Communities for Change is a UK project celebrating community organizations involved in grassroots action on sustainability. The logo and brand development by Because Studio are a great example of Europe’s clean design aesthetic. If this same project were done in the U.S., I’d expect a lot of brown and green with stock illustrations of leaves and all of the type to be set in Papyrus. This is much brighter and more positive.

Moxie Sozo

This week I had the pleasure of stopping by Moxie Sozo, a Boulder, CO based ad agency. They were a very gracious group of hard-working and extremely talented people. They’re also the first certified Zero Waste, 100% carbon neutral, 100% renewable-energy powered design and advertising firm in the world. That’s not only responsible, but a great marketing move.

Moxie Sozo is helping organize The Haiti Poster Project benefiting victims of the recent earthquake. Entries are due March 15th.

On Alex Bogusky’s latest FearLess Q+A show, the CP+B Chairman sat down with two guys from Green Garage, a Boulder start-up focused on helping you make your car run cleaner and more efficiently. It sounds like a bit of a marketing ploy since keeping your car running smoothly is ideally what all garages do. But these guys do sound like they’re taking extra steps to protect the environment, save you money, and cut down on unnecessary maintenance. They also come and pick up your car, which is awfully convenient.

Driving a car will never be a very “green” thing to do, and these guys admit that. But like just about everything else, it means there’s always room for improvement. I think it’s a cool thing they’re doing and it’s another cool project for CP+B to be involved with.

Proving time and again that green marketing is more about what you do than what you say, New Belgium Brewing has announced that the largest privately owned solar array in Colorado has gone live at their plant. I’ll drink to that!

First of all, this is a really good ad. And apparently it’s working.

That said, do we honestly still believe that an SUV is the opposite of a Snuggie? Fat chance, tough guy. There are about a zillion soccer moms parading around outside the nearest Crate & Barrel that would beg to differ. In fact, SUVs have come to represent the exact same thing as a Snuggie… warm, protective, comfortable. They’re the giant obnoxious robe-blankets of our city streets.

I’m not saying that SUVs are all bad. In fact, I do have a fondness for smaller, more efficient SUVs like the Suburu wagons (which have inexplicably grown in size recently). It’s not so much the vehicles themselves, it’s how we’re driving them. If you use an SUV primarily for solo commutes and navigating city traffic, there is nothing rugged or tough about your ride. You are NOT the guy in this commercial. Not even close.