Roberts Environmental Center

“Pomona College’s Sustainability Action Fellowship Reconsidered”

2009-12-18T08:38:00.000-08:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major.

Last year, 29 students took part in Pomona College’s Sustainability Action Fellowship, a program organized by Bowen Close, Pomona’s Sustainability Coordinator as a way for students to be “integrally involved” in the creation of the College’s Sustainability Action Plan.

The Sustainability Fellowship was organized into six groups, composed of 4-6 students each: energy, water, waste, education and outreach, purchasing and environmental justice.

The responsibility of each group was to develop the rough draft of a chapter of Pomona’s first-ever Sustainability Action Plan by researching what other schools had done, senior theses, the audit conducted during the summer of 2008, and other sources.

While the President’s Climate Commitment, signed by President Oxtoby on April 20^th, 2007, required Pomona College to both conduct an emissions audit of the campus and prepare a climate action plan (turned in on September 15, 2008 and September 15, 2009, respectively) over the past year or so, both Pomona’s audit and Sustainability Action Plan are more all-encompassing.

“I knew I would need a lot of support and input in the creation of our sustainability plan --- our goals, directions and priorities,” responded Pomona’s sustainability coordinator Bowen Close, who helped conduct the summer audit and was almost entirely responsible for setting up and running the Sustainability Fellowship.

“I also knew that students would be really excited about getting involved, and learning more about how the College works and how we could move forward,” Close continued. “The Fellowship is a great way for students who are interested in sustainability as a career field to get some practical experience in the area.”

All Sustainability Fellows who took part had to help draft their particular chapter of the Sustainability Action Plan, while those students who opted to take part in the Fellowship for credit were also required to submit two “Extended Strategies” detailing a particular sustainability measure in their category (energy, waste, etc.) that they thought Pomona College should take.

Since the completion of the 2008-2009 Sustainability Fellowship, Pomona College’s Board of Trustees has approved a new Environmental Policy that officially created the Sustainability Integration Office, of which Close is head, and finalized Pomona’s Climate Action Plan. Close is currently working on fine-tuning the Sustainability Action Plan with PACS, or Pomona’s President’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability, a group of environmentally-inclined faculty and students, and her four paid assistants, Joanna Ladd PO ’10, Wendy Lovinger PO ’12, Samantha Meyer PO ’10 and Nate Wilairat PO ’11. The plan will come up for review in May of 2010.

Students who took part were generally positive about the experience. Energy Fellow Sam Gordon PO ‘11 said, “It’s important to have a group like the Sustainability Fellowship in and of itself. It illustrates that sustainability is a priority of both Pomona and Pomona students,” but also pointed out that, “it was hard to understand the mechanisms behind the changes that would be made--- it wasn’t exactly clear where it was going, and we didn’t know enough about the school though Bowen did a great job explaining it to us.”

“Bowen has a really tough job,” Gordon continued. “She’s been treading new paths and doing a really impressive job.”

Purchasing Fellow Zach Mattler PO ’11 also praised Bowen, responding, “I loved Bowen, she treats you like a peer and was very positive. She got (and is getting) a lot of people excited about sustainability at Pomona.”

Waste Fellow Nate Wilairat PO ’11 said, “The Fellowship was a great way to have a hand in determining where the college goes in terms of sustainability. It definitely made me realize the not insignificant hurdles the administration has to deal with, and showed me that you have to respect the opinions of the many different groups involved, like the housekeepers or dining staff. You can’t just force them to pick up all the composting; you have to take into account the extra work that goes into that.”

And Eleanor Hughes PO ’11 responded, “I really enjoyed being on the Environmental Justice committee. Environmental justice is one of the most important aspects of achieving sustainability, and is one of the most important things our generation will have to strive for. Social justice and environmental sustainability aren’t compartmentalized--- they need to be looked at in a holistic way. Basically, environmental justice wants what everyone else wants but in a fair way, so not at someone else’s expense or on the backs of workers here. Sustainability should be a community effort.”

“Most schools that have launched groups like the Sustainability Fellowship don’t have committees that deal with environmental justice, so Pomona was one of the first.”

Sustainability Coordinator Bowen Close expressed her satisfaction with the Fellowship process upon query, saying, “The student teams did wonderful work--- the form of the plan is quite different than the form of the papers that were turned in, but the research and conclusions of the Fellowship groups from last year were invaluable in beginning to set up the format for the plan and for understanding the potential for various things the College could be doing to move forward.”

Close cited her excitement about putting together the plan, which will establish goals for the College in various categories and help the Sustainability Integration Office determine priorities and targets for moving forward, and mentioned that there will be a variety of opportunities for students, staff and faculty to give input on the draft of the plan and its components.

While the Sustainability Fellowship is on hold for this year, Close said she hopes to bring it back next year, but that “we’ll need to figure out what role it takes. For instance, perhaps it will become a yearly course focusing on a variety of campus sustainability projects, or perhaps it will become a partnership between my office and PEAR or another student group.”

Regardless of what form the Fellowship takes in the future, Close finished by saying, “I’m really committed to students being involved in the process of sustainability on campus. Not only is it meaningful for students to be a part of things, it’s also a great educational experience and provides students with some great projects to put on a resume when they graduate and are looking for jobs in sustainability-related fields. As we finish the plan and move towards implementing it, I’m hoping the Fellowship can be revived to provide students with valuable experiences in working on projects and programs to help us reach our [sustainability] goals.”

Environmental Disclosure in SEC Filings

2009-12-17T11:28:00.000-08:00

This is a well written, succinct memorandum by Davis Polk and Wardwell (Environmental Practice Group) found online. Many thanks for your time and effort put into this.

-Elgeritte Adidjaja, REC Research Fellow

Link to document: http://www.davispolk.com/1485409/clientmemos/01.21.09.env.disclosure.sec.filings.pdf

2009-12-14T10:12:00.000-08:00

Roberts Environmental Center gives top marks to Bristol-Myers Squibb and Sanofi-Aventis, with Abbott Laboratories, Johnson & Johnson, and Merck close behind

Claremont, Calif., December 14, 2009— The Roberts Environmental Center publishes analyses of the world’s largest companies’ sustainability reporting. Using the Pacific Sustainability Index (PSI), pharmaceutical companies were scored; and results, commentary, and rankings were published in the report. Scoring is based on the transparency, intent, and performance for both environmental and social issues.

The research is based on the reporting on each company’s web pages. Bristol-Myers Squibb (U.S.) and Sanofi-Aventis (France) led the sector as the two highest scoring companies. The lowest scoring companies, Forest Laboratories and NBTY, were two of the smallest companies in the sector, and both based in the United States. There was a slight trend between PSI scores and annual revenue; however Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer, the two largest corporations in the sector, both showed room for improvement.

Prior to the report’s release, companies were given the chance to respond to their scores and release additional information if available. Often this correspondence reveals information not previously captured in the scoring system.

“Although Biogen Idec scored low in the rankings, from speaking with staff responsible for sustainability matters, the company appears to be committed to many environmental programs; however, the top executives are not yet receptive to reporting them publicly” said Elgeritte Adidjaja, Research Fellow at Roberts Environmental Center.

The sector report includes the final scores and rankings for the 26 largest pharmaceutical companies. Commentary by the center’s analysts provides additional insight regarding overall performance of each company in the sector.

To view the complete report, visit: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/SectorReports.asp.

About Roberts Environmental Center

The Roberts Environmental Center is an environmental research institute at Claremont McKenna College located in Claremont, Calif. Its mission is to provide students with a comprehensive and realistic understanding of today’s environmental issues and the ways in which these issues are being and can be resolved, beyond the confines of traditional academic disciplines and curriculum. The Center strives to identify, publicize, and encourage policies and practices that achieve economic and social goals in the most environmentally benign and protective manner.

Scoring Summary

Highest Overall Scores

Bristol-Myer Squibb

Sanofi-Aventis

Abbott Laboratories

Highest Environmental Reporting Scores

Bristol-Myer Squibb

Johnson & Johnson

Sanofi-Aventis

Abbott Laboratories

Highest Social Reporting Scores

Merck

Sanofi-Aventis

Bristol-Myers Squibb

Abbott Laboratories

AstraZeneca

Lowest Overall Scores

Forest Laboratories

NBTY

King Pharmaceuticals

Time to Act: L.A., Democracy and Climate Change

2009-12-11T11:38:00.000-08:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major.

Last Thursday, November 12^th at 7 p.m., an event entitled “Time to Act: L.A., Democracy and Climate Change” released some of the local and international results of World Wide Views, a global forum on climate change that was attended by citizens around the world.

Thirty-eight countries around the world took part, and approximately 4,000 citizens in 38 countries around the world were enabled to “define and communicate their positions on issues central to the UN Climate Change negotiations (COP15) in Copenhagen December 7-18, 2009,” according to the World Wide Views website.

The event was organized by Politics Professor Rick Worthington and Grace Vermeer PO ’10, and was sponsored by Pomona College’s Program in Public Policy Analysis, the Public Events Committee, the President’s Office, the Draper Center and Harvey Mudd College for Environmental Studies. Its basic format involved a welcome and introduction by Grace Vermeer, the maitre’d of the evening, followed by a brief recap of World Wide Views by Professor Worthington, a lecture given by keynote speaker Jim Sadd, a professor of environmental science at Occidental College, and finally, a panel session at the end designed to catalyze discussion between audience members and panelists of the event’s significance and strategies to move forward.

Professor Worthington began by presenting some pictures and explaining that overall, 80 % of World Wide Views were “very concerned” about climate change, 94 % thought it was “urgent” that a climate deal be made, and 38 % thought that countries that broke the rules set forth in such a climate deal be “severely punished.”

87 % thought that everyone but the poor should have to deal with the costs of doing so.

Worthington then continued by trying to explain why World Wide Views had recommended action so strongly, and whether or not it was a leading indicator. He mentioned that this could have been because of the info materials (provided by the relatively neutral IPCC) or self-selection (which probably had some affect), but suggested that the real reason was the process of being informed and then deliberating about the issue.

“I think that World Wide Views is a good indicator of where public opinion will go --- has more people learn about climate change and think about the consequences it will have, they most likely will become concerned.”

Following Worthington’s presentation of World Wide Views’ results, the featured speaker Professor Sadd gave a talk entitled “The Climate Gap” that suggested that climate change will have disproportionate effects on the poor and “people of color.” Not only are they more affected by pollution, which gets worse when temperatures increased, a handful of studies have shown that heat waves in California kill mainly elderly, low-income, socially-isolated individuals who have no air conditioning or no functional air conditioning. Furthermore, almost twice as many blacks die due to heat waves than whites.

Sadd also mentioned that policy responses could also make the inequality of the negative effects of air pollution by allowing certain heavily-polluting facilities in poorer areas to maintain a constant or increase their level of pollution even as overall pollution decreases. “Cap-and-trade could aggravate already existent health hazards,” he pointed out.

Two individuals from the Five County area who had taken part in Pomona’s World Wide Views event then gave an account of what they had learnt and why the event had been significant for them.

Blanca Quintanilla said, “I learned that we can empower community leaders and get involved ourselves. If we don’t voice our opinions, our air and water will all get worse. We will be poisoned by our own nature, and the consequences will be devastating.”

“All countries need to take responsibility for the betterment of the climate.”

Jose Diaz, a second participant whose Spanish had to be translated for the audience, then spoke, saying, “The governments are responsible --- they need to do something positive. We have to make change. We have to get united. We think we can continue to advance.”

He finished by exhorting developed countries to “adopt mechanisms and technologies that do not poison our planet.”

Up next was Pomona Environmental Analysis professor (and fearless director of the E.A. program) Char Miller, who gave a brief synopsis of the problem facing humanity, as he sees it.

“The problem we are facing as a species is, ‘How do we not kill ourselves?’,” he said. “We must respond in a united fashion.”

Miller mentioned that the topic is compelling to him as a historian. “How did previous generations unite and what thoughts did they have to think to change the way they acted to create a better world for their children?”

He cited the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, a period typically known as the “Progressive Era” as an example of a time where significant progress on environmental issues was made.

“With the perils of the Industrial Revolution in mind, they reinvented the way we related to Nature, and gave us the idea of wilderness as a construct.”

“Today, we’re drawing off of their energy and seeking to find a way to stop poisoning our world and ourselves. Scientifically and politically --- how can we unite and put into place the recommendations of World Wide Views, and others?”

He finished with the parable of planting trees. “When is the best time to plant a tree?” he asked. “The first best is ten years ago. And the second best is now.”

His talk was then followed by a question-and-answer session, in which students, facilitators, and members of local environmental organizations like the Energy Retrofit Group and Sustainable Claremont all took an active role. Devon Hartman of the Energy Retrofit Group emphasized the importance of using science and generating political will, suggesting that there are enough bright and engaged minds in Claremont to make a difference, while Professor Worthington stated that World Wide Views in his opinion illustrated that people can have a voice and their opinions can be heard.

In a final note, WW Views participant Jose Diaz said, “It’s big--- all of us have to work together. You have to understand. The government doesn’t care about the people--- we have to get united to make change.”

“We are a majority, those of us who are suffering. We have to unite. There are very few getting very rich.”

“We have to make a change.”

Report Grades Sustainability Reporting of the Largest Chemical Companies

2009-11-23T12:02:00.001-08:00

The Roberts Environmental Center (REC) has released an analysis of the environmental and social sustainability reporting by 30 of the top companies in the Chemical Sector of the Fortune 500. REC ranked Bayer, BASF, and Sherwin-Williams high on the grading scale.

The original scoring took place between December 2008 and January 2009. The companies were provided the opportunity to review the initial scores and make recommend changes to the points given or to add information for a potentially higher score. Many companies responded with new information, which substantially increased their grades.

“Bayer, BASF, and Dow Chemical have been the champions of sustainability reporting in the chemical sector for years,” said REC Research Fellow Elgeritte Adidjaja. “This year, however, Sherwin Williams caught up in the review period by disclosing much of the information needed in their sustainability reporting and publishing it on-line, raising their score from the bottom half of the sector to near the top.”

Several companies, including BASF and Praxair, submitted newly-published Sustainability Reports to be re-scored. Through this process of revision, the REC empowers each company to improve its own before final publication of the sector analysis.

As expected, companies with higher revenues and profit margins tended to score higher in the report. Larger companies are more heavily scrutinized in the public eye and have additional resources to put into monitoring and reporting sustainability performance. However, while this may be a trend, it is not a rule, as several large companies have low scores and some of the top performers are relatively small.

View the complete report.

Scoring Summary

Highest Overall Scores
Bayer
BASF
Sherwin Williams

Highest Environmental Reporting Scores
Bayer
BASF

Highest Social Reporting Scores
Bayer
Sherwin Williams
Dow Chemical
BASF

Lowest Overall Scores
Mosaic
Hexion Specialty Chemicals
Solutia

NEW REPORT GRADES SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OF THE TOP CHINESE COMPANIES

2009-11-10T09:37:00.000-08:00

Roberts Environmental Center gives top marks to China Ocean Shipping with Lenovo, Baosteel, and Sinopec close behind

Claremont, Calif., November 9, 2009—The Roberts Environmental Center of Claremont McKenna College (CMC) today released a detailed analysis of the social responsibility reporting efforts of China’s top corporations. The report contains a compilation of Pacific Sustainability Index scores evaluating the environmental and social reporting of the 29 Chinese companies on the 2009 Fortune Global 500 list.

The report scores companies based on the reporting, intent, and performance of environmental and social sustainability efforts. The research, based entirely on material released on the firms’ Web sites, found that China Ocean Shipping and Lenovo, two of the smallest companies in the group, and Baosteel, only a little larger, had the best scores. The largest firm in China, Sinopec, came in forth with the two other largest firms, China National Petroleum and State Grid coming in fifth and sixth. Only about ten companies had scores comparable to their European and American counterparts, with two-thirds of the group hardly reporting at all. All the lowest scoring firms were in the general size range of the three leaders, so clearly size is not the determining factor in doing the best job of describing details of companies’ socially beneficial actions and environmental management.

