Free Download
Download Forbo_sustain.pdf (1915.0K)
The Market Transformation to Sustainability has a new website and more information on SMaRT sustainable product standards, The Capital Markets Partnership and Climate Neutral Buildings.There are pages on how to get your product certified as sustainable, Integrative Design and how you can become a member. Go here and see for yourself.
Now that the government is setting up guidelines for truth in green advertising, more people are asking about Sustainable Product Standards and how are they developed. Below is a snapshot of what went into the development of SMaRT.
2000
Charter Members: http://mts.sustainableproducts.com/members.htm
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
We welcome your comments below or email Mike@SustainableProducts.com
Sustainable Product Standards don't move forward on their own. Our thanks to Mario Vellandi for taping the "Getting SMaRT about Sustainable Products" last month. You can watch Mike Italiano's presentation by going to http://sustainableproducts.blip.tv/#1034725 or hit the play button below.
If you would rather read all about it, John Marshall Roberts the director of communications at Evenson Design Group wrote up a great summary found on Sustainable Life Media, the defacto place for sustainable messaging and marketing trends. John's key takeaways were:
Read the full write up on Sustainable Life Media here.
The U.S. Conference of Mayors has signed a joint resolution to "support the Capital Markets Partnership's Sustainable Investment Initiative to generate market investment in high performance green buildings through Sustainable Mortgage Backed Securities that will stimulate the economy and combat climate change." They also, "...encourage additional public-private partnerships to increase market investment in environmental innovation and climate protection."
The resolution was adopted at the 76th Annual Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors held June 20-24, 2008 in Miami. It was sponsored by: Hon. Gavin Newsom, Mayor, City & County of San Francisco; Hon. Richard Daley, Mayor, City of Chicago; Hon. Chuck Reed, Mayor of San Jose; Hon. Manuel A. Diaz, Mayor of Miami and President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
The Capital Markets Partnership is made up of a consensus-based group of investors, banks, insurance companies, city & state governments, USGBC, Sustainable Furniture Council, and other environmental and public consumer groups. The SMaRT Sustainable Standard based on Life Cycle Assessment of products with a third party audit, is the underwriting criteria for the Sustainable Investment Initiative.
Full copy of the Conference of Mayors Resolution below:
WHEREAS, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the
international community’s respected assembly of scientists, has
found that human activities are largely responsible for
increasing concentrations of greenhouse gas pollutants in the
atmosphere and resulting climate change; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Conference of Mayors has taken action to
combat climate change, including the establishment of the U.S.
Conference of Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement, signed by
over 830 mayors representing over 79 million Americans; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. building sector is responsible for 48 percent
of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, according to
the U.S. Energy Information Administration; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the American
Institute of Architects have called for immediate energy
reduction of all new and renovated buildings to one-half the
national average for that building type, with increased
reductions of 10 percent every five years so that by the year
2030 all new buildings will be carbon neutral; and
WHEREAS, federal, state and local governments have adopted green
building standards for construction of public buildings and many
jurisdictions are now expanding green building standards to
commercial and residential buildings in their communities; and
WHEREAS, public-private partnerships that utilize market
mechanisms to advance green building activity in the US are
essential to ensure that environmental building standards can be
raised while at the same time growing our national economy; and
WHEREAS, major investment banks, institutional investors and
governments, led by the City and County of San Francisco and
JPMorgan Chase, have worked together to advance the Capital
Markets Partnership’s Sustainable Investment Initiative that
will generate unprecedented market investment in green buildings
constructed in the US; and
WHEREAS, this partnership has completed a peer reviewed report
called ‘Creating Economic Stimulus While Stopping Climate Credit
Risk/Irreversibility’ that demonstrates that climate induced
property damages have caused increases of 100 to 600 percent in
insurance rates and also reduced availability of coverage, and
have caused rating agencies to conclude that these developments
have “serious credit implications”; and
WHEREAS, this report identifies investment products, including
mortgage-backed securities exclusively for green buildings, that
can be developed to increase investment in green buildings,
decrease credit risk in the current investment environment, and
help to decrease greenhouse gas emissions from the U.S. building
industry; and
WHEREAS, the Partnership will be launching the Green Building
Investment Underwriting Standards and Sustainable Mortgage
Backed Securities initiatives at the New York Stock Exchange,
which will generate investments projected to assist in the
building of over two million green buildings and one million
certified sustainable products by 2015, add one trillion dollars
per year to the economy, and stop/prevent imminent, irreversible
and dangerous climate change,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the U.S. Conference of
Mayors supports the efforts of the Capital Markets Partnership’s
Sustainable Investment Initiative to generate market investment
in high performance green buildings through Sustainable Mortgage
Backed Securities that will stimulate the economy and combat
climate change, and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the U.S. Conference of Mayors
encourages additional public-private partnerships to increase
market investment in environmental innovation and climate
protection.
We welcome your comments
Before you transform the market you need participants from all sectors working together - designers, manufacturers, buyers, and specifiers. This week inside a LEED Certified Gold building at TreePeople in Beverly Hills, individuals who have been working with MTS came together to be honored for their diligence and leadership in creating the SMaRT Sustainable Standard.
