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True-Blue
Greens
Understanding
the Problem
One way
of analyzing concern for the environment is to rank Canadians
on a green scale such as the one which follows. Most
Canadians are either True-Blue Greens or Sprouts. Very few Canadians
(5%) are Greenback Greens.
Classroom Development
Divide
the following major issues among groups of equal size. Direct
each group to investigate a different area and report to the class.
As a cooperative learning strategy, and to help students define
their own position on environmental issues, members of each group
role-play each of the five categories on the green scale in a
class discussion on one of the following issues:
- User-pay
fees for garbage removal;
- Attitudes
towards environmental protection;
- Bottling
beer and energy consumption;
- Waste
audits in the fast food industry.
Green
Scale
True-Blue Greens |
Act on environmental issues
and speak out on such issues |
Green Black Greens |
Consistently pay more for environmentally
responsible products |
Sprouts |
Are more environmentally concerned
when the economy is doing well |
Grousers |
Feel guilty about the environment
but blame others |
Basic Browns |
Have other concerns |
Issue: User-Pay Fees for Garbage Removal
As landfill sites fill up and residents resist the creation of
new landfills in their area, some cities in Canada and the United
States are beginning to charge households and businesses a fee
for the collection of their household garbage. The fee varies
with the amount of garbage put out for collection. In some places,
residents must buy special twist ties from the city to attach
to each bag, otherwise, the garbage bag will not be picked up.
In other jurisdictions, residents must buy a garbage can provided
by the city. Only the contents of the can will be picked up; all
other waste must either be recycled or composted.
Questions
- Brainstorm
the positive and negative impacts if your municipality started
such a program .
- Appoint
a class representative to contact the City Clerks department
of the community in which you live. Determine the process your
elected representatives would follow if they were to start a
user-pay garbage collection programme.
- Assume
the municipal council decided to start a similar program. Brainstorm
new business opportunities that would develop as a result of
the need to reduce waste generated by businesses and households.
- Pick
one of the business ideas you generated. As a class, in groups,
or individually, develop a business plan to make the new business
a reality.
Issue:
Attitudes Towards the Environment
S. C. Johnson
(Raid, Edge Shave Gel) surveyed 2000 people from Mexico, the USA,
and Canada to determine attitudes towards the environment. Opinions
were determined using the Green Scale.
Questions
- Why
would the company conduct this survey in the USA and Mexico,
as well as in Canada?
- What
parts of S. C. Johnsons marketing mix in Canada would
be affected by the information found in this survey?
- Pick
one part of the marketing mix and explain how it would be affected
by the findings of this survey.
Issue: Brewing and Bottling Beer
You decide
to form a new company to brew and bottle beer. You are considering
which type of container to use. Production and energy costs, as
well as environmental responsibility, are important parts of this
decision. One of your competitors, Upper Canada Brewing, is advertised
in the Globe & Mail as being environmentally responsible because
its waste barley is used as animal feed. Another potential competitor
is considering switching to the old fashioned stubby bottle again.
Before you make your decision, you review the information you
have available:
- Filling
lines for cans are less labour intensive, which means production
costs for cans are less than for bottles;
- Aluminum
is much more expensive than glass or steel;
- New research
shows that aluminum production emits a high level of greenhouse
gases and is very energy intensive;
- There
is an environmental tax of 10 cents per can on beer cans in
Ontario;
- Energy
costs are shown in the following table:
Energy
Consumption per use for 12 oz. Beverage Containers
Container |
Energy Use (BUT's) |
Aluminum can used only once |
7050 |
Steel can used only once |
5950 |
Glass bottle used only once |
3730 |
Recycled aluminum can |
2550 |
Recycled steel can |
3880 |
Recycled glass bottle |
2530 |
Refillable glass bottle used
10 times |
610 |
Source:
Gaines, Energy and Material Use. In Brown, Lester
R.. Saving the Planet: How To Shape An Environmentally Sustainable
Global Economy. New York: Norton, 1991.
Questions
- Divide
the information above into three categories: very important,
important, and unimportant, then explain your choices.
