8.9.08

change we can believe in

You know those people who speak with their mouths but not by their actions? I feel like my boss is one of those people. I don't quite understand what she is being paid to do because she doesn't do much of anything. She passes all of the work onto the interns and sits in her office making personal calls. Some snippets of what I've heard include the tale of her dog running away, the boyfriend troubles of her girlfriend and the facade that the office must maintain. She's always away on "meetings." I wonder if a visit to the hair salon counts as a business expense... Ok enough about my gripes with my boss. What I really want to focus on is my thoughts on working in an office that has an environmental initiative.

The irony here is that even though the main focus of my office is to "green" other businesses, we still maintain an unsustainable office space. Plastic ware, Styrofoam cups, mass consumption of paper, and lack of energy efficient appliances. I can't help but feel like a hypocrite when I speak on the phone to business owners who are legitimately working to make the community more sustainable.

That's the issue though. Are businesses doing this to improve the community and promote environmental sustainability? Or are they just looking to improve their bottom line? I've thought about it many times in the office while I spin around in my chair. I think this relates to Noel's sermon about shrewdness. By cutting costs in areas that can be improved, businesses are indirectly offsetting their impact on the environment. That's what I want, or that's the goal of my job. I remember talking to my friend Ray about how "green" is marketing term to promote "eco-friendly" methods of production, consumption and business ethics. Although the true intent may not be to promote environmental sustainability as much as to promote increased revenue shares; the concept still serves a purpose.

I used to be so gung-ho about the environment, but I feel like my views are beginning to shift. Even if there isn't a catastrophic global climate change waiting to wipe out humanity, I feel there are many benefits to living a non-volatile, sustainable lifestyle. There is real beauty in mimicking nature.

Go Green!

3 comments:

eccles3 said...

i think being wasteful says a lot about someone's character...

other than that i feel like there has been a reason for the non-environmentally friendly things....which is money.

Anonymous said...

welcome to the world of interning mr. yeh. you'll like the method they use, aptly named "DAR". DAR= dump and run. :(. and ewww go green. i'd rather go white :D. hehe

Karma said...

GO GREEN! WOOT! :)