The Roberts Environmental Center invited the Beijing-based sustainability consulting firm, SynTao, to add its insights into the current state of Chinese sustainability reporting, and the report contains SynTao’s informative synthesis.

“Chinese corporations are really just getting started in sustainability reporting.” said Emil Morhardt, Roberts Professor of Environmental Biology at CMC and director of the Roberts Environmental Center, “But we expect them to be leaders within a few years.”

To create the report’s ranking, Morhardt and his team evaluated each company’s Web site using the Pacific Sustainability Index including sector-specific questions. The index uses a general systematic questionnaire to analyze the quality of sustainability reporting. The selection of questions was based on the most frequently-mentioned topics in almost 1,800 corporate sustainability documents analyzed from 2002 through 2008 by the Roberts Environmental Center. The company’s grades in this report were assigned on a grading curve, giving an A+ to the highest scoring companies and those with scores near it.

“In the current business climate, a demonstration of corporate social responsibility is more important than ever,” continued Morhardt. “What we are analyzing is the quality of that demonstration—how transparent the companies are with respect to their environmental and social issues, and how good a job they are doing resolving any problems they currently have and avoiding future ones.”

The detailed analyses also reveal what social and environmental themes these companies perceive to be most important. The research screened Web site content to determine the most frequently reported topics. Companies with environmental achievements tended to tout their accountability and energy efficiency efforts while socially responsible businesses highlighted their superior policies and care for human rights.

To view the complete report, visit: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/SectorReports.asp.

About Roberts Environmental Center

Scoring Summary

Highest Overall Scores

China Ocean Shipping

Lenovo Group

Baosteel Group

Sinopec

Highest Environmental Reporting Scores

China Ocean Shipping

Sinopec

Baosteel Group

COFCO

Highest Social Reporting Scores

China Ocean Shipping

Lenovo Group

Baosteel Group

Sinopec

Lowest Overall Scores (all 0)

Bank of China

China Communications Construction

China Life Insurance

China Minmetals

China Metallurgical Group

China State Construction

The Motley Coffeehouse will charge an extra $1 for to-go cups starting October 21.

2009-10-30T11:16:00.000-07:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major.

The biodegradable to-go cups currently in use can be recycled at Pomona’s organic farm, but only 5 percent currently end up being disposed of in this fashion, according to the Motley. The café said significant energy and resources go into producing the cups and bringing them to campus. Furthermore, when they are thrown out, as most are, they end up in landfills, which “do not facilitate decomposition.”

The Motley’s FAQ on their new policy states that the compostable cup is “simply a band-aid that promotes out-of-sight out-of-mind mentality.”

Alana Macwhorter SC '10, the Motley’s Sustainability Manger, said the move would promote "environmental stewardship" and decrease the amount of waste generated from the café's cups.

“Last year, we had 5,000 pounds of unnecessary waste from to-go cups during the school year," she said. "We had to do something if we wanted to maintain our reputation as an environmentally and socially conscious institution.”

“Individual students may not think their actions make a difference,” she continued. “But if an avid Motley-visitor used one to-go cup every day, they’d generate 175 pounds waste over their four-year college career.”

Now, students can either make a little bit more time in their day to drink coffee in a ceramic mug at the Motley, buy one of the Motley’s $12 containers, or cough up the money for a disposable cup.

Alana further mentioned that the Scripps’ café’s semester goal is to revitalize the space and spirit of the Motley.

“We want to challenge the norm and make people conscious,” she said. “We have an opportunity to make a big, positive change on campus. Obviously there will be mixed reactions, but we want to make people think and hopefully act. Sometimes it takes a little bit of an economic incentive to get people to do that.”

Pomona Professor of Economics Bo Cutter agreed, responding, “A small price can help you remember, and can act as a reminder of the true environmental costs of to-go cups.”

“The Motley’s new policy is a good example of a business internalizing externalities in their prices. It’s a very economic solution, and is much better than just getting rid of to-go cups altogether, in my opinion,” Bo continued. “It’s a much better business strategy, as well; imposing limits is unfriendly to your customers, while preserving choice is important so that people who really need the to-go cups can still get them.”

Alana concurred, saying the policy was created in the context of the “experiential economy” of the 5C’s.

Why should people keep coming to the café even with the raised prices? In the words of the Motley’s FAQ, because the café is “constantly questioning [itself] as a business and the impact [it] has on the 5C community… [The Motley] is coming from a place of genuine concern for the future of our planet and wants to utilize [its] influence to form life-long sustainable habits and awareness.”

“It’s not just about the coffee anymore.”

The Motley is a non-profit organization, so all extra proceeds resulting from the new charge will go to a Scripps coffeehouse program that funds programs including the “I Love Female Orgasm” series.

While the Motley isn’t lining its pockets with the profits garnered from its new policy, some students aren’t happy with the way the coffee-house is trying to institute sustainability.

As Alex Efron (PO ‘11) responded, “Full-cost pricing is okay, but the money should go directly to what [the Motley] is trying to reduce --- in this case waste. So, for example, they could use it to fund a recycling education program, or waste-reduction efforts around campus. It just seems selfish to me to inconvenience students with a ‘sin tax’ on disposable cups without putting the money they make where their mouth is.”

“It’s one thing to send a message to students about sustainability,” he continued. “But too many of these new, so-called ‘sustainable policies’ are just ‘hippie-critical.’”

Others, Sam Dubin (SC ‘10) responded, “I understand why they’re doing it, and I think it’s a really cool idea, but I still think they should make it more affordable to take out. Their corn mugs are on sale at a pretty steep price - $12 – and they say they’ll subsidize them, but I think it’s a lot of paperwork… Overall, though, I think the change will help set up a better system --- people will get used to it,” said Sam Dubin (SC ’10).

2010 College Sustainability Report Card

2009-10-23T08:55:00.000-07:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major.

Pomona College was recently recognized as one of only 26 colleges and universities across the United States and Canada (out of more than 300) to receive an average grade of “A-” on the Sustainable Endowments Institute’s 2010 College Sustainability Report Card.

Pomona received a “C+” in 2007, and a “B” in both 2008 and 2009 on the same College Sustainability Report Card; this year’s much higher grade is indicative of recent efforts to make Pomona College more sustainable. Pomona received an “A” in every sub-category this year, except for “Climate Change & Energy” (B) and “Endowment Transparency” (C).

Especially lauded was Pomona’s green-building standards, student involvement through the Environmental Quality Committee of ASPC, the administration’s President’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability and President’s Sustainability Fund, and the high percentage of Pomona’s food that comes from local sources.

Of the other 5C’s, Harvey Mudd, Claremont-McKenna, and Scripps were also included on the Report Card. Harvey Mudd College received a “B-,” with “A’s” in “Endowment Transparency” and “Investment Priorities” but a mixed bag of “C’s” and “B’s” in the other categories.

CMC, with an overall grade of “B-,” received an “A” in “Investment Priorities” and “Food & Recycling,” but an “F” in “Endowment Transparency.”

Scripps College, with some good grades but four “D’s” and an “F” in other categories, received an overall grade of “C-.”

Pitzer College is not included on the Sustainability Endowments Institute’s College Sustainability Report Card.

Pomona College was also mentioned in a recent article in Forbes entitled, “America’s Greenest Colleges” as a sustainability leader, but received a ranking of 56 out of 135 schools in the Sierra Club’s 2009 “Cool Schools” list.

As the number of “Green Report Cards” and “Green” rating systems for colleges and universities have proliferated, some have expressed doubts as to how effective or accurate they really are.

“Rating systems for sustainability at colleges have a formula, a few key bullet points, and if you fit into that formula, you do well. But what they aren’t seeing is important too,” said Geology Professor and Environmental Analysis Program coordinator Rick Hazlett.

“For example,” he continued, “the Sierra Club and Forbes study completely missed Pomona’s long history of student involvement and planning, our efforts to make a Solar Rover, and our Hart speaker series on ‘The Environment and American Society.’ Conversely, the Sustainable Endowments Institute’s Report Card gave us an ‘A’ for green building, but our green building could be a LOT better here, especially when you compare it to buildings like Oberlin’s Adam J. Lewis Center.”

Hazlett cited Lincoln-Edmunds as an example of where corners were cut to save costs at the expense of sustainability, mentioning in particular the lack of natural lighting, something he had been looking forward to.

In contrast, Oberlin’s Adam J. Lewis Center was built by William McDonough and Partners to be as “bountiful and effective as a tree,” and to “use current solar income” to become a “net-energy exporter,” according to McDonough’s website.

Bowen Close, Pomona’s sustainability integrator, expressed misgivings as well. “The Sustainable Endowments Institute’s Report Card is pretty controversial, so we take their results with a grain of salt. I think the main reason for our improvement was simply that Pomona College now has a position that can fill out their survey.”

“It’s exciting to be acknowledged,” she continued, “but at the same time it’s very difficult to grade and compare schools, especially when they are very different. How do you compare UCLA and Pomona College?”

“You can’t take these ratings too seriously.”

On the other hand, she also pointed out that sustainability report cards and rating systems provide an opportunity to learn from other schools and let other schools know what you’re doing.

“It’s really nice to be included with schools like Middlebury and Oberlin that I look up to,” she said.

In the end, however, both Close and Hazlett suggested that Pomona’s higher grade on the College Sustainability Report Card does correlate to progress that’s being made on the ground. “Our programs are definitely improving,” Close said. “We have a lot more funding for programs, and we’re moving forward on a lot of fronts.”

“Right now,” she continued, “we’re working on a lighting retrofit that could save Pomona $100,000 per year; the details for a solar hot water heater for Haldeman [currently heated using natural gas]; and making Pomona’s landscaping less water-intensive, among other things.”

“Seeing improvement in the College Sustainability Report Card from previous years, given that its basic criteria remains the same, is a sign that we’re moving forward,” Hazlett said. “We’re making positive progress.”

“Is it enough? In the long run, no --- there’s always more to do.”

World Wide Views on Global Warming.

2009-10-06T09:40:00.000-07:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major.

Pomona College hosted residents of the greater Los Angeles area on Saturday to discuss views and perceptions about global warming. The meeting was one of five hosted in the United States as part of an event sprawling across six continents, 38 countries and including over 4,000 participants.

Politics professor Rick Worthington led the effort to bring one of the consultations to Pomona College.

The worldwide project was organized by the Danish Board of Technology, which aimed to give everyday citizens around the world a chance to weigh in on global climate policy in preparation for the upcoming Copenhagen talks (COP15), where world leaders will discuss environmental issues this December.

“The over-arching purpose [of World Wide Views on Global Warming] was to demonstrate that political decision-making processes on a global scale can benefit from the participation of ordinary people… it has set a path-breaking precedent by demonstrating that ordinary people merit, and can have, a voice within global political processes,” according to the event’s Web site.

To ensure that each group of participants accurately represented its local or regional population, each site attempted to match the participants to the demographic makeup of the area in terms of race, educational background, income, age and gender.

Pomona’s site was quite successful in mimicking the demographic makeup of the area; eight percent of accepted participants were African American, 12 percent Asian American, 37 percent white, 37 percent Latino and six percent from other racial backgrounds. Those with higher education were over-represented (70 percent had at least some college experience as opposed to 54 percent in the Los Angeles region), while higher-income participants were slightly under-represented (56 percent of participants lived in households with annual incomes below $50,000, compared to 44 percent for the Los Angeles region).

After being selected from among applicants who responded to advertisements, each applicant read a 40-page informational document provided by the Danish Board of Technology based upon the work of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change scientists hailing from countries as diverse as Iran, Sierra Leone, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.

President David Oxtoby addressed the participants at the beginning of the day, speaking briefly about Pomona College’s sustainability efforts and his own personal relationship to climate change as an environmental chemist. He asked participants to consider the complicated relationships between economics, environmental impacts, and politics as they broke up into their discussion groups.

The day was divided into four discussion sections and a recommendation section. In each discussion section, participants first watched an informational video and then had time to deliberate on several questions. Finally, each participant filled out several multiple-choice questions. The recommendations section gave participants an opportunity to draft recommended policies. All results, including answers to the multiple-choice questions and each site’s recommendations, were then posted to the results section of www.wwviews.org.

Results and recommendations differed greatly across the world. For example, 44 percent of Russians were only “slightly concerned” about climate change; 96 percent of Bangladeshis, on the other hand, were “very concerned” about climate change and urged that a deal be made at COP15. Participants at the Arizona site recommended a global climate change curriculum, while those in Jakarta, Indonesia, suggested that rich countries provide funds to support forest conservation in poorer countries. Ethiopian participants, stating that Africa will be “the main victim” of the rise of green house gas emissions, suggested that African nations “be compensated properly.” Overall, however, the global impetus for an international treaty was clear with 90 percent of World Wide Views participants saying it is “urgent” that a global climate deal be decided upon this December.

Although Pomona College hosted the Los Angeles site in order to provide an opportunity for local citizens to speak up, the event had benefits for organizers as well. A handful of Pomona students, many enrolled in Worthington’s class on the “Politics of Community Design,” got a chance to volunteer and observe the process.

Two Pomona students, Dawn Bickett PO ’10 and Grace Vermeer PO ’10, spent their summers working to prepare for the event, and will fly to Copenhagen for the COP15 talks in December as certified United Nations observers.

Through the event, Worthington, a scholar specializing in participatory democracy and science-related policy-making, also got a chance to further his academic pursuits.

Various individuals in the United States, including Professor Worthington, were first contacted in May 2008 as Denmark tried to enlist as many countries as possible for the event. After accepting, Worthington became the Los Angeles area coordinator and helped organize the sites in the United States with the help of Richard Sclove, a colleague at Amherst College.

Along with the other organizers, Worthington attended a three-day training seminar in Copenhagen last March. He will accompany Bickett and Vermeer this December, and has received funding from the National Science Foundation to research the event’s efficacy.

Although Worthington expressed a hope that participants would support action to mitigate climate change, he said, “democracy is the most important thing about the event. We want to know what the people who’re gathering think.”

While polls can give a snapshot of uninformed opinion, Worthington suggested that World Wide View’s approach provides a unique opportunity for citizens around the world to generate and disseminate informed opinions.

When asked what he wanted the event to accomplish, Worthington said he hoped for “rich and engaging discussion,” and also that some decision-makers would listen.

The results of the United States sites will be forwarded to U.S. delegates to Copenhagen, and World Wide Views will target crucial senators like Barbara Boxer, the head of the Senate Committee on the Environment.

There is also a chance that World Wide Views could be adapted as a framework for citizens to give their input on other global issues.

“World Wide Views wants to create a framework for implementing and disseminating information. While the goal of this September’s gatherings was to enable constructive dialogue about climate change and global climate policy, there is no reason that World Wide Views’ methodology couldn’t be applied to other global policy issues,” Vermeer said.

Others are more skeptical about the representative nature of the participants.

“I really like the idea of World Wide Views,” said Amanda Ghassaei PO ’11. “But it seems to me that while they were aiming to get a fair cross-section of society, the fact that they were selecting from a pool of applicants who themselves decided to apply in the first place makes it unlikely that the views of the participants accurately mirrored those of society as a whole.”

