I mentioned in a previous post that over the last few years, part of my daily routine is to find and read an article that has something to do with the environment. Each day I look for something of interest, some new idea, a company's environmental policy, green building initiatives, international trends… whatever I can find that looks interesting. As I am committed, most days I manage to find and read something. As I am a bit of a procrastinator, there are some days when I simply don’t get it done. With the Olympics only a few weeks away, I have read with some interest some of the green initiatives that have been part of the organizing committee's mandate.

Overall, I have found that there is no shortage of environmental initiatives from all over the world but recently not a lot that is terribly ground breaking. It would seem that the low hanging fruit has been picked! In fact, and perhaps not coincidentally, I have seen an increasing amount written that is questioning many of the environmental / climate change statistics … suggesting in some cases that these statistics amount to nothing more then an “eco scam”.
In the end, reading about the climate change conference in Copenhagen, it became clear to me that the whole issue is now in the hands of the worlds governments and the grass roots movement that created a great deal of awareness is now bogged down in economics and the diverging interests of nations. I suppose it is not that surprising... perhaps inevitable.
Hopefully, the ideals will not get lost in the rhetoric. Statistics may be manipulated but it should not serve to create an excuse that prevents us from living better, treating our world better.

A few years ago, after discussing my interest in all sustainability, an aquaintance gave me a book titled Let My People Go Surfing
by Yvon Chouinard
.
Yvon Chouinard is the founder of Patagonia and the book details how the company started (reluctantly) and how Chouinard and a small group of friends, with like principles, shaped the way the company operated (and does to this day). It is a real example of how success can be born out of “doing the right thing” and a good read.

Cheers and have a great day!
George