Watch the full video on Blip TV here http://blip.tv/file/1028183.
Mike Italiano, the CEO of MTS presented the awards to:
Dean Kubani, Environmental Programs Manager, City of Santa Monica: "We've been working on things in Santa Monica since the early 90s.... We found SMaRT as a fantastic thing... these standards are incredibly rigorus and the fact that it's a Life Cycle Assessment gives us a full picture, so we're very confident by requiring a SMaRT certification... "
Honorable Kevin McKeown, Council Member, City of Santa Monica: "What people don't see is the important stuff that we do day to day - procurement... our city budget is now up to 1/2 billion dollars a year. The choices we make in procurement make a big, big difference... we've been able to show our local businesses and other governments how much sense it makes to do it right..."
Lou Newett, Environmental Director, Knoll Furniture: "When we looked at the different standards, and we did look at other ones and none compared to the SMaRT standard... it was very robust and hit all the key areas and goals that Knoll had and part of SMaRT was a heavy emphasis on Climate Change..."
Claire Bonham-Carter, Director of Sustainable Development DMJM H&M "...We as designers have a real responsibility to make sure everything we do and we design has low impact..."
Ginny Dyson, Sustainable / LEED Manager, DMJM H&N "The more you know, the more you know you need to know more... as individuals we can make a difference and as specifiers we can make even more..."
Casey Johnson, National Sale Director, Forbo. "It's [SMaRT] done in the light of day.. Everyone in this room has the ability to be involved. In fact when you look at this cross section, this is the cross-section that you want on the development of a standard... it has to be transparent.. It shows that the decisions are being made out of the boardroom rather than marketing."
Rusty Lance, Sales Manager, Milliken "We're a textile research company ... I'm in the floor covering division where we have had a zero waste manufacturing program, where we HAVE zero waste, it is not a goal... we are PVC free..."
We would like to thank all who found their way up to TreePeople and shared the afternoon of learning and leadership. You can see a video of the full day at: http://sustainableproducts.blip.tv/
The first phase of the Green Building Investment Initiative is being Launched on June 19 at JPMorgan Chase in NYCGreen: Building Investment Underwriting Consensus Standards.
Any folks with an interest in this meeting should contact Dan Winters at Dan@EvolutionPartners.com.
Background for interested parties is at this link: http://mts.sustainableproducts.com/Capital_Markets_Partnership/Underwriting_Standards
The remainder of the Initiative is being launched at an upcoming meeting at the NY Stock Exchange including:
The Initiative is led by Hon Gavin Newsom, San Francisco Mayor, JPMorgan Chase, Citi & Bank of America. See more at this link: http://mts.sustainableproducts.com/temp/capital_market.html
Green is busting out all over in June. This week it's the Sustainable Brands Conference in Monterrey, CA. Next week it's Greener by Design in Arlington, VA. In the middle of the nation is NeoCon featuring the best in marketing and manufacturing of furnishings.
At the heart of all of these efforts is industry's search for "real" Sustainability and it's ability to communicate the changes to the end user. In Monterrey, the end user tends to be more on consumer messaging, while at Greener by Design and NeoCon the focus are more B2B. In all cases, it's not what you say, but what you are actually doing that matters.
Yesterday, Leonard Robinson, the director fo the California EPA's Department of Toxic Substances Control spoke on "The Next Evolution of Environmental Protection." He offered information on the state's Green Chemistry Initiative in which they work with companies to lower toxic chemical use in manufacturing processes. After a product is in the consumer mainstream they have a "California's Take it Back!" program in place. "The program is shifting takeback responsibility from end users onto manufacturers through consumer education efforts such as the “Not in My Trash CanPaign,” fronted by Oscar the Grouch."
Both sides of that conversation come to the same conclusion, as a manufacturer you'll either be paying up front to lessen the load of chemicals going into the process, or paying on the backend where you'll be held accountable when you "take it back." Underlying both issues is accountability and proof not only for the EPA but for consumers.
Recently, Kimberly Pinkson of Eco Mom Alliancetold me she would like to not only return e-waste to a store, but then SEE a video of what happens to that waste. She didn't trust big business to do the right thing as she and about 300,000 others have seen the You Tube Video "Dumping on the Poor". That's a big trust issue if you're in the marketing department of Dell, HP or Best Buy. How do you overcome it? It will take more than a video showing how it's disposed, it will take a document to show how it was made to begin with.
Jacquelyn Ottmanspoke to that subject. Apparently half the people attending her sessions were green marketing newbies. That statistic alone is why SMaRT has a slide show to bring this crowd up to speed. As soon as they start going down the green marketing rabbit hole, they will need to know how to talk HONESTLY about their products and fast. Jacquelyn estimates the green market to be worth about $209 billion.
Emily Rabin Cowan,SLM Managing Editor gave this report on their blog:
Ottman:"Rising energy prices, concerns over climate change and water shortages, health concerns, and economic factors are all driving consumers to reassess the contents of their pantries, closets, and garages.... In the absence of green certifications [SMaRT is both a certification and a label], eco-labels, and other indications of a product’s environmental performance, the final decision frequently comes down to corporate reputation, The bigger the brand, the bigger the potential gain – and the potential risk if you don’t get it right."