Photo: WWViews Meeting in Bangladesh (http://teknologiraad.surfoffice.eu/page/media/1/316/566)

Photo: WWViews Meeting in Mozambique ( http://teknologiraad.surfoffice.eu/file/image/Image/large/jpeg/SDC17377.JPG

Photo: WWViews Meeting in Brazil (http://teknologiraad.surfoffice.eu/file/image/Image/large/jpeg/03.jpg)

"Desert Energy and Climate Change"

2009-09-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

International Place Lunch and Conversation Program, Thursday, October 1, McKenna Auditorium, CMC campus, "Desert Energy and Climate Change"

Speaker: William Christian, Amargosa River Project Director, The Nature Conservancy of California

Bill has worked with the Amargosa Conservancy from the beginning bringing his diverse expertise as an environmental lawyer to the organization. He is a graduate of Yale University and the Harvard Law School. He then worked for the Atlantic Richfield Company for almost 20 years and for the Environmental Protection Agency. Bill also served as a prosecutor and an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Alaska. He has a long standing interest in wilderness areas and has been on the board of the Sequoia Riverlands Trust since 2002.

Lunch served from 11:45 a.m.; Program begins at 12:15 p.m. (Meal cards appreciated toward cost of lunch, but not required)

Phone 607-3910 or visit International Place Lunch and Conversation for further information.

Newsweek's Green Rankings: Exclusive environmental ranking of America's 500 largest corporations.

2009-09-22T10:08:00.000-07:00

NEWSWEEK collaborated with three research partners to compile the rankings: KLD Research & Analytics, which tracks environmental, social and governance data on companies worldwide and served as lead partner; Trucost, which specializes in quantitative environmental performance measurement; andCorporateRegister.com, the world's largest online directory of social responsibility, sustainability and environmental reporting. Our goal was to assess each company's actual resource use and emissions and its policies and strategies, along with its reputation among its peers. The 500 companies included in the ranking are the largest U.S. companies as measured by revenue, market capitalization and number of employees. The companies are broken out into 15 sectors, based on the FTSE/Dow Jones Industry Classification Benchmark (ICB).

To view complete article: http://www.newsweek.com/id/215522

Media Slack

2009-09-16T09:53:00.000-07:00

Source: Business Report http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=629&fArticleId=5158522
Edited by Peter DeIonno. With contributions by Thabiso Mochiko, Roy Cokayne and Florence de Vries, Sept 10, 2009

Earlier this year, the Roberts Environmental Center in the US released research results on sustainability reporting by the world's biggest entertainment firms, including media groups. It found the sector lagging behind most others in corporate environmental and sustainability reporting.

The best-performing company was Bertelsmann, the world's third-biggest media group and the owner of RTL Group, Europe's biggest broadcaster.

The interesting observation was less that German-based Bertelsmann is located in a region facing greater pressure than most to integrate sustainability into business practices, but that Bertelsmann scored top of the log even though its corporate responsibility report had not been updated since 2005.

Poor sustainability reporting in the sector holds true in South Africa too. Last year, JSE media and entertainment companies scored miserably in research conducted by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), which tracks voluntary reporting on carbon issues by the JSE's top 100 firms.

But there is quite possibly a bigger issue at play. BBC journalist Andrew Marr refers to it in his book My Trade: "We are the self-appointed referees of modern life and we are not greatly inclined to blow the whistle and send ourselves off the field."

There was not one submission from the five companies listed under the media, photography, publishing, leisure, entertainment and hotel sectors. Two companies did not respond (Naspers and Gold Reef Resorts) while the other three (Avusa, Caxton and Sun International) declined to participate. The CDP labelled the response "disappointing" but harsher adjectives could easily be applied.

This is not an attempt to point fingers at our opposition. It is hard to imagine a response would have been forthcoming from Ireland's Independent News & Media, which publishes Business Report, even if it was listed on the JSE, given a poor understanding of our own carbon footprint.

What is it with entertainment and media companies that they lag other industries on reporting non-financial performance to such a degree?

The most obvious answer is that, unlike the really big carbon emitters that are under intense public scrutiny, media and entertainment groups face less public pressure. And so they allocate less internal resources to collecting the necessary data.

About Business Report:

Published in The Star, Cape Times, The Mercury and Pretoria News

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Welcome to our new* and returning Roberts’ analysts!

2009-09-15T10:24:00.001-07:00

We have finalized the fall 2009 recruit.

Aisha Shaikh*	Claremont McKenna College, '10
Allison Scott*	Claremont McKenna College '11
Ashley Scott	Claremont McKenna College, '11
Bukola Jimoh (Lead Analyst)	Claremont McKenna College '11
Carolyn Campbell	Claremont McKenna College '11
Danielle L. Manning*	Claremont McKenna College '11
Eric Robert King	Claremont Mckenna College '12
Erin Franks*	Claremont McKenna College '12
Gracie Beck	Claremont McKenna College '12
Jacyln T. D'Arcy	Claremont McKenna College'11
Jennifer Katelyn Ward	Claremont McKenna College '11
Julie Lapidus	Scripps College '11
Karen de Wolski (Lead Analyst)	Claremont McKenna College '11
Karen Diaz	Claremont McKenna College '12
Karina Gomez	Claremont McKenna College '12
Leah Bross*	Claremont McKenna College '12
Michael Handler Shoemaker	Claremont Mckenna College '12
Ryan Dean Chas Kristensen	Claremont McKenna College '11
Sasha Farina	Claremont McKenna College '11
Shae Blood	Claremont McKenna College '10
William Brown*	Claremont McKenna College '12

2009-09-11T09:46:00.000-07:00

It is always nice to hear from our former research analysts who had graduated and worked on their careers. Just today, we just heard from Peter Weisberg (CMC ’07) who is currently working for the Climate Trust (http://www.climatetrust.org/). His analysis was published in Alternative Energy Stocks (http://www.altenergystocks.com/archives/2009/08/biochars_likely_market_impacts_1.html) Well done, Peter!

Erratum: 2009 Consumer Food, Food Production, and Beverage Sectors Analysis

2009-06-11T12:41:00.001-07:00

An errata sheet is issued for the 2009 Consumer Food, Food Production, and Beverage Sectors Analysis report.

The lowest overal scores companies are: Constellation Brands, Pilgrims Pride, and Land O Lakes.

NEW REPORTS GRADE SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OF 48 U.S. ENERGY AND UTILITIES COMPANIES

2009-05-21T09:02:00.000-07:00

Roberts Environmental Center gives top marks to Mirant and Pinnacle West Capital

To view the complete reports, visit: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/SectorReports.asp.

Claremont, Calif., May 18, 2009—The Roberts Environmental Center of Claremont McKenna College (CMC) today released a detailed analysis of the social responsibility reporting efforts of America’s top energy and utilities corporations. The two reports contain a compilation of Pacific Sustainability Index scores evaluating the environmental and social reporting of the 48 US energy and utilities companies on the 2008 Fortune 1000 list.

The reports score companies based on the reporting, intent, and performance of environmental and social sustainability efforts. The research, based entirely on material released on the firms’ Web sites, found that two of the smallest firms—Mirant (energy sector) and Pinnacle West Capital (utilities sector)—did the best jobs of describing details of their socially beneficial actions and environmental management. The lowest scores were also shared by small firms—Adams Resources and Energy, Inc., and Atmos Energy Corp.—but there was a good mix of firms of all sizes throughout the range of scoring. In neither sector is size a predictor of good reporting.

“In most sectors we analyze, particularly when large multinationals are included, we do see an effect of firm size on corporate reporting,” said J. Emil Morhardt, Roberts Professor of Environmental Biology at CMC and director of the Roberts Environmental Center. “The larger firms have greater visibility, are likely to be examined by investors and the public more closely, and they have more resources to do the data collection and reporting in the first place.” But, as Morhardt pointed out, “There are always some smaller companies that are proactive in this area, usually those that believe demonstrations of corporate environmental and social responsibility are expected from their customers.”

The detailed analyses also reveal what social and environmental themes these companies perceive to be most important to the American public today. The research screened Web site content to determine the most frequently reported topics. Companies with environmental achievements tended to tout their accountability and energy efficiency efforts while socially responsible businesses highlighted their superior policies and care for human rights.

Scoring Summary

Energy Sector Utilities Sector

Highest Overall Scores

Mirant Pinnacle West Capital

Constellation Energy Wisconsin Energy

American Electric Power Duke Energy

Highest Environmental Reporting Scores

Mirant Pinnacle West Capital

Constellation Energy Wisconsin Energy

American Electric Power Pepco Holdings, Inc.

Highest Social Reporting Scores

Mirant Pinnacle West Capital

Constellation Energy Duke Energy

Integrys Energy Corp. Wisconsin Energy

Lowest Overall Scores

Adams Resources and Energy Atmos Energy Corp.

Ferrellgas Partners Ameren

New Jersey Resources AES Corp.

Guest Post: working on sustainability in the corporate world

2009-05-19T11:36:00.000-07:00

Greetings, my name is Wilson Korol and I am a proud graduate of CMC (class of ’02). I now work in the Corporate Citizenship (or Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), or Sustainability, there are a lot of terms that apply) world for Nortel Networks, and as a result have come across, and been quite impressed, with the work done by the Roberts Environmental Center. They have been kind enough to offer this forum to let me share a bit about my experience on the job and how the time at CMC helped prepare me for said job.

It is kind of ironic that I have ended up working in the CSR field (incidentally, my current title is Global CSR Analyst), as I did not avail myself of the course offers on the topic while in Claremont. Honestly, I did not know this was an area where companies directed resources. I would have been interested had I known, but corporate sustainability was not an issue that gained much of my attention in the spring of 2002. The reality is that even just 7 years ago the amount of resources devoted to these issues was minuscule compared to the current level, which has seen significant growth during that time. For more consideration of the CSR field from the corporate side, check out our blog, greenroots: http://community.nortel.com/go/blogs/greenroots.

There are a handful of skills that I use every day that directly carry over from CMC

One thing about most CSR work in the corporate setting is that our departments/groups are quite small and lean, so people have to be quite flexible. This relates back to the educational experience at CMC, where almost all of my professors focused on creativity. Asking and probing students to solve problems without mandating what that solution entails is education at its finest.

The second aspect is the CMC emphasis on the interdisciplinary approach the world, which is particularly important in the CSR world, since there are so many issues that need to be considered and addressed for a robust corporate program and approach. For example, I believe a corporate CSR program in the tech industry should address products, climate chance, green it, e-waste, telecommuting, migrating business to the digital realm, employee engagement, community relations, stakeholder engagement, human rights, communication supply chain management. And that is just off the top of my head. With so many topics, it is essential to make it all work together.

Lastly, I would be remiss to not briefly highlight communication skills, which are absolutely critical. With the ever emerging modes of communication, being able to get your ideas and perspectives across remains absolutely critical, be it a telepresence high def conference call, in person presentations or via social media.

Hope everyone enjoys their summer. Congrats to the new grads from CMC and beyond, this is an exciting (and in this economy, probably a bit scary) time in their life.

Wilson Korol

http://community.nortel.com/go/blogs/greenroots

NEW REPORTS GRADE SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OF 120 LARGE COMPANIES IN FIVE SECTORS

2009-05-18T09:18:00.000-07:00

Roberts Environmental Center analyzes the World’s largest companies in the motor vehicles & parts, forest & paper products, industrial & farm equipment; consumer food, food production & beverages; and telecommunications, network & peripherals sectors

To view the complete reports, visit: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/SectorReports.asp.

Claremont, Calif., May 19, 2009—The Roberts Environmental Center of Claremont McKenna College (CMC) today released a detailed analysis of the social responsibility reporting efforts of many of the World’s top corporations. The five reports contain compilations of Pacific Sustainability Index scores evaluating the environmental and social reporting of the largest companies on the 2008 Fortune Global 500 and Fortune 1000 lists.

The reports score companies based on the reporting, intent, and performance of environmental and social sustainability efforts. The research, based entirely on material released on the firms’ Web sites, gives grades of A+ to Johnson Controls, Toyota, General Motors, and Daimler AG in the motor vehicles and parts sector; Stora Enso in the forest and paper products sector; ABB in the industrial and farm equipment sector; Coca Cola in the consumer food, food production, and beverages sectors; and France Télécom and Vodafone in the telecommunications, network, and peripherals sector.

“In this round of reporting, more companies than ever before are in the top quarter of the overall range of scores” said J. Emil Morhardt, Roberts Professor of Environmental Biology at CMC and director of the Roberts Environmental Center. “Clearly, sustainability reporting is continuing to be adopted, at least in these large corporations.” But, as Morhardt pointed out, “Although there is a general size effect in the quality of reporting in most sectors in this sample there are smaller companies that do a very good job.”

Scoring Summary

Industrial Sector

Highest Overall Scores

Highest Environmental Reporting Scores

Highest Social Reporting Scores

Lowest Overall Scores

Consumer Food, Food Production, and Beverages Sector

Coca-cola

PepsiCo

Inbev

Coca-cola

Groupe Danone

Inbev

PepsiCo

H.J. Heinz Company

Coca-cola

Constellation Brands

Pilgrims Pride

Land O Lakes

Forest and Paper Products

Stora Enso

International Paper

Weyerhaeuser

NewPage Corp.

Stora Enso

International Paper

Weyerhaeuser

Universal Forest Products

Plum Creek Timber

Potlatch

Industrial and Farm Equipment

ABB

Cummins

Black and Decker

Cummins

ABB

Komatsu, Ltd.

ABB

Black and Decker

ITT Corp.

Teleflex Inc.

Nacco Industries

Komatsu Ltd.

Motor Vehicle and Parts

Toyota Motor

Johnson Controls

General Motor

Daimler AG

Volkswagen

Johnson Controls

Daimler AG

General Motor

Ford Motor

Toyota Motor

China FAW

Shanghai Automotive

Koc Holding

Telecommunications

France Télécom

Vodafone

Telecom Italia

France Télécom

Telecom Italia

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone

Vodafone

Telefónica

Telecom Italia

Softbank

Carso Global Telecom

KDDI

Thesis Day @ CMC

2009-04-27T15:31:00.000-07:00

The First Claremont's Earth Day Celebration

2009-04-22T09:19:00.000-07:00

Mark your calendar for Claremont's first community-wide Earth Day celebration on Sunday, April 26, 2009, from 12 to 5 p.m. in the Village.

Activities will include:
- Speakers and presentations on the environment, alternative transportation and sustainability
- Tips on how to "Green" your home or business and save money
- Music and entertainment
- Fun and educational activities for kids
- A bicycle "rodeo" and safety training
- Educational workshops and displays
- Exhibits by "Green" organizations

Additional lectures and workshops will be held throughout the community during Earth Week (April 19-26).

Event co-sponsors include the City of Claremont, Claremont Toyota, Pitzer College, Pomona Valley Medical Health Center, Claremont Smile Design, Hartman Baldwin, Le Pain Quotidien, Pomona College, Coates Cyclery, Friends of the Bernard Field Station, Maria J. Andrade, Mountain View Republican Club and Suntrek Solar.
Organized by Sustainable Claremont, the Claremont Interfaith Committee on Sustainability and the Claremont Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory Committee.
For more information, call Chris Veirs, Senior planner/Sustainability Coordinator at (909) 399-5486.

View Claremont Earth Day Celebration Flier (Adobe Acrobat, 937KB)

Copy pasted from: http://www.ci.claremont.ca.us/

Power Shift 2009 Conference

2009-04-08T11:18:00.000-07:00

1) Joe, Anna, Adam and Mark demonstrating in front of the Capital building.

2) A group picture in front of an outdoor sculpture.

3) A group picture in front of the Washington Monument.

12,000 people attended the Power Shift 2009 Conference http://www.powershift09.org/, the purpose of the conference is "for rebuilding our economy and reclaiming our future through bold climate and clean energy policy" so that will would bring that knowledge back to our campuses.

Pictures and captions provided by: Ashley Scott, CMC '11

Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy.

2009-04-03T13:27:00.000-07:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major.

