It is always a good sign when large corporations get on the bandwagon.In this case, the sustainable development bandwagon.

There are currently two very different strategies taken large corporations in their drive towards sustainable development:

• A “sustainable brand” strategy: Clorox and S.C. Johnson have both chosen to create a “green” cleaning range.

• A “transversal” strategy: Procter & Gamble targets all mainstream consumers. The company gradually reinforces the “green” dimension of most of its flagship brands. It created “Tide Coldwater”, an “Ultra Downy” softener.

You can read the full article entitled “P & G’s Sustainable Development Strategy“

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• organic food - How green is my valley? Most people still have a bucolic view of agriculture. In fact, modern agriculture is far from green. It is in fact, one of the largest contributor to green house gas. Unfortunately, organic farming is not as productive. In fact, it is said that today's yield is bout 10 times......
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When it comes to the production of clean renewable energy, China took the lead last year with $34.6 billion, leaving the US well behind with only $18.6 billion.

Cleantech, the new buzzwords which describes the development of clean and renewable energy sources such as wind, sun, geothermal as well as biofuel is a growth industry which apparently grows bigger in some countries than others. For example:

Brazil had a good showing with $7.4 billion, some of which went in wind turbines installed on the windy northeast coast of the country.

India had a prety good showing with $2.3 billion. While Japan had a disappointing $800 million.

For more details, you can click on who’s winning the clean energy race blog post.

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• China's low carbon and sustainability problems I came across an interesting article about the low carbon emissions and sustainability problems facing China as the country moves increasingly towards urbanization. It is predicted that china will have 75 percent of urbanization by 2050, which means much more energy consumption and green house gas emission. China currently lacks......
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• Dolce & Gabbana Perfume Dolce & Gabbana perfume brands are consistently high quality and popular. It's no wonder, coming from this company. Dolce & Gabbana is a luxury Italian fashion house that puts as much care and style into their fragrances as they do their clothing and accessory lines. The name became more popular......

There have been many disasters in recent years: Tsunamis, forest fires, floods, hurricanes, but the I was surpried at how much the earthquake in Haiti has generated a flurry of fund raising activities.

I came across a blog post which talks about various technologies that can be used in the relief efforts as well as the reconstruction of Haiti.

The post also talks about Social Media and how it contributes tothe effort.

http://carbonoutreach.blogspot.com/2010/01/five-ways-haiti-can-use-solar-power-for.html

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• The only problem with politics is the politicians Politicians make me sick. In a recent post, I commented on my disagreement with Cap and Trade, and why it wouldn’t resolve any issues.  All the hoopla and controversy around the upcoming Copenhagen Summit has to do with politicians not agreeing on political issues.  The United States has yet to......
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A mutual funds company, Global mutual fund, has a “green” portfolio which it calls: “Portfolio 21″.

The corporation newly announced its top 10 companies. I was somewhat surprised to see companies listed which I never thought of as “green”.

For instance, the Autodesk corporation.  On the other hand, since 3D CAD cuts down the use of paper, that would make it a candidate. But Autodesk goes further, it has recently partnered with the U.S. Green Building Council with a goal of integrating its technology with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system.

Railways are inherently efficient land-based transportation, and East Japan Railway continuously operates to decrease its power consumption. It has introduced reduced-weight railcars, and is installing solar and wind systems at some of its “eco stations”. The company is also working to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions of the entire transport system by promoting inter-modal transportation by combining rail with additional modes of travel.

The Henkel company, out of Germany, creates an array of bio-based detergents and adhesives, minimizing the company’s reliance on fossil fuels. More than two-thirds of its products’ formulations are usually based on renewable raw resources.All new products must help with sustainable development.

Itron manufactures advanced metering national infrastructure system that allows two-way communication between utilities and consumers. This assists customers to participate in demand response and energy conservation programs.

Natura Cosmeticos, of Brazil, is more than just a cosmetics organization. It promotes the development and discovery of new and renewable raw materials, and supports sustainable agriculture and agroforest systems.

Potlatch is promising as being a leader within the domestic sustainable forestry industry. The company recently achieved Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification for all its forestlands and also finds other business opportunities for its forestland by way of recreation leases and conservation easements.

Red Electrica is Spain’s leading power transmission company. It is responsible for the management of its country’s electricity distribution system. Spain has become the second-largest European wind-power producer and expects to have wind farms producing 13,000 megawatts by 2011.

Sharp, a well recognized name in consumer electronics products, is the world’s largest producer of solar cells and is one of just a few industry leaders to support a solution to e-waste in the United States.

Umicore is based in Belgium, and is the world’s leading recycler of precious metals. Examples include materials for rechargeable batteries, fuel cells, and auto catalysts.

Vestas, a Danish company, develops, manufactures, and markets wind energy products. This company has a clear sustainability strategy based on manufacturing equipment and operating facilities for the renewable energy sector.

Sometimes, even companies which you never thought of as “green” do contribute to a better environment.

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• China's low carbon and sustainability problems I came across an interesting article about the low carbon emissions and sustainability problems facing China as the country moves increasingly towards urbanization. It is predicted that china will have 75 percent of urbanization by 2050, which means much more energy consumption and green house gas emission. China currently lacks......
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In a recent visit to China and South Korea, Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, of course discussed many topics. One topic was Canadian beef import to South Korea. Following the mad cow disease situation, South Korea has banned the import of Canadian beef for past six years.

Currently, Asia has the best longevity record and very few Asians are overweight and have all of the major health issues faced by Americans, such as high cholesterol and heart problems. This is due to their diet which uses very little beef, some pork, and chicken, but mostly seafood as its major source of proteins.

In total, according to the food and agriculture organization, North Americans get 7.6% of their proteins from meat versus 3.7% for Asians. North American diet consists of 1.5% fish versus 2.8% for Asian diet. North American diet has only 11% of fruits and vegetables compared to 29% for Asian diet.

And we want to send them more beef so that they too can be overweight, have high cholesterol, heart disease, and a shorter lifespan.

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• Sustainable Development -- The HOME movie Luc Besson partnered with a French documentary filmmaker to produce an amazing documentary film that is a strong message sent to humanity: Stop procrastinating and take action now if we, as humans, want to have a future on this planet. The film was released on the Web and on various......
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• Sustainable urban planning Abu Dhabi style The Abu Dhabi urban planning council asked helped from the city of Vancouver to help elaborate their their sustainable urban design.  Vancouver's  co-director of planning, is serving as the emirate’s “special adviser. The city of Abu Dhabi has requirements that are quite different, mostly heat and drought related. Among other......

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