Last night I attended Vertality2, a sustainable business networking event put on by Vancouver’s Board of Change. It’s part of my 2012 Resolution Pak™ to attend more of these things and network a little more effectively. Which sounds good until I am really too busy to go, and find myself looking around a room full of people I don’t know and thinking I should just get back home to catch up on work.

Fortunately, beer came to the rescue. I had one, which caused me to hang around long enough to spot someone I did know. Chris Livingstone, the Director of All Sorts Of Things at Globe (including the EPIC Vancouver show) and a guy who can put more names to faces than anyone I know. So I had another beer (Thanks, Chris) and before I knew it, I was talking to more people I didn’t even know.

The best part is, these were really good conversations. Green building standards, sustainability in the oil patch (?!), entrepreneurial ventures, sponsorship, yoga, car co-ops… smart people sharing lots of good ideas. And of course, more beer.

Mercifully quick speeches from representatives of Saltspring Coffee, Vancity and Hollyhock reminded me of just how human the successful corporate face of change is in this city. Monika Marcovici and Sonny Wong folowed up with the announcement of the one-thousand and first member of the Board of Change.

As I had another beer, I began to feel invigorated. Maybe we are building a critical mass of positive green thinking. Maybe the Rebel Alliance can muster a charge against the Empire. Maybe the changes I am working to make in my life and work are part of something greater.

Thanks, Board of Change. Thanks, Beer.

Why should I risk my fingers rinsing out locally line-caught albacore tuna cans when some steel-toed doofus can mindlessly chuck his big mac wrappers right on top of the perfectly-recyclable cardboard, steel, and wood waste he spent the morning mixing together in a landfill-bound dumpster? How hard would it be to invent a materials separation system that is as easy as chucking it in the bin?

Well, the answer turns out to be, not very difficult at all. If you have Photoshop.

It’s a little more challenging to do in real life, but the City of Vancouver and Metro Vancouver appear to be taking it on. Under the Zero Waste category of Vancouver’s Greenest City Action Plan, a section called Enhance Construction, Renovation & Demolition Recycling tackles this very issue, with a series of proposed projects and legal amendments. A bit more Googling led me to this Metro Vancouver PDF, asking for feedback on mandatory construction and demolition  recycling regulations.

No doubt many trades and developers will be howling like scorched cats at this latest affront to the easiest possible path to profit. But it really has to happen. And when it does, the recycler that can bring the easiest most intuitive system to market should be able to really clean up.

And all us happy home recyclers won’t feel quite as duped.

So how do you tell that story in a way that appeals to the fashionistas? (And still include the sustainability branding of parent company Cadillac Fairview…?)

Well, everyone loves a good discount.

By framing the ‘Green At Work’ message in a 100% OFF price tag format, Unicycle Creative got instant shopper attention and described Pacific Centre’s waste diversion rate in one clean graphic.

The team at Pacific Centre went one step further, designing an in-mall Recycled Runway Fashion Show, using local artists to create a stunning ready-to-wear-it-again collection. Unicycle designed a pair of banners to frame the show and communicate key zero waste messages.

Some of my deeper green readers may look down their noses at the idea of such a bastion of consumerism dipping a pedicured toe into the sustainability pond. But I see it this way: Shopping isn’t disappearing anytime soon. Putting sustainability on the radar of fashion shoppers is an important step in creating the conditions that will put pressure on all parts of the retail supply chain to green up their act. Zero Waste is a solid start.

It might as well look good on them.

A ride 20 years in the making

I met with General Manager Dean Thompson in the office /ski store upstairs from the factory floor. He explained that in 1990, when the company started in Chris Prior’s garage in Lions Bay, the Pacific Northwest was home to a number of ski and snowboard factories including K2, Ride and Morrow.

“Over the last 12 years, companies have consolidated and production has continued to move offshore.” Thompson says. “Almost no one is manufacturing locally now. K2 pulled out in 2000 and bought up Ride and a few other companies. During this time it was also bought by a bigger company who also owns Coleman (think camping stoves) among other non-snow related companies. But the Prior brand is still undiluted. That’s one of the things that originally appealed to me about the company.”

One of the secrets to Prior’s survival has been carving out a niche. In 2000, they developed their first splitboard, (a backcountry snowboard that separates into two skis for climbing up and reassembles for the single-plank powder ride back down)  The splitboard market continued to grow and Prior is a major player globally. Skis came shortly thereafter and strong support from heli-ski operations and the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides helped solidify a strong backcountry customer base. Prior has now gone beyond their local roots, expanding their line and selling their pure Canadian brand online to customers and distributors in Europe, Scandinavia, Russia and Japan.

How sustainable can a ski or snowboard be?

