Standardizing Standards for People Who Don't Like Standards

I was part of a sustainability council meeting for members of a multi billion dollar industry this afternoon and was struck (again) about the sheer volume of work that goes into creating a sustainability standard. Typically, our connection with an item being green is through a label on a product's package. But (like making sausage) seeing the actual process of how a real standard becomes that label can be a draining experience. To get to the label that this industry will launch in 2009, they have invested four years of research, a few thousand volunteered hours by member companies employees (with self paid travel), and thousands of dollars spent on consultants and submission of their entire process to a standards body that certifies/creates real standards in accordance with internationally accepted practices. In a nutshell, this is hard work. 

Governance, marketing, compliance committees and sub committees meet and review minutes, discuss progress and basically pole vault over mouse turd sized issues to make sure the standard can be approved. It is both draining and awe inspiring to see this work get done. It is also some of the most tedious crap I've ever hurled myself into and subsequently dragged myself out of. Yet every time I get to be a part of this process, I'm reminded that there are so many people working to do the right thing. 

However, there are some in industry and in companies that simply call the marketing department and have an expected, hollow, eco-label developed and then placed on their product. I've seen this done. And as consumers, it's extremely hard to decipher what is real and what is corporate spin.  

While we take for granted that manufacturers and product suppliers are meeting our expectations regarding sustainability, the good ones, the ones that open themselves up to real standard development and do the right thing put in unbelievable effort to create a visual piece of iconography that we can recognize and say, "oh...cool". 

Here's to those who'll do the leg work so we can buy green.