On Thursday, March 12, 2009 at 11:00 am, Yale University’s Daniel Esty gave a lecture at Rose Hills Cinema entitled “Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy.” He is the Hillhouse Professor of Environmental Law and Policy at Yale Law School and is the co-author of a new book, From Green to Gold. The lecture marked the fourth installment in Pomona College’s 2008-2009 Hart Lecture series, “American History and the Environment.”

Esty was introduced by Pomona College’s Bo Cutter, professor of environmental economics. Cutter cited Esty’s unique life trajectory and experience with law, the environment and economics, a particularly interesting mix, before turning over the podium to the visiting lecturer.

Esty began by characterizing the “special moment” we find ourselves in, politically, environmentally, and economically. “We face a global economic crisis, a new president, energy-related, environmental and economic challenges, climate change, and global trade liberalization.” He cited a growing awareness of the interdependence of many of these issues, and postulated that the public, business world, and particularly the government should assume new roles.

“We don’t want the lifeblood of our nation to be tied to unstable regimes like Nigeria, Venezuela and in the Middle East,” he said. “We need a new engine.”

Massive investment in a “greener engine” will not only produce a lot of wealth and help combat many issues at once, it will “yield cleaner air, water, and better products,” Esty said.

The visiting lecturer was very clear, however, that government should shift its old model of EPA-style environmental policy from a “Red-light” model to a “Green-light” one. Instead of saying, “stop using fossil fuels,” it should tax carbon emissions and say, “now find a better way.”

Esty postulated that technology development and innovation will be the key to societal environmental progress, and pointed to the private sector, with its scale and diversity, as the proper arena for such work. “Government should spur but not do technology development,” he said. “Structuring incentives to engage the private sector is a much more effective way to reduce America’s carbon emissions than when government picks a strategy and thus leverages the playing field. An example of how disastrous this can be is the example of corn-based ethanol, a terrible mistake that was pursued by the government for political reasons.”

He then shifted to a discussion of how law can help shape the private sector’s activities by suggesting that it should “penalize harm-causing, subsidize selectively, shield against oil price swings, and engage in some ‘command and control’ mandates like green building standards.”

Esty also suggested that not only does the government have a lot to gain by incentivizing the “greening” of America’s economy, individual companies also stand to benefit by becoming more eco-friendly. He measured the relative success of Toyota, producer of the Prius, against the recent failures of Ford, a company that has fallen short of changing its model to match the new climate, among other examples, and pointed to a mainstreaming of green business as seen in moves by Walmart and GE to appeal to consumers who are interested in sustainability. This shift is due to energy prices, evolving regulations, greener shareholders, and natural world drivers like peak oil and deforestation that make more sustainable companies better able to deal with resource shortages, Esty said. Not only do more consumers want greener products, talented individuals entering the job market want to work with companies that align with their values.

He suggested that companies today need to think cleanly, clearly, and strategically. “CEO’s should ask themselves, ‘how will my company do comparatively if carbon dioxide has a price?’” Change also creates opportunity, however. Businesses have a potential offensive capability to become a solutions-provider in the new economic paradigm.

Overall, his specific advice to corporations was to cut costs, lower eco-risks, drive revenues by entering green markets and new market spaces, become more energy-efficient, and promote intangible value through ‘brand’ buildings and corporate social responsibility.

Professor Esty concluded by reminding listeners that the shift he was calling for would not be all win-win. “As Kermit the Frog says, it’s not easy being green. However, there are big pay-offs.”

Professor Char Miller, said: “Esty did a great job of connecting the possibilities of how businesses can become more green to why they should be thinking about doing so. He did a good job outlining how companies like Walmart and Toyota have been pushing these changes down the supply chain.

“His faith in the market,” however, “is more than mine,” Miller continued. “Big companies like Walmart are especially able to push smaller operations out of business, and Esty never talked about wages or benefits. He covered how we could protect the planet and corporate profits, but not how we could also create human prosperity. His further statement that changing our patterns of consumption will help us protect the environment left me wondering whether simply buying more Priuses will really be effective enough. Esty’s talk, however, was both similar to and more effective than that of Hunter Lovins at Pomona College’s recent Trustee-Faculty retreat.”

Professor Bo Cutter responded as well, saying, “Esty expresses himself very well, though his point-of-view is very much in the mainstream of environmental economics. His intellectual contributions are mainly in the realm of environmental psychology – his argument in From Green to Gold is that we need to change how we think about environmental issues. He argues that conceiving of your company as environmental is necessary for future growth in the current situation.”

Students were impressed as well: Cailee Moberg (PO ‘11) replied, “Esty did a great job of explaining a lot of issues I was familiar with in a new way… He made a lot of connections and his talk resonated with me, especially his call for a shift to the private sector. Definitely a very engaging speaker.”

The next lecture in this year’s Hart Lecture Series, “Chocorua’s Curse,” will take place on Thursday, April 9^th, again at Rose Hills Cinema at 11:00 am.

Picture source: http://greenwave2007.com/db4/00320/greenwave2007.com/_uimages/G2Gbookcover.jpg

Frogs: The Thin Green Line - Video: Behind the Scenes - Allison Argo | Nature

2009-03-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

Nature: Frogs: The Thin Green Line on KCET, Sunday, April 5, 8:00pm and April 12, 12:00pm,The extinction threat faced by frogs. Picture source: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/files/2009/03/610_frogs_intro.jpg

2009-03-30T17:12:00.000-07:00

When we send out our draft PSI sector reports for review, more than half of the companies respond. A quarter of these respond positively, congratulating our work in ranking companies and showing appreciation for our un-biased and objective analyses on companies’ online sustainability reporting.

Of the remaining respondents all but one or two are curious and mostly fairly new at the idea of doing CSR, most of them American companies. They often want to know what are the pros and cons of doing CSR are in the first place. What is the bottom line? They want to know if what they already have internally are the things that fundamentally ought to be publicly reported and they want to know who the audience of our reports is. I can sense mixed feelings between their involuntary willingness to do CSR, a.k.a. peer pressure stirred by the PSI rankings, and their voluntary willingness to start a CSR for the sake of the company’s good reputation. This group has good faith and they often need time to convince their top management to do CSR. In many cases, they use our sector reports as ammunition. I think this group is the main reason we should continue what we have been doing for the past five years—scoring companies based on their online reporting. The first group already “knew” that doing CSR is probably a good way to do responsible business. The later group is the one that needs more convincing and organizational transformation.

Only one or two companies responded bitterly because they had gotten a failing grade for not reporting any sustainability topics online. They repetitively made multiple protestations of their compliance with the laws and regulations and in some cases pointed out awards. As CSR becomes more and more accepted as a norm, I think the last group would disappear.

This summer we are planning to better structure our individual critical review analysis to provide more information that would be helpful for the first group who think positively about CSR, but especially helpful for the starters and under-supported corporate staffs.

Written by: Elgeritte Adidjaja, REC Research Fellow

What's happening around here:

2009-03-25T16:38:00.000-07:00

Brazillian dance performance at our beautiful sister college Scripps' Seal courtyard.

Energy Unit Converter Tool

2009-03-12T13:42:00.000-07:00

Here at the Roberts Environmental Center, one of the research analysts’ tasks is to extract aggregate quantitative data, i.e. total energy consumption, which in many cases are reported in different units and forms. For example, in A.P. Moller-Maersk Group 2007’s CSR, here is how energy consumption data are reported:

As of today, we now have a converter spreadsheet http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/PDF/EnergyUnitConverterTool.xls) to convert and sum up various energy consumption data.

Posted by: Elgeritte Adidjaja, Research Fellow

"From Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy"

2009-03-10T11:22:00.000-07:00

Dear Colleagues:

This is to alert you to the next Hart Lecture in our series on The Environment and American Society: This Thursday, 12 March, at 11:00 in the Rose Hills Theatre, Professor Daniel Esty will speak on "From Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy."

Daniel Esty is the Hillhouse Professor of Environmental Law and Policy, with appointments in both the Yale Law School and the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. He directs the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy, the Yale Center for Business and the Environment, and the Yale World Fellows Program. The author or editor of nine books and scores of articles on environmental policy, he received the American Bar Association Award for Distinguished Achievement in Environmental Law and Policy in 2002. He has held senior appointments in the Environmental Protection Agency, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and in recent years has consulted with non-profit organizations, companies, and governmental offices on energy, sustainability, and environmental issues.

His Hart lecture will draw on his most recent book, co-authored with Andrew Winston, Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage (Yale, 2006). Tensie Whelan, the Executive Director of the Rainforest Alliance, called Green to Gold "a must read," and noted that "Esty and Winston provide convincing examples of how companies out-compete their peers by tackling sustainability head on, engaging stakeholders, developing NGO partnerships, and folding environmental stewardship into their corporate culture."

His lecture should help continue the college's conversation about sustainability and offer at least some practical responses to the energy and environmental crises we confront. I look forward to seeing you there.

Regards, Helena Wall

The unsustainable side of anti-growth policy

2009-03-04T14:05:00.000-08:00

I found an interesting article in LA Times:
"California's green meanies:By putting up barriers to new development in the state, environmentalists push homes to areas that are far less environmentally friendly" by Edward L. Glaeser (The Glimp professor of economics and director of the Taubman Center for State and Local Government at Harvard University.) Glaeser is convinced that “stopping new development may seem green but it isn’t.”

Another interesting article [but not as interesting as the one above] is “L.A. tops rankings in energy efficiency: The city has the most Energy Start buildings in the U.S., EPA says” by Roger Vincent.

(Posted by: Elgeritte Adidjaja)

Picture source: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2005/10/07/realestate/09nati650.jpg

2009-02-27T09:13:00.000-08:00

Thought you might enjoy seeing this photo taken by Nancy Hamlett of amplectant (“mating” for you non-biologists) toads at the BFS last week. These are Southern California Toads breeding at the only vernal pond on the property. This pond is located on the newly acquired HMC property which is slated for development. (M. Preest, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biology)

Millenial Hope: Climate Change and the Far Horizon of Possibility

2009-02-17T11:30:00.000-08:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major

On Thursday, January 29, 2009 at 11:00 am, David Orr, Oberlin College’s renowned Paul Sears Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics gave a lecture at Rose Hills Cinema entitled “Millenial Hope: Climate Change and the Far Horizon of Possibility.” He is the author of the books Earth in Mind and Ecological Literacy, and is currently writing a new book, entitled The Transforming Climate.

The talk was part of the Pomona-sponsored 2008-2009 Hart Lecture series on “The Environment and American Society,” and came as Pomona is striving to become more sustainable। President Oxtoby signed the President’s Climate Commitment in 2007, requiring Pomona to plan to become carbon-neutral in the future, while the new Sustainability Coordinator, Bowen Patterson, and the student Sustainability Fellowship are currently attempting to turn an audit completed over the summer into a Sustainability Plan for the school to carry out.

After being introduced, Orr began by stating that, “no president has come into office facing as many expectation as Obama,” and that the situation today differs from earlier crises in that we’re facing two major deficits: one measured in dollars (relatively easy to fix), and one measured in intact natural systems (much harder to fix)। He summarized some of the most important historical books on environmental issues, and said that their predictions have come true: today, in his opinion, our demands to the biosphere exceed its capacity to deliver, seen in the growing CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere and the rate at which ecosystems are being degraded around the world.

Orr next moved on to a discussion of global warming। “We are playing a game of Russian roulette with the entire planet,” he stated. Global warming will bring “mounting calamities and extreme weather events,” a minimum of three feet of sea level rise “before the end of this century,” and extreme global ecological change. He explained that these are not contested predictions, but ones accepted by a variety of publications, including Fortune Magazine. The vast majority of scholars in the field agree that global warming will result in some degree of planetary destabilization.

The professor explained that it was probably “too late to stop” global warming, but that it is essential that we try as much as possible to mitigate its effects। “We face our first global emergency,” he said. “There is no easy way out, no silver bullet.”

Furthermore, Orr pointed out that as a species, we aren’t wired to deal with this kind of emergency, as we evolved to deal with direct threats। Global warming is the result of the actions of billions of people, and is dangerous because there is a high probability of catastrophe in the long term, leading to procrastination; the possible solutions will require costs now for benefits later; responsibility is diffused among many; and the concentrated political interest in the status quo makes it hard to move forward.

That being said, Orr maintained that current technology represents “silver buckshot” with which we can make progress on the issue. He helped work with the Presidential Climate Action Project to come up with a “100-day action plan” for President Obama, based on a targeted 80-90% reduction in American CO2 emissions by 2050, and pointed out that a large part of why we are in this mess is because we have had the wrong policy priorities, with about $1 trillion in subsidies going to unsustainable energy technologies like coal, oil and nuclear. (climateactionproject.com) The professor recommended that “energy policy act as a linchpin” for equity, economy, health and security issues, as they are all connected. On one hand, climate change is “the largest security threat this country has ever faced,” he said. On the other, however, investing in green technologies will not bankrupt us but rather could yield “40 million new ‘green-collar jobs’ by 2050.”
He discussed some of the different alternative energy strategies, and called for smarter solutions, that are “fast, easy, cheap, resilient, effective in reducing carbon emissions per dollar, and that don’t cause other problems।” He spoke out against nuclear power and “clean coal,” but also spoke well of technologies like wind and solar energy. “We are the Saudi Arabia of wind,” he exclaimed. “We have options, and the more we invest in these renewable technologies, the cheaper they’ll get.”

Though the political solution required to switch from coal to renewables is tough, he mentioned that GDP and energy use per head are not necessarily connected, citing California’s economic growth and low energy use as an example. Furthermore, factories to produce green goods can and have already replaced a lot of jobs in coal-dominated areas like Ohio.
To conclude, Orr mentioned some of the projects underway at Oberlin and the importance of bringing environmental education into the classroom. ‘The Great Work’ of stabilizing Earth’s climate has been thrust upon us,” he said. “If you want to have a bat in your hand in the 9th inning, apply your career to the environment,” he said. Orr finishing by exhorting the audience, “to hope, not despair, but hope with your sleeves rolled up.”
Students were generally impressed: Jake Schual-Burke (PO ‘11) said, “Orr’s message was clear and the lecture had a solid and holistic approach। He covered all the bases from problem to solution. I don’t think he said many new things, but it was cool to learn what had been done at Oberlin College.” A different Pomona student, who asked to remain anonymous, said, “The talk was really good. I had heard about most of what Orr was talking about, but not that the emissions are there for centuries to come and can’t be taken out very easily. I also liked his image of Oberlin as an oasis of sustainability. I just hope that they can reach beyond the rural white Ohio crowd, as I remembered that Oberlin was pretty isolated from visiting my brother (who just graduated).”

Professor Hazlett, coordinator of the EA program and present at the talk, responded, “The experience of Dr. Orr’s Hart Lecture was like taking a cold shower, dealing with a skunk at a picnic, or as he put it, ‘learning from your doctor that you have a life-threatening disease…’ the take home message remains that we’ve (so far) done too little, too late to address the global climate issue, and that achieving sustainability will be less about making modest lifestyle changes than about some sort of ‘quantum leap.’”
He continued by saying, “Folks should appreciate that Oberlin College was initially deeply resistant to Professor Orr’s call for action and the construction of the Lewis Center. David Orr, a lone voice in the wilderness bucking a fierce oppositional administrative tide, courageously raised much of the money for the Lewis Center on his own. He and his students also pioneered the community outreach that is turning the town into a green center enjoying largely its own local food production. This represents a titanic effort, and it illustrates both the power of one or just a few individuals with great moral conviction to generate change.”
Here at Pomona, we have “never followed the pack in addressing the great environmental conundrums of the day।”

Orr’s talk will be followed by the last two talks in this year’s Hart Lecture Series in the coming month Daniel Esty, of Yale Law School, will give a talk on March 12th entitled, “Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy,” while Karen Halttunen, hailing from USC, will give a talk on April 9th entitled “Chocorua’s Curse: Indians, Native Place, and the Making of the New England Landscape.”