Every Prior product begins with a wood core sourced from a small manufacturer just south of the border. (“One of the last holdouts from the old ski manufacturing infrastructure”, Thompson says) These are made primarily with apsen and maple, though Thompson says they are experimenting with some locally-sourced alternatives.

But making a durable, high-performance ride takes more than trees. Each is a multi-layered sandwich that includes non-renewable materials like fiberglass and UHMW Polyethylene. Topsheet graphics are also printed offsite, and when asked about the possibilities for recycled substrate, Thompson told me they plan to look at alternatives. “We have recently hired a product engineer,’ he added. “That will let us do a lot more work with our design and supply chain, and maybe put some positive sustainability pressure on some of our suppliers.”

Not that they have been idle.

“We actually tried using an experimental hemp-based fiberglass replacement a few years back.” Thompson says. “But it didn’t perform as well as we hoped.”

No word on whether they burned the rest of it.

Local Culture and the 20-Centimeter Rule

Perhaps the most sustainable part of the Prior brand is its engagement with the Whistler community.

Thompson elaborates, “We like to support local Whistler area talent when we develop our graphics, including using some great First Nations artists. It gives us a Whistler-inspired look that the rest of the world responds to.”

Prior is also involved with the Whistler Centre for Sustainability iShift Program and sponsors numerous local events and riders.

One of the most popular ‘community involvement’ policies is the locals rate. Anyone with a Squamish, Whistler or Pemberton address gets a substantial discount off the retail Prior price.

Growing a company in a mountain town does have its challenges, however.

“We’ve always respected the 20-Centimeter Rule,” says Thompson. “If there’s more than 20cm of fresh powder on the mountains, the factory pretty much doesn’t open ‘til noon that day. Unfortunately in the past, that has left a customer or two waiting at a locked door. So now we leave at least one or two people back at the shop.”

Presumably those who draw the short straw.

So what does Prior’s future hold?

Thompson sees lots of upside. “We have room for growth within our current space – we could pretty easily run more shifts. But it’s also important that we stay small enough to be efficient and let our people police themselves a bit.”

The biggest impression I was left with is that the Prior brand is all about authenticity. ‘Hand Crafted in Whistler’ is proudly stamped right on the skis and boards Prior makes, and North America’s biggest product testing range is right out the back door.

“Everyone who builds our product also rides.” Thompson concluded. “We are immersed in the snow culture almost year round.”

That’s one brand benefit no Asian factory can match.

The Green Briefs Two-Bits

As an independent brand, growing in a market not known for manufacturing, Prior is a great local story. Sales around the world also show the Canadian label resonates internationally. They are a ‘shop local’ option for enlightened Pacific Northwest skiers and boarders, with a mission statement that includes strong support for the community, the mountains and the environment.

Prior has already has a sustainability story to tell, and boosted engineering horsepower may let them make some more innovative advancements in that area. This might also provide some marketing partnership opportunities with other brands that share the sustainable living space. I’d love to see what brand stories develop in the next few years.

In the meantime, I will also be demo-ing a set of Prior Husume skis when Whistler Blackcomb opens, so stay tuned for the Green Briefs White Pow Sustainable Ski Review™ on those.

When I found this $2 shirt at the Whistler Re-Use-It Centre (Thrift Store) it reminded me of all the things I love about the CBC.  As Canadian institutions go, this is one of the best. Intelligent debate, launching pad for amazing Canadian music, a touchstone of what broadcasting was meant to be before it was hijacked by Rupert Murdoch. OK, CBC has some really lame TV shows, too. But the tackiness factor of this shirt also represents that very well.

Happy 75th Birthday, CBC!

“Good Afternoon, Mr. Mayor, Councilors, Citizens. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.

My name is Lorne Craig. I am a Vancouver business owner and have been for over 20 years. I run Unicycle Creative, a strategic marketing agency focused on sustainable business. I also write the GreenBriefs.ca blog on sustainability.

In other words, I am a Green Capitalist.

Unicycle Creative is one of the 395,000 small businesses that run the engine of BC’s economy, providing some 57% of private sector jobs. And believe me, I’m pedaling as fast as I can. So today I wish to speak out in favour of adopting the Greenest City Action Plan. Because for small business, green is a growth industry.

Every day I work with great local green businesses. I am also fortunate to advise regional companies like London Drugs as they implement industry-leading recycling programs.

Today I would like to talk about the value of the Greenest City brand.

Last month I attended Sustainable Brands 2011 in Monterey California, North America’s largest green branding conference. There, I discovered that Vancouver is already on the radar as a green business hub. But I believe our opportunity is even greater. One by one, world-leading brands took to the conference stage with their sustainability plans and accomplishments. And these were not the corner hemp store type of companies. These were Nike. SCJohnson. Starbucks. Adidas. Unilever.

