You'd probably have to partner with some preexisting environmental agency for credibility - but it's a good idea. Lots of business are "greening" their image with buzz words and not a whole lot of action, it'd be nice to see what they are actually doing.

Very true - you would have to make your formulas public so everyone understands how things are calculated. You would have to use generalizations, such as, 1 2007 SUV driven 20,000km/year converted to 1 2007 hybrid sedan driven the same distance = same amount of reduced emissions regardless of whether it's a Denali to Prius or Escalade to Prius.

Eventually you could have specific vehicle models, but that adds complexity which requires more time on behalf of the company. The last thing you'd want is a web-based user area loaded with time consuming forms to fill out depending on what their actions have been. I think simplicity will result in MORE data, even if it is just a generalization.

You idea is really interesting as a concept. What If companies can be qualified as dark green or light green based on the policies they take. The problem is to determine the algorithm that will define the value of the green meter for each company. What will make companies join? How can their green policies be tested or verified? Again, it's a good idea, that I hope to discuss farther.

You could definitely have different qualifications, but your absolutely right, it will be difficult calculating the "value" of their efforts. That's why, in my opinion, the idea is better suited to focusing on improvements instead of overall emissions/consumption. "We'll conserve 10,000L of water because we converted to low flow faucets."

What makes a company want to join is the opportunity to display, through a widget embedded on their website, that they've reduced emissions by "x" amount. Clicking on that then displays their "green blog" (hosted by us) which shows what efforts they've made in a standard format. Essentially, it starts as a way for companies to log their efforts - but it goes one step further to also promote their efforts via the front page of "conservo-meter".

The front page of a website that contains this type of data can then have some interested content. Maybe Adobe installs 60 low flow faucets at a facility - we could use a generalized figure to estimate how much water is saved over the course of a year when you go from normal faucets to low flow faucets. This then counts towards their water conservation tally and is entered into their green blog.

This type of website could also become a resource for companies trying to go green. It's a real world way to see what other companies are doing and what the results are (even if it is generalized). It's very often that smaller companies designate a random employee to "figure out green", regardless of experience in the field. This type of site would be excellent for research and would hopefully result in more companies making an effort to be green.

Lastly, in the world of travel and tourism, tourists are deciding about where to travel to based on that destinations "green" efforts. You see the same mentality with retail. If a tourist has narrowed it down to 2 different ski resorts, but can't quite decide, maybe they hop over to our website to see which is making a stronger effort to go green. Maybe they like that ski resort ABC uses biodiesel in their groomers - that's why companies will sign up.

This is not as difficult as it sounds. The key indicators are already in place and there are standard metrics that could be included very easily.

You can choose metrics based on degree of integration, absolute number of CO2 tonnes reduced, core buisiness involvement, contribution to 2030 goals, and transparency.

The metrics are already established. You can use resources such as:
-The Global Reporting Index (http://www.globalreporting.org/Home)
-PriceWaterhouseCoopers Guidelines for sustainability reporting (http://tinyurl.com/5jwfrg)

This report by Vattenfall is probably the best foundation for defining the most quantitative metrics for total output:
Global Mapping of Greenhouse Gas: Abatement Opportunities up to 2030
http://www.vattenfal...77730downl/index.jsp

You can download the overview and all of the sector specific guides there.

Nice, thanks for the resources! My personal problem is I'm not a programmer nor a designer - putting a site together that can pull off all of those calculations without inundating the visitor with forms and information is the hurdle at this point. Even with the programming ability, it will likely be a challenge to organize everything in a clean, efficient way.

A great idea. Need to answer at least to credibility challenges. Especially: what prevents companies lying? How to build big enough company-user base to attract citizens to the site? Is the site respected enough for companies to take notice?

Yes, you would have to be clear who's calculations you are using and see if you could get that organization to "acknowledge" the website.

Preventing companies from lying is another matter - however the more effectively you can do that the more respected the site would be, in theory. If the company does put the widget on their site, I don't think they would lie on the subsequent pages the widget links to. It would also be nice to add a layer of transparency - not by posting company Email addresses, but maybe some method of sending a message to the company if you do have an inquiry - maybe something as simple as "comments". Not sure-fire solutions, but something to deter false "green" efforts.

I think it would make sense to focus on a specific industry for starters. If you have a strong presence for ski resorts, it would be more likely for ski industry websites to link back to you and take notice. Citizens would then, hopefully, use the site as part of their vacation planning process, or at least to get an idea of what resorts are doing to lower emissions.

