Comments on: Greening eBay http://bowblog.com/2005/08/10/greening-ebay/ Thu, 17 May 2012 13:19:23 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Jon Worth http://bowblog.com/2005/08/10/greening-ebay/comment-page-1/#comment-1021 Jon Worth Thu, 18 Aug 2005 14:14:51 +0000 http://bowblog.com/?p=841#comment-1021 This eBay offsetting plan is very ingenious, and while offsetting is not a long term solution, it for sure helps a little for the moment - have a look at The Guardian's partnership with Climate Care for decent example of offsetting in practice. <a href="http://www.climatecare.org/guardian/" rel="nofollow">http://www.climatecare.org/guardian/</a> Offsetting can be a stop-gap until we get fusion power working in 2050, have masses of cheap electricity and can hence use hydrogen in our cars and planes. Now I'm dreaming... This eBay offsetting plan is very ingenious, and while offsetting is not a long term solution, it for sure helps a little for the moment – have a look at The Guardian’s partnership with Climate Care for decent example of offsetting in practice. http://www.climatecare.org/guardian/

Offsetting can be a stop-gap until we get fusion power working in 2050, have masses of cheap electricity and can hence use hydrogen in our cars and planes. Now I’m dreaming…

]]> By: Steve Bowbrick http://bowblog.com/2005/08/10/greening-ebay/comment-page-1/#comment-1020 Steve Bowbrick Sun, 14 Aug 2005 12:48:34 +0000 http://bowblog.com/?p=841#comment-1020 I know the theory's being challenged all over the place but I think the underlying idea of reengineering business (in this case person-to-person trade) to recognise externalities like environmental damage would be a good thing. I guess the thing to do would be to make sure you're providing a flexible enough 'Environmental API' so that better and more effective methods can be plugged in later (sequestration, for instance).<p>Ebay is a good place to try this because, just as the company currently enables millions of smaller enterprises by allowing them access to resources and assets they couldn't ordinarily afford, they could also enable countless small businesses access to green technologies and business models.</p> I know the theory’s being challenged all over the place but I think the underlying idea of reengineering business (in this case person-to-person trade) to recognise externalities like environmental damage would be a good thing. I guess the thing to do would be to make sure you’re providing a flexible enough ‘Environmental API’ so that better and more effective methods can be plugged in later (sequestration, for instance).

Ebay is a good place to try this because, just as the company currently enables millions of smaller enterprises by allowing them access to resources and assets they couldn’t ordinarily afford, they could also enable countless small businesses access to green technologies and business models.

]]> By: Phil Gyford http://bowblog.com/2005/08/10/greening-ebay/comment-page-1/#comment-1019 Phil Gyford Thu, 11 Aug 2005 09:04:32 +0000 http://bowblog.com/?p=841#comment-1019 I've never been quite convinced by this carbon neutrality thing of planting trees to offset, for example, plane flights. It doesn't seem like a particularly long-term solution: we can't just go on planting more and more trees as the number of flights increases, and what happens to all that "locked-up" carbon when the tree dies? I'd like someone to tell me I'm wrong, but it always sounds more like a way to ease a conscience rather than save a world. I’ve never been quite convinced by this carbon neutrality thing of planting trees to offset, for example, plane flights. It doesn’t seem like a particularly long-term solution: we can’t just go on planting more and more trees as the number of flights increases, and what happens to all that “locked-up” carbon when the tree dies?

I’d like someone to tell me I’m wrong, but it always sounds more like a way to ease a conscience rather than save a world.

]]> By: Richard Houston http://bowblog.com/2005/08/10/greening-ebay/comment-page-1/#comment-1018 Richard Houston Wed, 10 Aug 2005 09:22:32 +0000 http://bowblog.com/?p=841#comment-1018 Where you see a magic tree, I see an eBay leaf. Where you see a magic tree, I see an eBay leaf.

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