These forward-thinking companies know that the tides of public concern, demand and legislation are steadily turning toward a more sustainable future. They also see there is money to be made. That’s why, all across the globe, corporations are investing to embed green thinking and practices directly into their operations and business models. So I think it makes sense for the City of Vancouver to do the same.

To the critics of this plan who say it ignores traditional industry sectors, I say that ‘green’ is not a ‘sector’. It is a survival strategy that runs through all businesses and sectors. From more sustainable film production, to high technology companies that enable greater efficiency, to resource companies that must do their jobs in new ways.

Our cities are where we must import food, live with pollution, deal with waste and generally start to clean up the mess. This is a time for bold goals, and municipal governments are in an excellent position to set them.

Striving to become The Greenest City in the World, Vancouver will attract the best businesses, while providing a role model for municipalities on the world stage.

But the local small green businesses of Vancouver could use more. We need more networking opportunities, quicker local procurement policy development and more small business support.

All of this could be achieved by taking Vancouver’s Green Capital brand just a bit further. Unite local green businesses under a ‘Green Capitalist’ brand extension. Organize local business trade shows and events. Let our legions of Green Capitalists proudly declare their status in the City of Vancouver and beyond.

I look forward to seeing the Greenest Cities Action Plan being approved by Council, and to be part of it as a proud citizen and Green Capitalist.

Thank You.”

In trying to live more sustainability, the occasional U-Turn is inevitable.  It seems not that long ago that I was reading about the screw top (or ‘Stelvin Closure, as they prefer to call it) and the plastic cork as being more sustainable improvements in wine closure technology. Not so, says Citizen Group Executive Creative Director Robin Raj.

For the mighty cork tree is a model of sustainable provision, offering up its cork bark to swarthy harvesters season after season, providing the largest export for the country of Portugal. Aluminum closures, on the other hand, are resource-intensive to produce and difficult to recycle. Don’t even get him started on the plastic plug.

Raj showed us a series of online videos. The quirky ‘Garth Lockwood, Sommellier’ series, example above, was only part of the story. The campaign also included a nicely-crafted ‘credibility’ piece (video below) for use in more corporate environs. The overall effect is a campaign that will likely resonate well with industry and consumers alike.

Overall I would have to say this rates on my ‘Wish-I’d-Done-That’ pile, and I applaud the client’s willingness to step outside the potentially stuffy world of oenophelia. To that end, breaking up the messaging into ‘credibility’ and ‘entertainment’ silos was a smart one, and a strategy worth keeping in mind for many green marketers. Cheers!

This is where I call upon you, dear Green Briefs readers. Simply help choose which sessions I should attend, whom I should offend and with what elixers my arm should bend, with this little survey.

Then stay tuned to the ‘Briefs for updates starting June 5th. Live vicariously as I journey to California on the Amtrak Cascades train for 30 hours, sleep in coach (or the bar car) attend four days of green marketing conferences with some of the world’s top companies and tour the Monterey environs with my bike and a rented Prius. (Long-time Green Briefs readers may experience deja-vu, as this is almost exactly what I did when attending Sustainable Brands 2008. Flashbacks here.)

Hopefully I will return with even more sustainability wisdom and deep marketing knowledge, all in the name of green. Which could be my skin colour by the time I make it back.

Come on, take the survey already!

1. Praise your customers
This is how we handled it with London Drugs, and our recycling awareness campaign in Victoria. “Our customers have recycled over 90,000lbs of Styrofoam…” the StyroCycle billboard proudly states. “Thanks to you, we’ve kept 90,000lbs of Styrofoam from Landfills!” the radio ad declares. It’s true. The customers are the ones bringing back the packaging. And London Drugs sounds good thanking them.

2. Recognize your employees
The same strategy works when head office thanks the people in the trenches. After all, they are usually the ones doing the job. And depending on your target market, they may relate better to your front-line workers than your CEO. So thank them for their hard work and sustainability successes.

3. Thank the organizations who have influenced you
If your organization has been forced to change some of your practices due to pressure from NGO’s, activists or other groups, why not thank them? Shoemaker Timberland came close, when they acknowleged Greenpeace’s efforts to encourage them improve traceability in their supply chain, regarding sources of leather that are deforesting the Amazon. But wouldn’t it disarm the critics if you actually thanked them for their influence? If you are going to change anyway, you might as well get the upper hand in the PR exchange.

4. Use a little humour.
Issues like waste, environment and recycling can sometimes seem too heavy to treat lightly. But we are all human. Sometimes a light introduction to the subject is all it takes to get folks to sit up and pay attention for a minute. Which is really all you can ask your communications to do. The rest is up to the reader.

These are just a few ways you can get your green successes out there without making your head look too big to fit through the boardroom door. Whatever you do, don’t stop improving and don’t shy away from spreading the news. It could be your best competitive advantage.