Tag Archive: green


Spread the Pope’s Condom Message To Catholic Health Workers

Filed Under: Education, Health, New
Dec.04, 2010

Photo courtesy of tonrulkens on flickr

With the release of and subsequent media frenzy surrounding Pope Benedict XVI’s published comments on condom use has come a renewed debate about religion, sexuality and public health. And it’s not just about “male prostitutes.” While the Pope’s original declaration referred to the fact that condom use may be a moral act for male prostitutes wishing to prevent against sexually transmitted infections, the Vatican later clarified that — oh, wait a minute — women, men and transsexuals also may use condoms to protect themselves against transmission of disease, thank you very much.

Many progressive Catholics and organizations say these statements have opened the door to the potential to have a more realistic conversation about the role condoms play in protecting the health and lives of women, men and young people globally.

But, of course, the conversation has been happening for years between public health experts, advocates and those who use condoms. We already know that condoms are the only sure-fire contraceptive method for women who want to prevent both pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. However, Catholics for Choice say that many Catholic health providers working for Catholic aid agencies in developing nations are secretly handing out condoms while fearing for their jobs since condom use is still unacceptable as a tenet of the Church. Catholic groups like the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in the United States have stood in the way of ensuring access to condoms, as well as to the funding of other HIV/AIDS prevention strategies that work — like comprehensive sex education in developing nations — for too long.

The best way we can “use” the Pope’s comments on condoms, in this country, is to put pressure on Catholic health agencies working on the ground in these poor nations to formally integrate condoms into their prevention strategies.

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Six Sustainable Startups

Filed Under: New
Oct.11, 2010

Entrepreneurs are best at finding innovative solutions to serious problems. Environmental problems are arguably the root of all social ills and it’s exciting to see social entrepreneurs take on the challenge. The 2nd annual OG25 Green Business Startup Competition included 25 finalists ranging from a company redefining the off-shore energy market (wind farms!), to smart sprinkler systems, and a social network for the eco-mom.

The winner of the competition was Zimride, a “rideshare service [that] helps organizations establish easy to use, private, social networks for ridesharing.” One of the company’s unique angles is to use networks like college campuses and companies to arrange rideshares in “trusted communities,” allowing members to search and post ride options including personal cars, shuttles, vanpool, and zipcar. It’s also marketed for events (so perhaps the line to get in to Burning Man next year will be 7 hours and not 8 if enough people try it?) Already in use at UCLA, Stanford, University of Michigan, and USC, Zimride has proven to engage 10-20% of student populations and integrates with facebook and Twitter. Since I don’t have a car and I’m not part of a campus or corporate network, I’m planning to test out their free public rideshare option, which is (probably) safer than hitchhiking and faster than the bus.

These finalists also caught my eye:

  • Airbnb is an upgraded version of couch surfing that matches private residences with travelers. A friend of mine recently used the service to stay in a mountain-top vineyard cottage with an ocean view. I intend to advertise my less exotic, but just as friendly, couch and air mattress in my living room if you ever need a place to stay in LA.

  • ecoATM is an “automated eCycling station.” In my experience, most ewaste recycling centers do not currently have the capacity to provide convenient drop offs. This solves the problem: how should I dispose of my broken phone charger after 5 p.m. (that was intentionally built to last no longer than 5 years so I’ll buy another one) and get money for it?

  • GoodGuide, Inc. rates over 65,000 non-toxic and environmentally-friendly products and helped me determine that there is a better toothpaste than the one I’m currently using (but mine is second best). Also, the company is a B Corporation.

  • Soleo Organics makes the highest rated sunscreen by the Environmental Working Group. I tried it this weekend for several hours in the intense LA sun and I was well-protected.

  • ThinkEco makes a product they’ve coined the “modlet” for “modern electrical outlet”. Plug your electronics into the modlet and “then use your web browser to wirelessly monitor and manage your power consumption.” It should save you 10-20% on your electricity bill.

