The Convergence of Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Media

Photo via: Just Means Future of Sustainability Communications & Practice
 
This Friday, March 19, I’ll be networking with global peers at the Just Means Social Media and CSR conference in London. The conference is an opportunity to share stories and best practices as participants begin to fully grasp the power of the converging forces of social media and corporate social responsibility, which are totally in line with our “Better World” values here at Herman Miller.

In an era where anyone can be a global reporter, businesses have moved to increase their level of corporate transparency; the days of making a statement and hiding behind press releases are long gone. That this idea is catching on in the mainstream is reflected in the speaker roster: representatives from Unilever, Dell, Royal Dutch Shell, software giant SAP, and The Guardian newspaper. Others are on the agenda and participants include representatives ranging from corporate giants like Coca-Cola and Arcelor Mittal, to media agencies such as BSkyB, and international development organizations such as Care International UK.

For more information on the conference visit the Just Means website. And if you want to follow me at the event, I plan to tweet live from the event at @HermanMiller. Watch for hashtag #BetterWorld.

Holland to Google: “We Need Speed”

The faster the network connections, the better people can work at home and on the move. Google thinks more speed for more people is the answer. It’s planning to test a network that will deliver the Internet over 1 gigabit per second fiber connections “in one or more trial locations across the country.”

Holland, Michigan, where our Design Yard facility is located, is one of the communities vying to be chosen. From now until March 26, residents can nominate the city and make the case for why it should be chosen. All you need is a Gmail account. Here’s hoping that Holland will be chosen (and that you’ll help by nominating the city).

Chairs Have Footprints, Too

Have you tried one of those online carbon footprint calculators yet? According to this one, my family of three is adding around 51 tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere every year. But another online tool gauges my annual household emissions at 36,411 pounds (about 18 tons). Clearly, calculating carbon footprints is not yet an exact science.

That doesn’t stop our Design for the Environment (DfE) group from trying, though. They’re working to gather the information required to determine the carbon footprints of Herman Miller’s products. No easy task, given that most are made of multiple parts–the Aeron chair, for example has around 200–and you have to know the composition and manufacturing process of each (and how it’s shipped and where from) before you can factor in the energy used to assemble the chair and translate the result into carbon emissions.

In a recent interview with Metropolis magazine, DfE manager Gabe Wing, explains that the challenge is “finding a standardized way to determine carbon footprints. Right now there is no single standard.” Still, if it isn’t yet possible to measure carbon emissions exactly, Wing says, it is feasible to lower them by setting benchmarks for new product designs, choosing materials that have inherently low carbon footprints, and encouraging suppliers to use renewables in their own manufacturing processes.

Eco-Treehouses On The Rise

Photo via: The Cool Hunter

New eco-treehouses are a far cry from the ramshackle tetanus hazards we cobbled together and fell out of when we were young. Still, today’s amazing treehouses touch the kid inside us, as well as the responsible adult.

The world’s first major public exhibition of green-design treehouses—“TreeLife” by The Cool Hunter—will unveil innovative and creative sustainable design coexisting with urban life. The Cool Hunter, a fun and hot culture/design website, says “Tree Life” will debut in a to-be-announced major city in 2010.

For the event, top international architects, artists, and designers are creating modern treehouses made from sustainable and recycled materials.

Photo via: The Cool Hunter

According to The Cool Hunter, “Treehouses have become creative eco-statements in the design world. They allow people to literally be ‘in’ nature and peace above the stressful street level of life.”

We’re on the lookout for further treehouse details. I can’t wait. Maybe I can climb up into one and sort my baseball cards on solid, recycled flooring.

Why I Ride to Work

You may think it’s for the exercise. There is that, since otherwise I wouldn’t do much all winter, me not being a skier or a health clubber.

It could be the scenery, because Michigan is a place of pure beauty. And that certainly plays into my decision; few things are more lovely than a winter sky or sun (when we see it) glinting off snow.

But, why I really ride for is the money or, more accurately, the chance to win it. Herman Miller believes in conserving the world’s gas and burning employees’ calories, so it does a monthly drawing for a $50 gift card. You log your miles biked each month (in my case 5 miles each way) to enter. There’s a similar drawing for carpoolers.

I’ve yet to win, but I keep on biking in the hope I will, which is good because I’ve spent my yet-to-be-realized gift card several times over on goggles, balaclava, and other gear.

Can Good Design Help Save the World? 500 Colored Pencils Might Help

Photo via: Social Designer

Kristin at Novità Communications in Brooklyn asked design writers like me to “spread the word to the creative community” about a very cool competition from Felissimo and Social Designer. Here’s the design brief:

You create a one-minute video that shows or tells the story of something you believe is worth waiting for, or, from experience, something you had to wait for that was worth it in the end. The winner gets $500, plus a set of 500 Colored Pencils from Felissimo.

Deadline is March 16, so it’s time to get focused.