First Published at The Student Life.Contact: mailto:nbt02007@mymail.pomona.edu

Picture source: http://www.oberlin.edu/news-info/98sep/orr_profile.html

Who Is to Blame? Kyoto Protocol 2012

2009-01-31T15:26:00.000-08:00

With our global economy emitting dangerously high levels of CO2, the Kyoto Protocol must be revised to compensate for this pollution by 2012. Yet the question of who bears the burden of downsizing CO2 emissions remains in debate. Manufacturing based countries, like China, place the blame on the America whose companies produce goods in China and sell them to American consumers. Developed countries like the United States of America and Australia claim that limiting pollution restrictions to consumer based countries will force them to lose their edge in international trade. With viable components to both sides’ arguments, neither group has a foreseeable advantage in the negotiations to come. Regardless of the negotiations outcome, the role government is playing in managing these externalities is appropriately involved.

Because a government’s role in society must include protective or productive activity, China and the United States of America’s refusal to sign the Kyoto Protocols of 1996 was a failure to uphold protective activity. Despite America’s supposed decrease in pollution, both countries have caused billions more tons of CO2 to be emitted over the past few years. As both lead our world in CO2 emissions, the international community has proposed multiple solutions to bring both sides to the table. The solutions range from taxing manufacturers’ pollution, to taxing consumers’ pollution, to having border taxes on carbon-intensive manufactured imports/exports. But with each country blaming the other for their combined pollution, a mutually signed update of the Kyoto Protocol is unlikely.

With flaws in every solution presented, the issue is not what agreement will be reached. Rather it is whether governments will take the protective actions necessary to help limit the amount of dangerous CO2 emissions. After taking initiative in the 1996 to ratify the Kyoto Protocols, most European nations are not hesitant to partake in updating them. But it is also important to note that European nations do not consume or produce in such large proportions as the United States or China do. The underlying issue behind nations’ compliance or complaints with updating the Kyoto Protocol is their protection of their economic self-interest. Governments did not deny their responsibility of protective assistance, but rather misunderstood it as a responsibility to protect their nations’ market. In reality, the responsibility must be to protect the people within the nation before the nations’ economy. If this comprehension of government’s role in dealing with externalities is employed before 2012, our world will hopefully be a greener place.

I feel that beyond all supposed roles of government in society, the most important is to ensure the well being of its population. With billions of metric tons of CO2 already released and thorough scientific evidence showing how detrimental CO2 is to mother earth, it is up to us to understand the sacrifices that must be made to combat this global issue. These sacrifices might entail higher priced commodities and possibly a decline in our nation’s economy. But all these are necessary to make our world safer in the long run. Thus we must support our governments’ decisions to bear the costs of ‘going green’.

Works Cited:

Spencer, Jane. “Why China Could Blame Its CO2 on the West.” The Wall Street Journal. 12 Nov. 2007. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119482231216689376.html? mod=googlenews_wsj>

Written by: Mikey Shoemaker, REC Analyst, CMC '12

Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes in Youth: School Outreach in a Diverse Society

2009-01-27T12:15:00.000-08:00

The limited literature available concerning school-based type 2 diabetes prevention programs is promising, as modest improvements in lifestyle habits and social cognitive factors were observed in most of the interventions reviewed. However, the modest and mixed results of the school-based approaches reviewed illustrate that such a narrow focus is not potent enough to give rise to the lasting lifestyle modification required to effectively prevent type 2 diabetes in youth. The U.S. public health system now possesses both sufficient preliminary data and a convincing impetus to create and implement a plan to address the harrowing public health problem of the rising incidence of pediatric type 2 diabetes.

The collaboration and cooperation among all sectors of American society, spanning from the school, the family, the health care provider, the community, to the food industry, will prove to be vital in order to address the seemingly unabated increasing prevalence of adolescent type 2 diabetes and obesity. Examples of such a multifaceted approach include educating health care personnel, curbing and regulating the marketing of unhealthy food products to children, implementing agendas to test for type 2 diabetes in high-risk populations, such as Hispanic, Asian American, and Native American groups, and creating initiatives which make nutritious foods less expensive and more accessible, such as regulating the number of grocery stores and fast food restaurants in inner-city communities. Parental involvement is another critical factor which must be addressed to prevent type 2 diabetes in youth, as youth spend over half their waking hours outside the school, with a bounty of opportunities to be physically active and to make choices about the types of foods they eat.

Research has repeatedly found that family eating patterns exert the greatest influence over the dietary intake of the child. If the trend of escalating childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes continues, today’s parents “will be responsible for having watched over the first generation of American children to have shorter expected life spans than their parents.”

With childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes rates rising at unprecedented levels, there is no better time than the present for immediate and intensive action to tackle one of the most pressing public health problems the United States will ever face. The opportunity to act now to prevent catastrophe hangs by a thread on the foot of every child, parent, politician, and community member’s doorstep. It is the government and society’s responsibility to seize this opportunity, for good health is a priceless gift that no child or parent should ever squander.

Excerpt from Selene Isaacson's (REC Analyst, CMC '09) senior thesis, which also can be further reviewed at:

http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/PDF/SeleneThesis.pdf

Contact: Selene Isaacson [sisaacson09@students.claremontmckenna.edu]

Carbon Footprint of Tropicana Orange Juice

2009-01-22T09:50:00.000-08:00

I found this great article about the carbon footprint of Tropicana orange juice! I'm very excited at the prospect of PepsiCo calculating the carbon emissions necessary to produce their product line because this may lead to a trend of (hopefully) consumer education and green branding and marketing. Essentially the free market could drive competition between corporations to eliminate unnecessary carbon emissions just as organic cotton and sweatshop-free products have become increasingly desirable. However, I think that companies would be more willing to do this if the government mandated a cap and trade system of carbon taxation. Anyways, this article excites me as a young person hoping to reform corporate practices and government policies!

Article and picture source: http://www.nytimes.comhttp://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2009/01/22/business/0122-PEPSI_index.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Sent by: Mark Munro (REC Analyst, CMC'12)

CMC’s Carbon Footprint: Student and Faculty Travel

2009-01-14T13:11:00.000-08:00

Our data indicates that most students’ carbon footprint is highly correlated with the number of trips made to campus each year. Most of the members of the faculty, however, have a carbon footprint that is primarily determined by the number of trips they take per year to conferences as well as their daily commute. Because of the different contributors to faculty and students’ carbon footprints, the methods to reduce each will be different.

Faculty, like most members of the adult population, could reduce their carbon footprint by adjusting their commuting transportation decision. Biking, walking, carpooling, or public transportation would all reduce their carbon dioxide emissions. Faculty could also arrange to work at home a few days per week in order to reduce the number of trips made to campus each year. In addition, a limitation on the number of conferences or an increased use of teleconferencing could reduce carbon footprint. When it is necessary to fly to conferences, faculty members should try to take direct non-stop flights because the most concentrated carbon dioxide emissions occur during take-off and landing. They could also pay to offset the carbon dioxide emissions produced during their flights.

Students could reduce their carbon footprint by carpooling to common locations, such as Phoenix or San Francisco, since driving with two or more people in a car creates fewer greenhouse gas emissions per person than two or more people flying.

Students could also reduce the number of trips home they take during the year. The school could facilitate this by increasing student services and events during breaks. Student initiatives and home-stay programs for international students could also reduce the number of trips students take per year. Students could carpool to events off-campus—sharing the ride with one other person cuts CO2 emissions in half and sharing it with three other people makes it 25% of driving alone. Finally, an educational campaign launched to raise awareness among students about the harmful effects greenhouse gas emissions from transportation have on the environment could be very effective.

Global warming has become so problematic today partly because people are simply unaware of the effects their personal actions have on the environment. If people understand the problem, they will be able to make more informed choices about their transportation habits, such as walking to the Village in Claremont rather than driving. Change is possible and we must act now to preserve our planet before it becomes too late.

Excerpted from http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/psi/pdf/cmcfootprint.pdf

Written by:

Scott Arnold, CMC '09 (SArnold09@cmc.edu)

Anna Beninger (pix), CMC '09 (ABeninger09@cmc.edu)

Lauren Ohata, CMC '09 (LOhata09@cmc.edu)

Jose Villanueva, CMC '08 (JVillanueva08@cmc.edu)

Recycling at CMC

2009-01-14T13:07:00.000-08:00

The Claremont Colleges has various, positive impacts on the Claremont community. Yet, the large number of students living on the campuses also makes an enormous negative contribution to the community: waste. Claremont generates over 34,000 tons of solid waste every year. A large percentage of that comes from the Colleges. While reducing that amount of waste seems like a tremendous challenge, it also presents an amazing opportunity. Even a small increase in recycling on the campuses could result in a large reduction in waste.

We are excited to increase recycling rates at CMC and to promote the habit of green-practices. Our four initiatives were designed to address the most problematic areas of recycling at CMC, as revealed by our student survey. With these initiatives, we hope to increase recycling rates for all items by 15 percent in the first year of implementation. We hope that in four years, every CMC student will be fully engaged in recycling, as the total population of CMC students will have been fully acclimated to these practices (those seniors will have been exposed to these practices as entering freshmen). There are also a couple of recommendations that we have for future groups who will be undertaking the recycling project. First, our recycling stickers were only distributed to residents of the senior apartments. With a request for funding by CMC, a future group may be able to create enough stickers for each dorm room’s blue bin. Second, any of these initiatives can eventually be conveyed to the other four Claremont Colleges. For example, recycling stickers may be made for the other colleges and the attached, and the Student Guide to Recycling may easily become a document that circulates the inboxes of all 5-C students. Finally, we also wanted to address the issue of food waste at CMC. Unfortunately, we did not have time. We helped the CMC community service club (Civitas) deliver extra food from the Athenaeum to the Upland Family Shelter, but these delivery trips only occur once a week, and Collins Dining Hall is not yet involved in the food drives. A future group may undertake the initiative creating bi-weekly food drives to deliver extra food from Collins to needy organizations. Future initiatives could also include removing trays from the Collins Dining Hall, which would reduce the waste of food as well as the waste of energy and water used to wash the trays. Another option is engaging Collins Dining Hall with local composting efforts; vegetable and fruit matter (such as rinds and peels) may be collected from the kitchen and created into compost. We are excited about our initiatives and hope that our implemented efforts will have a large impact on recycling practices at CMC, but indeed, there are still many initiatives to be undertaken by future CMC students!

Excerpted from http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/PDF/RecyclingatCMC.pdf.

Written by: Elena Derby (CMC’09), Wendy Henry (CMC ’09), and Lauren Reddy (CMC ’09)

Contact: EDerby09@cmc.edu, WHenry09@cmc.edu, LReddy09@cmc.edu

Energy consumption study at CMC

2009-01-08T16:55:00.000-08:00

Two students Baxter Norcross and Timothy Halleran, studied the electricity consumption in five academic buildings at the Claremont McKenna College, how much of it was wasted, and where adjustment can be made. Study shows that money can be saved by installing motion detectors. The payback period for the investment would be just within the first year. Should LED lighting be used, the savings would be even greater. In addition to lighting, electricity for cooling would decrease as the constant operation of incandescent lights decrease.

Download the full report: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/pdf/CMC%20motion%20sensors.pdf
Contact information: Timothy Halleran (hallerat@students.pitzer.edu) or Baxter Norcross (bnorcross11@students.claremontmckenna.edu.)

Informal year-end report of the Research Fellow of the Roberts Environmental Center

2008-12-23T07:30:00.000-08:00

I was out of commission for the first half of 2008 for a paid maternity leave [Thank you CMC!], so I have nothing to report from January to June perhaps other than, it is a boy, his name is Elijah, was born as an 8 pounder, and now he is almost 24 pounds.

From left to right: Elijah and I, Garrett Hazelton, Ata ul Malik Khan, William P. Alston, and Prof. Emil Morhardt.

My return to work was also around the same time with the end of Garrett Hazelton’s contract as the Environmental Programs Coordinator of the Joint Science Department of the Claremont Colleges. Garrett had shared an office space with us for the past 3 years and he is now working at MWH http://www.mwhglobal.com/ as a Senior Geologist working on land reclamation projects.

When I returned to work in end of June, it was summer time. During the summer, we had six students working in the Center, four of which had just graduated. Other than scoring the Electronics, Banks, and Metals sectors, which all had been published just recently on December 9, the team scored and downloaded 93 websites from the New York based Fortune 1000 companies, which will be published in January of 2009.

Unlike other sector reports we have scored so far, we cut the number of topics analyzed in half because these companies are from across sectors. We simulated the most answered questions from different regions, i.e. Europe, North America, California, the World, Japan, etc. The questions that are mostly answered by companies in Europe came out to be the universal model for companies across sectors, and we decided to use the European model to score the New York environmental and sustainability reporting.

We are also undertaking a research project about environmental accounting reporting, which is still in data extraction phase, from approximately 50 Japanese companies’ sustainability reports. We are exploring the characteristics of environmental accounting reporting, and the cost and benefits analyses of their environmental activities. We hope to complete this project in the next couple of months and will have something to report by early March of 2009.

This year we upgraded the look the front page of our website with a blogger (www.roberts.cmc.edu) to post candid stories and pictures of the environmental activities around the Claremont Colleges, especially at the Center.

We also worked with Brian Worley, the Director of Facilities and Campus Services at Claremont McKenna College and the student Environmental Crusaders club with Mark Munro and Anna Keyfest. We extrapolated faculties’, staffs’, and students’ aggregate emission data from a series of surveys for the Presidents’ signatory commitment to the Climate Change Initiatives that was finalized and submitted just a couple days ago.

Caption: Brian Worley and Garrett Hazelton at Sustainability Presentations Day 2007. Picture source: http://ccdl.libraries.claremont.edu/u?/csa,484 (Thanks, Allegra)

The Center is at its hiring high this fall semester, employing 41 student analysts. I had three of my senior analysts, William Pedersen Alston (Peter), Tyler Andrew Hallman (who is now in Argentina doing Avifauna research), and Selene Isaacson, helping me train many of the new recruits. Selene was also lead analyst scoring companies on special-request-basis, most recently, the Honda North America.

In just one semester, we almost finish scoring the Utilities, Gas, Electric Sector, Energy Sector, Forest and Paper Products Sectors, Food, Beverages, and Consumer Products Sectors, Industrial and Farm Equipment Sector, and Telecommunication sector. I can only imagine the piles of letters we need to send out to allow companies to review the analysis and our draft sector reports, identifing if anything missed by our analysts, and to post additional material on their websites should they wish to improve their PSI scores.

Finally, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Elgeritte Adidjaja, Roberts Environmental Center Research Fellow
eadidjaja@cmc.edu

2008-12-18T07:00:00.000-08:00

On November 4, 2008, North American Honda visited the Roberts Environmental Center, discussed the 2008 Corporate Sustainability Report, and shared about environmental and technological challenges in the automotive industry.

CCC Culminates with Power Vote Pledge Drive.

2008-12-17T15:17:00.000-08:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona'11, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major.

At 11 a.m. on Tuesday, November 18th, one Pitzer student, one CMC student, seven Pomona students and Power Vote coordinator Emily Carroll met in the parking lot behind Frary and drove to local Representative David Dreier’s office in San Dimas to deliver signatures and big greeting cards advocating for clean energy. The event marked the culmination of the efforts of CCC (Campus Climate Change) and other environmental organizations around campus over the past two months to collect pledges from students to vote for clean energy.

