THE GREENEST GENERATION

Who's the Greenest Generation? New Study Finds Out Who Isn't…
Matthew Wheeland, August 28, 2009 (GreenBiz via Reuters)

"…There is plenty of promising news [of a sustainable business future] coming out of universities, as we found at the beginning of this year with our [GreenBiz] State of Green Business report. But a recent survey of young adults in Britain gives us pause.

"The study, commissioned by IBM, found that young adults in Generation Y -- the folks currently aged 18-24 -- had both the highest levels of awareness of environmental issues, and were the biggest wasters of energy and water in the country…"

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"Among the findings: 72 percent of Gen-Y members…[say] they wasted water on a regular basis. Fifty-six percent said they leave the tap water running while brushing their teeth, and 40 percent allow the shower to run for "a few minutes" before getting in…IBM estimates that leaving water running for two minutes during toothbrushing alone wastes about 12 liters of water, which the company extrapolates to equal over 236 million liters (more than 62 million gallons) wasted per week.

"In terms of awareness of energy use, 55 percent of young adults couldn't correctly guess whether a clothes dryer or an incandescent lightbulb used more energy…[T]his lack of awareness isn't limited just to young people; sure, 55 percent couldn't tell you which of four appliances used the most electricity, but of the whole population surveyed, 43 percent couldn't answer the same question, and 25 percent overall said an electric kettle used more water than a clothes dryer."

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"These survey results aren't -- or shouldn't be -- surprising…[T]here are many dozens of highly innovative green businesses that are far out in front in terms of addressing environmental impacts. That is also true for individuals -- the "no impact" men and women of the world…[But] those businesses (and those individuals) are in the tiniest sliver of the minority…

"…I oscillate between optimism and despair about this lack of action on the part of the most mainstream of businesses and individuals…[W]hen I feel optimistic, I like to believe that the profound upswing in green business practices, in green energy, in green behaviors…is going to snowball, picking up enough pace to help us avoid the worst effects of climate change…[GreenBiz] would like to know [readers’] thoughts…"