Accountability matters, even in the green world!

Sounds simplistic but there is an important message here for businesses that offer green services, be it solar installations or otherwise, about what they need to deliver to the consumer to get their business.

via a Greentech media article about solar projects in the current financial meltdown environment.

Lyndon Rive, CEO and founder of Foster City, Calif.-based SolarCity, said educating consumers about the benefits of tax credits, which will cut the solar energy system cost by 30 percent, will be key in persuading consumers to invest in solar during the economic downturn. Convincing banks to loan money to solar energy system installer such as SolarCity also will become tougher.

"The banks are being more strict on businesses plans and execution," Rive said.

Rive said another problem that installation and service company like his faces is a lack of standards to assure consumers that they are getting their money's worth.

Without some metrics, consumers have a hard time distinguishing among a slew of solar energy service companies that have emerged in recent years.

"We have to step out and guarantee what the production is going to be, and you have to be there to support it," Rive said. "It will eliminate fears from consumers."

Ahearn said no good policies exist that encourage accountability from solar power developers carrying out million-dollar projects to sell energy to utilities. The same issue also happens in the residential solar market, he said.

"There is no policing around the quality of offers. If you look at the warranties today, it will be difficult for consumers to understand where there is a claim proven and who's responsible," Ahearn said. "You can get wide-spread disappointment over time, and it will come back to bite us."

Going Green or Green Washing?

I wrote this in response to a post by Marguerite at her blog about how consumers are unwilling to spend extra for green.

Some of the same arguments apply to companies too, which are huge consumers of energy and electricity. I just saw an article about a recent survey (albeit of 16 companies only) that lists the various advantages of going green. However, I have been really disillusioned for the most part about corporate America's attitude towards climate change; Google's efforts being more an exception than the rule. The bottom-line being what drives companies, these tough times and the recent focus on sustainability and 'green' has led to many cases of green-washing or merely pasting a 'green' or sustainability sticker on their cost-cutting measures. Without making any conscious attempt to curtail excesses or even simple measures like setting up recycle programs at the work place, many just ride the 'green' bandwagon because it is the expedient or opportune thing to do today.

I am not denying that some companies have taken genuine steps in this regard. The most unlikeliest of companies one would think of - Wal-Mart - has shown some great leadershipin this regard. Of course, they do it to bring their own energy costs down. I believe, that after the US government, they are the highest electricity purchaser in the US (or maybe the world) and their energy costs to keep their buildings going are enormous. That alone would not be impressive. I am impressed, however, from what I have heard and read about their ongoing efforts to drive change through influencing consumer and consumer choices. For eg: I have heard a Vice-President from Wal-Mart say that they plans to have CFL and other energy efficient lighting measures in all their stores as a first step but they plan to go beyond that and take out all regular bulbs from their shelves and have only CFLs (even if it is their own Great Value brand predominantly!) [Note: The Walmart VP which I heard was at a keynote address (heard in its entirety at the link) given at a solar conference last year in Long Beach. This year the conference begins in San Diego next Monday. I wish I was going! The talk was given by Charles Zimmerman, VP of Prototype and New Format Development at Wal-Mart and I believe that is where I heard the point about rolling out only CFLs in Walmart.]

A large portion of the US shops at Wal-Mart. They have the power to influence consumer behavior and choices significantly. So, I hope they continue this effort and roll out their own efficiency and energy management measures to ALL their stores soon, beyond the two show-n-tell fancy stores they have in Texas and Colorado.

Also, they have a huge suppliers list of companies who would (and probably do) bend over backwards to have supply arrangements with Wal-Mmart. I believe Wal-Mart has already started affecting their suppliers' attitudes regarding packaging and other choices by demanding a 'greening' of the suppliers corporate decisions and choices. Again, I am not aware of how rigorously this is greening or green-washing the supply-chain but this is an example of how corporate leadership can influence particular companies as well as the companies they do business with, in addition to directly affecting their consumers and hence the world at large.

Slowly but steadily, change is happening but we definitely need more of them to happen for this to be not a fringe movement or a oh-look-what-those-great-guys-at-Google-did news item but a way of life!

Disclaimer: I own neither WMT or GOOG stocks; other than what some mutual funds I own may have in their portfolio.

Education for Generation E

Great post by Andrew Revkin at the Dot Earth blog at NYT earlier in the week. He writes:

I can’t keep track of what young people are being called these days after a string of “Generation [ ]” labels. But my vote would be Generation E, for energy and the environment, if initiatives at a host of schools around the United States are any indication. I’ve heard more than a few sociologists and historians opine that we’re essentially going to have to grow past our fossil fuel norms and into a new relationship with energy in which environmental considerations are integrated seamlessly into how people make choices related to energy. Maybe this is starting to happen among those who will inherit the consequences of energy decisions being made (or not made) today?

This is exactly the kind of hopeful note that I want to start my new blog with! Go read the article for details on various school programs around the country. There is a lot of useful information in the 200+ comments there too.

A New Beginning

“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.”


From October 1st onwards, I will blog about Energy & Environment issues at this blog...



Green Ogres... for green folks like me! :)

Posts about Energy & Environment at my old blog, which was a hodge-podge of many different topics, can be read here.

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“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.” - Seneca