With the presidential elections underway, it seems as if there is hardly anything ever going on in the news that has to do with anything else. There certainly has not been much coverage recently of any interesting occurrences in the world of environmentalism, but since I find it hard to believe that the wheels of sustainability have stopped in the presence of this election, I decided to research the online blogosphere to see what people within the field are talking about amongst themselves. During much research, I quickly came to realize that there is an innumerable amount of information to cover. Breakthroughs and new innovations are constantly created on a daily basis. It would be impossible for me to even attempt to mention them all. As a result, I have chosen two different blogs I found to be of particular interest, each for their own unique reasons. The first post,
Feelin' Bloovy, comes from the
egglog website. Created as a blogging branch of the
egg company website, egglog is a forum where members of the company can post about issues relating to marketing and sustainability. Egg is a brand communications agency "
that focuses exclusively on sustainable brands and organizations." Although the post does not have any specific relevance to California, I felt that it was an important overarching issue that goes beyond the regional demographic. The second post I discovered had an entirely different kind of invention. With Los Angeles and Hollywood's obsession with all things luxurious and flashy, I felt that the post was much more fitting to a Southern California motif.
Green Tech Gazette, a blog for both environmentalist and "techies", recently wrote, in their aptly titled post
Rinspeed SQuba Underwater Electric Car, on a new type of electric vehicle called the
Rinspeed SQuba. The purpose of choosing this second post is to exemplify the wide array of innovation occurring in the world of environmentalism and to also emphasize that not all are necessarily created with the intention of progressing the sustainability movement in a practical manner. My response to both posts may be found by clicking on the links provided but for your convenience I have included the comments below, beginning with the comment to egglog and followed by my thoughts to Green Tech Gazette.
egglog "
Feelin' Bloovy"
Comment:
I commend you and your company for campaigning under such a worthy and notable cause. Issues of environmentalism and sustainability continue to grow and become more pressing with each day. I believe that changes being made in the marketing and business world will do well to set a precedent for others to follow in their footsteps. Your post on "blue" becoming the new "green" was of great interest to me. As a student at the University of Southern California who wishes to pursue a career in public relations, I find it intriguing how companies use environmentalism as a PR tool. It had never occurred to me, prior to reading this post, that there are still many negative connotations that are associated with "green" terminology and that this might deter businesses from using environmentalism as a publicity platform. "Feelin' Bloovy" made me realize that as far along as we have come in the realm of environmentalism, there is still a certain amount of fanatic and ultra-liberal implications
that people attach to the word "green". This transition from green to blue is, in my opinion, an amazingly smart move for everyone involved. Any negative connotations that "green" might elicit in the minds of the public disappear and simultaneously the word "blue" gives the sustainability movement a fresh new look that is not only more versatile but also more palatable. I also agree with you that the term "blue" does a much better job of embodying what sustainability is all about. Many people still assume that environmentalism is about tree hugging and keeping the Earth green, when really it has become more about keeping the Earth clean and sustainable for our future progeny. Issues of this nature have become more than just a trend; it has now become a full on movement driven by a concerned nation and empowered by its youth. Organizations like the Energy Action Coalition, an alliance of forty six youth led organizations both in the U.S. and Canada concerned with clean energy, only go to prove how motivated the people of my generation are to improving the environment and how seriously they take this issue. My question to you is where exactly did this transformation from green to blue originate? I would be interested to know who was (or were) the creative mind(s) behind this process. Also, what do you believe is the best strategy for promoting this new "blue" term?