Educating the Consumer: The Eco-Labels Debate
There’s no such thing as a green product, Ottman cautioned – every product requires materials, uses energy, and creates waste. It’s just that one product might have less of these impacts than others (sometimes only under certain circumstances). And it’s your job, as a green marketer, to spell this out for consumers in a way that’s meaningful to them.
[This is where marketers are being held to an unfair measuring stick, if their product isn't certified, they can never back up their claims.]
Ottman encouraged attendees to use trusted, well-known green certification labels such as Energy Star and FSC. [both are included in the SMaRT Certfication]
Her recommendation to avoid creating an in-house green label met with some opposition from one participant, who noted that companies want to be seen as leaders, which is why they might pursue creating a label such as Home Depot’s Eco Options program. What’s so wrong with that?
The reason, according to Ottman, is that few labels actually make an impact in consumer purchasing decisions, and the growing trend toward eco-labeling is only confusing the issue. (She posted a slide featuring recycling’s “chasing arrows” and took a poll: what does this symbol mean – recycled? Recyclable? Could be either; it’s up to the marketer to make the meaning clear through accompanying text.) Fact is, she’s not such a fan of Home Depot’s Eco Options program, which dosn't offer specific information on product attributes the way, say, Timberland’s “nutrition label” or HP’s new Eco Highlights label do.
That provoked an unexpected response from the former Home Depot exec, who conceded that Eco Options may have fallen prey to overuse. “It’s a question I often asked myself,” he said. “How far do you extend it before it loses its value?”
“It’s our responsibility not to confuse consumers even more. The fact that we’re proliferating these labels is doing a disservice to the real cause – selling product, but also making a difference.”
~Workshop participant
Bottom line? There are no cookie-cutter green-marketing strategies, Ottman concluded. “How you develop a distinctive green strategy for your product reflects the specific opportunities and constraints you face."
"Reflecting the specific opportunities and constraints" is the key issue behind a Life Cycle Assessment and the SMaRT Sustainable Standard.The Standard isn't a cookie cutter strategy, it just provides the audited facts so you can create a strategy based on an honest and across the supply chain assessment or where you are in getting rid of toxins or tightening up your energy consumption during manufacturing or transportation. It's all about being able to document your place on the green(er) line and then moving forward in a truthful and honest fashion.
Investors want proof and consumers want truth.
Smart Solutions contributing author, Diane MacEachern is also a speaker at the Sustainable Brands Conference, but unlike everyone who is there speaking from the business side of the table, Diane represents the consumer side. Tomorrow we'll cover her talk and how to achieve consumer trust during these transformational times.
Contact: Mary@SustainableProductsblog.com
About: Mary Hunt
Our thanks to Bill Walsh, the Founder of Healthy Building for spotlighting Forbo's high level of Sustainability and for recognizing the caliber of reporting that can be found in Forbo's Sustainability Brochure (download a copy in the upper left hand corner of this blog.)
"Forbo's Sustain brochure meets our definition of transformation[1] and signals what we hope will be the future, a "complete change," in green marketing."
Bill's critique is especially meaningful as it comes just a few weeks in front of the Sustainable Life Media conference in Monterrey, CA. It's focus is on how to get out an authentic marketing message. By the sounds of Bill's write up, Forbo should be there as a presenter.
Back in 2006, Bill had addressed the label confusion. He divided them up into three categories, Consensus-based eco labeling, Trade Association Greenwash and Independent Certification. You can read more here.
Addition to post...
Forbo is appearing in the following shows if you'd like to talk to them directly about how they became sustainable.
Commercial:
Neocon - June 9-11, Chicago
Buildings NY - June 17-18, New York
Greening the Heartland - June 22-24, St. Louis
GreenBuild - November 18-20, Boston
Residential:
West Coast Green - September 25-27, San Jose
The Sustainable Furniture Council now has six companies who have achieved the highest level in Sustainability and can use the SFC's Silver Exemplary Logo in their marketing.
Our congratulations go to Harden, South Cone, Grant Dawson Collections, West Bros Furniture and Zola for leading their industry. 
Cone released a Green Gap Survey today, regarding the gap of perception in green messaging and consumer products. The following is an indicator of what the market wants and, not surprisingly, it's exactly what the what the SMaRT Sustainable Standard offers:
1. PROOF and Third Party Audits
2. Credible information (no greenwashing, they see through it)
3. Consistent improvement
Highlights below:
Be precise. Make specific claims that provide quantitative impacts.
Be relevant. Demonstrate a clear connection between the product or service and the environment.
Be a resource. Provide additional information for consumers in a place where they want it.
Be consistent. Don’t let marketing images send a signal that contradicts the carefully chosen words and facts you use. For example, showing an automobile parked in a virgin forest may be seen as insensitive, while a product growing out of a tree may be seen as exaggeration.
Be realistic. There are always more environmental improvements that can be made to a product or service, and they are but one piece of a much larger environmental journey for society. Communications that include some sense of context, as well as a “work in progress” tone, will be more credible and less subject to criticism.
****
For the full report go here.
Recent Comments