Macworld Expo 2008: Three eco-friendlier announcements from Microsoft, Apple and Brenthaven
Gadgets are never going to be the most eco-conscious addition to our lives, but slowly technology companies are getting wise to the fact that not only is green living necessary, it's also fashionable, and woe betide the company that loses its cool factor.
For whatever reason, quite a few companies - Nokia featuring among the most recently notable - have decided to show off their green credentials. In his keynote speech announcing the instantly controversial MacBook Air, Steve Jobs made sure to point out that the case was manufactured from recyclable aluminium, and no mercury, arsenic or brominated flame retardants were involved in the process. But there were two quieter eco-friendly nods that also caught Shiny attention.
One was Brenthaven's Zero Impact launch. The notebook cases manufacturer is aiming not only for safe bags and happy shoulders with solid, ergonomic design, but also to "reduce where it can, offset where it can't" in all manufacturing and delivery.
The ultimate, laudable, aim is to create a situation where it's giving back more than it uses. This will be through switching to more recyclable materials, making every online purchase carbon-neutral through carbon credits, using recycled paper and soy-based inks for documentation and donating 5% of the company profits to green projects. The Zero Impact scheme starts this year with the launch of 12 new products.
The final announcement wasn't even an announcement! While Shiny was getting a great early look at the new Office for Mac 2008, a Microsoft representative happened to mention that with a vast reduction in packaging, each 1,000 units sold is the equivalent of two and a half cars off the road in trees saved. Now, there's a long way to go, because we still seem obsessed with buying software in packaging-heavy boxes that might have been on a long delivery route when we could just as easily download it, but if we don't celebrate the little steps we're probably in danger of sinking into doom-laden pessimism.
An eco-revolution? Not at all. But cautious optimism might be a good ground to occupy.
Alexandra Roumbas is Deputy Editor of Shiny Shiny. She's ready to get in the carbon-spewing jet and head home.
