Even the definition of sustainability is still emerging. When The Vandiver Group sent out our recent global sustainability strategy survey, several people wrote us to say they couldn’t answer questions about how they are approaching sustainability, unless we could define the term for them. The best definition we have found is simply – an economy that can be sustained indefinitely.

When sustainability is defined that way, we see trends that transcend climate change and challenge our ability to be sustainable. While practically everyone agrees that it’s important to minimize pollution and do more with fewer resources, the trends we’re tracking say it’s time for a new conversation in business – a dialogue about moving beyond greening. For example:

• We see a global population that continues to grow, while relying on limited natural resources. Here in St. Louis it’s easy to take good soil and water for granted, but those are scarce resources in some world areas.

• We see consumers in China and India and around the world increasing their use of fuel. As a result, there’s more pressure on limited fuel supplies, and more demand for alternative fuels. This has created a new and very complex balance between the need for food and the need for fuel.

• Another sustainability challenge is our increasing use of energy. As demand increases, we’re seeing increasing costs, political instability in regions that supply fuel; and the profound impact on the economy as gas surpassed $4 per gallon.

• We also see grave challenges with poverty. More of the 4.5 billion people who live directly off the land in other world areas are driven to cities because of habitat destruction.

Amidst all of these alarming trends, the study we conducted found that most businesses still lack a sustainability strategy. After all of the media coverage of greening topics such as climate change, that surprised us. The same study found that improving public perception is one of the most important drivers for those who do have a sustainability strategy. Perhaps, if more companies focused on genuine sustainability challenges instead of just improving public perception, both outcomes would happen. What better way to improve perception than to help solve the greatest challenges around energy, food and human health?

Whatever our views on any given environmental topic, we can all agree that change is upon us, more change is needed, and a greater focus on sustainability is in our collective future. The only real question a company faces is the degree to which it will be reactive – and merely repeat whatever environmental topics are trendy today – or proactive, and set the environmental agenda based on meeting real-world human needs. At The Vandiver Group, our commitment is to be proactive about sustainability.

For more information, email us at info@vandivergroup.com

The Vandiver Group recently conducted a global sustainability strategy survey, sponsored by Pinnacle Worldwide, a consortium of independent public relations firms. The survey was conducted online between April 15 and May 5, 2008. The 337 respondents represented six continents, 25 countries and 40 different industries. You can see the results of the survey by clicking here. A news release is available in our press room.

At a time when “greening” is more popular than ever, there’s a great opportunity for organizations to innovate beyond greening and build healthier links between the environment, social needs and revenue growth. At TVG, we offer a powerful strategy definition and communications program that will maximize possible outcomes from your environmental initiatives. A TVG Sustainability Overview flyer is available to provide more information about our services.

Meanwhile, please let us know if you have any questions about the survey or the results.

Wherever your organization is on the pathway toward sustainability, TVG can help. For more information contact Donna Vandiver at 314-991-4641, ext. 103, or email us at TVG@vandivergroup.com.

Here at TVG we continued to develop our Sustainability Practice area which helps clients recognize the importance of programs and business practices which sustain the environment and economy. However, our approach is committed to delivering client benefits that reach far beyond pollution control. TVG brings clients “beyond greening”, to help them create tight connections between environmental needs and business goals while improving perceptions at the same time.

Part of the 2008 sustainability program, TVG has launched a global Sustainability Strategy Survey to better understand sustainable development status within different industries, learn how organizations in those different industries prioritize sustainability drivers, and gain insights on program goals. The survey is open to any organization. To fill out the short online survey, click here. The survey will close on May 5, 2008.

Contact us at tvg@vandivergroup.com or send comments to blog@vandivergroup.com.

Environmental awareness has intensified, causing countless organizations to launch a flurry of communications touting their green credentials. Much of the green marketing is driven by a reactive approach to policy advocacy around food, energy, natural resource protection and globalization. As the programs of environmental advocates drive policy creation, media reporting and consumer attention, corporate marketers are reacting by talking about environmental responsibility with very little differentiation – a practice avoided in traditional marketing.

This homogenized communications approach raises questions about message effectiveness. Many of the advertising and environmental reports not only look and sound the same; they also reflect a largely reactionary position. Meanwhile, underlying environmental issues and possibilities for moving beyond greening remain mostly unaddressed.

Moving Beyond Greening
Sadly, our response to greening issues often misses an important opportunity to address future sustainability challenges. Not only do we need innovations for our future, resource depletion has a grave impact right now on the four billion or so people who still depend directly on nature for daily subsistence. Innovation is vitally needed to solve these challenges.

The future of the environmental movement will continue to be driven by issues of food production, energy consumption, natural resource scarcity and the social pressures that result from increased global pressure on nature’s economy. Meeting those needs will be the focus of the next economic revolution, and those corporations who can align with the new marketplace needs will prosper. The path to success, as always, is paved with sound strategy.

For more on how The Vandiver Group can help your organization develop and implement a sound sustainability strategy, read the most recent issue of our Visions publication titled, “Moving Beyond Greening to Sustainability.” You can also contact Donna Vandiver at 314-991-464, ext. 103, or email us at TVG@vandivergroup.com.

Contact us at tvg@vandivergroup.com or send comments to blog@vandivergroup.com.

At a time when most companies that talk about the environment still focus on cutting pollution or reducing resource use, The Vandiver Group, Inc. (TVG) clients have an opportunity to own a leadership sustainability position that sees beyond greening into powerful new sustainable market opportunities.