“I got involved a few months ago through CCC,” said Michael Larsen (PO ‘10), on of the students present at the pledge hand-off. “We did tabling around the 5C’s, some ‘dorm-storming.’ The goal was to get as many of these pledges signed as possible. We want to first raise the issues in the eyes of the students and then to bring it to politicians in Washington.”

“Though it can be frustrating to try to change minds, it was satisfying to take part in local politics like this. Our goal, however, was simply to bring renewable energy into the dialogue, just like other students involved in Power Vote were doing across the country.”

Emily Carroll is the regional coordinator for Southern California, and has worked with the 5C’s and other local colleges to help collect pledges for the drive. “This is a groundbreaking moment,” she said. “Across the nation, students in practically every district are going to their representatives and asking them to invest in a clean energy future.”

She continued by stating that, “this is also setting the foundation for Power Shift 2009[a training and lobbying event in Washington D.C.], an incredibly important event. It would be great to see Pomona send a sizeable contingent to next year’s event. It’s a chance to directly lobby politicians and it sends a big message. It’s also a great learning experience and would allow Pomona to remain a leader in the field, allowing some of its students to get valuable training in student activism and hopefully bring that back to campus.”

Adam Kotin (PO ‘09) one of the students to attend the Power Shift conference in Washington last year, said about collecting the pledges, “It was a very direct action to let people know what’s going on. This was good, especially since our campus is so insular and many of our ideas don’t make it out into the wider community.”

“Power Shift 2007 was a great experience – it definitely helped teach us how to do a lot of what we’ve been doing this year. I’d recommend it for anyone who thinks they’ll be able to translate the excitement from the event back into excitement on campus.”

Anna Kheyfets (CMC ‘11), the one CMC student present, explained how the club she is head of, Environmental Crusaders, had blossomed out of the CMC’ers who took part in last year’s 5-C Dorm Challenge (CMC won). “After the Dorm Challenge ended, we didn’t want to stop meeting. Emily Meinhardt (CMC ‘10) started the club, but since she’s abroad this semester I’ve taken over. We have a lot of things planned to do and take action on.”

When asked what she thought about the pledge handover, she said, “It would be really cool if the message gets passed on to Representative Breier. It’s especially important since Breier’s a CMC alum. It might have been more effective if there had been more CMC students there, however.”

The event was particularly impressive because of the number and composition of 5-C students who got involved, especially Pomona students – Emily Carroll, a UChicago grad, recounted, “Josh Tulkin (PO’ 03, and the coordinator of Power Vote) told me, ‘you have to go to Pomona. The students there are so educated and politically engaged.’ It’s been the only school where students actually come.” The pledges were an intercollege effort, but Emily explained that Pomona was in the lead, providing at least 60 % of the signatures.

Sammie Kanofsky (PO ‘09), the ASPC Environmental Affairs Commissioner and head of EQC, said, “I feel as if it’s symbolically important to speak up to our representative. I don’t think we’ll change his mind – he’s been in office for a while and has steady funding sources – but it is good to clarify what we mean by renewable energy, and that we don’t mean clean coal.”

When asked about Power Vote (she helped organize the trip last year), Sammie responded, “Last year’s event energized a lot of people. They talked a lot about environmental justice and holding politicians accountable. EAC is a great organization, and I would recommend Power Shift to anyone who has an interest in environmental issues, and has a demonstrated commitment to affecting change. It will be awesome this year.”

First Published at The Student Life, Vol CXX No. X.
Contact: nbt02007@mymail.pomona.edu

Global Warming under Clinton: How the Kyoto Treaty Was Negotiated and Abandoned

2008-12-15T15:42:00.000-08:00

A Senior Thesis in Human Biology written by Nicole Castagnozzi, a Human Biology Major, Pitzer 2009.

Abstract
This paper looks at the fundamental reasons why the United States has not joined the United Nations sponsored Kyoto Protocol intended to limit emissions of greenhouse gases and mitigate human induced climate change. Scientific, economic, and political debate leading up to the drafting of the Protocol are reviewed. A history of climate change awareness is reviewed and a discussion of the potential ecological and economic impact is discussed.

Conclusion
Presented as a stand alone issue, emissions reduction in response to climate change has been unable to overcome the significant political, economic, and nationalistic barriers it faces. As an international treaty, the Kyoto Protocol has been successful in raising awareness about the issue of global warming and promoting international cooperation in moving towards lower global emissions of harmful greenhouse gases. The main stated goal of the Kyoto Protocol, however, was not to raise awareness – it was to stop the current trend of rising greenhouse gas emissions. This objective has been unrealized and is attributable to major flaws in the Protocol and the refusal of America to participate fully.

New data on emissions seems to validate the U.S' position against omission of developing countries from the Kyoto Protocol. In 2006, the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency reported that China had surpassed the US as the largest emitter of CO2 in the world, years ahead of the date predicted by the US negotiators during the Clinton Administration. Additionally, a report by the International Energy Agency indicates that 75% of future emissions between now and 2030 are expected to be from China, India and the Middle East.

Reigning in the rapid growth of emissions from the developing world remains an elusive goal. However, within the US, pressure for progression towards lower CO2 emissions may come from a number of allied sources, including an increasingly aware public, international organizations, grassroots and non-government organizations, and even some policy makers. President-elect Barack Obama's plan for energy and the environment includes a target of greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 80% by the year 2050 through the implementation of an economy wide cap-and-trade program (change.gov). His emphasis on development of alternative energy sources has both an environmental and an economic benefit. The shock of $150/barrel oil experienced this summer has raised awareness of the need to pursue a comprehensive energy strategy. There is also a growing awareness of national security concerns associated with being reliant on a potentially hostile source for the majority of our oil. There is opportunity for real leadership with regard to energy policy that balances national security, competitiveness of US industry, job creation, environmental concerns, greenhouse gas emissions, and sustainability. A successful nexus of these concerns would provide a model that could be adopted on a global scale and re-establish the U.S. as a global leader.

To read the full report: www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/PDF/Castagnozzi2008.pdf
Contact information: Nicole Castagnozzi (castagnn@students.pitzer.edu)

Princeton Environmental Professor Speaks at HMC.

2008-12-14T15:21:00.000-08:00

Article by: Nik Tyack, Pomona College 2011, an Environmental Analysis, Biology, and Chemistry Major

On Wednesday, November 19th, Stephen Pacala, the Petrie Professor of Biology at Princeton and the director of the Princeton Environmental Institute, gave a lecture entitled “Equitable Solutions to the Carbon and Climate Problem.” The lecture took place at 7:30 pm at Harvey Mudd’s Galileo Hall, and marked the third talk in the 2008 Bruce Nelson Distinguished Speaker Series, “Biology and the Environment: Past Present and Future,” after Jeremy Jackson’s lecture on October 8th and Jared Diamond’s lecture on October 23rd, 2008.

Professor Pacala was introduced by Steve Adolph, the head of the Harvey Mudd Bio Department, who introduced him by reminiscing about the work he had done with Pacala when he was getting started in research painting lizards in the West Indies. He continued by citing the “many adventures” he had had with the lecturer, including sharks, waterfalls and iguanas, prompting Pacala to start off his talk by exclaiming, “I’ve been bitten too many times to count around Adolph!”

The Princeton professor then went on to state to the audience that global and warming can and should be solved; not later, but as soon as possible, and hopefully starting in February. There are four forbidden phrases that justify inaction, he said, all of which have been disproved or are solvable: 1.) there is no climate change problem, 2.) we lack the technology to mitigate climate change, 3.) the solution would be too expensive, and 4.) we can’t solve the problem because big emitters won’t play fair.

To disprove the first question, Pacala cited that there is a solid amount of evidence for global warming, even more uncertainty about global warming, but absolutely NO evidence against it. He then continued to explain some of the plans for mitigation, most notably the Lieberman-Warner Bill, which plans for the US to emit 85% of what it currently emits by 2050.

He used a wedge system to explain how the world could cut down carbon emissions, using biofuels, solar, wind, nuclear, conservation (though he said our addiction to the good life is too good to completely give up), and natural stocks, including the elimination of tropical deforestation and conservation tillage on cropland. He made sure to emphasize that all of the methods for doing so are currently viable technologies.

Thirdly, he cited a major business report coming out this year that mitigating climate change will be actually economically beneficial in the long run – and made a strong case that if we do not do so, economic, social and environmental havoc will be wreaked upon our civilization. For example, if we continue doing business as usual, rising sea levels can be expected to affect the majority of coastal cities worldwide.

Lastly, he explained his understanding of the fairness of global warming. “Rich people emit more,” he said. “The richest 500 million people emit half the world’s fossil carbon emissions – global warming is a problem of the rich and not the poor.” He continued by explaining that the rich get the benefits of their wealth but distribute the effects of their emissions to everyone. Though rising incomes and levels of consumption in developing countries will contribute to rising emissions, Pacala said that we should clip the emissions of the wealthy, and not dampen the improving lives of the poor of the developing world. This will involve a decrease in first world emissions, and also a decrease in the consumption of the rich of the developing world, but not of the poor in general.

Pacala, whose specialty is mapping biospheres, also made interesting connections between climate change and ecosystems around the world. He cited the possibility of another Sahel drought, and pointed out that the last time the carbon dioxide concentration was as high as it would be if all easily recoverable oil reserves are burnt, there were alligators in Greenland.

Pacala seemed optimistic near the end of his talk, citing the power of new green industry to lobby for renewable-friendly bills, the collective ingenuity of the human species, and Obama’s reassurances that energy and climate will be on the top of his agenda when he enters office in January. If the US passes a bill like the Lieberman-Warner Bill, he said, Europe will most likely follow.

Students were pleased with the lecture: sophomore Janet Ma (‘11) responded, “Pacala’s presentation was very informative on a basic level. It was especially good for me since I don’t know that much about environmental issues… It also provoked me to want to learn more. I felt lucky having so many lectures happening locally – it’s a great opportunity to learn more about what’s going on in the world outside of Pomona and the 5C’s, and where exactly we should be applying what we’re learning.”

First Published at The Student Life, Vol CXX No. X.
Contact: nbt02007@mymail.pomona.edu

Photo source: http://www.princeton.edu/main/images/news/2007/10/IMG_3759pacala.jpg by Denise Applewhite.

Biofuel Feedstocks: Economics of Algae and Switchgrass

2008-12-12T12:57:00.000-08:00

A Senior Thesis in Science and Management, written by Timothy Iafe, Claremont Mckenna College 2008

Abstract

Clear Springs Land Company is a large landholder in Polk County, Florida, which is midway between Tampa and Orlando. Founded as a new eco-friendly community by Stanford N. Phelps, Clear Springs plans to dedicate 6,000 acres of land to renewable energy feedstock production. The objective of this project was to analyze the renewable energy market and determine the optimal energy feedstock for this new community. Working directly with Clear Springs, algae and switchgrass were identified as the two best-suited energy feedstock options. For the analysis of the algae biofuels market, the team investigated all the companies currently involved in the field, conducted extensive interviews, and created financial models. In addition, switchgrass strains and biofuel production technology were investigated and a final report and recommendation were provided. The team also succeeded in developing a laboratory analysis of algae growth characteristics. The team recommended several business proposals to Clear Springs with supporting market and financial information. The recommendations provide Clear Springs with the knowledge and resources necessary to make a final decision on how to proceed with their renewable energy venture.

Background

The TMP is the capstone activity for second-year students in the Master of Bioscience program at KGI in which interdisciplinary teams of 3–5 students work with a sponsoring company to solve real problems. These contract research projects are designed to produce specific sets of deliverables for the sponsoring companies. Teams are advised by KGI faculty and an industry liaison, and the TMP replaces the Masters thesis work required in traditional programs.

The objective of the Clear Springs TMP was to analyze the biofuels market and determine the optimal energy feedstock, with a potential for a return on investment within 3–5 years, to be produced on Clear Springs’ land in Florida. Working directly with Clear Springs, the team identified algae and switchgrass as the two best-suited energy feedstock options. In regards to algal biofuels, the team investigated all companies currently involved in the field, conducted extensive interviews, created financial models, and developed market reports. In addition, switchgrass strains and related biofuel production technology were investigated so that a final comparative report and recommendation could be provided. To complement the market and financial evaluations, the team developed relevant lab capabilities for the analysis of algae lipid composition and growth characteristics.

The team successfully recommended several business proposals to Clear Springs with supporting market, financial, and laboratory material. These recommendations provided Clear Springs with the knowledge and resources necessary to make a final decision regarding their venture into the biofuels arena.

Contact information: Tim Iafe (tiafe08@students.claremontmckenna.edu)

To get more information about the Team Masters Project: http://www.kgi.edu/x2593.xml

2008-11-04T09:32:00.001-08:00

Corporate Reputation and Social Responsibility Rankings

2008-10-31T07:21:00.001-07:00

“Corporate Reputation and Social Responsibility Rankings” published on October 16, 2008, by the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship and Reputation Institute had totally captured my attention. After finished reading the news release about the report and the 14-page “The Most Respected U.S. Companies 2008” summary report, I found myself feeling disappointed by the length of discussion concerning the methodology.

There is one paragraph explaining how the ranking was constructed: “Understanding the rankings: Rankings along the corporate social responsibility index aim to give companies a better sense of how the totality of their institutional activities are perceived by the general public. These rankings are not based on self- reported corporate information but over 20,000 ratings from people familiar with the company across the United States.”

The report identifies the survey takers as “people familiar with the company across the United States.” I wonder who these people are? Do they have comparable knowledge of these companies? This should be the first test.

The underlying assumption of the ranking was “Reputations are based on actions.” In reality, there is no causal relationship between actions and the totality of perception unless the reputation is based on equal knowledge for all respondents. A question like: “I would recommend ‘Company’ to others,” will be answered, reasonably, with more familiar companies than the less familiar ones. This explains why consumer product gets the highest rating of all sectors and why Google is number one.

A critic might point out the resemblance of this survey to a mere marketing research. In marketing research at least, a brand name, first hand experience, or product presentation are presented to all of the respondents, therefore responses are fairly comparable. However, respondents in this study were unlikely to be exposed to the similar degrees of the company’s corporate governance, workplace, or citizenship, making the totality of their perceptions absurd.

Now, I might have jumped the gun in stating that this ranking has not yet proved to follow some kind of systematic investigation process, but the only way to find out is to purchase the full report for $10,000, or $9,000 if you are a member.

To learn more about the Corporate Reputation and Social Responsibility Rankings visit: www.BCCorporateCitizenship.org.
The free reports can be requested from https://reputationinstitute.com/advisory-services/pulse-signup .
Picture courtesy: https://reputationinstitute.com

Written by: Elgeritte Adidjaja, REC Research Fellow.

“The United Nations: What Difference Does it Make?”

2008-10-29T15:16:00.000-07:00

In commemoration of United Nations Day on October 24th, International Place on the Claremont McKenna College campus hosted a special talk from Sherry Simpson Dean. Dean, who is the Executive Director of the Pasadena/Foothills branch of the United Nations Association of the USA (www.unausa.org), gave an enthusiastic presentation about the current significance of the United Nations.

Dean in particular emphasized the importance of the UN’s decision to shift Protecting the Environment from the seventh to the first priority of the organization’s Millennium Development Goals. Amongst other examples, she mentioned the melting glaciers of the Himalayas, also known as the “Water Towers of Asia” as an urgent environmental issue demanding international attention. The run-off from these glaciers influences the lives of 40 percent of the world’s population, yet they are melting rapidly because of global warming. The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as Dean explained is evidence of the organization’s efforts to approach the enormous challenges presented by such issues of our times.

The UNA-USA claims to be the most prominent international grassroots organization, working to promote individual initiatives to enhance and support the work of the UN. The organization is also actively involved in communities around the country raising support for urgently needed programs overseas ranging from raising money to clear landmines, to collecting books for schoolchildren in Africa.