Is there a metric for "Congressional Offset Credits" <CoCs>
(for the impact of all that hot air on...global warming?)
As long as we're counting - their 'voting records' should count...
Ex: Double-penalty for filibusters, missed votes, etc
Double 'credits' for bills that quickly SERVE all of US!
GRAND PRIZE for 'Government Intelligence' !!
etc - that make any $en$e..?

Aha, the emissions of speech! "By my own calculations if we all breathed half as frequently we could reduce CO2 emissions by over 1 billion tonnes per year - or around 4% of total global output (25 billion tonnes)."
http://www.firetop.c...ions-stop-breathing/

On a related note, should the site manage international emission reduction tracking, you could log lowered emissions by country and tally the results! Or more locally, by province/state.

I really like the concept. Would you see implementing this as a profit or non-profit? How would the site be supported (revenue model)?

I think there could be some potential in related advertising on the site. In the most basic form, simply web banners, etc. In a more complex form, say a company installs low-flow faucets, allowing that company to specify exactly which model was installed, and then allowing visitors to purchase that exact model would be an interesting function. Of course, having a product database definitely adds significantly to the maintenance requirements of the site, but it also allows you to gather more valuable information, such as popular products. You could even house product reviews.

Ideally, after development and maintenance costs are factored in, it would be nice to see proceeds of the site revenue go to a related cause.

How would people know companies didn't pay your site to get more favorable results?

Everything would be automatic based off of consistent, standard formulas. If we're talking about efficient toilets, for example, you would need to "assume" a few things regardless of who the company is. You might have to take an educated guess at the average number of flushes per day. Then, based off of the old model comparing to the new model (and how many were replaced), how much water is conserved per flush, and then work that out into a monthly or yearly "water conserved" total. Therefore, it comes down to the honesty of the company entering the information because there is no human element in the calculations, other than the original formula.

I have a few more thoughts here.

I think your hook for companies to join is by providing a service. A lot of companies would like to know how they are performing but don't have a quantifiable answer when people ask "what are you doing for the environment.

If you make your site a resource that companies could use to understand thier current position and determine milestones for progress then there will be a higher willingness to put effort into the reporting process.

If you have a process that makes sense and is useful to a company then they will be willing to fill out plenty of forms because of the information it provides them. Basically I am saying that you could become the defacto standard for companies (especially small ones) to monitor their environmental programme.

Specialized forms that ask companies relevant questions that guide their decision making is an incredibly useful tool, and one that companies will be willing to pay for. You could use a tiered service, free and pay. The free site will summarize their inputs into a Conservometer reading, but a pay service allows them to compare the details of their results with other companies and provide a framework for planning future progress.

An example could be as follows: a transportation/logistics company goes on the site and selects their industry and sector. They are then taken through a series of questionaires based on different areas of environmental issues like greenhouse gas emissions, recycling programs, integration with decision making, and so forth.

Questions are based on benchmarks, for example "How many trucks do you currently own?" and "How many miles per month do your trucks travel?", followed by questions that determine industry-accepted progress like "What is the average drag coefficient of your vehicles?"

Chances are that operators won't know the answer to this last question, so beside it you can have a link that says "Don't know the answer? Find out here."

Drag coefficient is something that trucking companies should be very concerned with if they are serious about greenhouse emissions. This approach not only monitors company's progress but shows them how to become more compliant and can provide resources in one place that are currently very scattered. This way, you can provide an extra questionaire that helps truck owners determine an approximate drag coefficient based on the model of their truck and aerodynamic hardware they may have added.

When they have calculated a drag coefficient, points can be awarded for how far they have reduced their drag below the standard 0.8.

Another way of making money off this site is to sell all of the data. If you know the average drag coefficient of every trucking company in America, I can assure you that someone will pay for it.

Those are some great thoughts, and what a great opportunity for advertisers to reach a very niche audience.

I like how you're thinking; what becomes daunting is gathering all of the data required. But once you have it together and as accurate as possible, and once you have companies participating, you're absolutely right - the trends you could see, the progress of specific industries, the popular products, the best "bang for your buck" approaches, it's all such valuable information. Especially if you have relativity! Who cares if you're average drag coefficient for your transport fleet is 0.5, but if that's the best in your state/province, or even country, you have some serious bragging rights and even a marketing angle. But without a service like this, how would you know in the first place relative to other companies?

Starting Niche-by-Niche will help you capture all the details surrounding company integration of environmental considerations.

Each big management consulting firm has a department dedicated to this stuff. Deloitte and Touche, PriceWaterHouseCoopers, KPMG, etc... These would make good partners, they will have a lot of detail to implement in the questionaires and in return get good branding as the premium consultant for this issue.

