By Paige Donner •
June 29, 2009
Sony Pictures Studios believes in creating a culture on their Culver City campus. For CEO Michael Lynton and Co-Chairman Amy Pascal this includes a culture of environmental responsibility and sustainable stewardship, according to Jon Corcoran, VP, Corporate Safety and Environmental Affairs and John Rego, Director, Environmental Sustainability for the movie studio.
During a recent tour of the facilities, they each pointed out that education and employee awareness were key to behavior changes when it comes to environmental stewardship. This philosophy is in keeping with the Japanese tradition of creating an employee culture, a loyalty that reaches beyond the standard employee-employer structure, and one that gives and takes both ways. [Pictured: John Rego, Sony Studios; Paige Donner, Greening Hollywood; and Jon Corcoran, Sony Studios; photo by Ann Burkart]
Case in point: On June 29th, as part of Sony Studios “Links Green Series” they hosted a lunch time “Residential Solar and Hybrid Car Program,” presentation. This is an incentive program, offered through the studio, that gives employees a check for up to $5000 when they either buy a hybrid electric vehicle or install solar voltaic panels on their residence. This incentive “payback” is above and beyond the State and Federal tax incentives. Believe me, I asked. Don’t everyone blast your resume off to Sony Pictures Entertainment now!
By Dave Levitan •
May 18, 2009
As discussions open in Congress today surrounding the American Clean Energy and Security Act (the Waxman-Markey Bill), I started to wonder what environmental advocacy groups’ attitudes are about the climate change/green jobs/clean energy/energy independence legislation. Here is a quick rundown of statements from some of the biggest and most influential environmental groups in the country.
By Ariel Schwartz •
April 1, 2009
You might think that renewable energy developers have few problems convincing towns to let them move in. But things can get surprisingly tricky when it comes to wildlife protection, according to a new map from the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Audubon Society. The Google Maps mash-up shows which renewable energy project locations are likely to provoke a fight based on the location of wilderness areas, areas where roads are banned, national parks, wildlife refuges, areas under consideration for wilderness protection, and areas that lack legal protection but contain endangered species.
By Timothy B. Hurst •
February 20, 2009
140 countries today committed to reduce global mercury pollution, which will help protect the world’s citizens from the dangerous neurotoxin.
By Kristen Chase •
February 5, 2009
Yet another victory and more good news for toy safety happened to day, with a judge ruling that toys and baby products with pthalates must be removed from the shelves.
“Today’s victory gives parents the certainty Congress tried to provide in the first place – that their children are safe from harmful chemicals in their toys,” said Aaron Colangelo, NRDC attorney. “This is a big win for children’s health and consumer safety.”
The NRDC filed a lawsuit against the CPSC in December after a loophole had been proposed to allow companies to continue selling pthalate-laden products so long as they were made prior to the ban date.
By Jennifer Kaplan •
January 28, 2009
Greening your purchasing involves thinking about your entire inbound supply chain with the overriding purpose of selecting and purchasing goods and services that are affordable and have the least possible environmental impact throughout the course of their lifecycles. Green purchasing does not always have to mean higher costs—although sometimes it will.
By Low Impact Living •
December 17, 2008
Here’s one thing you may want to NOT add to your green holiday gift list: a video game console. Not only do they lead to hundreds of hours of glazed-over staring, but video game consoles are also pretty significant energy hogs.
The Natural Resources Defense Council and Eco Consulting published this month a very valuable report on the energy use of game consoles and we can use them more effectively to save energy (and thus reduce our contribution to global warming). You can see the full report here.
By Timothy B. Hurst •
December 17, 2008
When I heard NPR report that environmentalists were “fuming” over the Salazar appointment as Interior Secretary, I decided to share my thoughts with the Twitterverse and sent out a message that kicked off a chain of events worthy of writing about.
By Lucille Chi •
December 11, 2008
NRDC’s OnEarth site has an educational article out on blue jeans that states:
“Some 450 million pairs of jeans are sold in the United States each year — 1.5 pairs for every man, woman, and child. The average woman has eight pairs in her closet. Chances are that to make those jeans, cotton crops were drenched in pesticides; fibers were stained with toxic dyes… There is another option: the eco-minded can invest in a pair of jeans woven from organic cotton, dyed with natural indigo, and faded with nontoxic ozone.”
In the post they cover the truth about growing cotton, making denim, dying, hardware, distressing and fit. Here is a quick recap of the downside to wearing denim from the Natural Resources Defense Council:
By Timothy B. Hurst •
December 6, 2008
Extraction and refining heavy oil from Canadian tar sands would have a devastating impact on avian populations, according to a new report from the NRDC.
By Joe Mohr •
April 25, 2008
Melting ice makes life difficult for those who live on it. Just ask the Polar Bear. There are endless signs of the reality of climate change (global warming). Few more definitive than the plight of the polar bear.
There’s great info in this Treehugger article by our very own Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, and the NRDC has created polarbearSOS.org so you can get involved and stay informed about the reality of climate change as it relates to the polar bear.
Life as they once new it, is ending. And they never had the opportunity to see it coming…
