Nissan partners with NBC’s Heroes to promote 2009 Nissan cube®

Nissan partnered with NBC’s Heroes television show at the 40th annual Comic-Con Convention to host a series of activities, sweepstakes and giveaways inspired by the all-new 2009 Nissan cube®, a car designed to meet the practical needs of today’s active, environmentally aware drivers. Tens of thousands of technology-savvy comic book and automotive fans had the opportunity to experience the dramatic Nissan cube® which was featured inside an incredible, life-size Heroes-branded toy package, similar to how miniature die-cast toy cars are packaged, at NBC’s Heroes booth. Within the massive Heroes branded exhibit convention-goers were able to experience the asymmetrical cube® spacious lounge-like interior and interact with available cube® features such as the Interface System for iPod®, Bluetooth® Hands-free Phone System and an interior accent lighting package with 20 different easily adjustable shades. Clips from Heroes featuring the Nissan cube® were broadcasted on a massive plasma screen – demonstrating that boxes don’t always have to be square. “Our partnership with NBC’s Heroes at Comic-Con this year provided a perfect opportunity to show off the all-new 2009 Nissan cube both on and off the screen,” said Christian Meunier, vice president, Nissan Marketing. “We were able to interact with thousands of attendees at the show, many of whom were just the people that would consider the Nissan cube as their next ‘mobile device.'”

Additional activities at the convention included comic book giveaways and an opportunity to win one of four Nissan cubes®. By simply swiping their entry badges, attendees had a chance to win a distinct and individually designed cube® by artist Peter Steigerwald to represent the style of Heroes. Nissan and Heroes also gave away 15,000 specially created collector’s edition comics featuring the cube® and the Television series with four unique graphic covers. The artistic covers were initially introduced in April during the “Nissan Mobile Device Giveaway Sweepstakes,” in which contestants entered to win a cube(R) by identifying “Where in the U.S. is the Nissan cube(R)?” from looking at the same collector’s edition graphic cover art that will be distributed at Comic-Con. Each day at the convention, one of the covers was handed out to a fan and then invited back for the chance to collect all four in the series. Nissan Street Teams in Heroes-inspired cubes(R) were also seen driving around in downtown San Diego all weekend to create buzz and excitement around the Comic-Con activities.

Well-known U.S. institutions pledge to become Certified Green Restaurants®

The Green Restaurant Association is thrilled to announce that 110 of the country’s most well known institutions have pledged to become Certified Green Restaurants®. Restaurant Associates, which manages cafes and eateries in America’s landmark museums and galleries, has taken the unprecedented move of creating a five-year partnership with the Green Restaurant Association to green the operations of all of its current and future locations.  “Restaurant Associates is truly a leader in this industry,” says Michael Oshman, founder and CEO of the Green Restaurant Association. “It’s one thing for a company to make a statement that they want to ‘go green’. It is another to contractually and publicly commit to having all of its locations implement the necessary environmental steps to become Certified Green Restaurants®.”  Soon, when patrons visit the likes of the American Museum of Natural History, Lincoln Center, and even the United States House of Representatives, they can Dine Green in every cafe and sandwich shop on the premises. Tourists, Congressmen and museum patrons will be able to visit dinegreen.com and see the exact details of what each dining facility is doing to earn the Certified Green Restaurant® seal.  To date, Restaurant Associates is the largest, multi-concept company to work with the GRA and seek Certification.  “We work with the leading cultural institutions in America,” says Ed Sirhal, president of Restaurant Associates. “In the spirit of helping our clients lead the way toward sustainability, we have chosen to work with the leaders who founded the Green Restaurant® movement two decades ago.”

