The Adnostic

I'm not one for flowery talk. I think giving a new name to an old idea is a cop out from the opportunity to be truly innovative. Be direct. Call a spade a spade. So when people start saying that we need to start calling green efforts blue. I'm not impressed.

I get that the term green is overused, misused, and cheapened, but but it still has meaning. The general public still understands it and we need them to now more than ever. Switching our terminology from one color to another is only going to confuse an issue that is already prone to fuzzy logic.

Treehugger says we should ditch green because it's been marketed into meaninglessness, but they tend to get a little high on the horse sometimes. Anyone remember their anti-recycling stance?

Then we have a sustainability strategist on PSFK telling us that the next phase of green thinking will be blue. Can you imagine going to GE and telling them to ditch their green efforts and start thinking blue? I've got a better idea. Let's keep calling it green, but make people better understand the different environmental systems and how they work together and effect each other. If you're communicating your green message as just less waste, less carbon, and planting trees then you're missing the bigger picture.
and eventually your customers will demand more from you.

Green, blue, sustainability, social responsibility are all related. You can't just look at one part, like just recycling or reduced packaging, and say that you're doing your part and that you're "green" with a straight face. It's a moving target that keeps moving farther away. If you make a serious commitment to being green then you make a serious commitment to constant improvement.

So how green are you today? Will you still be that green by this time next year? I hope you will be better at reducing the impact of your inputs and outputs. Being green is like playing an instrument. If you never stop practicing and challenging yourself, then you never stop getting better.