With the 44th president of the United States being sworn into office, brands across the nation have geared up to join the celebrations, capitalize on the fervor or just underscore their patriotism. From cookies and cupcakes to comic books and coffee – here's a look at the companies rolling out to honor Barack Obama.
Marvel Comics: Spider-Man/Obama Cover
As a collector of Spider-Man comics, Obama was a natural choice for Marvel Comics to put on the cover of its new issue. Issue no. 583, "The Amazing Spider-Man," hit the stands last week and will have two covers, one of them an Inauguration Day edition showing the superhero with the president-elect. "Historic moments such as this one can be reflected in our comics, because the Marvel Universe is set in the real world. A Spider-Man fan moving into the Oval Office is an event that must be commemorated in the pages of 'Amazing Spider-Man,'" said Editor in Chief Joe Quesada to the LA Times.
Mrs. Beasley's: Obama Cupcakes and Cookies
California based bakery Mrs. Beasley's is retailing Obama shortbread cookies. The President-elect's face is transposed using food coloring ink on vanilla frosting and sugar sheet. The bakery also sells Obama hand frosted vanilla cupcakes. Six cookies retail for $21.95 and six cupcakes for $29.95.
Ben & Jerry's: Yes Pecan
Vermont based ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's has temporarily renamed its butter pecan flavor Yes Pecan" after Obama's campaign slogan "Yes, We Can." Through the month of January, Ben & Jerry's will donate proceeds from the flavor to nonprofit advocacy organization, Common Cause.
Pepsi: New Logo
Although not exactly created to honor Obama, Pepsi's new logo bears a striking resemblance to the President-elect's campaign logo. Coupled with slogans like "Yes You Can" and "Choose Change," Pepsi claims that its new logo reflects the country's mood: "Pepsi has always stood for youthful exuberance and optimism, which is reflected in our new campaign like never before… We can't speak to the President-elect's design sensibilities, but we're all over his prevailing spirit of optimism," stated Pepsi spokeswoman Nicole Bradley in an interview with ABC News.
Ikea: Oval Office
Swedish furniture maker Ikea has kicked off Embrace Change '09 -- a new campaign honoring Barack Obama. Up until January 14, a replica of the Oval office was on display in Union Station's main hall in Washington, D.C. Ikea also featured the "Embrace Change ‘09" slogan on the area's buses and trains, and presented a "mock motorcade," touring the D.C. area from January 15-16, with "furniture fit for a president" strapped on top of vehicles, symbolizing the incoming president moving into his new home. Ikea also rolled out a website where users can design their own Oval office.
Kona Joe, a coffee plantation in Hawaii, will release a new blend of coffee, Barack O Blend on January 16th. A blend of Hawaiian, Kenyan and Indonesian beans, the new concoction aims to honor the multinational heritage of president-elect Obama. A 7 oz bag retails for $12.95.
The Global Innovation Index, a ranking of 130 countries released yesterday, calls the US the world's number one innovator. The index was created by Soumitra Dutta, a professor at French business school INSEAD, along with New Delhi based non-profit organization The Confederation of Indian Industry.
The global index ranks Germany second, Sweden third, the UK fourth and Singapore fifth. Contrary to what some might expect, China comes in relatively low at number 37, while India stands at number 41.
The ranking is based on indices such as the number of internet users in a nation, the ease of doing business and the stability of banks (that score alone makes surprising that the U.S. tops the list). Every factor is then categorized as either an input or an output, with inputs indicating how conducive countries are to stimulating innovation (these include institutions and policies, human capacity, infrastructure, technological sophistication, business markets and capital). The outputs indicate how effectively countries translate innovation into benefits - like knowledge, competitiveness and wealth.
Everyone agrees that innovation is crucial for the US to dig itself out of the current economic hole. However, innovation is a largely subjective concept. And lately the US is coming under internal criticism for its lack of emphasis on innovation. Last year, Silicon Valley entrepreneur and former CTO of Cisco, Judy Estrin, stated that the US is suffering from "a national innovation deficit." And Vinton Cerf, the chief Internet evangelist at Google said, "There is a remarkable telescoping in of vision and an unwillingness to make long-term bets." In 2005, the National Academies published a report showing that the US government's financing of research in the physical sciences was 45 percent less in 2004 than in 1976.
