Turning Green - with Optimism

There is no dearth of reasons for having a negative outlook these days, with a crisis around every corner. But there is one reason for this writer to have an optimistic outlook going forward.

I teach at a private liberal arts college, and once the spring term gets over I don't hear from students until classes start at the end of August. This summer I have had quite a few students email me and update me on their summer activities. I had taught a first year seminar course last Fall titled 'Local Choices, Global Effects' that dealt with sustainability before the word 'Green' entered the vocabulary of the media. Students who took that course have been regularly emailing me about products or services they have encountered that are 'green' or that promote sustainability. Others have emailed me to let me know about some economic developments and how they found relevance in what they learnt in my courses. Some have updated me on the wonderful stuff they have been learning in their internships and how that relates to their 'academic' knowledge of the world.

This is the first time in my teaching career that I am seeing this level of engagement, from freshmen to juniors and seniors. Clearly, with thinking and engagement, progress lies ahead.
Makes me 'green' in many ways- I wish I was a lot younger so that I could do new product development with these kids!

Great Stories on Going Green and Sustainability

The IHT has some interesting stories on sustainability and going green.
Definitely worth reading.

Companies save money through waste reduction

By Sonia Kolesnikov-Jessop

Multinational companies are increasingly recognizing that waste management can save them money.

Airports struggle to reduce their pollution

By Sarah J. Wachter

Air travel worldwide is poised to keep on growing, and more passengers will mean more flights, more road traffic to and from airports, and increased use of ground service equipment and auxiliary plane power.

U.S. switch to digital TV raises specter of toxic dumping of old sets

By Erica Gies

A U.S. law ending analog TV transmission in February 2009 could result in a mountain of electronic waste from the 11 percent to 20 percent of U.S. households that rely on an antenna to receive analog broadcasts.

Greece struggles to reduce its trash

By Niki Kitsantonis

The country is trying to find solutions to a colossal garbage problem as recycling fails to take off and landfills fill up and expand, posing serious health and safety risks.

Sweden turning sewage into a gasoline substitute

By James Kanter

Goteborg is among dozens of Swedish municipalities with facilities that transform sewage waste into enough biogas to run thousands of cars and buses.

• Brazilian ethanol industry feels winds of change

The huge hybrid: A new twist on SUV's finds few takers

Presentation on my view of the world

I gave a presentation today on my view of the world of Logistics and Supply Chain Management and how it is evolving.