Green Tech Gazette "
Rinspeed SQuba Underwater Electric Car"
Comment:
Your post on the Rinspeed SQuba was quite the interesting read! I think the video that was created to showcase this luxury car’s abilities does a very inadequate job of doing so due to poor production skills. However the main concept of the car comes through very clear: an electric scuba car! An amazing accomplishment indeed. But I must question why so much time, effort, money, and technology went into the creation of this car. Just from one look at the video, several things become blatantly clear. First and foremost would be the complete and utter impracticality of the vehicle. As far as I’m concerned,
most people tend to only have a need for cars on dry roads rather than traversing through and under water. Secondly, from the features available in this car, even not including its underwater capabilities, it looks completely out of the price range of the average citizen, and in fact it is. I feel that innovations in technology, especially ones that are meant to be environmentally friendly, should keep in mind the everyday user. The best way for sustainable living changes to persist is if they can be easily incorporated into our daily practices. Driving would be a perfect example. The makers of Rinspeed had an opportunity to use their resources to create a great (and practical) electric car available for ordinary people such as myself. I currently drive a Honda Civic Hybrid and am constantly frustrated at the lack of vehicles hybrid drivers have to choose from, and I cannot even recall the last time I saw an electric car on the road! With rising gas prices and longer commutes, it seems that car companies would feel pressed to create more fuel efficient cars that people could actually purchase. The rapid and continued high sales of Toyota’s Prius show that there is a great demand for these kinds of automobiles. In all fairness, I realize that Rinspeed is a German company and European cars are mostly known as luxury vehicles, but the fact remains that there is a large, untapped market that no one seems to want to touch. Is it truly that difficult to create an electric car that can be affordable to the public? It does not necessarily mean it has to be cheap, but with the Rinspeed SQuba approximated at $1.5 M it is a luxury that many cannot afford. It seemingly caters only to those elite few whose only use for the car would be to efficiently drive it to their private beach front homes before driving it into their private beach front shores. If the Rinspeed cannot reasonably be made available for public purchase, then I at least hope that its creation will spark renewed interest in the field of electric automobiles and hopefully lead the way for future, more practical endeavors in that direction.
3 comments:
KC, it was truly enlightening to read your post! I am someone who considers myself someone who recycles and does at least the minimum in terms of my personal duty in environmental sustainability; the article on “bloovy” was an entirely new idea to me. I didn’t even know we had left the green age yet and moved on. While reading the actual “bloovy” blog, I was entirely concerned, overwhelmed, and confused by the idea that green was controversial. I guess living in California all we hear about is “going green” and how its “super trendy” to be green. Your post really helped to clarify that there is a liberal-left stigma attached to being green; I now understand how imperative it is for corporations, people, etc. to be blue. I am so glad you chose to write on this topic even though it does not directly pertain to California; after reading both the post and your comment, I agree that blue is a major overarching theme and idea that will be coming to the forefront of society in the next few years; hopefully this will not just be another “trend” but actually be a sustainable force for helping the global environment.
I could not be in more agreement with you on the necessity to create a hybrid car that is available to everyday people. I think it is extremely important in today’s day and age that sustainable resources be further developed because we are so rapidly destroying the environment we live in! The creation of the Rinspeed SQuba is entirely superfluous to the majority of people; who really can afford a $1.5M car, and if even you can- why would you want to drive it into the water; it is not like anyone is going to notice you driving your car underwater! For that reason, I couldn’t help but chuckle at your craftily put dig at the idea of the few luxury loving people driving their cars into their beach front shores. That was a perfect way to show how totally impractical a water hybrid car is! When there are so many more things that need to be developed to help our environment, why are people wasting their time developing such a superfluous luxury vehicle? I am so glad that you confronted the makers with the excessiveness of the SQuba car; it really is much more imperative that a practical, affordable hybrid car be developed in order to create more environmental sustainability.
I really enjoyed the way you led into your blog post by talking about how overwhelming the elections are and how that is all we hear about by watching the news! I swear that if we didn’t have the internet or printed media, the only thing the television would tell us was about our elections which are of course important, but they really aren’t all that is going on. You were very effective at leading into the Green Tech Gazette post; however, I felt a little lost as to what they “egg” company was. While you did explain it in some detail, it still felt like it was standing alone to some extent. I think it would have been more effective if you could have explained why you used the picture of the globe as the first graphic other than the fact that it demonstrated “blue”. I understand that the graphic came from the blog itself, but I think another graphic could have been more crucial in getting the point across. Overall, this is an extremely effective and important post! I am so glad that I got the opportunity to read it; thank you for writing about something that is truly current and important for citizens to read about and understand!