Do rankings such as the Global Innovation Index influence corporate investment decisions? Not much, says Jacob Koshy of Livemint. In India for instance, over the last few years, several large multinationals have made significant investments in research centers.
Continental Airlines became the first US carrier to power a plane using algae as fuel yesterday. The flight, which notably took off from Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport, was also the first in the world to use a dual-engine commercial plane rather than a four-engine aircraft to test a biofuel, according to the BBC. In a 90-minute test flight, a Continental Boeing 737-800 used a 50-50 blend of biofuel (algae mixed with jatropha, a weed that bears oil-producing seeds) and normal fuel to power its number two engine. The aircraft's number one engine operated on 100 percent traditional jet fuel, allowing Continental to compare performance between the biofuel blend and traditional fuel. The biofuel blend is a "drop-in" fuel -- no modifications to the aircraft or engine are necessary for the flight to operate. There were no passengers on board.
Continental is the first US airline to use alternative energy to power its jets, other carriers around the world have dabbled in several eco-friendly ways to fly. In February of last year, a Virgin Atlantic test flight used a blend of Brazilian babassu nuts and coconuts as fuel. Last month, Air New Zealand completed a test flight powered by jatropha plant oil and standard A1 jet fuel. And later this month, Japan Airlines will launch a test flight using fuel refined from camelina, a flowering plant grown in the high plains of the U.S.
While algae works like other plants in that it converts carbon dioxide into energy, it also lives in environments other plants would reject – such as those filled with sewage. It uses the nutrients in these environments to breakdown carbon, turning it into an oily substance that resembles gasoline, diesel, kerosene and other petroleum based products. In other words, it produces fuel while cleaning the environment.
Critics of biofuel have long objected to the human consequences of growing biofuels – they state that arable lands, which could otherwise be used for food cultivation, are compromised. That's where algae one ups its competitors. Rick Heggernon, policy analyst for ASU’s Global Institute of Sustainability points out that algae production doesn't compete with that of food crops because it can be grown in glass tubes anywhere warm and sunny. It yields up to 30 times more fuel than regular energy crops. Algae production is also much safer than petroleum refining because it doesn’t involve drilling or expensive chemicals, and any potential algae spills would not be harmful.
The airline industry has come under intense scrutiny over the last few years, with increasing awareness about global warming. The aviation industry is responsible for two percent of carbon dioxide emissions worldwide, and three percent of total greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Recently, apart from a focus on developing alternative fuels, carriers like Emirates Airlines have also been engaged in negotiations with various governments around the world to devise the most efficient routes possible – thereby cutting down on fuel emissions. Last month, Emirates launched what it calls the world's longest green flight, a new service from Dubai to San Francisco that saves an estimated 2,000 gallons of fuel and 30,000 pounds of carbon emissions on the 16-hour direct flight.
Shedding pounds and expending energy is no longer just good for you – it's also a way to give back to the environment.
The Green Microgym, based in Portland, Oregon, is the nation's first gym that aims to use human-generated energy from clients as they work out. Adam Boesel, the gym's owner, hopes that in the future the gym will run entirely on the energy generated by clients.
While the science behind generating energy from spinning wheels – commonly used in much of the exercise equipment installed in gyms – the issue at hand thus far has been how to adapt the technology and find the right equipment.
A Texas-based company, Henry Works is currently developing a device called the Human Dynamo, which Boesel's Microgym hopes to use. The dynamo connects a number of exercise bikes with a battery that stores the energy generated as people exercise. Appliances like lamps or televisions can then be plugged into the box in order to utilize this power.
Although installing the energy-generating equipment is expensive, if gyms can pony up enough to do so, they stand to save significantly in the long-term. And as with all technology, the expectation is that the further the concept is developed the more affordable and viable it will become.
