Every organization benefits from engaging its stakeholders around sustainability. Our partners work with us to customize their Cool Choices sustainability programs in order to achieve diverse objectives.
Whenever we talk about the results organizations receive from our sustainability engagement program – how a simple game-based format inspires adults to make real changes in their lives – sustainability advocates are intrigued, but they are also skeptical: “Sure, Cool Choices inspired measurable changes in that organization, but would it work in ours?”
In the wake of the US federal government pulling out of the Paris Treaty on Climate Change, cutting the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and reducing national park land, some might wonder what 2018 sustainability trends might look like. However, new entities have emerged to lead the fight to reduce climate change and champion sustainability. We saw more than 2,500 businesses, local governments, colleges and universities, tribal leaders, and faith-based organizations step forward and sign the We Are Still In pledge, committing to tackle climate change, ensure a clean energy future, and uphold the Paris Agreement with or without the help of the federal government. Efforts like We’re Still In demonstrate the power of leadership at all levels.
If you ask a savvy sustainability manager to calculate the return on investment (ROI) from an efficiency project, they are likely to ask a few follow up questions—because they know that a solid ROI compares all costs to all benefits, and it can take a little digging to get the requisite data.
Last week Cool Choices co-hosted the 10th Annual Wisconsin Sustainable Business Council (WSBC) conference at the American Club in Kohler, Wisconsin.
The event – which draws hundreds of attendees from a variety of Wisconsin businesses each year – aims to create a forum where business leaders who are actively working on sustainability issues can share ideas and insights. The event is unique in that all of the conference presenters are people leading sustainability efforts within a company, rather than consultants selling particular approaches. That means there’s plenty of frank talk about lessons learned, enabling the attendees to avoid repeating costly mistakes while accelerating ideas that have a proven record of success.
“I was skeptical…but it really works!”
It’s ok, we get that a lot – even some our clients admit that they were surprised by how well our employee engagement programs worked to motivate behavior change around sustainability, and to deliver immediate savings results – all while influencing hearts and minds over the longer term.
Congratulations to Waukesha County on completing their Cool Choices community-wide sustainability program! Check out the energy and resource savings results of their program!
Corporate sustainability leads often spend a lot of time on technology—identifying the upgrades that will reduce water, energy and emissions. At one level that focus makes sense, especially right now when there’s so much emerging opportunity around smart devices.
Amid the enthusiasm for technology, though, it’s important to remember that people—employees—are at the core of every operation.
Cool Choices was proud to be a sponsor of the Sustainable Brands New Metrics 2017 conference this year in Philadelphia, PA. New Metrics is a gathering of forward-thinking organizations that are motivated to implement new ways to create, measure, and communicate business value.
Instead of wondering how to “be profitable and see what we can do about sustainability,” leading companies are now working to measure – and reduce – the total social cost of doing business. And it’s an exciting conversation!
In September Cool Choices partnered with various local entities in Waukesha County, Wisconsin on a community scale sustainability program. That program is now complete – ending on November 10, 2017. Below are highlights from the data participants shared with us via our game-based platform. We are excited to report on this data and the achievements of the program, which make it a true success for Waukesha County businesses and residents.