If there was one overarching message of Dean’s presentation, it was that the UN has incredible potential to make positive contributions to the international community, and that the UNA-USA provides ways that each one of us can be involved in these efforts. As Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” For critics and supporters alike, the United Nations Association provides a local and tangible opportunity to interact with the foremost experiment in international cooperation. More information on how to become involved in the United Nations Association of the USA is available at http://www.unausa.org/site/pp.asp?c=fvKRI8MPJpF&b=1466085.

Written by: Owen Brewer, Pitzer ’09 (REC Analyst) and Elgeritte Adidjaja (REC Fellow).

Challah for Hunger

2008-10-29T09:45:00.000-07:00

Challah for Hunger is kind of a big deal. Eli Winkelman (Scripps College ’06) founded Challah for Hunger with her friends in 2004 as a way of baking challah and sending money to refugees in Darfur. Now, four years later, Challah has gone national. There are ten branches across the country – Pomona College, Syracuse University, Emory University, Hunter College, West Virginia University, University of California in Los Angeles, University of Texas at Austin, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Vassar College and Scripps – with many more to come.

As a student, Eli wanted a way to incorporate her love of challah (and challah baking) with humanitarian relief. After graduation from Scripps in 2006, Eli was hired by Hazon International to expand Challah into a national organization, in large part due to the national attention she garnered while at Scripps. Former President Bill Clinton was so impressed with Eli and the organization that he wrote about it in his book Giving as an example of effective, grassroots organization. “I find this effort particularly touching and relevant,” Clinton writes. Throughout his campaign for humanitarian aid, he refers to Scripps and Challah for Hunger as a “compelling example of giving”.

In the last four years, Challah has raised over $55,000 for relief efforts. Fifty percent of all profits go toward American Jewish World Service’s Sudan Relief and Advocacy Fund, and each branch chooses where the other fifty percent will go. The Scripps branch donates their remaining fifty percent to Jewish World Watch Solar Cooker Project. Because refugees are most often attacked when they leave their camps to collect firewood, this project aims to provide refugees with a portable means of preparing food.

Along with money, each Challah branch sends letters to senators, U.N. Ambassadors, and large corporations. These letters remind elected officials that students will be anything but quiet about the genocide in Sudan. With more than 200,000 killed and 2.5 million displaced, the genocide must end.

So, next Friday, when you see the Challah table, ask yourself what you can do to help. Buy a loaf, write a letter, stay informed. A quote from founder Eli Winkleman’s business card reads: “You are not obligated to complete the task, but you are not free to withdraw from it” (Rabbi Tarfon.)

Article and photos by: Casey Near, Scripps College ‘10

Endangered Species in Our Own Backyard

2008-10-28T14:22:00.000-07:00

In this day in age, the phrase endangered species is heard far too often. Many species including the golden toad and Ivory-billed Woodpecker have faced the possibility of extinction and lost. Strangely of the over 1000 currently endangered animal species around the world, the media and general public seem to find interest in only a select few.

Everyone has heard of Giant Pandas. The San Diego Zoo and other conservation organizations have latched on to these animals as the poster-children of species on the verge of extinction. More recently, Polar Bears have been the up and coming image of environmental activism as climate change degrades and destroys their habitat. I too believe these animals to be some of the most beautiful (and adorable) in the world, but it seems odd that only organisms with a lavish fir coat and fuzzy ears have managed to inspire the general public to protect the environment.

If you are from the southwest, you may have heard of another less famous poster species; one that has existed since the time of mammoths and mirrors such giants with its wingspan of nine and a half feet. The California Condor, the largest bird in North America, at one point ranged from New York to Florida in the east and from British Columbia to Baja California in the west. By 1900 its range and population had declined so much that it could only be found in California. These small populations continued to decline drastically over the past century culminating in the capture of the last 22 wild individuals in 1982.

Since that time there has been a great deal of success with Condor conservation. Through captive breeding and three separate reintroduction programs in Baja California, Big Sur California, and the Grand Canyon Arizona, there are now 332 California Condors, 156 of which are in the wild. Considering that great success here means that there are still fewer than 200 individuals in the wild, the California Condor continues to be very much endangered.

Today, condors are facing many obstacles. In California, adult condors have the habit of feeding their nestlings bottle caps, broken glass, and other small pieces of trash. Unfortunately, many times, if not operated on, this leads to nestling fatalities. It is thought that at one point these birds would feed their young pieces of bone to increase the calcium in their diet. Condors appear unable to adapt to changes in their environment. For the population released in the Grand Canyon, this poses much less of a problem since the Condors reside primarily in protected areas such as the national parks and national forests.

Lead poisoning is another one of the leading causes of condor mortality, and is the leading cause of mortality in the Grand Canyon. These birds have learned to eat gut piles that are left behind by hunters. If hunters happened to be using lead bullets, which many prefer, the condors consume the bullets along with the rest of the gut piles. Having consumed lead bullets, condors will quickly die if they are not trapped and treated.

As humans continue to develop new areas, we encroach further on species’ habitats. Sometimes, we do not even bother to think about the consequences of our actions on all those who share our environment. As our population grows, we can no longer avoid interactions with wildlife. Instead we must find ways to cope with these interactions. We must find ways to allow species, other than our own and the pests that follow us, a chance to survive in our shared world.

More information regarding endangered species can be found on the on the Peregrine Fund website at http://www.peregrinefund.org/default.asp or on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service website at http://www.fws.gov/species/.

Article and photos by: Tyler Hallman, Pitzer '07, REC Research Analyst.

Brown-headed Cowbird Field Study, Summer 2007, Nebraska

2008-10-20T11:44:00.000-07:00

Jenny Aleman-Zometa (REC Analyst, Pitzer ’07) holding a Cowbird fledgling – In the grasslands of Nebraska these birds are extremely common. As suitable breeding habitat is lost for the host species of Brown-headed Cowbirds the pressures of brood parasitism are magnified. Brown-headed Cowbirds are often examined as potential causes of population declines in their host species.The Field Crew for the Platte River Whooping Crane Trust in Nebraska – Birds are processed after being extracted from the thin mesh nets that are used to catch them. These nets are called mist nets. Various measurements are taken from these birds to better understand the effects of various ecological management systems on the local wildlife.

Tyler Hallman (REC Analyst, Pitzer ’07) holding a Brown-headed Cowbird fledgling - Once offspring leave the nest they are called fledglings. This bird is currently unable to fly, but it still escape surprisingly well by hopping.

Mallard Nest on Hatch Day – Though these nestlings have just hatched, they will leave the nest within a few hours. Birds with this ability to leave the nest almost immediately after hatching are called Precocial. Day Eight Parasitized Red-winged Blackbird Nest in Nebraska – Eight days after hatching, the difference between the parasitic cowbird nestling and the four host Red-winged Blackbird nestlings has become very apparent. Here, the parasitic nestling is a Brown-headed Cowbird. It competes with the host nestlings for the food provided by the adults. When food is limited, Brown-headed Cowbird nestlings often outcompete the hosts, causing the hosts’ offspring to perish.

Clay-colored sparrow, very photogenic.

Radio-collared female Brown-headed Cowbird.

Baltimore Oriole.

Photos by: Tyler Hallman, Pitzer '07, REC Research Analyst.

Posco is Creating Another Success Story

2008-10-15T11:49:00.000-07:00

POSCO’s sustainability report has once again impressed us. This report is their fifth sustainability report, and this report, as the CEO Ku-Taek Lee stated in the foreword, has brought to light why this Korean world’s third largest steel producer is indeed “a globally respected company.”

Two interesting sections under “Stakeholder Engagement” are the materiality test, to identify issues that are critical in the view of stakeholders and the media survey, to measure the intensity of the company’s positive and negative publicity coverage in the local newspapers. This survey is particularly useful to identify peoples’ concerns about POSCO’s environmental and social involvement, or the lack thereof.

A difficult area of reporting which is covered by POSCO is environmental accounting. POSCO created an environmental activity cost calculation to track the benefits, especially from energy recovery and recycling of byproducts. This allows POSCO to quantify how much cement, fertilizer, etc. is created from byproducts such as blast furnace slag or sludge.

All of the other companies in the steel industry must envy POSCO because POSCO has not had any workplace accidents, fatalities, or lost-time injury cases for the past three years.

The report uses very interesting internal photographs. It is too bad that the pictures do not have captions, because many of them are very intriguing, i.e. a picture of an older man receiving a bath from two other men on page 80.

Having read many CSRs from all over the world, I found this report to be the most interesting, solid innovative CSR report from Korea, a place where CSRs are not commonly published. POSCO’s 5^th CSR does not strictly follow the most current globally accepted reporting guidelines [G3], however, it satisfied the requests of its very own stakeholders, and therefore, the contents are gleaming with unique solutions and “success stories” to cope with environmental and social challenges prevalent to POSCO.

Full analysis can be downloaded at: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/AutoReports2.asp?ReportNameID=2587

Picture courtesy: http://www.posco.com/homepage/docs/eng/html/sustain/posco/s91d0010010i.html

Written by: Elgeritte Adidjaja, Roberts Environmental Center Research Fellow.

Brazil and the U.S. Alternative Energy Debate: “Drill or Not to Drill?”

2008-10-09T09:26:00.000-07:00

Whether we like it or not, the twenty-first century needs to be a time of great change in the United States and in the rest of the world. The combination of world population growth, finite natural resources, complex political relations, economic dependence on foreign natural resources, and environmental destruction, among others, supplies an infinite number of questions for the future welfare of the United States’ local economy and global presence. One current topic that is the subject of intense debate is the question of energy and fuel self-sufficiency. In the future, how much energy is the U.S. going to need to generate to satisfy the needs of the American people? How can the U.S. decrease its independence on fossil fuels? What are the alternative energy options? The list goes on. The answers to these questions are far from simple, but it is possible to gain some insight on these topics by examining other countries’ experiences, successes, and failures with alternative fuel research and development.

Marc D. Weidenmier, Ph.D., the inaugural William F. Podlich Professor of Economics and a George R. Roberts Fellow at Claremont McKenna College (CMC), spoke directly to this issue on Tuesday, September 30 at CMC’s Athenaeum to a packed audience. Professor Weidenmier’s speech, entitled “To Drill or Not to Drill? Lessons from Brazil for the U.S. Alternative Energy Debate” critiqued Brazil’s renewable energy practices, related them to implications in the U.S. market, and used them as examples for how to reduce negative effects of oil shocks on economic activity in the U.S.

He mentioned that since the early 1980s, Brazil has developed its alternative fuel industry in efforts to become energy independent.

Historically, Brazil has more experience than the United States in the large-scale implementation of alternative fuel research, so it proves to be an example worthy of examination. In terms of its oil import share in the world’s economy, Brazil has gone from 70 percent imported fuel in 1980 to 10 percent in 2008. This significant decrease by 60 percent in just 20 years is positive in terms of its domestic economic growth and stability. Conversely, the United States has gone from 33 percent imported fuel in 1980 to 60 percent in 2008. This increase of 27 percent represents increased reliance on foreign resources and vulnerability to global market fluctuations, both of which are seen as negative qualities in today’s market.

To achieve this astounding result, Brazil has resorted to increased oil drilling and the creation of enormous fields of soybeans, corn, castor beans, etc. on rainforest land, among other practices. Brazil has also employed tax incentives to expand sugar cane production by farmers.
Professor Weidenmier remarked that similar practices in the United States would not answer the problem of energy needs—they would only prolong an eventual energy crisis. He cited that, hypothetically, the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) would be $1.5 trillion greater today if it had implemented full drilling, both offshore and in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Although this number seems impressive, he asserted that the U.S. cannot “drill” its way to energy independence by opening up public lands for domestic use, and that the $1.5 trillion would only provide a temporary fix for a more complicated, and potentially devastating, energy problem.

Another point of discussion during the talk was the negative effects of oil shocks on the U.S. economy. Professor Weidenmier listed four ways to reduce these negative effects: 1) Increase domestic energy production, 2) Significantly increase the use of natural gas, 3) Subsidize alternative energies (nuclear, wind, solar, etc.) to diversify the United States’ energy portfolio and clean up the environment, and 4) Eliminate subsidies to corn ethanol. These are sound economic policies to decrease oil shocks, but in the mean time the U.S. economy is vulnerable.

Oil is expected to remain an important source of energy for the U.S. for the next 30 to 40 years. In the meantime it is necessary to continue research on developing new alternative fuel technology and examine ways in which the U.S. can decrease its foreign oil independence.

Written by: Elisa La Cava, Claremont McKenna ‘09, Roberts Environmental Center Research Analyst.

Picture credits and captions:

1. Brazilian corn fields to be made into corn grain ethanol. (Source: http://greenstockd.wordpress.com/category/energy/)

2. Castor beans and the finished biodiesel, a biofuel produced in Brazil. (Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-04/01/content_7899115.htm)

National Australia Bank 2007 Corporate Responsibility Reporting

2008-10-06T09:24:00.000-07:00

NAB’s sustainability reporting is thorough, transparent, and informative about policies and commitments to best practice. A special working committee meets periodically to achieve carbon neutrality and develops strategies such as developing carbon inventory policy, exploring ways to reduce and offset air travel, promoting electronic banking, and conducting energy efficiency assessments in office buildings to reduce the greenhouse gasses emissions. In its report, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in May 2007 acknowledges NAB as one of the top data and indicators reporters (88%), along with AGL Energy and ANZ (one of NAB’s competitors.)

Instead of lumping the whole sustainability report into one document, NAB publishes the company’s sustainability report in separate books/pamphlets to suit different stakeholders’ interests—a corporate responsibility detailed facts and information, a 2007 GRI Index, an update on the company’s CSR, a carbon disclosure project online response, an informational package for microenterprises program, and a step-up program (low interest personal loans designed for low income people,) which are all considered in this analysis.

What particularly sets NAB apart from all the other companies’ sustainability reports according to Rosemary Bissett, the Group Sustainable Business Practices Group Corporate Affairs Manager, is the company’s global pact that calls for periodic dialogues among top managers, at regional and global levels to share the group’s vision and strategies, collective priorities, and enriched goals as expected by the stakeholders. The ARA Australasian Reporting awards NAB “Best Governance Reporting” and “Sustainability Reporting Award.”

NAB CSR includes a section of benchmarking performance by third party auditors’ ratings and awards received, however the report can use more specific, topical benchmarking information in the related content. For example, the employee turnover rate is reported to be approximately 23 percent on average during the past 3 years. Almost one out of five people leave voluntarily or involuntarily annually. That figure appears to be high relatively speaking. However, how are the other financial companies’ turnover rates? Is 23 percent good or bad?

NAB displays performance data by region: Australia, New Zealand, and United Kingdom, and it would be helpful if there were a column for the combined/global data that includes all three. It would also be helpful if the goals were stated on the chart or table, so not only would changes in performance be evident, but also status on reaching goals.

The NAB sustainability reports don’t mention much about human rights principles. The only place one finds mention of, for example, child labor and freedom of association is in the GRI Index table, followed only by a dot, as a symbol of full-compliance.

NAB sustainability reporting touches on almost every aspect of sustainability. From reading the summary report, it is clear that the company strategically selects priorities and goals toward sustainability. The topic discussions are positive and transparent about the current and future challenges. The NAB corporate citizenship report is clearly one of the best in financial sector.

The learn more about the Global Agreement of the National Australia Group and Global Unions Engagement Strategy: http://www.nabgroup.com/vgnmedia/downld/GlobalUnionsAgreement.pdf .

Full analysis can be downloaded at: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/AutoReports2.asp?ReportNameID=2186

To learn more about National Australian Bank Corporate Sustainability Reporting: http://www.nabgroup.com/0,,33873,00.html

Written by: Elgeritte Adidjaja, Roberts Environmental Center Research Fellow.