Via the BBC.
‘Tis the season to be jolly – and generous. But with tightened budgets and less spare time on your hands, doing good unto others may prove particularly difficult this year.
To ease any pangs of conscience you may have, Fast Company’s series on innovative giving offers six easy, stress free, fun and inexpensive ways to give back to your community – whether through playing a game or simply using Facebook. Best of all – to use most of these tools you never even have to leave home.
This holiday season, more people are thinking about spending more to gift green, but with the economy tanking and unemployment levels at their highest in 15 years, there's likely to be even more of a gap between consumer attitudes and actions than ever before.
In Deloitte's recent annual holiday survey, that polled 10,000 consumers, 44 percent said they wanted to give green gifts -- like the eco-friendly products at Big Green Purse -- this holiday season. And of those, half said they'd be willing to pay between 10 to 25 percent more, while the remaining half are willing to pay 5 percent more.
One in five consumers (20 percent) also said they will purchase more eco-friendly products this holiday season than they did in the past, and a similar percentage said they may not wrap holiday gifts to conserve paper.
While these numbers look promising, how closely do they reflect reality? Do consumers even understand what being green really means? Back in September, the Shelton Group conducted a study called Ecopulse, which asked American consumers for their attitudes towards green marketing, and the results revealed that there was still very little understanding about what being environmentally friendly means.
Almost half of all respondents stated that a business's environmental record is important in their purchasing decisions. But only 21% stated that this had driven them to choose one product over another. Even more telling – just 7% could name the product they purchased.
Unless consumers become better educated about eco-friendly products, and the cost of these products become less expensive, it's unlikely that the next year will see a significant change in consumer behavior. What the Deloitte survey doesn't measure is whether green purchases, and not just green intent, have actually gone up. It's like asking people what their New Year's resolutions are – we all mean to lose weight, volunteer at the neighborhood soup kitchen and spend more time with our kids, but one month into the new year and these good intentions are often overshadowed by reality.
Japan is known for being one step ahead, with its advanced technology, crazy vending machines and quirky fashion. So a futuristic new scheme for parking bicycles in Tokyo, although a welcome development, isn't out of the ordinary.
Tokyo is home to a large population of bike riders and in recent years there' s been an increasingly urgent need to create a parking solution for the two wheelers that transcends cluttered bike racks.
Enter Eco-Cyle, a multi tiered storage facility that's the product of construction solutions company Giken.
An automated kiosk accepts a rider's bike, storing it in an underground, rotating wheel until the user returns to retrieve it. The service is offered for a monthly fee of about 2600 yen or $29 dollars.
Take a look at Danny Choo's video to see how it works.
Yesterday, Emirates Airlines launched what it calls the world's longest "green" flight -- a new service from Dubai to San Francisco that saves an estimated 2,000 gallons of fuel and 30,000 pounds of carbon emissions on the 16-hour direct flight.
What exactly is so green about the new service? Contrary to what some might expect, much of what characterizes this classification isn't inherent in the planes themselves. Rather, it's the chosen routes that form the bulk of Emirates' efforts at greenification.
The departure route out of Dubai will provide the new plane with an unimpeded climb to allow the aircraft to reach its optimum cruise altitude quickly and efficiently. Emirates has conducted prolonged negotiations with the Russian government to allow for a preferred route over Russian airspace. The predominant traffic flows across northern Europe are west-east and Emirates has negotiated in order to optimize the structure to flow north-south.
The airline has also carried out negotiations with government agencies in Iceland, Canada and the United States – towards the same aim.
The Dubai-San Francisco aircraft will track close to the North Pole, following tests and negotiations carried out by Emirates. "The North Pole is essentially a short cut," explains Andrew Parker, Senior Vice President, Public and Environmental Affairs for Emirates. "It offers uncongested skies and is more efficient – it saves time and fuel. Yesterday, we did the Dubai-San Francisco route in just 15 hrs and 20 minutes." While other airlines have flown close to the North Pole before, Emirates is the first to offer such a long service.
