SustainabilityCamp 2008

Unedited video of the session: Clarifying the Clutter: How collaboration is key to raising your service, product, cause above the effects of public greenwash.

The session abstract:

The ‘green’ market is scattered and in many pieces. Thanks to popular culture it is easy for messages to be lost in the clutter of ‘green’. Sustainability as a practice faces many obstacles including established business habits, human behaviour anchored in non-sustainable activity, and competitive like-minded industry that make it difficult on the consumer to easily consume sustainable living products, services, and habits.

This session will open a discussion about using methods of collaboration to improve sustainable behaviour for the following three consumer types: the residential home owner, the high-rise developer, and the inner organizational evangelist who is looking to implement feasible sustainability in the workplace.

The session will use working case studies to showcase how collaboration implements sustainable behaviour for…

1) the consumer looking to navigate and understand sustainable culture for their home.
2) the industry that recognizes the benefits of implementing sustainable business practice to reduce footprint and positively effect profit margins
3) the individual who needs support and resources to create positive change in the workplace.

We want the showcase of these models to lead to a wider discussion amongst the group about using collaboration to clean up all ‘green’ messaging. What other sectors are facing the burden of ‘green’ clutter? How can collaboration positively effect consumer culture? What are the pros/cons for multiple brands to work together to promote themselves as a whole? How else can we stop the ‘greenwash’?

Steve Herzog is President of Greener Solutions Certified, a Toronto based sustainable living network focused on providing emerging sustainable technologies to a variety of industry.
Jason Eano is a Community Engagement Strategist for A Typical Collective, also out of Toronto.