KC, upon reading your post, I had a clear understanding of the reasons behind this new "keep it blue" campaign. As tnh pointed out, although it is essentially the same as "going green" the verbal aesthetic is less controversial, less likely to be associated with environmentalist radicals, and is a "politically correct" and sound approach to what at first seems an insignificant problem. Conservative individuals would have a much easier time allying themselves with a seemingly neutral campaign which supports environmentalism without being directly tied to a conflicting ideology. However, this will only remain true for as long as the "being blue" campaign manages to free-associate, so I have my doubts as to its long-term effectiveness.
As for your SQuba comment: I would like to defend the creator of the SQuba as doing, essentially the same thing as the "bloovy" movement. A ridiculous concept? Maybe. But currently, hybrid cars aren't exactly known for being "sporty" or "cool" in appearance, and let's face it, America in general has proven to be a consumer driven nation before a "green" or "blue" one. To the average American, having a good looking or sexy car is more important than its effect on the atmosphere, and I think this SQuba car is trying to portray hybrids and electric vehicles in a new, more enticing light. It's marketing, but I'm honestly not sure how effective it is. Right now hybrid cars have a pretty bad reputation. Not only are they known for being visually unappealing (an issue I think SQuba is trying to address) but they are far from cost efficient. Consider the GM Volt, at 30,000 dollars - considering 3$/ gallon and a 30 mile a day commute, it would take approximately 10 years to make a premium off it. Why don't car manufacturers care? Because they know their market. The greens and blues will buy hybrid regardless because it's a sound principal for them. H3 has been a proven alternate energy source for fuel for years and hasn't been implemented because there's no money in starting the revolution. Will the SQuba idea work? Will it suddenly make hybridized cars a luxury item to be sought after the way Ferrari's and Lamborghini's are sought today? Probably not. But it is a step in that direction. Enough misses and you might hit.
I love your posts. I find them provocative and intriguing. They got me thinking about some things I probably wouldn't have otherwise and I think that's the whole purpose behind your blog. Great work.
Hi MLC! So sorry for the extremely belated response. Thanks for all the positive feedback! I'm glad to hear such great things about my blog. I couldn't agree with you more concerning the shift in terminology from "green" to "blue". It is becoming clearer everyday that environmentalism is not just campaign for the liberal, hippy, tree huggers. It is a very bipartisan issue that actually unifies people of disparate political beliefs more than divides them. It's true that it may just be a trend but, call me an optimist, I feel like this is a change that is occurring because there is a need for it. Our whole approach toward the sustainability movement is so outdated and primitive. To call it "green" does not nearly begin to encompass what sustainability truly means. Perhaps this is just a change in the public vocabulary but I like to believe that it is a shift in our whole way of thinking.
As for your comments on the Rinspeed SQuba, you bring up some very valid arguments that the blogger of the original post I cited from also made. The makers of this car can't be faulted for the shortcomings of the entire automotive industry and in fact they probably have some genuinely good intentions to try and spice up the image of the electric vehicle. But my contention is that there is a huge untapped market for more sustainable vehicles and all automotive companies should feel some kind of social corporate responsibility toward the people, not just the rich and affluent. And I think an argument can be made that fuel efficient and hybrid vehicles these days are looking more "cool" and "sexy". The Toyota Prius continues to sell very well and is an incredibly smart car from the inside out. The outward appearance of the car may not be your cup of tea but step inside and it is by far one of the coolest cars I have had the privilege of riding in. The Loremo is also another example of a sporty, aesthetically pleasing car that is astoundingly fuel efficient. This ultra lightweight diesel car averages 150 miles per gallon! It is said that you could drive from New York to LA with only 3 stops to fill up. I encourage you to check out the Loremo for yourself at http://evolution.loremo.com/. It is a purchase I seriously will consider making in the near future. Great points though. After hearing yours and the Green Tech Gazette blogger's defense of the SQuba, I realize that I might have been unfairly harsh on this one company. But if I came off that way it's only because I have high expectations for our society and the influential industries of our society. Thanks again for the comment! It's very much appreciated.
Post a Comment