Ascent Healthcare Solutions unveils its Green Lab™

Ascent Healthcare Solutions recently announced the unveiling of its innovative Green Lab™, a physical workspace that represents the company’s unique approach to the responsible use of resources in healthcare. Known as the place “where the seed is planted,” the Green Lab is home to the scientists and engineers that work in the heart of Ascent’s Research and Development (R&D). Guided by its principles and passion for enabling the environmental and financial health of hospitals, Ascent’s R&D teams lead the charge in new product identification and development – the “seed” of the company’s innovation and the seed of sustainability for hospitals nationwide. The Green Lab is furnished, floor to ceiling, using environmentally sound and recycled materials. It also features a real-time LED counter that displays the cumulative amount of waste (in pounds) diverted from U.S. landfills and the supply chain savings achieved by hospitals in 2009 using Ascent’s reprocessing/remanufacturing program. “This is about putting our values to work,” says David Amrhein, vice president of operations at Ascent Healthcare Solutions. Amrhein continues, “Every day, our people are making an effort to solve problems in healthcare; the Green Lab captures the transformational impact of our programs and the excitement we have for the work we do.” Rick Ferreira, COO of Ascent Healthcare Solutions, explained, “Our mission is to help hospitals become ‘healthier’ by looking more closely at how scarce resources are used. The Green Lab is a reminder of what can be achieved in healthcare while at the same time protecting the environment: by using resources more effectively, critical assets are freed to improve the quality of care.” Ferreira stated, “Across Ascent’s facilities and on the minds of all our employees is the impact our programs have on reducing environmental harm and creating healthy, sustainable hospitals. As an organization, our culture is based on our steadfast commitment to delivering quality products and services that minimize impact to the environment and support hospitals in being patient-care focused institutions.” Ascent is an award-winning sustainability innovator and pioneer of the concept of the healthy hospital. It was recently awarded the “Champion for Change” award by Practice Greenhealth in recognition of the dramatic environmental benefits its remanufacturing and reprocessing programs provide to U.S. hospitals and surgery centers.

SunChips, National Geographic announce ‘Green Effect’ winners

The SunChips brand, PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay division’s popular line of multigrain snacks, and National Geographic have announced the five winners of the “Green Effect,” a national initiative that encourages consumers to take their own small steps toward helping the planet. After receiving consumer feedback during a two-week voting period, the SunChips “Green Effect” initiative revealed “Give Plants a Chance” by Hingham High School of Hingham, Mass., which plans to create a campus greenhouse to help educate students on how to live a completely sustainable life, as the top-voted consumer idea. A panel of eco ambassadors chose the other four winners which include:

• “Canal Tricycle Recycling Co-operative” by Canal Youth Concilio of San Rafael, Calif.: will add a fleet of industrial tricycles to its four month old community recycling cooperative, helping Canal residents keep their neighborhood trash-free and green.
• “Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover” by CarbonfreeDC of Washington, DC: will help 20 low-income families from a city block green their homes and save on their energy bills.
• “Green Classroom Party Kids” by Julian Elementary School of Julian, Calif.: plans to curb waste created by the usage of disposable dishware for class celebrations by creating green classroom party kits of reusable dishware for public schools in San Diego County.
• “Re-tree Colorado” by Tristan Frolich of Steamboat Springs, Colo.: plans to organize a tree planting day to plant 20,000 lodgepole saplings around the resort town to replace those killed by the Mountain Bark Beetle.

“We’re extremely proud of the five winners and believe in the big changes each of them will bring to their community,” said Gannon Jones, vice president, portfolio marketing, Frito-Lay North America. “In the end, the judges and consumers based their votes on the mission of the ‘Green Effect’ which was to support compelling ideas that would truly accelerate green change, as well as inspire others to make their own changes.” In April 2009, SunChips and National Geographic challenged consumers across the country to submit their ideas on how to make their communities greener. The initiative received more than 2,500 unique entries. The five winners will each receive a $20,000 award to help turn their green idea into reality. In addition to the award, the winners and their earth-friendly ideas will be profiled in National Geographic magazine and will travel to Washington, DC to share their projects with environmental leaders. The judging panel, which helped to choose four winners, was comprised of actor Edward Norton, National Geographic’s Boyd Matson, eco-activist Jayni Chase, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, CEO of Green for All and Dave Haft, group vice president, sustainability and productivity, Frito-Lay North America. The “Green Effect” program is another small step in the SunChips brand’s sustainability journey. Most recently, the SunChips brand announced that in 2010, it plans to introduce the first fully compostable snack chip bag of its kind made from plant-based renewable materials.

