Plant a Tree. Clean the Air. Cool the Globe. This thought has been the driver that has inspired IKEA US shoppers. Since June 2006, IKEA US in partnership with American Forests, has had a national in-store ‘Plant A Tree’ program which asks customers to donate $1 to plant one tree. These contributions, together with money donated by IKEA, have resulted in raising $1.5 million dollars to plant 1.5 million trees across America.
ecology
Any driver can now find out its true impact on air quality and human health thanks to the launch of a free iPhone App by Volvo, in association with www.cleangreencars.co.uk. The application reveals the toxic emissions of the four pollutants which impact local air quality and human health: carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen, hydrocarbons and particulates.
Building on a rich history of environmental action and innovation that includes planting one million trees in China’s Horqin Desert, developing the Earthkeepers™ line of environmentally-forward products and launching an online “Earthkeepers movement,” Timberland announced its biggest and most environmentally-focused marketing campaign yet— Nature Needs Heroes.
Sony Europe launched the Open Planet Ideas website in conjunction with global conservation organization WWF. The new web destination is an online community that aims to harness the ingenuity and open innovation out there to help tackle environmental challenges. It encourages members of the public to imagine how today’s technologies could be re-purposed to address environmental issues like climate change, biodiversity and water conservation.
The Lexus Eco Challenge has inspired and empowered more than 15,000 middle and high school American students to learn about the environment and take action to improve it. This fall, students are invited to participate in the fourth annual Lexus Eco Challenge for a chance to win part of $500,000 in grants and scholarships.
Professor Harold Mooney of Stanford University in California has been named the recipient of the 2010 Volvo Environment Prize. This year’s prizewinner has for many years been a leading light within research into biological diversity and especially how important it is for the functioning of ecosystem services. This concept has been widely acknowledged in recent years, perhaps mainly due to an international research program, Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, where Professor Mooney has played a leading role.
Timberland has already selected the recipients of its Timberland Earthkeepers Grant 2010 and now is happy to present both the winners and the beneficial activities they are going to perform with the granted money. The projects were primarily revolving around making London greener and training local residents on how to continue the positive changes.