Car companies to be forced to show emissions data on posters

The Department for Transport has ruled that posters advertising cars must give CO2 and fuel information equal prominence with the main text, including length of warranty and price. They have had to do this in press advertising for some time, but it will be a particular challenge in outdoor media which requires text to be much briefer in order to communicate to readers on the move.

Marketing magazine claims that the car industry spent £76.4m on outdoor ads in 2007, up 32% on the previous year - possibly due to the introduction of the CO2 reporting rule for press ads.

The new Carbon Trust Standard

Spent a very informative day at the Low Carbon Innovation Exchange last Thursday, but was dismayed to hear that the Carbon Reduction Commitment only applies to companies whose energy consumption is 6,000 MWH or above - ours is way below that, so we needed something else. Luckily a meeting later that day with the Carbon Trust uncovered the new Carbon Trust Standard, which is ideal for companies below the Carbon Reduction Commitment threshhold. We'll be signing up for that, becoming one of their early adopters.

Happy Birthday Greenbang!

Went to Greenbang's first birthday party this week. Good to see so many people there supporting Dan. Also found out about a new sustech network.

Spent most of this week trying to assimilate the good stuff I heard at three separate sustainability events. More on those later.

Recycling medicines

Here's a novel take on recycling. Victoria Hale has founded a business called the Institute for OneWorld Health which picks up expired patents on pharmaceuticals and uses them to develop new cures for diseases which devastate developing countries where expensive patented treatments are beyond the reach of most sufferers. The first to be approved is a treatment for Visceral Leishmaniasis, a disease transmitted by sand-flies which kills almost half a million people every year in India, Bangladesh and Nepal. Next she plans to move on to Malaria. All credit to those like Bill Gates and the Lehman Brothers who are funding her work.

Jorre van Ast's Ingenious Jar Tops

I love elegant solutions that re-use items that might otherwise been recycled or, worse still, thrown away. I discovered Jorre van Ast's jar tops in the BA Business Life magazine (yes, I know, what was a doing on a plane? Sometimes it's inevitable, and at least I offset the carbon). Anyway, Jorre makes beautiful screw-on tops which turn empty jars into other useful vessels - like salt cellars, sprinklers, mugs, jugs and storage caddys. I suppose its an extension of the idea of selling chocolate spread in a jar which turns into a drinking glass when it's empty. Anyway, they are quite lovely and you can find them here.

You've got to laugh . . .

The spiralling cost of fuel is causing much hardship and consternation, but also some humour. My favourite from a selection of cartoons recently received is featured here. I suppose we should be grateful that more people are being persuaded to pay attention to their consumption of fossil fuels, even if their motives are entirely financially-based.

I was amused to notice that this particular collection of cartoons originates from America - imagine how they would feel if their fuel prices were at UK levels!

Gilding the Lily

Am I the only person making a blacklist of agencies which send me unsolicited and over-packaged promotional items? We’re making strenuous efforts to reduce the environmental impact of our business so why would any supplier consider we were more likely to do business with them if they send us a 32-page credentials presentation in an A3 hardback folder or a tiny rubber brain in a huge box filled with polystyrene? Sometimes these items are received by every single member of our marketing team – what a waste!

Clearly as marketers we depend on making an impact, but in these days of inconvenient truths the medium really is as important as the message. I’m much more impressed by companies who present a compelling message in a simple way than by those who disguise their message with loads of unnecessary embellishments.

The question is, what to do with the unwanted items? So far I have been returning them to the sender with a polite letter suggesting that the item could be re-used since I have no need for it. Does anybody have a better suggestion?