That's not to say there are no inherently green features in the new 777-200LR. Compared to the Air Bus 340-500, the model is 20% more efficient. It has a better engine, one that burns less fuel and emits fewer pollutants. "The biggest thing we're doing is buying new planes. We've bought one hundred 777s and half have been delivered already," says Parker.
The new 777-200LR is specially washed beforehand to minimize drag, the aircraft uses electrical power on the ground in Dubai rather than running its auxiliary power unit, it uses minimal thrust on landing and a single-engine taxi to its gate, plus on-board staff collects all glass, newspapers, aluminium and paper for recycling.
While Emirates' efforts are laudable, there's still a lot more to be done. Green or not, taking a plane across the globe is far from environmentally friendly. Using TerraPass to calculate the carbon footprint one person flying nonstop from Dubai to San Francisco, I was left with a staggering 6,306 lbs of CO2. The technology still has a long way to go before one's carbon footprint can really be minimized. "In the future there will be all sorts of new materials to make aircrafts lighter. The technology will get better. Today we were trying to make the best of everything available to us right now," says Parker.
Then there's the more complex reality that other airlines and governments need to get on board in order for the most optimal routes around the world to be a viable possibility. This often means putting political tension, competitive instincts and possibly even security issues aside to make way for a worldwide agreement enabling more eco-friendly air travel.
Parker admits that there's a lot more to be done. "We need permanent agreements with government and agencies and we need to continually work on this year in and year out. Governments around the world are starting to take airspace inefficiencies seriously. Europe for one really has to get its act together. For such a developed community as the EU, it has too many delays, too much wasted fuel and emissions."
Turns out firewood isn't just bad for the environment. There's a straightforward, yet relatively unexplored link between collecting firewood and violence against women. In refugee camps in regions from Sudan and Sri Lanka to Ethiopia and Ecuador, women are often raped, assaulted and even murdered while collecting firewood. Cooking smoke from wood has also been linked to acute respiratory diseases.
To combat this phenomenon, Beyond Firewood, the first international research conference on firewood and alternative cooking fuels and energy technologies in humanitarian setting, was held yesterday and today in New Delhi.
Organized by the Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children, the conference aims to explore alternative energy solutions with the specific aim of keeping women safe. The conference is part of a larger campaign, Get Beyond Firewood, which emphasizes that safe cooking fuel should be as high a priority as ensuring food or water in critical humanitarian emergencies.
"The food distributed to refugees by relief agencies must be cooked before it can be eaten, but the issue of safe access to appropriate cooking fuel has long been ignored by the humanitarian community. Women and girls are left to fend for themselves, and after years of abuse, they have become accustomed to the brutal attacks they risk when they venture out of their camps in search of firewood. Ultimately, they have become resigned to rape," states the Commission's website.
What it is: Over the last few months, Tyson Foods has been using a blogging campaign to attract attention to the issue of hunger, gain brand credibility and send users to their hunger website. While philanthropic efforts on the part of a multinational corporation may smack of a thinly veiled PR campaign to some, in this instance the motive is less important then the outcome.
In August of 2008 Tyson posted a blog entry on its website discussing hunger in Austin and the work of the Capital Area Food Bank of Austin. The company offered to donate 100 pounds of food to the food bank for every comment to the entry, with a limit of 35,000 pounds (a tractor-trailer load). As word spread through Twitter, the entry received 350 comments in less than 5 hours, eventually attracting over 600 comments. Tyson also conducted a similar effort to benefit five food banks in the Bay Area, the effort received well over 2000 comments. Last week, it posted a blog entry to benefit The Greater Boston Food Bank. Overall, the company has donated more than 300,000 pounds of food overall through its blog/comment effort.
What you can do: Keep an eye out for more blog posts on Tyson's hunger relief site and leave a comment to help fight hunger.
Read the other entries in our innovative giving series here.
Add your own suggestions for innovative ways to give in the comments below.
