Comments on: Sustainability Symbols, Icons and Certifications

By: Keith and Amy Sutter go greenly around the globe « Travel Blog Sites – The Web's Best

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:05:17 +0000

[...] of our favorite posts deal with a diverse range of topics from strange caffeinated drinks, sustainability symbols and certifications,” Keith says, “to our most recent post on getting outside your comfort [...]

By: Robyn

Robyn — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 19:18:33 +0000

Hey A&K,

Just came across this (and in posting, just saw your response; let’s hope product life cycles can speed up quickly!):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-seireeni/drivers-of-preference-why_b_446061.html

Speaks to many of the points you initially made (and proves that I should not participate in any marketing studies as the voice of the average person) and the book might be a good read whenever you’re next able to access Amazon. Keep enjoying Asia!

By: Keith

Keith — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 04:37:28 +0000

Robyn thanks for the comment. I agree with you that there needs to be a way to ensure that sustainable choices are available to all socioeconomic levels. This has really hit home as we have been traveling in many beautiful third world countries. They have such an amazing natural asset in the beauty of their natural environment, but often have little respect for it.

I am hopeful that the traditional life cycle of product development where the first generations are incredibly expensive and available only to wealthy early adopters will be accelerated to create more accessible and environmentally sustainable products. I look at cell phones as a great example, even if it did take 15 years. The first cell phones 20 years ago were incredibly expensive and were the size of a briefcase. However now in many third world countries, there are few landlines with everyone talking and SMSing on cells. Think what that kind of progress would mean when applied to efficient and sustainable transportation. Although with the number of scooters and motorbikes here the average mpg has to be much better than in the states.

By: Susuanne

Susuanne — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 19:20:27 +0000

Good read!

By: Cousin Kate

Cousin Kate — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:30:12 +0000

This comment has nothing to do with this post But I wanted to let you know that I purchased a Neti Pot and it is the best thing that has happened to me!! Hope you are having a great week and hope to talk to you both soon!! Lots of Love – Kate

By: Robyn

Robyn — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 11:00:47 +0000

From a non-marketer’s perspective, I think it totally depends on the individual person/company. Some people are into status symbols while some aren’t. I haven’t ever been in the market for a car myself, but was happy to learn here that there’s a hybrid Civic, because if I were to end up buying a car upon returning to the States, I’d love another Civic (we had a lovely standard one in the family for nearly 15 years, which got great mileage) and the fact that it would be a hybrid would be an added bonus. I guess I take the value-added approach. I’m not looking to spend more on a sustainable product, though I acknowledge that they sometimes do cost more initially. For me, the attraction (on top of less environmental damage) is the genuine savings over time (such as lower energy bills) granted by such a product. This is especially important if we want to grow a global economy that is not only fashionably green but accessibly green to those living at all income brackets. If unsustainable choices are the only affordable choices in low-income communities then we really won’t be making much progress over the long haul.