Felissimo is a subscription-based clothing and household goods company that believes good design promotes happiness and well-being, adding value to everyday life. Sounds a lot like Herman Miller. Says Felissimo: “We hope that our efforts will demonstrate our awareness of the power of design and our responsibility to take good design and use it to design good.”

When you order the 500 Colored Pencils, every month you receive a box of 25 new colors, from Drizzly Afternoon to Lobster Bisque, until you have a full, rich rainbow to draw from. For every 100 boxes of pencils sold, Felissimo donates a set to a UNESCO arts education program for underprivileged kids.

Felissimo created Social Designer, an online platform for customers, consumers, and designers to meet and participate in design for the greater good. It also helps promote meaningful causes by developing high-visibility design competitions for corporations and nonprofits.

A New Wave in Architecture

Aqua Tower, with its wavy exterior and Lake Michigan views, is open now in Chicago’s Lakeshore East community. For a fascinating perspective on the 82-story apartment/condo/office tower, and a profile of the architect, Jeanne Gang, of Studio Gang Architects, check out The New Yorker (Feb. 1, 2010 edition).

Aqua Tower is getting a wave of good reviews for many reasons, but its most obvious attribute is the undulating cantilevered balconies, which change slightly from floor to floor, forming a curvaceous façade that also shades apartments and protects the building and balcony sitters when Chicago’s hawk talks (that’s Chicagoan for “oooh, it’s so windy”). No two balconies are alike. There’s also a big rooftop garden. And LEED certification is being pursued.

Condos range from about $300,000 to $2 million; rents start around $1,500 per month.

Says The New Yorker, “It reclaims the notion that thrilling and beautiful form can still emerge out of the realm of the practical.” And it calls Gang an “anti-diva” for the building’s lack of conceit.
 
Some critics and bloggers complain, though, that the balconies are gimmicky ornaments disguising a traditional box structure. Indeed, The New Yorker notes Aqua is “an ordinary glass condo tower” turned into something exciting. What do you think? Let us know.

(Note: Almost a month after this post was published, Aqua Tower was named 2009 Skyscraper of the Year, an annual award issued by Emporis.)

Photos via: Studio Gang Architects

Seven Questions for Industrial Designer Tom Newhouse

Tom Newhouse walks the environmental talk. From the earth-bermed, passive solar house and studio that he designed and built in 1978 to his recreational choices (kayaking, hiking, and snowshoeing—“all human-powered activities”), Tom has lived his ethos despite the shifting winds of fad and cultural consciousness. Sustainability is part of the “Four Corners Philosophy” of design from which he operates. According to Tom, products should be: aesthetically pleasing, sustainable, ergnomic, and cost-effective. Tom works primarily in the areas of home and office furniture, kitchens, and lighting. His most recent design for Herman Miller was the Flute personal light.

Here are seven questions for Tom Newhouse:
Read more

Celebrating the Spirit of MLK Through Community Service

In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Herman Miller employees gathered this week to paint soup bowls for the annual West Michigan Soup’s On For All (SOFA) fundraiser, which helps nourish families and individuals in the area. Proceeds benefit local food pantries, including Catholic Charities of West Michigan, Christian Community Center, God’s Kitchen, and Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry. All the bowls painted by volunteers will be given to participants at the event.

Herman Miller’s Black Inclusiveness Resource Team—one of seven employee networks that work to implement business recommendations for a diverse workplace—sponsored the bowl painting opportunity in cooperation with our Inclusiveness and Diversity Team.

Our employees displayed great artistic ability in the 98 bowls painted in one day. This was our way of recognizing MLK Day as a “day of action”—doing an activity that benefits the community.

Coretta Scott King sums up the spirit of the event well: “The greatest birthday gift my husband could receive is if people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds celebrated the holiday by performing individual acts of kindness through service to others.”

Reflecting on Martin Luther King: One Face, Many Voices

Last week I was part of a group of Herman Miller employees from various Inclusiveness Resource Teams (IRTs) who attended a luncheon honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as part of the annual Civil Rights Celebration Week at Hope College. It’s the fifth year in a row that Herman Miller has sponsored the event.

The keynote speaker was Dr. Lawrence J. Pijeaux, Jr., President and CEO, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Dr. Pijeaux’s presentation, “MLK and Birmingham: Turning Point of the Civil Rights Movement,” brought to mind that impactful and powerful movements are often attributed to an individual or at most a few individuals, when in reality it is the words and actions of many that lead to the resulting change. This is also true in the business world. The CEO or president of a company may set the strategy for its success, but it is the many employees who execute the strategy that make it a reality.

At Herman Miller, I have seen the impact of the average employee as we focus on our strategy to work for a better world. Our IRTs and Inclusiveness and Diversity team have expanded our awareness of the uniqueness of each individual through education programs, policy changes, and access to more resources. We have made amazing progress toward our environmentally-focused 2020 goals through the work of more than 400 employees. And our safety incident rate has steadily declined because of the decisions made every day by every employee.