Commentary

In Search Of Happy Endings

If you’ve seen “This Is The End,” Seth Rogen’s brat-pack take on the Book of Revelations, some of the scenes of hellfire and brimstone and earthquakes and general pandemonium might seem unsettlingly familiar. 

It’s the hellfire. 

As I soaked in the work of Hollywood’s finest SFX experts, the raging blaze did not take me to the Judaeo-Christian vision of the end of days. 

It took me to Colorado. 

Anyone who has seen the forest fires raging there does not need a Bible lesson to believe that the end of the world is nigh.

 “Our analysis shows that it is no longer enough to say that global warming will increase the likelihood of extreme weather …. To the contrary, our analysis shows that, for the extreme hot weather of the recent past, there is virtually no explanation other than climate change.”-James Hansen, NASA

Here’s the problem: no one wants to live in a Ridley Scott future, but few of us want to make the changes needed to avoid it. 

Judging by the fact that you are reading this, I’m preaching to the self-selected choir. But individual action isn’t enough. We will fail if we don't act at scale. Most of us work or study or are connected to large institutions and businesses. They can be our lever to change the world. Here’s the trick: to get there, you have to stop talking about green action as a moral issue and start talking about it as a way to grow your business. We have a better nature, but to get to it, you need to appease our baser nature. 

Wal-Mart did. Its now-famous demand that suppliers cut their packaging by 5% may have done more than any single action by a brand to reduce waste and lighten its footprint. And in turn, it helped lower prices further for shoppers. At its most powerful, sustainable strategies impact the bottom line and motivate consumers. 

Coca-Cola hit exactly that sweet spot when it went straight to the core of it business and launched an initiative to save water. It is active in 320 communities in 86 countries, and consumers are noticing – brand scores have never been higher. A secondary initiative around polar bears, the Arctic Refuge Project with the World Wildlife Fund, took a much-beloved advertising campaign and gave it a whole new dimension. 

Best Buy is another great example of a company that mixes immediate gain with the greater good. Not many know the company is the biggest e-cycler in the U.S., handling over 1 billion pounds of motherboards, chips and once-loved smartphones. It leverages this to offer trade-in programs that incentivize consumers to upgrade quicker, setting off a virtuous cycle even as it promotes consumption. 

At my agency, we worked with an entrepreneur to envision a whole new business model for the auto service business – a garage that offered different levels of service, from better oil changes to a complete engine overhaul, to make it greener. All this in an environment that feels more like a lounge than your usual grease pit. The best part – it costs the same as the grease pit. 

What’s common to all of these? They start from a “value point” of instant gratification, before they make a “values point” about contributing to the greater good. They save you money, enhance your experience or keep you entertained – which then gives them permission to make a bigger point. 

These, and many others are examples of the Natural Resources Defense Council recommendation to President Obama -- not perfect, but multiple workable solutions.

Speaking of which: two cheers for the president’s executive order announcement. While it is late in coming and doesn’t halt global warming and, frankly, China and India more than make up for any emission reductions in the U.S., it’s a significant gesture, and it gives us the opportunity to take the lead in a whole new industry, or industries, that could have the sweet side-effect of giving the economy a major boost. 

But the world isn’t ready for “hair-shirt environmentalism” in the words of Amory Lovins. We need to design solutions that let us have our cake and eat it, too. 

Or prepare to be eaten by a fiery demon from the depths of a hell we created ourselves.

1 comment about "In Search Of Happy Endings".
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  1. Brian Stewart from Tribute Entertainment Media Group, July 10, 2013 at 10:14 a.m.

    Benny, I suggest you watch the new Documentary Revolution - already Canada's top Grossing doc in the last 7 years. The future of our children is at stake and it is not just climate change we need to be concerned about- that is just part of the problem- it is the death of our oceans through acidification which is caused by burning fossil fuels. We need dramatic change to our way of life , to our never ending desire for consumption. This place we call earth cannot sustain the continued exploitation of of all its natural resources, we have too many people consuming everything, without considering consequences. The film will be in select theaters in the US later this year- its a wake up call for those most affected ( youth ) to take action now. You can watch the trailer at www.theRevolutionMovie.com

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