The conference also hosted a Green Product Design Competition. All 50 companies/products are worth a review for inspiration to all you social entrepreneurs out there. I’ll say it again: You are the best at finding solutions where others see problems. You thrive on it. So go, create, and introduce yourself to me at next year’s OG25.

Photo Credit: opportunitygreen

Six Sustainable Startups

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Does Consumerism Save the Environment?

Filed Under: Economy, New
Aug.24, 2010

Women saving the environment is one of my favorite topics. So, you’d think I’d be really happy to see this weekend’s Washington Post piece about Diane MacEachern of Big Green Purse. A longtime environmentalist, she’s also an entrepreneur and public speaker with a few best-selling books under her belt. Cool, right?

But lately, she focuses on one thing that basically drives me up the wall. As the Post explains it, MacEachern “started a campaign on her website encouraging women to join the ‘One in a Million’ initiative by pledging to shift $1,000 of their household budgets to green products and services.” Much like the books she’s authored on the subject, her BGP website encourages women to “go green” with tips about buying less bottled water, eating less meat, having an eco-friendly Halloween, and demanding to receive fewer catalogs in the mail.

Is this Chicken Soup for the Wannabe Sustainable Soul? How many poor women who barely scraping by can think about buying “green” products in this economy and too many catalogs in their mailbox? How few of us have a grand lying around for our “household budget?” Buying fair trade chocolate and worrying about “responsible investing” are some of the most underwhelming options available when faced with melting polar ice caps, but promoting a so-called “eco-lifestyle” is really only the beginning of my frustration.

There are several serious flaws in MacEachern’s strategy to green the world. In my mind, it isn’t about pressuring companies to sell more eco-friendly products, though that’s certainly one part of a larger environmentalism strategy. But what we oughta be doing instead is something much more simple: quit buying stuff and quit hoarding. There is life after shopping.

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3 Clear Social Entrepreneurship Trends from Echoing Green

Filed Under: New
Jul.25, 2010

Seed funding and support organization Echoing Green sees a huge number of early-stage social entrepreneurs apply to its fellowship program each year. They’ve just released some aggregate data that comes straight from a survey filled out by their semifinalists, and the information is fascinating. Among the trends are the youthfulness of founders, changing types of previous experience, and increasingly innovative organizational structures.

Trend 1: Social Entrepreneurs are starting early. 55% of EG finalists over the last four years have been under 35. In 2009, they made up 70% of the semifinalist pool. In 2010, 65 of the finalists indicated that they had first studied the issue they are working on in college. This certainly resonates with what I’m seeing – which is an explosion of programs catering to the passion of young people (particularly under- and recent graduates) and attempting to provide skills and discipline.

Trend 2: Previous nonprofit experience still the norm, but not a necessity. In 2010 15% fewer of EG semifinalists had previously worked in nonprofits or governments. 49% had worked for for-profits or been self employed, which was up 13% from the previous year. A little over a third of them had previously founded an organization, of which about two-thirds were still in existence. All of this is a hugely positive sign to me, as it suggests that there is more movement from the business space into social entrepreneurship, which I think is a natural next step.

Trend 3: A strong growth towards hybrid organizations. This is another one that seems pretty positive to me. 2010 saw 37% of EG semifinalists structure their organizations as hybrid nonprofit/for-profit models, which is up 20% from the previous year. The number of people starting pure nonprofits was down 20% and the number of pure for-profits remained consistent, at only 8% of the total.

Some additional demographic data that was interesting: Almost 50% of the semifinalists in 2010 were Millennials, the most of any generational group. Just over 25% were African-American, which is awesome to see.

This information is really useful for anyone interested in where this field is going, and I’m glad Echoing Green took the time to summarize it and make it available. More than anything, I think it validates the growing appeal of solving social problems to for-profit entrepreneurs, an essential next step for our field to continue to grow.

Learn more about the survey on Echoing Green’s website.

Photo credit: Echoing Green – Social Change Starts Here

3 Clear Social Entrepreneurship Trends from Echoing Green

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