The Foundation » Interesting articles

The International Year of Sustainable Energy for All

cmotran — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 09:59:07 +0000

Yesterday marked the launch of The International Year of Sustainable Energy for All by the United Nations’ Secretary-General, HE Ban Ki-moon, at the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi. The Secretary-General’s objectives, to be achieved by 2030, are: 1. To ensure universal access to modern energy services 2. To double the rate of improvement of energy efficiency 3. To double the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix Globally, one person in five lacks access to modern electricity and twice that number, three billion people, rely on wood, coal, charcoal or animal waste for cooking and heating. In developed countries the problem is a substantial waste of energy. What can business do about this? Well, read here for more: http://www.businessfightspoverty.org/profiles/blogs/new-wbcsd-publication-business-solutions-to-enable-energy-access

The Guardian’s Green Travel List 2011

cmotran — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 10:40:54 +0000

Going green needn’t restrict your holiday choices. The Guardian presents this year’s 20 most innovative eco-tourism projects, trips and places to stay, selected by an expert panel as well as Guardian readers themselves.

This list is quite UK-centric with only 10 entries outside the UK, however it still provides a nice starting checklist of places to go and things to do that will not only provide for a fun experience but also will be good for the planet and communities directly affected by tourism. http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2011/nov/04/green-travel-list-2011

Social innovation in action

cmotran — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:33:29 +0000

I recently came across this interesting example of social innovation in action. Sometimes the simplest ideas for the lowest cost investment have the biggest impact. http://wimp.com/innovationfinest/…

Is your marketing resonating with customers?

Lisa — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 11:38:50 +0000

While Coca Cola is usually at the top of most brand studies, it comes way down the list when asking people whether brands contribute to their “quality of life”. Those at the top of the recently released ‘Meaningful Brand Index’ are Ikea, Nestle, Danone and Google. On the other end of the spectrum, most people wouldn’t care if 70% of the brands they interact with ceased to exist. So in our current time of low consumer confidence and cost-cutting, whether your brand is in the top 30%, is yet another thing for marketeers to worry about. Have a look at the story in FT here.

To trust, or not to trust – that is the question

cmoreton — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 14:56:20 +0000

With consumers tightening their belts, and a series of bad news stories damaging public perceptions of a raft of different industries, it’s more critical than ever that brands build a strong and trusting relationship with their customers. Why do customers trust? Becuase they understand and believe the purpose of the organisation – why it exists – because it’s evident in everything the company does and in every interaction they have with it. Because staff are empowered to act, in support of this purpose, to provide great customer service. And because that company has an open dialogue with with its customers. http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/3031125.article?cmpid=MWE01&cmptype=newsletter&email=true

London Riots: How social media was used to do good in the aftermath

cmotran — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 17:39:04 +0000

Here is an interesting post on Business Fights Poverty about how a Twitter tag managed to raise a whopping £23,000 for Mohammed Ashraf Haziq, a 20-year old Malaysian student whose robbery by a gang who had appeared to be helping him was caught on video. The hash tag #somethingniceforashraf was started by a former charity worker called Jamie Cowan who had very little Twitter experience prior to this campaign. He has some interesting views on when to use Facebook vs Twitter ve Tumblr etc. http://www.businessfightspoverty.org/profiles/blogs/the-london-riots-what-can-we-learn-from-how-social-media-was-used

Capitalism for the long term

ltan — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 10:33:31 +0000

Business leaders face a choice: they can reform the system, or watch as government’s exert control. A call to action from McKinsey’s Dominic Barton: http://hbr.org/2011/03/capitalism-for-the-long-term/ar/1…

Information overload

Kate — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:03:40 +0000

Some interesting musings from Martin Lindstrom this week on the culture of ‘more is more’: in this jam-packed world of tweets, status updates and scrolling news tickers, are consumers crying out for companies that cut through the noise and offer up only the edited highlights? http://www.fastcompany.com/1776924/simplicity-distraction-cosme?partner=homepage_newsletter

Saving capitalism from itself

ltan — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 08:23:40 +0000

In his latest article for Management Today, Simon Caulkin enlists some expert help to examine the alternatives to today’s brand of capitalism http://www.managementtoday.co.uk/features/1086015/saving-capitalism-itself/…

Anthony Hilton’s stock market commentary in the Evening Standard

ltan — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 12:10:58 +0000

We enjoyed reading Anthony Hilton’s (Financial Editor of the Evening Standard and one of our Advisory Board members) perspective about the stock market turmoil last week: ‘Markets have lost faith in the politicians’…