- What
additional and detailed information should you get before deciding
which type of bottle to use?
Issue: Waste Audits in the Fast Food Industry
Visit a
fast food restaurant. Audit the waste it generates. For example,
does it use polystyrene or paper wrapping? disposable or washable
tableware? squeeze bottles or single servings of ketchup and vinegar?
Ask the
manager if you could get service if you brought your own dishes
and cutlery. Ask the manager if there has been a waste audit to
determine how much waste is generated by the restaurant. Ask about
any waste reduction measures the company has undertaken in the
past year.
Another option is to use the following information on waste at
McDonalds to brainstorm ideas for waste reduction. An average
McDonalds serves 2000 people and creates about 100 kg of
waste each day:
Behind the Counter Waste |
Mass (Kg) |
corrugated shipping boxes |
34 |
food wastes, egg shells, coffee
grounds |
34 |
liquids, office paper, other |
8 |
plastic wrap, syrup jugs |
3 |
Over the Counter Waste |
Mass (Kg) |
napkins |
4 |
coated paper (sandwich wraps) |
7 |
polystyrene (hot cups, lids,
cutlery) |
4 |
non-McDonald's waste (diapers,
other) |
6 |
Source:Waste
audit of two restaurants, reported in The Wall Street
Journal, 1990.
Strategies for Change
Develop
a school policy for the management of waste from the school lunchroom.
Work with the schools environmental club to help promote
the 3Rs and this policy in your school. Devise a slogan and a
promotional campaign using all the media in the school: PA announcements,
bulletin board displays, flyers, signs, displays, electronic messages,
ads in the school newspaper, letters to the editor of the school
paper, or other issues.
Extension
Competition
in the Marketplace
This activity
investigates and illustrates methods of competition and retail
attitudes towards environmental issues, by comparing two similar
local businesses, and by studying methods of competition.
Classroom Development
- Direct
the class to form groups of 2 or 3.
- Each
group works independently to collect the required information,
then prepares a report of its findings. Reporting could take
a variety of formats:
a) Traditional written report, (prepared on the computer)
b) Bulletin board display
c) Oral presentation emphasizing visual reports: graphs, samples,
maps, etc.
d) Videotape
e) Interview
f) Guest speaker
Instructions to Students
Select
any two similar businesses from one of businesses listed below.
Then, working in groups of two or three, investigate the methods
of competition used by each.
- fast
food restaurant
- large
department store
- supermarket
- clothing
- convenience
store
- shopping
mall
- gas station
- banks
- sit-down
restaurant
- pick
your own
- pharmacy
Collect information on the two businesses you select based on
the following headings:
- Products
or Services: Compare similar products sold. Also compare
services the businesses provide for their customers: parking,
delivery.... List the services and rate them on a scale for
excellent, good, fair, poor, not available.
- Sales
Promotion Techniques: Compare the
advertising methods that the stores use to attract customers
(newspapers, flyers, TV or radio ads). List at least five techniques
and how each store or business uses the technique.
- Prices:
Compare three key products or services that are carried by both
businesses. Make sure that the products are similar in size
or function.
- Location:
If applicable, identify the best three locations for both businesses.
Write down the address and the location. Circle the one that
is most successful.
- Environmental
Issues: List and describe at least
three ways each business shows its sensitivity to environmental
issues. This could be through waste reduction programs, the
use of reused or recycled products, or through the sale of products
or services that are less stressful on the environment.
Strategies for Change
With the
rest of your classmates, develop a list of all the ways the businesses
showed sensitivity to environmental issues. Each group should
write a letter to a business in a similar industry and outline
what competitive companies are doing for the environment. At the
same time inquire about steps being taken in this particular company.
As a class,
judge which business displayed the greatest awareness of environmental
issues and recognize their contribution with a letter congratulating
the company on its achievement. Note: make sure that you have
not been fooled by superficial posturing on the part of these
companies, but that the achievement is real and justifies your
praise. Recognize the possibility that no company will be worthy.
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