Take the Guidance Green Eco-Trivia Quiz!

Ever wonder how many trees does the average American consume in paper or wood materials over their lifetime? Do you know how many plastic bottles are used every hour in the U.S.? What percentage of car journeys are made with only one occupant in the vehicle?

Find out answers to these and other greenteresting questions in the Guidance Green Eco-Trivia Quiz! Click here to download.

Guidance Offers Green Hosting for eCommerce Websites

Guidance (http://www.Guidance.com), which helps online retailers achieve market domination by creating captivating and engaging online shopping experiences, today announced that it is now providing its clients with hosting solutions that are 100 percent carbon-neutral.

The move will not require any upgrades or additional investment on the client's part. It's a new standard practice for Guidance - the latest in a series of changes undertaken over the past year to help the company achieve its goal of operating as an environmentally aware, carbon-neutral company.

To reduce overall energy use, Guidance bought and is now using energy-efficient servers and processors to host its clients' websites: HP's energy-optimized ProLiant(R) servers (DL360 G5 and DL380 G5), with the low-voltage Quad-Core Intel(R) Xeon(R) Processor L5420. Guidance also is moving to more virtualization in the company's development environment to reduce internal energy consumption.

Guidance has successfully offset all of its remaining electricity-related CO2 emissions from its servers by purchasing renewable energy credits (RECs) through BeGreen Business, the carbon offset brand of Green Mountain Energy. The credits are made from wind and biomass sources located throughout the United States, helping avoid an average of more than 52,500 pounds of CO2 emissions annually.

This has the equivalent environmental benefit of not driving a car roughly 58,500 miles, or of recycling almost 130,000 aluminum cans and more than 21,000 pounds of newspaper.

"We're giving online retailers an easy way to embrace green hosting," said Jon Provisor, Guidance co-owner and CTO. "We've been working for more than a year now to make our business operate in a more sustainable, environmentally responsible way. We're especially excited about this achievement, because it's something we can offer our clients - making sustainability a shared effort." Data centers account for 1.5 percent to 3 percent of electricity consumption in the United States, according to CIO Magazine's special report, "Green is Better." A recent report by Stanford University researcher Jonathan Koomey says worldwide energy consumption for servers, cooling equipment and related infrastructure doubled from 2000 to 2005, and could nearly double again by 2010 - unless companies make a concerted effort for change.

Guidance has significantly reduced its overall consumption of electricity as a result of a company-wide commitment to sustainable business practices, which Guidance shares in detail in the Green Toolkit offered here. For 2007, Guidance's purchase of renewable energy credits offset 100 percent of the carbon emissions associated with its business activities.

About BeGreen
Carbon Offsets BeGreen Carbon Offsets (www.begreennow.com) is a division of Green Mountain Energy Company, the longest serving green power provider in the U.S. BeGreen provides education about the serious effects of harmful carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and offers businesses and consumers simple and effective ways to reduce their carbon footprint through the purchase of renewable energy, forest sequestration and other project-based offsets. BeGreen's carbon calculators follow the EPA Climate Leaders methodology, which is based on the World Resources Institute's Greenhouse Gas Protocol (WRI GHG), a widely accepted industry standard. All purchases and sales of BeGreen's carbon offset projects are also verified by an independent auditing firm to ensure their quality and effectiveness.

About Guidance
Since 1993, Guidance (www.guidance.com) has helped companies seize opportunities and solve problems through the innovative and practical use of technology. Guidance designs, builds and maintains eCommerce websites for retailers that are pure-play online or multi-channel - creating captivating experiences so consumers will buy more, come back often and value greater engagement with the retailer. Guidance software systems facilitate $500 million in online sales every year. Members of the Guidance team are seasoned professionals, passionately committed to providing technical leadership and powering ingenuity.

Saving the planet one tree at a time!

Guidance Green to attend Tree Care Event on July 19

Want to have a great time while doing a great thing? Then join Tree Musketeers and Guidance Green on Saturday, July 19th, 2008 for a morning of fun and tree caring.

Here are the details:

• Who: Everyone is invited to join us for some fun in the sun!
  
  
• When: Saturday, July 19, 10:00 a.m. to Noon.
  
  
• Where: 600 West Grand Ave., El Segundo, CA 90245. From the Marina, take Culver to Vista del Mar and make a left on Grand at El Segundo Beach. Look for the Tree Musketeers pick-up truck on the North side of Grand, on the South border of the power plant.
  
  
• Parking: Park in the inlets on Grand. Carpool if you can, because parking is limited. Otherwise, the closest parking is on Loma Vista, farther North on Grand.
  
  
• What to bring: Tree Musketeers will provide all needed tools, gloves and water. Make sure to wear sunscreen and dress appropriately.
  
  
• What to Expect: We will weed, mulch, prune, water the trees and pick up litter.
  
  
• What if I'm not a tree-hugger: Rest assure, at no time we will ask you to hug a tree! But if living in a healthy planet is as important to you as it is to us, then feel free to join us.
  
  
  

See you on July 19th!

