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CURRENT ISSUE
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IN THIS ISSUE
Publisher’s Note: Belief In An Afterlife
PUBLISHERS NOTE: BELIEF IN AN AFTERLIFEThis is not an essay on religion, though it does touch slightly on the new secular “green” religion. A new study about packaging and sustainability — The Hartman Group’s Sustainability Outlook: The Rise of Consumer Responsibility — yields an intriguing finding. The Hartman folks found that packaged goods consumers value the ability of a package to have an afterlife as higher that how the package is initially designed. In the study, consumers ranked curbside recyclability as the green packaging feature of primary importance to them, followed closely by biodegradability. Recycled content and minimal packaging practices — both of which address and reduce waste in the first place at the design stage — lag somewhat behind. “Consumers are increasingly aware of the backend, where it goes when it enters their home and after they touch it,” said Alison Worthington, Hartman’s Managing Director of Sustainability. Backwards, yes. Counterintuitive, yes. Surprising, no. Isn’t it quintessentially human to defer hard choices in our daily lives, hoping the mess we make can be sorted out later? And hasn’t the burden always fallen on the wise men (and women) — in this case, that’s you — to educate the flock to face their problems and find solutions up front? — Gordon Kaye HOUSEKEEPINGSpeaking of package design, the March magazine, featuring
a powerful display of packaging and instore graphics is now in the
mail. Neenah Paper is the sponsor of our annual American Package
Design Awards competition, to help spotlight their wide array of
papers for packaging and labeling applications. To obtain a brochure... DEADLINE EXTENSION:
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What are the driving forces for going green on a project? DESIGNER RANKINGS 1. The Brand’s Image BRAND OWNER RANKINGS 1. Marketing Eco-Print Survey Conducted by Monadnock Paper Mills, November 2008 |
Sustainability is one of the pressing issues being addressed through
Design Ignites Change, a new program that encourages high school and
college students to address social issues in their local communities
through public design projects. Projects currently underway
including: a promotional campaign for a bike share society via Alberta
College of Art + Design; and a new branding and certification system
for guidelines that govern the use of hazardous substances in consumer
electronics manufacturing industry, via the Graphic Design and
Sustainability course at Academy of Art University. Design Ignites
Change is a joint project of Worldstudio and Adobe Youth Voices, with
support from AIGA, Citizen Scholar, Cooper-Hewitt, Core 77, Design
Observer, Frog Design, GDUSA, and Williams and House.
GreenJoy, founded by 25-year interior design veteran Jodi Sutton, is
committed to a sustainable and holistic approach to design. For example,
Sutton commonly specifies 100% recycled materials, PVC and lead-free
fabrics, juxtaposed with rescued or reclaimed wood products, while avoiding
the use of toxic chemicals. To build the GreenJoy brand, Evenson Design
Group uses the image of a classical chair with enveloping vines. Says Stan
Evenson: “Our firm is all about sustainability. Not only are we
sharing our expertise... in order to communicate their own green
inititiatives more effectively, but we’re using less resources
in the process to tell their story.”
The Tap Project was introduced in 2007
by David Droga, the creative chairman at ad agency Droga5 in New York. The
program encourages patrons at participating restaurants to donate one dollar
to Unicef each time they order free tap water instead of costly bottled
alternatives. Now in its third year, the program is expanding as more
advertising firms join to support the cause. These include students at the
BYU Ad Lab (their poster is shown here) and the VCU Brandcenter, along with
a score of agencies including Energy BBDO; Goodby, Silverstein; Hill, Holliday;
Publicis West; Saatchi & Saatchi; TBWA/Chiat/Day; Casanova Pendrill; Grupo
Gallegos; and PopuliCom. Here, for example, is a poster produced by BYU students.
The Seattle Aquarium asked Modern Dog Design to create a symbol to remind
visitors of the importance of conservation. The symbol is currently being
used on appropriate collateral materials, garbage receptacles, napkin
receptacles, near drains, etc. The design firm is widely recognized as an
inventive and often irreverent purveyor of popular culture.
For a century, the Good Housekeeping Seal has identified consumers products
that are trustworthy, reliable and a good value. A century later, the company
is extending its certification to green products. It will focus on, among
other things, if a product has been made with sustainable materials and a
minimum of wasted energy, and made without toxic substances that might the
health of workers or consumers. The theory: cut through the clutter of
marketing claims related to sustainability and toxicity.
Alcan Composites USA has intensified its efforts to ensure that the
company’s ecological footprints are small and green through a new
Care & Conserve™ sustainability initiative, which assesses the
company’s entire supply chain from raw materials to disposal. Alcan
Composites USA manufactures products for a wide variety of applications,
including graphic display; the company’s brand names known to
designers include Alucobond, Dibond, Fome-Cor, Sintra and Gator.
Reflecting the economic downturn, an ongoing campaign for Truseal Technologies
shifts emphasis from the environmental benefits to the cost savings of energy
efficiency. The campaign is intended to help retailers sell consumers on
energy-efficient windows. In the first 2009 execution — Fuzzy Slippers
— copy reads “Homeowners who are looking to save money on their
energy costs may turn their thermostat down, put on two sweaters and slip into
a pair of comfy, well-insulated slippers. They might be interested to know
that they could lower their energy costs more efficiently and more stylishly
by installing Envirosealed Windows.” Marcus Thomas is the ad agency. Last
year’s ads made no mention of saving money. Creative credits go to ECD
Joanne Kim, CD Jim Sollisch, AD Brian Roach, and CW Max Mearsheimer.
The Triple Bottom Line is a book which charts the rise of sustainability
within the business world, and shows how and why financial success increasingly
goes hand in hand with social and environmental achievement. Author Andrew Savitz,
chronicles both the real problems that companies face and the innovative
solutions that can come from sustainability, is speaking on the issue of
“Sustainability: A New Business Imperative,” on March 25 at the Time
& Life Building in Manhattan. Kodak, Time Inc. and Verdant Consulting Group
are the sponsors.