As far as credibility, transparency, etc.
One simple question could majorly affect their overall score "Has your environmental plan been audited?"

Yes, the industry I work within (ski) that spawned the idea could be a good place to start. Although, come to think of it, there's probably a better "starting" industry that would be a little more basic.

Perhaps just pick one client and collect all the relevant calculations etc. Put together a form that asks all the questions for all of them and see how they like having the results reported.

Just make sure it's repeatable.

"A great idea. Need to answer at least to credibility challenges. Especially: what prevents companies lying?"

--I doubt serious companies would lie about stuff like that. They have an image to think about.

I must admit, this idea was posted to gauge whether it was something to pursue or not. I told myself if it won this round I would take this idea seriously. After a few weeks of CH "granting" status, I'm starting to wonder when the winner will be selected, or IF the winner will be selected considering the VenCorps migration. When reading the comments and seeing some defend the idea against critical thinking is definitely inspiring. The level of insight by some, especially muunkky, has me thinking of the possibilities.

So I'm left wondering - do I pursue? I know I can't bring this to fruition alone, is there anyone interested in helping? If so, what would you bring to the table?

As for myself, I'm an emarketing manager in the ski resort industry. My strength is driving traffic to websites with a little bit of SEO experience, some mobile marketing experience, some social media, some PPC, some web video, etc.

http://www.stickypages.ca, a company I am involved with, is interested in handling the design aspects. Logos, web design, email marketing platform, etc.

Programming would definitely be a large undertaking, along with the research behind the formulas and collecting the correct information through web forms.

I think it has potential - I've seen similar ideas out there but nothing as intense. So, what does the Crowd think?

I like it very much.... You are getting my highest vote!

You may need to get an agency to back the veracity of the tag, like the "organic" labels, but it's DEFINITELY something that most people would take real notice of.

kudos...

a greenwatch something to pinpoit the real earth savers and heroes!

I like the idea, but see two problems with it....
1) Where does the money come from? How will you earn money?
2) How will you prevent copy-cats from taking away your business?

There is a third issue, but I'm not sure there is anything you can do about it...and that is; as you've outlined the plan, the data is provided by the companies being rated...i.e.; NOT a disinterested third party. How do you know it is valid/accurate? How will anyone else, and as such, how will they then be able to trust the results?

So this sprouted up - http://www.OneMillionActsOfGreen.com - terrible domain to type but it has the backing of CBC. It's a similar idea, but misses some of the viral aspects. Why not province vs province? Maybe that's what the "groups and challenges" is, I haven't looked too closely yet.

Indeed those are definitely hurdles. Product placement could be one way (I used this faucet, save this much water a year, and you can buy it here-LINK), your standard web advertising is another option. The data you would have is endlessly valuable to writers of all sorts - you could have a subscription based quarterly research paper about trends, popular products, etc.

Copy cats, what can you do? They're always around. Offer a better product that's more valuable to the visitor. Make it interesting without having to contribute...

Your third issue comes down to the fact that I wouldn't expect a service like this to be authoritative to the point of being considered fact. There would have to be generalizations. The key is that you're measuring reductions, you're not tracking output in general. At the end of the day, if you know product A uses X amount of energy and product B uses 30% less energy, and you have a generalized stat of how much the typical person/business uses that product in a year, you should be able to come to a conclusion. The key is that the same formula is used for other users in the same "class". Whether that class is based off of company size, operating industry, or size of family I just don't know which route would be the best.

What I do know is there will always be endless debate. If it's a water topic, maybe someone lives in an area that requires extensive water treatment efforts versus someone who's water is straight from a well. There's similar arguments for electricity.

I think OneMillionActsOfGreen.com serves it's purpose quite well. They focus on tracking efforts and report back to the individual what effects their efforts have had. That's the first step towards inspiring acts of green. I would just take the competitive nature one step further and bring it into the business world and start comparing industries, provinces/states, maybe use a map mashup to see who's making efforts in your neighborhood - a heat map type of approach could show Canada at a glance, the darker the green the more green efforts have been made. They have a Facebook group, but where's the Facebook application? Submit your contributions through Facebook and it posts to your Facebook profile for your 300 friends to see. 300 friends then have the awareness and ability to install the app themselves - but going "viral" isn't always a guarantee.

good idea good luck

cool idea wish you luck

I think the people who will make alot from this are auditors, becos you need someone to verify what the company reports, and whether it reported it via your formula....which brings us to the big question, how are you going to get revenue from this?