Green Business Awareness

We have all been part of a grand experiment that has profoundly proven that extensive marketing can create a market for something that is fundamentally wrong.  Years of hard-hitting advertisement has convinced the present generation that bottled water is the hands-down best solution for health and lifestyle.  I beg to differ. There are several reasons that bottled water is one of the most non-Green and non-healthy options that anyone might choice.

First of all, the myth of pure mountain springs and glacial water is nearly a total scam.  Investigative studies have found that many of these firms draw their water from the municipal water supply and filter it before bottling it.   Why then do we not take filtration into our homes and businesses if there is concern?

We were told that municipal water contained harmful ingredients that bottled water did not posses.  That too has been proven wrong in many cases, and that bottled water was not as pristine as the commercial inferred.  Have you ever seen the satirical look at bottle water by Penn and Teller?  If not, it is worth seeing.  As they well document, we are far too vulnerable to advertising and outright manipulation of the facts.

Finally and even more problematic is the prolific distribution of plastic water bottles that consume an immense amount of oil, compromise the purity of the water, and will not dissolve for a thousand years while filling up our over-burdened landfills.  This issue alone is one of the most non-Green, socially-inept, and money -wasting ideas in history.

By the way, have we even calculated the CO2 emission of shipping “water” to communities across America and the world where potable and usable water is in ready supply?  Millions of tons of CO2 comes from the bottled water industry that seems to get literally no “backwash” (pun intended) from the media or society in general.   Or how about the 5 gallon jugs that big trucks hauls through your community and are laboriously hauled in by the local water distributor.  Could this be Green in any sense of the word?

The solutions are two-fold.  One: get rid of the bottle water and get a permanent water bottle.  Two: get your own filtration system in place.  It is not expensive and it is certain a Green.  There is even one the draws water from the air and makes water more pure than the bottled water companies.  If you really want to get a Green water source for your business, take a look at the Green Clean Network and you’ll discover that the science and process is readily available to your home or office.  Better yet, it will literally save you some money (also kinda green) over the water service rates.  It is well past time that the bottled water companies have a recession brought on by the misleading and non-Green adverting done so far.

Want to know more about Going Green in your home or business.  Contact a Certified Green Consultant near you and start on the path to a highly-coveted Green Business Certification offered through the Green Business League.

Strangely enough, Green is now chic, trendy, and relevant.   Before this, it was the domain of long hairs, hippies, and tree huggers.   Years ago, the extreme environmentalist was the “odd man out” and was happy be be so.   Today, environmentalism has gone main stream, and it even enjoys a loyal following that marketers are trying to co-op.

This adoption by the mainstream has brought in a new term called “Greenwashing.”   This is when the Green brag does not live up to the Green hype for a product or company.   With janitorial firms, they have rushed out to buy some “Green Cleaning products,” and then instantly dubbed themselves “Green.”   Instead of learning about Green, going through training and certification; they co-opted the term.  Now, nearly every company in the market has found some way to attach themselves to the Green concept, whether legitimate or not.

That brings us to the topic of “”Token Green.”   This phrase means that a person or business is doing the minimum possible to be called Green.   There are obviously many shades of Green, and some are very mild shades of Green while others are rich in texture.   With nearly every company “Going Green,” there is a large proportion that would fall into the Token Green category.   Sometimes, it’s because they are not sure that ‘this trend’ is going to be around long.   Other times, it is because they care more about the perception than they are for the facts.

As we come of age in a new and Greener world, those that played at Green will pale by comparison to businesses that were “True Green.”   To avoid the pitfalls that will certainly embrace and hurt the “Token Green” firms, make the commitment to start your company’s Green transition.  It need not be instantaneous nor does it need to be expensive.   Hire a Certified Green Consultant to provide the professional guidance that your company needs, and earn your way to a Certified Green Business credential to proudly display.

The Green Business League is a national program with the largest representation in the Green market right now when it comes to Green business certification.  Their 100 point system is the epitome of honest Green certification because, as they say, the GBL certification is “Earned, not Bought.”   Using a well-crafted program, any business can Go Green and earn their certification in just a few months.  More than that, they then participate with a national network of Green businesses to further the sustainable issues of the Green Supply Chain.