, and you see where the real problem is coming from.
Fortunately, we who are causing the most damage have the best chance to reduce the harm being done to the earth. How? Well, by conducting greener business and by selecting companies who insist on conducting greener business.
How can we tell? Well, companies have realized that green products are big bucks in today's society. Catering companies in Toronto who use organic foods, grown with minimal environmental impact, are more likely to attract clients than standard companies who rely on big agriculture. People are beginning to vote with their money, and it shows.
In fact, the awareness within the green movement is so large right now that you would be hard pressed to find a company that does not put its environmental efforts at the forefront of a marketing campaign. A company which specializes in bedding for example, wants potential customers to know they use natural materials in their products. It eases the worries of a public not only concerned about environmental issues, but health ones as well.
Word of mouth is the best form of advertisement for any business which has gone green. Customers who find a great deal on organic products are likely to bring in more customers thanks to roaming data than would ever be found using standard print ads. Using that kind of technique, businesses go green in two different ways!
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