More than half of the United States’ 100 largest publicly traded companies now report on their sustainability efforts

2008-10-03T15:40:00.000-07:00

More than half of the United States’ 100 largest publicly traded companies now report on their sustainability efforts, and more than a third now incorporate elements of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sustainability reporting guidelines, according to a report released today by the Sustainable Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN), a working group of the Social Investment Forum (SIF), and conducted by the independent investment research firm KLD Research & Analytics, Inc.

The 2008 S&P 100 Sustainability Report Comparison, which evaluates SIRAN data through the end of 2007, shows a marked increase in sustainability reporting and use of the GRI by the top U.S. companies since mid-2005.

Key findings include:
- 86 of the S&P 100 companies now have corporate sustainability websites, compared to 58 in mid-2005, an increase of 48 percent;
- 49 of the leading U.S. companies produced a sustainability report in 2007, an increase of 26 percent from 39 in 2005;
- 41 now include a reference or references to the GRI standards, up 71 percent from just 24 in 2005; and
- 34 companies now include a GRI Index in their report, an increase of 70 percent, up from 20 in 2005.

SIRAN’s third annual analysis of sustainability reporting by companies listed on the Standard & Poor U.S. 100 Index is available at www.siran.org/projects_s_and_p_reporting_comparison.php

Cited from: http://www.siran.org/pdfs/SIRANPR20080717.pdf
Contact: Leslie Anderson, (703) 276-3256 or landerson@hastingsgroup.com.

PSI and GRI side-by-side

2008-10-01T11:24:00.000-07:00

How reflective is the PSI (Pacific Sustainability Index) of the degree to which corporate sustainability reports follow GRI's (Global Reporting Initiative) G3 reporting guidelines? The short answer is: not very. Strict compliance with G3 standards does not guarantee a high PSI score.
G3 covers more topics than the PSI.

However, the two do not completely overlap. More than half of the G3 topics are not included in the PSI questionnaire and there are 14 PSI topics that are not listed in G3 core indicators.

So why is it so hard to score 100% under the PSI? For conceptual or qualitative topics such as “biodiversity”, as long as there is a discussion and an action or initiative toward it, a full score is awarded. But the PSI requires explicit numerical data and explicit numerical goals for topics that are quantitative in nature, i.e. waste disposed, energy used, turnover rate, or total incident rate. The database will automatically award additional points when more than one numerical data point is reported, there is a desirable trend, and there is a favorable performance in comparison with peer companies of the same sector.

For topics that are inherently qualitative in nature, for example “community development”, PSI scoring gives points for discussion, initiatives, external context indicating superior performance recognized by external party, and improvement from previous year.

We call non-quantitative and non-qualitative topics “principles”, i.e. human rights topics, such as child labor, freedom of associations, etc., the PSI awards a full performance point for just a mere discussion, regardless of the content—we assume companies would report positively about these principles.

In conclusion, G3 is broader and more comprehensive, while PSI is narrower and more in-depth.

Written by: Elgeritte Adidjaja, Roberts Environmental Center Research Fellow.

Time for taking environmental crisis with the urgency of a war

2008-09-29T09:52:00.000-07:00

A few nights ago, James Fallows, a national correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly, came to the Athenaeum to deliver his four-pronged strategy for the US’ future in foreign policy, and one of those points finally did some justice to the environmental crisis. I think many who want to believe that they are in agreement with Go Green initiatives, don’t feel this urgency because it’s been put on the back of the agenda. I can see how this would happen with so many other problems in foreign policy, but the US needs to be put higher up on the agenda because the whole world is watching us. There needs to be less discussion and more action and initiatives taken. As Fallows expressed, the world sees us as “innovators”, therefore we must taken the responsibility that comes with this title and pursue new solutions to the environmental crisis.

What I liked the most about how Fallows addressed the issue with the environment, was that he called it a “war for the world”. It’s a bit disconcerting that one must label something a “war” for it to get any urgent attention, but Fallows obviously recognizes this flaw in our policy-making system. When something is a “war” money, time, energy, and man-power are thrown at it almost without looking back. If the US would finally label the environmental crisis with the urgency of a war, we would finally make some true progress, and with the whole world watching, others may take our lead, although some already have.

The world in a way has already started moving forward, with Chinese individuals that Fallows expanded on who are making their own contributions to the health of our planet. This almost made me feel guilty that individuals in China who are at a much lower financial level are doing their part, while here not enough of us seem to even care or believe the truth of the emergency.

What Fallows did not highlight in his speech, as it was not meant to be one for the environment’s sake, was that this foreign policy is actually one that is in the best interest of all countries in the long-term. If anything, this could be that one crisis that brings various states together to work together rather than make reluctant negotiations and disagree.

Written by: Veronica Pugin ‘12, CMC, Roberts Environmental Center Research Analyst.

RBS Sustainability Report impresses many

2008-09-26T16:57:00.000-07:00

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) takes its corporate responsibility seriously. There appears to be a report available in PDF form for almost any subject matter that one could find important. The report pertaining to Corporate Responsibility was fairly comprehensive and at least touched on most of the topics I was interested in. Considering the fact that the environmental section of the report was only a few pages long, and the data presented within those pages consisted of a single table, this is somewhat surprising. Whoever is in charge of the report knows how to get information across in a time and space efficient manner. One other impressive point to me is the fact that the report can be requested in Braille or as an audio file.

I would like to emphasize, that this company’s reports contain a plethora of information not only on the environment, but on the surrounding community, and health and safety. That said, as I searched for information, I continually hoped that what I was looking for would be held within the pages of a single corporate responsibility report. I was constantly forced to search for other reports to get more information. I see no reason why the report on Safety, Health, and Wellbeing could not be a section of a larger report. Furthermore, web addresses for a code of conduct, social policy, or environmental policy would be very welcome in the larger report, if the policies and codes themselves are not present.

As for the actual information, one highlight is that 100 percent of the energy purchased by this company since October 2007 in the UK and Ireland was from renewable energy sources. This is an important trend to continue, and to introduce into the rest of their worldwide facilities. As for water use, I am a bit confused as to why to much more water is used in facilities in the USA than in the UK when far more facilities exist in the UK.

One environmental topic that was completely ignored was that of wildlife. There was no mention of ecosystem or habitat conservation, nor was there any mention of the preservation of biodiversity. Furthermore, the environmental education that often goes along with an environmental program does not seem to be supported by RBS. Interestingly, unlike the previous reports that included much information about recycling, the 2007 Corporate Responsibility Report spent very little time discussing recycling.

In terms of social reporting, the corporate responsibility report again touched on most important topics. The company presented the workforce demographics including the percentages of minorities, age classes, and genders in the workforce. RBS even included the actual number of women and men in upper management. It is interesting to note that there exists an extremely high percentage of women to men in the workforce, but in management, the males outnumber the females by a ratio of two to one. On the other hand, it appears that only two management positions have opened up in the past three years and one was filled by a man, and the other by a woman. The Code of Conduct, which can also be found on the website, also answered many topics for the general treatment of employees and the Group Ethical Code for Suppliers thoroughly addressed the issue of supplier screening.

The 2007 Corporate Responsibility Report by RBS was a good example of what companies should do as it addressed many important social and environmental issues. Though there are important additions that could be made, a bank taking such an interest in the environment is particularly impressive. This is an example of how all companies in all sectors must begin to address environmental issues.

The 2007 Corporate Responsibility Report by RBS was a good example of what companies should do as it addressed many important social and environmental issues. Though there are important additions that could be made, a bank taking such an interest in the environment is particularly impressive. This is an example of how all companies in all sectors must begin to address environmental issues.

The complete report of this analysis can be found in: http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/AutoReports2.asp?ReportNameID=2556

Written by: Tyler Andrew Hallman, Pitzer '07, Roberts Environmental Center Research Analyst

The Global Amphibian Crisis

2008-09-24T15:57:00.000-07:00

The amphibians are one of the most sensitive organisms to the environment; experts study the rapid decline of amphibians’ populations as indicators for the effects of global warming. In 2007, I researched the effects of change in temperature on the metabolic rates of amphibians, specifically, fire-bellied toads (Bombina orientalis). I compared the differences between the toads’ metabolic rates at rest and during activity, at various temperatures. What I expected to happen was when the level of activity were the same, then the metabolic cost of that activity would be the same, and the toads would need to raise their metabolic levels by a set amount, to produce the extra energy of that activity, under any temperature.

This is not what I found. The difference between resting and active metabolic levels decreased as the temperature increased. In fact, I found a possible plateau in the metabolic levels of these toads as temperature increased. I suggest that as the resting and active metabolic levels of fire-bellied toads get closer together, the toads may not be capable of increasing metabolic levels during activity to provide sufficient energy to maintain that activity. In other words, increased temperatures may have adverse affects on fire-bellied toads.

One of the largest mass extinction events in the history of our planet is happening at this very moment, directly under our noses, and few people are even aware of it. Thirty percent of the known amphibian species are either already extinct or are in catastrophic declines. My research back in 2007 was my own personal response to this crisis. Dr. Joseph Mendelson III, the curator of herpetology at Zoo Atlanta, spoke about this issue on Tuesday, September 23, at the Claremont McKenna College’s Athenaeum.
Dr. Mendelson depicted the dark state of amphibians in the world today; the declines of some 2000 species. Who is the culprit? Though there are many contributing factors including climate change, loss of habitat, and capture by humans, the current overarching problem causing amphibian populations to decline is a chytrid fungus. This fungus infects the skin of amphibians and causes massive fatalities. In an infected area, it results in the loss of 90 percent of all individuals and 80 percent of all species.
Scientists have been playing catch up ever since they first realized that amphibian declines were occurring. The first declines due to the chytrid fungus began in the late 70s but until 1998 this fungus had not even been discovered. Currently, amphibian populations around the world are dwindling, and though an infected individual can be cured in the lab, no applicable method of saving populations in the wild has yet been developed.

For individuals with little affinity towards amphibians, it is important to still recognize the importance of this issue. What is most shocking about this ongoing saga is the fact that human beings have been presented with a problem for which they have no resolution. After much research, wild amphibian populations are still declining and no end to the devastation is in sight. If this type of incident were to affect worldwide crops and no solution were found, we could find ourselves in the middle of our own population declines.

I would like to thank Dr. Mendelson for his stimulating discussion of the current amphibian crisis. Aside from the difficulties with a certain laptop that should probably soon be allowed to retire, the lecture went smoothly and, with any luck, inspired some members of the audience to join in the fight to save the world’s amphibians.

More information on the current amphibian crisis can be found at http://www.blogger.com/www.saveafrog.org or on the Amphibian Ark website at http://www.amphibianark.org/.

Written by: Tyler Andrew Hallman Pitzer ‘07, Roberts Environmental Center Research Analyst.

Picture caption:
A Panamanian Golden Frog killed by chytrid fungus in central Panama. (Source: http://www.saveafrog.org/fungus.html)

Corporate Social Responsibility at Sun Microsystems

2008-09-16T10:11:00.000-07:00

Soon after we published the 2007 Computer, Office Equipment, and Services Sector report, which ranks companies based on the contents of their online information on sustainability reporting, Marcy Scott Lynn, Director, Corporate Social Responsibility at Sun Microsystems, contacted us about the company’s updated CSR online, which was not included in this report.
Our center analyst Ata Khan analyzed the current report and gave a score of “A+" on the Pacific Sustainability Index 3.0, placing Sun as the leader in the "Computers, Office Equipment, and Services" category of our index, followed by Dell (2007) and Xerox (2006).

In the computer networking industry, Sun Microsystems is admired for its innovation and seamless integration of technology and business. For 2007, Sun has channeled this penchant for creativity in its sustainability report (http://www.sun.com/aboutsun/csr/report2007/intro/stakeholder.jsp) , which is as comprehensive as it is exemplary.

Environmentally, Sun has implemented many employee programs to reduce its footprint. The SMART program provides transit subsidies and passes for commuting to work, while the Open Work program creates a virtual workplace so workers need not spend each day at a physical office. Sun is working with the University of Colorado to calculate the carbon footprint of the Open Work initiative, and estimates that workers avoided using over 2.5 million gallons fuel in fiscal 2007.

Moreover, while most companies report yearly energy use, Sun reports monthly data and works towards reducing waste and emissions at its conferences. These are but a few of the myriad programs in play at Sun aimed at bettering the environment. Socially, Sun recognizes the need to bridge the "digital divide" and provide information technology to students and workers, spending roughly $5.5 million in educational grants in 2007. The Sun External Research Office "supports technology collaborations between Sun and the academic community to transform research outcomes into future innovations," while the Education Commons acts as "an online forum where academic systems users, designers, and implementers can share knowledge, experiences, and best practices."

Rather than heading down the traditional route of philanthropic investments and indirect non-profit support, Sun recognizes its own competitive advantage--technology--and is working towards providing such resources to the communities it serves. Perhaps most striking about Sun's report, when held against competitors', is its apparent honesty. If Sun falls short on a certain indicator, like third party validation, an explanation or goal can be found; if it is disappointed in employee engagement in CSR from years previous, it will tackle the challenge directly and create an Employee Engagement Program. Such transparency bolsters stakeholder and employee trust and proves Sun's financial and ethical commitment to sustainability.

Sun is also charting innovative paths in communicating its practices. This effort is fueled by Marcy Scott Lynn, who joined Sun in late 2006 as Director of Corporate Social Responsibility and whose blog provides refreshing dialogue on the inner-workings of Sun's CSR efforts (http://blogs.sun.com/csr/ ). With podcast interviews and even a Facebook group on eco-responsibility, Sun has effectively harnessed Web 2.0 to engage a wider audience. Last year was undoubtedly productive for Sun's CSR Department, and future reports will be opportunities to further illuminate its commitment to bettering society and the environment.

The full analysis can be viewed at: https://email.claremontmckenna.edu/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/PSIScoresDetail3.asp?ReportNameID=2278

Written by: Ata Khan, Research Analyst & Elgeritte Adidjaja, Research Fellow

Reporting on Human Rights

2008-09-15T14:53:00.000-07:00

In July 2007, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the Roberts Environmental Center began a joint study on human rights reporting based on 100 sustainability reports, published by large organizations, across industries and around the world. Our focus is primarily geared to answer one question: How do these reports comply with the G3 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines on human rights performance. Based on this objective, we explored ranges of topics reported as human rights issues and the way in which they were reported.

I found myself fretting about the outcome of the study. During the past 4 years, our Center has analyzed more than 1,400 reports, and personally, I feel a reluctance from companies to mention human rights issues. This seems especially true for American and Japanese counterparts. It makes sense since it sounds a bit awkward to say, "We are company X and we do not torture our employees." If they did, in fact torture their employees, would they be inclined to announce it? There are methods of stating these things that appear less awkward. The European organizations are more casual about reporting such statements; the Americans, however, are beginning to catch up.

Not only that, the study also called for any quantitative performance measurements of these topics, such as the number of incidents of discrimination and actions taken to remedy them. Only a few of the 100 reports use strict quantitative measures as prescribed by G3 guidelines to monitor human rights performance. Most reports use plain qualitative descriptions to discuss them, or do not discuss them at all.

If I could give an award to the best human rights reporter out of the 100 companies we analyzed, the award would go to ABB. ABB seems to be concise, elaborate, consistent, and progressive in the way they report these issues: http://www.abb.com/cawp/abbzh258/7fc2d6578a96b6d8c1256f65004665c7.aspx
To download the report, go to: http://www.globalreporting.org/Learning/ResearchPublications/
Or http://www.roberts.cmc.edu/PSI/PDF/HumanRights2008.pdf

Written by: Elgeritte Adidjaja, Roberts Environmental Center Research Fellow