We can help wherever a client is on their sustainability journey. At TVG, we offer a comprehensive process that helps clients gain credit for the positive environmental steps they are taking. We also offer cutting-edge insights that will help innovators approach the marketplace in new ways that create exciting global business opportunities. Our program starts with an environmental audit that secures a foundation for management decisions, delivers solid position documentation and leads to new possibilities for sustainability marketing programs. This process creates significant value for our clients by delivering increased insight to help:

• Develop or implement green or sustainability strategies
• Identify and leverage key thought influencers
• Approach future environmental positioning
• Increase public acceptance
• Develop and launch sustainable technologies
• Improve bottom-line results

Wherever your organization is on the pathway toward sustainability, TVG can help. For more information contact Donna Vandiver at 314-991-464, ext. 103, or email us at TVG@vandivergroup.com

Contact us at tvg@vandivergroup.com or send comments to blog@vandivergroup.com.

I just returned from the 2007 HOW Design Conference in Atlanta, GA and came back armed with a wealth of information. There were a number of inspiring and insightful sessions, which I’ll blog about in upcoming posts, but my favorite session had to be the one on color trends.

Usually TVG discusses social and consumer trends. Interestingly, those trends are directly related to color trends. Take a look through any consumer catalog or walk through the mall and you can probably spot color trends. No doubt you’ve noticed that browns have surfaced in the last few years. From rich espresso colors to lighter latte shades, browns have never been so popular. The Pantone Institute, the universal authority on color, refers to this as “The Starbucks Effect.” Suddenly, as new Starbucks stores appeared on every street corner, our familiarity with the brown color family expanded and permeated our lives. I must admit, even my new furniture purchase is “espresso.”

Much like GfK, The Pantone Institute conducts continual research about color trends and color associations. Some of their newest findings indicate that social movements and the food industry are affecting color trends. For instance, the PRODUCT(RED) campaign to produce red colored items and raise money to combat AIDS in Africa had ushered in a rich red color palette that is common right now. In addition, there is a movement to change the color of emergency response vehicles from red to yellow-green because red turns a muddy brown at night and is hard to see.

Another movement to note is the sustainability movement. We’ve all heard that environmental issues are going to be a hot button for the 2008 elections. That movement has sparked a rebirth of yellow greens, greens and blues. Marketers are now faced with the question of whether they should stay with greens in their color palettes or mix it up to stand apart from the competition.

We can also look to more traditional sources for color trend information. The movie industry is one of the best indicators of color trends. Shrek brought lime greens to the forefront and (animal-themed) movies such as Madagascar, Surf’s Up, and Over the Hedge are beginning to influence products for children. The tones of various animals are influencing product development and parents are flocking to natural tones because of the implication that the products are “natural” and good for their children.

As we look at the changing demographics of the country, there will also be implications on color palettes and design. As the baby boomer generation ages, we need to take into account the physical challenges that come with age. The cool colors – blues, greens and purples – become hard to distinguish when used together without some sort of neutral color breaking up the space. Using a “buffer” color of beige, off white or taupe can help the viewer visually distinguish and take in the information more easily.

Finally, I end with a warning. For anyone who went through the 1980s, you remember “mauve.” Well, it is coming back in style this fall, so expect to see it all over the runways and in promotional materials. I suppose I feel now the way my parents did when the harvest gold and avocado greens came back in style – utter disbelief.

Contact us at tvg@vandivergroup.com or send comments to blog@vandivergroup.com.

As individual Americans are realizing the importance of their environmental contributions, they are demanding that the companies they work for and patronize be environmentally active, as well.

What does this mean for your company?

Contact us at tvg@vandivergroup.com or send comments to blog@vandivergroup.com.

A lot of people are like Kermit – they think it’s hard to be green. They say recycling is too time consuming and burdensome. In our busy society, separating the trash for recycling is just one more job that many say they don’t have the time to do.

At the same time, most people want to be green, even if they do not recycle regularly. They know it’s the “right” thing to do and they care about the environment. According to The Vandiver Group’s (TVG’s) research partner, GfK Roper, 83% of consumers consider environmental issues a serious problem. Yet only about half participate in environmentally sound habits:

- 65% try to save electricity at home

- 51% return bottles or cans

- 48% recycle newspapers

- 26% buy products made from or packaged in recycled materials

These findings are significant: they tell us that while the underlying motivation to reduce, reuse and recycle is there for most of the population, these same people are not necessarily taking the actions they say are important. Recent focus groups conducted by TVG support these conclusions, and offer further insight that the perceived difficulty of recycling is a major obstacle to changing behaviors.

TVG has worked with several clients involved in recycling projects, and we have found that one of the most effective approaches to overcoming misperceptions about recycling involves using word-of-mouth (WOM) techniques.

We recently implemented a word-of-mouth initiative for a global beverage producer wanting to increase recycling of glass and plastic. First, we partnered with a local solid waste management district to identify a city with a traditionally low recycling rate. The city that was selected had poor results with its curbside program its recycling rate hovered near 9%.

TVG performed research to identify the reasons for lower than normal recycling rates. We targeted Influentials, because they are the people in the community who share opinions with others, and they can be very powerful when activated with new information. We found there was a tremendous amount of misinformation that needed to be corrected before the WOM program could be put in place.

We listened, developed materials and held a series of meetings with community leaders. We educated them and activated them to drive the word-of-mouth campaign. We created materials that leaders could provide to people to better explain curbside recycling and the items that could be recycled. To fully engage the community we organized a recycling bin decorating contest for kids; these young participants became an important part of the campaign and shared their enthusiasm with family, friends, and neighbors.

The results? Collection data from the waste hauler shows that over an eight-month period our project increased recycling rates in the targeted area by 30%. WOM works!

To learn more about the public education and word-of-mouth projects we have worked on related to recycling, contact us at tvg@vandivergroup.com or send comments to blog@vandivergroup.com.