Good Stuff

Making medicine as ubiquitous as Coca Cola

I just read about this fantastic initiative. I remember thinking about this when I was in Kenya last year. You can drive for miles and miles along dusty roads to communities without even the most basic amenities, yet you are never more than a few miles from the nearest bottle of Coca Cola. It must be the most efficient distribution network on the face of the planet - so why not use it to do distribute some good?

"It's a tragic fact of life today that one in five African children die before their fifth birthday from simple causes like dehydration from diarrhea. Basic medicines could save those children's lives, yet no means has been found to make them readily available. A new grassroots project, however, aims to tap into the formidable distribution network of none other than Coca-Cola to get life-saving medicines to the children who need them.

The ColaLife project aims to distribute oral re-hydration salts and educational materials to people in developing countries through a partnership with Coca-Cola by which its distributors carry medicine in addition to soft drinks. The concept actually dates back 20 years, when its originator—Simon Berry, who was then an aid worker in Zambia—was struck by the realization that one could buy a Coke virtually anywhere on the planet, yet medicine was hard to come by. He proposed designating one compartment in every 10 Coke crates as "the life saving" compartment to transport medicines. His idea fell on deaf ears back then, but today the power of social networking is giving it new life." Specifically, Berry's ColaLife project has tapped the power of Facebook and other social networking tools to amass a group of more than 6,000 supporters, garner widespread media coverage and—at least as important—get the attention of Coca-Cola.

Berry has since met with high-ranking officials at the company, and talks are under way to push the idea further. Meanwhile, ColaLife groups have been added on Google and Flickr, and a YouTube video was created earlier this month to promote the project's submission to Google’s Project 10^100 initiative.

Currently, ColaLife is seeking an NGO to participate in the project as well. The web is facilitating social change in ways that simply weren't possible before, uniting like-minded activists and gathering support from around the globe. Will Coca-Cola jump in with both feet? That remains to be seen. In the meantime, one to watch—and learn from." Via Springwise.

Back to paper - green?

Some peoples idea of green is very odd. Take 'green' diary for example. Why, when we computer software solves so many of these tasks so brilliantly, would anyone want to buy a paper brick full of adverts? Dont get me wrong, I support the initiative of collecting this information and making it accessible for people but why couldn't it be done smarter. All the info. is there. It just needs turning into pixels.

Deeper luxury

I found this report very interesting reading. Deeper Luxury takes an in-depth look at the luxury brands market and some of the challenges and opportunities the issue of sustainability raises in this sector.

"We observe shifts in the luxury paradigm, emerging from major changes in social dynamics. In the future the highest quality product or service will be the one that generates the most benefit to all involved in it's production and trade. Consumers' knowledge of that benefit will be essential to their elite experience, and the prestige ascribed to them by their peers. In future, luxury brands could represent the greatest positive contribution any product or service could make to people and planet: they would identify the luxury consumer as a person who has both the means and the motivation to ensure that others do not suffer. The deeper and more authentic approach to luxury would require truly excellent social and environmental performance; consumers expect excellence in this, because they expect it in all aspects of a luxury brand."

I love the fact that they've chosen focus on topics such as celebrity endorsement, dedicating specific guidelines to this area. There are so many examples of celebrities making ill-advised decisions that are totally out of touch with shifting consumer opinion. I cringe every time I flick through the glossy magazines and see the face of some sports personality hawking sunglasses or perfume. It's just seems so shallow. I also love the fact that they've chosen not to overlook the importance of emerging luxury markets too. Factoring these issues in makes it a much richer document.

Download DeeperluxuryReport.pdf

Good thinking IKEA

IKEA in Holland have devised a way to get people enthusing about re-decorating their homes with one eye on their bank balance. They organised a furniture swap. I think it says all the right things about IKEA. By initiating such a scheme they're being practical, creative, modern, ethical, and interesting all at the same time! Another example of brand building with out a 30 second TV commercial in sight. Or put simply, doing rather than saying. I love it.

Via Springwise

Ethical Consumerism Report

Every year UK based Co-operative bank publish The Ethical Consumerism Report. It' is probably the most comprehensive look at the ethical consumer sector in the UK. It's packed full of interesting data which is beautifully presented.