‘Green’ goes back-to-school with Project Green Dorm

When it comes to back-to-school, green doesn’t stop with school supplies—the green lifestyle is following college students to their dorms. Teens Turning Green, a national coalition of teens educating peers and community members about healthy lifestyle choices, announces the launch of Project Green Dorm, a multi-faceted effort to encourage teens around the country to make eco-informed purchases around the age-old tradition of back-to-school. “Project Green Dorm is a web-based guide for students and parents for all the items on the back-to-school checklist – but the greenest options,” said Judi Shils, director of Teens Turning Green. List of items to be launched on July 30th:

• Project Green Dorm launches nationwide with the web-based PGD Take Action Toolkit (teensturninggreen.org) created for students as a comprehensive resource guide for all things related to back to school, with tips, photos, product recommendations, advice and other information.
• The Project Green Dorm Shop will open in the Village at Corte Madera, Marin County (through September 15). The centerpiece of the shop is the PGD set, filled with eco living and lifestyle essentials students might find on their back-to-school checklists. The goal is to tangibly bring the PGD web-based Toolkit to life providing an interactive, educational green-lifestyle experience for visitors. All of the products in the shop will be for sale with the proceeds supporting Teens Turning Green programs.
• PGD College Care Packs will be available to send to college students with eco essentials to start their new green lifestyle. To order your pack : teensturninggreen.org.

“Taking care of our planet is a responsibility and a privilege. Being green isn’t just about shopping vintage, buying organic or recycling – it’s about a whole eco mindset, a lifestyle choice that impacts human health and the health of the planet. We hope to inform students across the country so they can opt for eco choices that begin with their living space and lifestyle choices and provide a thoughtful framework to approach the rest of their lives,” said Shils.

FedEx Office honored by EPA for green power purchases

FedEx Office (formerly FedEx Kinko’s) has announced that it has been ranked No. 1 on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) new Top 20 Printers List of the largest green power purchasers in the commercial printing business. The Top 20 Printers List is one of nine Top Partner Lists that EPA releases quarterly, highlighting some of America’s largest green power purchasers. In addition, FedEx Office is ranked No. 11 on the EPA’s Top 20 Retail List, marking the company’s 15th consecutive appearance on the list. In total, FedEx Office purchases more than 34 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of renewable energy certificates and utility green power products annually, which is enough green power to meet 14 percent of the company’s purchased electricity use. “FedEx Office is proud to know our ongoing commitment to sustainability and renewable resources has made us the number one green power purchaser in the commercial printing industry,” said Brian Philips, president and CEO of FedEx Office. “We also continue to be honored by our recognition on the EPA’s Top 20 Retail List.” FedEx Office is purchasing green power in support of EPA’s Fortune 500 Green Power Challenge. EPA is challenging Fortune 500 Corporations to collectively exceed 10 billion kilowatt-hours green power purchasing by yearend 2009. The company’s purchase of green power ranks No. 27 among participating corporations. The FedEx Office green power program is part of a broader initiative by FedEx Corp. to connect the world in responsible and resourceful ways, while minimizing its impact on the environment. The corporation as a whole is focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions; improving the efficiency and environmental impact of its delivery fleet; decreasing facility energy consumption; and enhancing the use of green power and sustainable packaging. “Each of the FedEx operating companies and our team members are strongly committed to building responsible sustainability practices into our day-to-day operations,” said Mitch Jackson, director of environmental affairs and sustainability, FedEx Corp. “These ideals are also top of mind as we work toward reducing our environmental footprint.”

