Carpe Diem - Western Water & Climate Change
Welcome to the Carpe Diem Network Forum.
Exloco incubates new campaigns and initiatives, developing solutions to environmental sustainability challenges in the western United States. We partner with investors — venture philanthropists, social change organizations, progressive public agencies and for-profits — committed to advancing new strategies for a healthy and vibrant West. The Carpe Diem - W ...learn more
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Created: Nov 19, 2007
Updated: Jun 16, 2009
Membership: Open To Apply
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What if the most important step you could take to help solve the world's most challenging problems was to drop into the corner store on a certain week and buy a certain brand of paper towels? Would you be willing to take that step? What if it was a candy bar? If it were known that the act of buying this candy bar would be a monumental victory in the struggle against climate change, how many among us would make THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE of eating a bar of chocolatey caramelly goodness? How many?
My name is Brent, and I'm starting an organization called Carrotmob. I'd love to have you involved. I'll explain the idea briefly here, and you can explore the links to the right to find out more. Thanks!
Carrotmob will be a non-profit organization. Our goal is to improve the world by helping companies embrace socially responsible choices. Our primary focus is the environment. We recognize that corporations must keep profit as their top priority. Historically, this fact has meant that the environment has suffered, since companies have made more money by harming the planet. We are going to put rewards in place that will make environmental responsibility the more profitable choice. Companies will do what we want, not because of negative pressure, or morality, or a boycott, or a petition...there are enough sticks out there. We need a big juicy carrot. They will do what we say because they won't be able to resist the profits.
We will create a large network of consumers. We will form partnerships with other larger advocacy groups to use their research and infrastructure. Together we will identify opportunities for improving corporate behavior. For example, let's say there's an environmentally harmful chemical in common brands of soap. We would approach several competing soap companies. We will explain the problem, and see which of them is willing to eliminate the harmful chemical. They will bid for our support. Each company will raise the bar with how much good they are willing to do. Perhaps Company X pledges to remove the chemical. Then Company Y pledges to remove the chemical and reduce factory emissions 20%. And so on. The bigger our network, the further they will be willing to go. We accept the best offer. Company Y agrees to take the steps that we want, and then we make it worth their while with a carrot: Everyone in the network buys millions of dollars worth of their soap, and in the process Company Y gains a wealth of reputation capital as well. The most responsible business decision also gets the most profit. Delicious!
And it also reflects an ignorance of the nature and purpose of corporations. The Founding Fathers had a well-based fear of concentrations of power, whether that be political or financial. They rebelled not only against the British Empire but also the financial empire of the Dutch East India Company. The first protest here in America against "free trade" was the Boston Tea Party.
Consequently, in addition to the limited powers vested in the federal government and the checks and balances of the Constitution, economic corporations were severely limited in scope, power, and lifespan. A corporation could be formed only for a designated period of time and to serve a legitimate public purpose, such as to build a roadway or railway or bridge or waterworks. A financial profit was allowed only if it was subordinated to the pubic good. And corporate contributions to politicians were prosecuted as bribery.
This began to change with the notorious 1886 Supreme Court decision in Santa Clara County vs. Southern Pacific Railroad which, without argument or discussion or justification, declared a corporation to be a legal person. And this, of course, followed the bloody forced unification of the several sovereign states into an indivisible Republic by Lincoln - a revolutionary shift which set the stage for the US to become exactly what we rebelled against: a gobal empire which serves the needs of the corporate elite.
Profit as an end in itself is an unmitigated evil and, supported by a political empire which is the handmaiden of capitalism, it cannot but be destructive to the social and biological webs which support all that is good and healthy.
So teasing corporate capitialism into making more profit by appearing "green" is yet another clever way to increase the power of the monster which is devouring our life-support systems.