Workshop: How Consumers, Retailers, and Manufacturers are Trying to Buy a Better World

Responsible Purchasing: How Consumers,  Retailers, and Manufacturers are Trying to Buy a Better World
Instructor: Scot Case, TerraChoice and EcoLogo

This course meets on Thursdays (September 9, 16, 23, 30) at 10:00-11:30 AM PT-USA.

Early Bird pricing extended through September 1, 2010.

Responsible Purchasing: How Consumers, Retailers, and Manufacturers are buying a better future using the power of corporate/government purchasing to reduce costs and drive environmental and social innovation.

In this four-part series, Scot Case will provide an overview of the strategies government and corporate purchasers are using to buy more environmentally and socially responsible goods and services while balancing traditional supply chain concerns like price, performance, and availability.

-         Discover ways to buy a better future.  

-         Develop skills to reduce costs while driving environmental and social innovation.  

-         Explore strategies government/corporate purchasers are using to buy more environmentally and socially responsible goods and services while balancing traditional supply chain concerns like price, performance, and availability.  

-         Learn how and why purchasers are incorporating human health, environmental, and social considerations into the routine purchasing process. Identify some of the most successful green purchasing strategies.

-         Gain practical writing skills found in typical sustainable purchasing policies and practices. 

-         Differentiate among the several environmental standards and how to avoid greenwashing.

-         Understand how to integrate meaningful environmental considerations into the routine purchasing process while continuing to reduce costs.

Week 1 -- Purchasers Save the World: Learn How and Why Purchasers are Incorporating Human Health, Environmental, and Social Considerations into the Routine Purchasing Process

·       Explain the hidden human health and environmental impacts of every purchasing decision.

·       Define Responsible Purchasing.

·       Describe the historic role government purchasing has played in shaping our future.

·       Understand some of the ways purchasers are integrating human health and environmental considerations into their purchasing decisions.

·       Locate useful responsible purchasing resources.

Week 2 -- Responsible Green Purchasing: Tricks of the Trade

·       Identify some of the most successful strategies being used to implement responsible purchasing programs.

·       Cite relevant examples of others’ use of the strategies.

·       Understand how to apply the strategies within their own organization.

·       Know where to locate additional information.

Week 3 -- Writing a Responsible Green Purchasing Policy

·       Describe the key responsible purchasing components found in typical green purchasing policies and practices.

·       Determine which components would be relevant within one’s own organization.

·       Understand how other purchasing agencies have supported the development of relevant policies.

Week 4 -- Avoiding the Greenwash Gremlin: Learn How to Avoid Being Fooled By Misleading Environmental Claims

·       Identify the seven sins of greenwashing.

·       Differentiate among the different environmental standards.

·       Understand how to integrate meaningful environmental considerations into the routine purchasing process while continuing to reduce costs.