Guidance Green

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About Tree Musketeers

Founded in 1987 by a Brownie Girl Scout troop as the nation's first youth environmental organization, Tree Musketeers (http://www.treemusketeers.org/) continues to expand the vision of its founders, while operating as a nonprofit where kids are the decision makers. The mission of the El Segundo-based organization is to empower young people to be leaders of environmental and social change in the Earth's communities, with kids teaching other kids to become active citizens and community leaders.

Leaning Green: How to reap the benefits of sustainability

(Excerpted from Fast Lane, Smart Business Los Angeles, May 2008, by Patrick Mayock)

The next time you clock out, Jason Meugniot would like you to turn off your computer. It may seem like an odd request, but it’s just one of many rituals that he and his 75 employees at Guidance Solutions Inc. engage in on a regular basis.


The reason? Environmental sustainability.

“[The green movement] brings integrity to the business,” Meugniot says. “In today’s economy and business climate, integrity is essential to growth.”

At the information technology service company, the owner and CEO has embraced the employee-led initiative, which he says has contributed to the company posting $6.3 million in 2007 revenue.

Smart Business spoke with Meugniot about how to go green at your own company.

Q. How do you begin to establish an environmentally friendly workplace?

We put together an Environmental Toolkit that lists simple but key areas that we can look at to understand our carbon output and start the education process. We talk about hibernating or turning off our computers and using energy-efficient fluorescent light bulbs, optimizing the AC usage, or [using] light sensors in restrooms.

We talk about things like carbon credits and working with other companies who are committed to alternative energy sources. We talk about looking at your suppliers. Almost every company purchases certain staple products: paper, electricity, telephone service. Guidance, for example, works with Internet hosting vendors who use solar power instead of diesel generators as a backup source of power.

In order to establish carbon neutrality or really get serious about carbon neutrality, we look at education, measurement and action around reducing waste, improving air quality, eliminating greenhouse gas emissions and finding renewable sources of energy.

Q. How can other leaders implement programs at their companies?

To start an effective program, you need to walk the walk. You need to be carbon neutrality. As the executive, you set the example.

I’d also say you need commitment at all levels. You can’t do it alone. Let the initiative live and grow. Don’t stifle the conversation. When I say conversation, I mean the ongoing conversation at the office or at the business about the environment.

Allow employees to share ideas. Allow them to set up blogs. Talk about it. Don’t just post signs around the office.

Q. How do you get employees involved?

Start with education. We provided, very early on, links to Web sites. We shared personal stories. We screened movies [about environmental sustainability] here at the office. We talked about the impact of our own carbon imprint and helped employees to determine what their carbon footprint was at home.

We have a Guidance Green committee. The committee meets regularly throughout the month. They lead various initiatives, and they collate information.

Use your core values to generate buy-in. The first core value is honesty, integrity and fairness. If we’re to have any integrity or fairness in our consumption of nonrenewable resources, we all need to be committed to the environment.

A key component in the program is not creating a top-down program. It’s really creating a program that’s created and even led by the employees. To create this momentum, the employees really need to be a part of it at the onset.

Q. Do you choose the committee, or is it run by volunteers?

The people who serve on our committee are not asked or chosen. It’s a voluntary committee.

Look for people with energy, with commitment to the environment. Look for people who are open to ideas and then sharing those ideas.

Q. How has this movement benefited your company?

It’s really made an impact on our employees and how they work together and the bonds and relationships that keep them together.

We also have prospects who call us out of the blue wanting to work with us because they’ve heard we have a green program. I don’t want to give you the impression that it happens every day, but we are working with clients today who sought us out because they were referred to us from someone who’s heard that we have a green program.

It also filters into recruiting.

As your employees are talking to candidates and new recruits, they’ll say, ‘This is an amazing company. We take a stand for the environment in the face of various circumstances, and I’ve never worked at a company like that.’

You’ll have employees talk to other folks about it, and it gives them a sense of pride in the company they work for, in the work that they do and in their relationships together at the office.

"Green" Vehicles

It’s amazing to see such great demand for environmentally friendly vehicles nowadays, mainly driven by the rising price of gasoline. However, the cars available in the market are not as eco-friendly as we would hope for.

Electric vehicles are not really all that “green”. What will everyone do with those batteries after their life expectancy is reached? Electric vehicles are not convenient either! How many charging stations can we find on our way to and from work? What are we going to do when we want to go on a long trip? An alternative is to go with hybrid cars, but the number of miles per gallon (mpg) is not as great as we would expect. For example, the regular Ford escape does 22 / 28 mpg, while the hybrid version does 34 / 30 mpg – definitely not an impressive difference! Well, one could say that motorcycles are “green”, as they are fuel efficient, although not many people are willing to risk their lives in such an unsafe vehicle.

It seems like there’s technology already out there to build real green vehicles! Check out Aptera, a 3 wheel vehicle that does over 230 miles per gallon: http://www.aptera.com/ . The company is based in Carlsbad, CA and they are already taking reservations. When I was getting my MBA at UC Irvine, a couple of my classmates and I got together and wrote a business plan to build a vehicle similar to Aptera – fuel efficient, convenient, comfortable and safe. We even borrowed a 3-wheel prototype from a designer in Texas and showed it in a couple of car shows in Southern California in order to gauge consumer’s interest. The results of our surveys and interviews were excellent. Everyone we talked to was on board with the idea and ready to buy such vehicle. Unfortunately, we were not able to raise funds to move forward and start the manufacturing process.

