Comments on: Is green marketing really a red herring?

By: Andy Jarosz

Andy Jarosz — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 13:48:33 +0000

I’m with you John – there are many costs to the gas guzzling bus beyond the ticket price. It’s a question of getting us, the public, to include those factors in our ‘value calculation.’ While so few of us do and people continue to buy on price alone (eg: train v plane as Jools points out) these glib attempts at green spin continue to be strong on irony and little else. It’s only when people are able to choose the green choice according to their value calculation that they might then think “and it’s green too”. A complex area of course – and a topic to debate for many years to come. Thanks gents for your valued thoughts.

By: John

John — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 12:47:47 +0000

Andy, I agree with all you have written, but I’m not going to just leave it at that, otherwise I’m wasting my time and yours. In an age when most of us know the price of everything, but not the cost, by this I mean the environmental and social costs, most consumers buy on price. Staying with costs and prices, the earth provides us with food, energy, fresh air and water. These have a value and very rarely are they considered in economic terms. A cheaper gas guzzling, polluting bus service would not be cheaper when all of the costs of illnesses from pollution, increases in the cost of oil as it runs out faster, not to mention the costs of keeping a planet affected by climate change, habitable.

By: Jools Stone

Jools Stone — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 12:17:00 +0000

Have to say I agree Andy. Rail travel is often marketed in this way but most will only opt for it over flying if it’s as convenient and affordable, or at least if there’s not much in it, and that’s sadly rarely the case.