Tags: Clean Tech, energy efficiency, Green Tech, Stock Exchange, World Watch Institute
Sustainability, Green Tech and GreenIt. Words and expression we are used to by now..though more and more we hear about Cleantech. Here China talks, the world´s biggest carbon emitter. China has enormous environmental goals and huge challenges to achieve those goals.
According to a report from World Watch Institute, Green innovations are clearly leading Chinese business today. This should be compared to former competitive advantages, such as low wages and low price production.
The Chinese government wants to, according to their five year plan, develop Green Tech and will be leading in the Clean Tech rally. In fact, this has already started. China will be the world´s leader in green and clean products.
They want to, and will, be the biggest in everything green and clean, such as electric cars, sustainable construction and energy efficiency.
In comparision to Europe´s problem in trying to stock exchange green enterprices, China has already six huge energy environment companies on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and two more are on it´s way.
The fight for Chinese Green money has started!
Tags: child labour, computers, developing countries, Fair Trade, Impactt, low wages, Make IT Fair, social responsibility, TCO Certified, work conditions
Fair Trade is a successful labelling organization. The number of products bearing the Fair Trade label are increasing every year. More and more consumers, companies and organizations prefer to buy Fair Trade labelled chocolate, coffee, tea etc. It’s is obvious that consumers and companies care about the work conditions for workers and farmers in developing countries. The Fair Trade label is a tool for selecting products that aligns with our conscience. The chocolate simple taste better when you know that the farmers have been reasonable paid.
What about our conscience when buying computers?
Most of the IT products sold all over the world are actually manufactured in countries such as China, the Philippines and Taiwan. The working conditions for industrial workers in these countries are often very poor, with long working days, extremely low wages and limited rights to organise themselves. Child labour is not unusual, and forced labour is known to exist. I recommend you to visit the websites of the organisations Make IT Fair and Impactt to find out more about this.
Since 2009 the TCO Certified certification program for ICT products also cover one requirement on social responsibility. The requirement means that companies who manufacture products with th TCO Certified label must demonstrate that they are proactively engaged with social responsibility as a means of improving the working conditions during the manufacturing process. This is an initial step in trying to influence the IT industry to improve working conditions for the people involved in the manufacture of IT products. Read more about the requirement on social responsibility in the TCO Certified certification.
I would definitely prefer computers that have been produced under good working conditions, that the workers in the manufacturing process have got reasonable wages. Wouldn’t you?
Posted by Birgitta Halvarsson