There are a few questions that I still haven’t been able to answer: When will the large car manufacturers start investing in this kind of technology (cars that do over 200 miles per gallon)? Will people start driving smaller and more fuel efficient cars to save the environment or simply to save money in gas? Will they forgo the large SUVs or at least use them on weekends to go out with the family, but drive the small cars to commute to and from work? I sure hope that a true eco-friendly vehicle arrives here soon!

Tatiane Perazzo
Guidance Green

Is eCommerce GreenER?

Recently, I toured an apparel retail outlet in Amsterdam. I work with the same retail company in the US by providing various ecommerce technology services. And I wondered, is eCommerce greener than operating brick and mortar retail stores?

In terms of electric energy, a retailer with even a few retail stores probably consumes more energy when you account for simple must-haves like bright lights, cash registers, building signage and air conditioning. In fact, if you imagine a large, multi-channel retailer, it's not uncommon to have one website and hundreds of stores.

The electric energy required to operate a multimillion dollar (in sales) website is assuredly less. Sure there are PC's, Mac's, servers, power supplies, air conditioning and even air conditioning for the computers. You also have gasoline used by employees going to work and running the website. But that's generally limited to a single physical site or hosting company, along with the retailer's web development office.

In terms of shipping, I think it would vary quite a bit by retailer. Consider that most online retailers use expensive and non-renewable energy (i.e., airplane fuel, diesel gasoline) to ship the overwhelming majority of their products sold to their customers.

Stores also require the same costly shipments from distribution centers to their physical stores which in some cases can be spread across the country or the globe. But if you think about it, a UPS truck is already passing by your house once per day. Rather than driving to the store, why not just add another stop to a route that already exists?

I know! The physical space and the materials that make up the stores could be eliminated, too. The distribution centers that currently supply stores could service online customers. So all of the paper, concrete, steel, paint, plywood and other materials used to create retail space – even those crazy mannequins – they could all be spared!

It's quite likely the rising costs of fuel, the value of the dollar and the general economic slowdown in the U.S. is driving the closures of the dozens of huge retailers closing their stores down this year (Home Depot, CompUSA, Starbucks).

But imagine… what if we started to get used to fewer stores? What if the convenience of driving to the mall and buying a pair of shoes was supplanted with the convenience of a mouse click? Would we miss all those stores? Would our environment? Our planet?

Jason Meugniot
Guidance Green

Faking Green: Spotting the Greenwashers

Non-toxic. Chemical-free. Eco-safe. All natural. Every day, more and more companies roll out new products and services that claim to be eco-friendly. Some also claim their business operations are environmentally safe, but not necessarily their products. So how do we know who’s really green and who’s faking it? Unfortunately, there isn’t a clear answer to this question, but there are ways you can detect the signs of greenwashing.

Greenwashing are marketing practices that are meant to deliberately mislead consumers about a company’s environmental practices. According to a report released by Terrachoice Environmental Marketing, there are six sins and signs of greenwashing. These are:

Hidden trade off
Companies use this technique to highlight one eco-friendly attribute, and intentionally overlook other – and potentially more important – environmental concerns. This is the most common of all greenwashing practices.

No proof
This is the practice of using environmental claims that cannot be substantiated by supporting data, evidence or certification. The Terrachoice study found that 26% of environmental claims fall into this category.

Vagueness
Describes the use of broad and poorly defined terms like chemical-free or non-toxic which are both universally true and false depending on interpretation. For example, no product can claim to be chemical-free as nothing is really free of chemicals. Water is a chemical, and all plants, animals, and humans are made of chemicals as are all products.

Irrelevance
Irrelevant environmental claims may be truthful but are unimportant and unhelpful. The most frequent example of an irrelevant claim relates to chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which have been banned for almost 30 years.

Lesser of Two Evils
These are green claims that may be true for the product, but underplay the greater environmental impacts of the product category as a whole. Examples are organic cigarettes and green pesticides.

Fibbing
While rarely in use, this is the practice of making environmental claims that are completely false. The study shows that less than 1% of today’s products use this greenwashing technique.

At Guidance, we disapprove the practice of greenwashing. From following a green office etiquette, to using energy-efficient equipment and buying renewable energy credits to offset remaining carbon footprint, we take sustainability and social responsibility very seriously, and are committed to operating as an environmentally aware, 100% carbon neutral company.

So, if helping the environment and living a green lifestyle are important to you, consider doing a bit of research before shopping for products or services that claim to be green. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll find.


Alejandra Espinosa
Guidance Green


Check out this month’s issue of Smart Business L.A., where Guidance CEO Jason Meugniot shares his thoughts and tips on reaping the benefits of sustainability. (“Leaning Green”, Smart Business L.A.- May 2008)