LOHAS

The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows. Buddha

With six months to go before the election, President Obama has officially launched his campaign. This is an important time for him not to take anything for granted, but also to stay true to his beliefs and ethics.

LOHAS.com recently conducted a survey to our online readers to gauge what specific LOHAS elements resonated most and a bit more on the type of people who are following LOHAS.com. Despite a rather small number of responses the results were quite interesting and I think reflects the opinions and values of most LOHAS oriented folks who read our weekly, attend our events and visit our website.

What I find most interesting is that readership is in line with the larger LOHAS consumer studies and that responses tended to be female, well educated, affluent, professional. The main reason they look to LOHAS materials is for sustainable economy information followed by networking events. Paraben-Free, Non-GMO and organic are high priorities and many are willing to spend 5-10% into sustainable products/operations.

You can view the survey results here.

Congratulations to the 2012 Rancho La Puerta Sponsored LOHAS Scholarship Winners! Each of these winners received a complimentary pass to attend the upcoming LOHAS Forum on behalf of Rancho La Puerta spa and resort.

A radical shift is happening in the marketplace—consumers are increasingly basing purchasing decisions not just on value, but on their values.

As I describe in my book, The New Rules of Green Marketing: Strategies, Tools and Inspiration for Sustainable Branding (Berrett-Koehler; February 2011), now more than ever, consumers of all stripes are demanding that the brands they buy and the companies that make them, share their own personal social and environmental values.

Twenty-three-year-old Jessica Felstead has a new red woollen coat. Buttoning it in front of the mirror she spins round to show her friends. "I absolutely love it!" she grins.

Around her women are admiring handbags, riffling through a clothes rail and fishing out brightly coloured scarves from a pile on the table.

I'm in the middle of a clothes swapping party at the offices of sustainable PR agency Futerra, and this morning Jessica's red coat was hanging unworn in the back of my wardrobe.

Ever since the resurgence of environmentalism in 1990, consumer polls have attempted to measure awareness, attitudes and behaviors towards environmental issues and products. Poll after poll has found that consumers claim to be concerned about the issues, they report high levels of green product purchase, and even claim willingness to pay a premium for greener products and packages.

But empirical evidence doesn’t seem to jibe with the research. In some markets, green products barely eke out 3% share, in contrast to the near majorities of consumers who express to pollsters interest in all things green. And despite consumer pronouncements otherwise, premium-priced green brands often gather dust on shelves. 

Fair Trade USA recently published its 2011 Fair Trade Almanac: a compliation of data that the organization's certification department collects from both business partners and producer organizations. The report serves as a key indicator for the health and growth of Fair Trade in the United States.

The 2011 edition showcases monumental growth in Fair Trade Certified™ imports, record-breaking community development premiums, and Fair Trade USA’s reinvigorated efforts to strengthen producer organizations through a variety of new cooperative development programs. This parallels significant increase in consumer awareness, which has quadrupled in the past 5 years.
 

Green has gone mainstream. Not too long ago, just a small group of deep green consumers existed. Today, 83% of consumers (Source: Natural Marketing Institute, 2009) - representing four generations, Baby Boomers, Millennials, Gen Ys and Gen Zs - are some shade of green. Each in their own way, these generations are quickly transforming what used to be a fringe market that appealed to a faction of eco-hippies is now a bona fide $290 billion industry ranging from organic foods to hybrid cars, ecotourism to green home furnishings.

A quick review of sustainability trends reported on the internet shows (not surprisingly) that energy will stay a high priority. The focus is on alternative energy, energy efficiency  and solar energy. Within the green building movement, retrofitting buildings for sustainability is gaining momentum.