What did you do to make your summer more ‘green’?

In the spirit of all things summer, Good And Green E-ssentals wants to know what you did to have a more sustainable summer. Did you open up the windows and forgo the air conditioning? Maybe you were careful to offset your air travel. Whatever it is, let us know—we will choose several stories to share with our readers during the final weeks of summer fun!

You can leave your comments below or email Patti Minglin at pminglin@comcast.net.

Meijer increases “Home Grown” initiative

Midwest retailer Meijer is expanding its sourcing of local produce with an increased emphasis on their “Home Grown” initiative which is expected to boost local economies throughout the Midwest by purchasing even more fresh produce from local farmers. “Meijer has always been one of the largest purchasers of locally grown fruits and vegetables during the peak growing seasons,” said Hank Meijer, co-chairman and CEO. “This year we plan to expand our Home Grown initiative by working with more than 65 local growers throughout Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky.”  Meijer is one of the largest buyers of locally-grown produce in Michigan, and one of the region’s biggest, with local produce accounting for nearly 30% of all the fruits and vegetables sold by the 189-store supercenter chain during the peak growing season.  “So much of what we do is aimed at giving back to our local communities through our philanthropy programs and community outreach efforts, said Meijer. “Our Home Grown program supports this effort. By sourcing from local farms and farmers, we not only help put money in local farmers’ pockets, but we help bring their farm-fresh, local produce straight to the tables of neighboring families so that they can enjoy the local bounty.”  In addition to helping local economies, sourcing locally reduces shipping costs, which reduces fuel consumption, while also delivering a fresher product that often leads to a lower price.  This year, Meijer will be holding several in-store events celebrating its “Home Grown” commitment such as sustainable living fairs and tomato-growing competitions.

Celebrating its eco-friendly packaging, Naya Water sponsors Zagat guide of Certified Green Restaurants

Naya Water is happy to award consumers with yet another tool to reinforce green lifestyles and commitment to the environment. In honor of its new eco-friendly packaging (the first water bottle made with 50% recycled plastic), Naya Water is sponsoring a limited edition Zagat guide with a selection of Certified Green Restaurants® located in the in New York City metro area. The Guide is the first of its kind and is printed on 100% post consumer recycled paper that is processed chlorine free. It includes a subway map and neighborhood lists of selected establishments. The venues are certified by the Green Restaurant Association (GRA), a national non-profit organization founded in 1990 to help create an environmentally sustainable restaurant industry. The 35 selected restaurants are individually rated by thousands of surveyors on ZAGAT.com, based on their Food, Décor, Service, and estimated cost. Surveyors also contribute witty, pithy comments that are synthesized into fun-to-read reviews.  The Naya-sponsored guide will be distributed in the streets of Manhattan during the months of July and August.

Deadline approaching for Europe’s best green entrepreneur search

The search for Europe’s best green entrepreneur is coming to a close. ‘The Good Entrepreneur’, the business competition initiated by business and financial news channel CNBC and financial services provider Allianz, aims to support the entrepreneur with the best eco-business concept that is sustainable, responsible and innovative. The closing date for entries is Friday, July 31st . Budding entrepreneurs across Europe with a green idea or business plan for a product or service are encouraged to enter online at www.goodentrepreneur.com. The competition has seen many entries on a wide range of concepts, all environmentally sustainable, from across Europe. The winner of ‘The Good Entrepreneur’ will receive a prize package worth more than €250,000 which includes financial support, advertising on CNBC and business support from Allianz. Three finalists will be named in September and will be featured in a new CNBC series, with the winner announced in November. Armin Sandhoevel, CEO of Allianz Climate Solutions, and other top business experts from General Electric International, LinkedIn and Microsoft International, alongside a leading professor from University of Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, will choose three finalists and select the winner. The TV series, which will air on CNBC across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and South East Asia in the autumn, will track the progress and see the challenges that the finalists face while they receive mentoring and advice from entrepreneurs and business leaders.