It's a great piece of branding for the Co-operative Bank, underlining their credentials as an ethical bank, which made me wonder why no-one is doing something similar here in Scandinavia? (not that I know of anyway)

Does anyone know of such an initiative?

You can get your copy here.

How to get talked about

Thanks to Greenway Communique for pointing out these interesting stats. We all knew that green business issues were getting talked about more these days but...woah, I didn't realise how much!

Heres the original post

yes!

Don't you just love it when someone has a good idea. I love the way this company has re-thought food retail. I guess in a market where food retailers are much of a muchness, this concept could do really well here in Denmark.

What I really love about it is the way it's been put together. (without having been into a store) You know that feeling you get when you hover outside a health food shop and wonder whether you belong in their or not? I really get the feeling this place is for me. Their site is stylish and inclusive. I would imagine their stores are too. I wish them all the success in the world and hopefully we'll see one opening in Copenhagen soon.

Thanks to John Grant for pointing it out.

The roar of concious consumerism and green marketing

Triple Pundit point to this new marketing study which looks at concious consumer attitiudes in the US.

"A new marketing study reveals that conscious consumers expect accountability and transparency from companies that claim to be “green.” Companies that fail to do so put themselves at risk of a consumer backlash.

Who are these “conscious consumers”? According to the inaugural BBMG Conscious Consumer Report, almost 90% of Americans say this term describes them well. When shopping for products that are of equal value and price, these consumers would choose items that are energy-efficient, promote health and safety benefits, support fair labor and fair trade, and are made according to environmentally-friendly standards.

Some of the most interesting findings of this study include:

• Health and wellness are most important: Conscious consumers expect the products they buy to have a positive personal and direct impact.
• “Conscious consumer” is the preferred term: Americans prefer to call themselves “conscious” or “socially/environmentally responsible” over “green.”
• Price and quality are still #1, but locally-produced, healthy, and energy-efficient qualities are increasingly important to consumers.

The study also reveals that consumers are savvy when it comes to detecting “greenwashing” marketing attempts. “In a world of green clutter, conscious consumers expect companies to do more than make eco-friendly claims. They demand transparency and accountability across every level of business practice. Avoiding the green trap means authentically backing your words with socially responsible actions.” says Raphael Bemporad, founding partner of BBMG.

Consumers value honesty and are paying more attention to how their purchases impact the world beyond the supermarket. Producing conscious goods and services, and successfully communicating their authenticity, is the way to capitalize on this new consumer trend."

The greening of agencies

Like everything else these days, ad agencies are starting to boast green credentials. It won't be long before all the big networks will be making similar statements. One should probably look down their client lists to get a better indication of how green they are.

Via Russell Davies

CSR inspired innovation

On Wednesday I was invited to talk at a conference here in Denmark for the Danish Commerce and Companies Agency, the theme being CSR inspired innovation.

I knew that some of the other speakers would be presenting very analytical information so what I tried to do was give as many tangible examples as possible were companies have used this kind of innovation in practice.

An observation one could make is that although the speakers were from very different backgrounds, there were some recurring themes:

Companies who see CSR as an opportunity rather than a responsibility seem to be benefiting from it. Companies that are ahead of the game and have managed to be assertive in this area instead of waiting for legislation or market forces change the way they do business seem to have an advantage.

Their seem to be an ocean of companies who have given CSR some very serious thought but not many of them manage to translate this into something they can use proactively.

Actually, I think we're seeing a shift. The way a company behaves in relation to it's stakeholders has become much more central part of brand communication. In many compaines and organisations the CSR department and the marketing department seem to be converging. It makes perfect sense.

As I've mentioned before here, we are seeing the emergency of a new expression which popped up again several times. Corporate Social Opportunity. I like it. Not because it's the latest buzz-word, which it undoubtably is but because it points to the fact that there's something more significant happening here.

Anyway, it's evocative and I'm going to use it whenever I can. (the more observant readers among you will notice it's appearance on my catagories list)

Long-live the CSO.