SHIFT 2010 is the most cohesive set of intelligence on attitudes/ perceptions/ behaviors around sustainability and social responsibility – and the impact this has on lifestyle choices, brand relationships and purchase decisions.

We are thrilled to say that the next installment of SHIFT – another 5,000 North American study and Sustainability Passion Index consumer segmentation – is currently in the field and we will have data in the next 2 weeks or so.

SHIFT makes up the backbone of all the work we do, and in addition to all the cultural analysis and marketplace intelligence gathering we complete throughout the year, it’s crucial to get a very robust pulse on what everyday people make of this thing called ‘sustainability’, and its relationship with brands, lifestyle choices and purchase decisions.

What’s more, this year’s study will dig even deeper into the following areas:

• Political affiliations: What relationship do Republicans have with sustainability? How does this compare with Democrats? Or in Canada, on the eve of the Liberals no-confidence vote in Canada, are Conservative voters any different than NDP or Liberal supporters.
• Sustainable consumption categories: In 2008 we looked at which macro categories people said they had made or planned to make sustainable lifestyle choices and purchase decisions: My Home Energy, My Clothing, My Children, My Financial Investments and much more (click here for list). This year we’re going micro, looking at the myriad decisions for each category. For people making sustainable decisions related to their children, we’re taking a deeper look at food, clothing or toys. For Home Energy, is it appliances? Lightbulbs? etc. For food, is it meats? Produce? Dairy? etc… We’ll find out.
• Personal banking: who is making socially responsible and sustainable choices related to personal banking? And within that, is it credit cards, mortgages or day-to-day banking?
• Google search terms: what search terms are people using when searching for information on a brand’s sustainability ‘credibility’?
• Product labeling: What specific labeling characteristics are people looking for? Do they want to see Certified Organic? Or do they want to see Produced Locally?
• Product packaging: What actual packaging materials are people looking for? Local? Organic? Toxin-free?
• Social media (Blogs, Facebook, Twitter). For people who rank Fair Trade as a top sustainability issue, what’s their relationship with Facebook or Twitter? Alternatively, people who are using Facebook, or Twitter frequently, what’s their relationship with sustainability?

 Access to this intelligence starts at $1,000.

Look for exclusive early findings from SHIFT 2010 on Matter Network. Matter will be sharing exclusive findings from the energy and digital technology sections of SHIFT as the data rolls in via their website, Twitter and Facebook page.

www.matternetwork.com

Twitter @matternetwork

Facebook page

SHIFT has been put to work for a number of great companies including Worldchanging, Adidas, The Ethical Funds Company, The North Face, Keen Footwear, Starbucks, Lowe Worldwide, Droga5, Butler Shine & Stern, Publicis, and GSD&M’s Idea City to name a few… if you’re interested in learning more, email kierstin [at] ci-shift [dot] com, or call + 1 604 877 1277.

  "Many people trying to market sustainability efforts barely know what the word means, and have no new ideas for how to explore and explain it -- that's what makes Ci and their SHIFT Report so refreshing.

They combine deep, grounded knowledge of the sustainability landscape with fresh thinking and hot insights about how to actually get through to people about what your business is doing for the planet and humanity. SHIFT is about changing your thinking, not just the buzzwords in your pamphlets.”

- Alex Steffan CEO and Executive Editor, Worldchanging Author, Worldchanging: A User's Guide for the 21st Century 

OK… so it’s not The League of Gentlemen – thankfully - but Kierstin will be speaking at the launch of LoCo BC today and will be sharing some insights from Ci’s SHIFT Report on the relationship with ‘local’, and where it fits into the overall sustainability equation.

If you’re in Vancouver this evening, check out the info here.

“I've tried more. It's awful. I want less, and I want it now.” Consumed with too much stuff and overwhelmed by too many things to do, The Guardian’s Charlie Brooker nails it with this terrific article… Time for a Cultural diet!

Yet another example that Sustainability - whether it's focused on the environment, or otherwise - is not new! Simply something we have to remember, not learn.

Incidentally, when it comes to determining whether there is more value in the term 'Global Warming' OR 'Climate Change' we plugged both terms into last year's SHIFT report. Guess what? There's zero difference, 58% of North Americans ranked 'Global Warming' as an important sustainability issue AND 58% of North Americans ranked 'Climate Change' as an important sustainability issue.

Forget Bob Willard’s ‘Sustainability Advantage’ or Paul Hawken’s ‘Ecology of Commerce’ – both great books in their own right– but when it comes to sustainability, I always refer people to Dr Seuss’ ‘The Lorax’.

For me, it’s the ultimate example of how you talk about sustainability in a way that’s unique to you and your brand. There’s no mention of words ‘sustainability’ or ‘pollution’, ‘eco’ or ‘environmentalism’. Just a simple, colourful and captivating story.

And though it’s been a while since his debut in ‘71, I’m pleased to see the Lorax take centre stage in Energystar’s latest campaign.

Calling all Musos, calling all Musos…

Here’s a question for you… What’s the sound of sustainability?

Beyond the obvious – MJ’s ‘Earth Song’, Midnight Oils ‘Beds are Burning’ (Remember that? 1987!) and anything that Sting seems to have done recently – I’d love to hear about lesser known artists/ songs like Vanessa Richards' Occupying Army AS WELL AS songs that don’t just focus on the green pillar but also give a nod to the personal/ social and spiritual quota as well…

Let me know… here, or on twitter @hellojaseIf and where possible i'll post videos/ links/ props in later blogs...

Looking forward to hearing your comments.

We switched hosting service and the gap between the switch and pointing our domains to the right servers resulted in losing some of the content on our site... a month of blogs about hyper local, sustainable brands, and how to carve out an authentic sustainability story...

Think about it... if the planet was  wired like our 'Ci world' we'd simply 'turn the clock back' to pre-industrial revolution and lose a century plus worth of mass consumption and pollution - glorious... instead, you're left wondering: would i have read the blogs?

Tom Cruise, Sarah Palin, Christopher Hitchens, Lily Allen, Henry Rollins, Ekhart Tolle, Gordon Ramsey, Arnie Schwarzenegger… The Hour’s George Stroumboulopoulos is on his game right now, and interviews some of the most culturally influential folks around.

Last night he interviewed Dr. David Waltner-Toews - a specialist in the epidemiology of food and waterborne diseases – and discussed how Swine flu came about… basically, a bunch of Mexican farmers ignored biology. They cut back trees on the land to expand their pig farms. In their place they planted mango trees – very nice for the pigs, right? Trouble is, instead of just feeding the pigs the mangos attracted fruit bats. The bats ate the fruit, pooped down and the pigs got the virus that wasn’t causing any problems in the fruit bats”… and the farm workers picked up the virus from the pigs… and, you know the rest.

The lesson? Everything is connected. Time we all took a step back and learned a little more about ecology…

Well... rather than wait for the QT, here's the link to Kierstin's presentation (see first 30 mins) to Ad Fed of Oregon.

It’s not the finest piece of cinematography, but the presentation’s thought provoking, and Kierstin manages to get the audience laughing along the way… treat it like a podcast and listen to it while you work.

http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/1422801

The invite said ‘Multicultual potluck. Bring a dish from your cultural background’. I baked some soda bread - Irish soda bread. 

With kids in tow, we marched over to the felix’s school (all of one block), and stepped into the school gym. It was a little overwhelming at first - dozens and dozens of screaming kids - all ages. Rows and rows of tables, and parents and small ones sat patiently - well, as patient as you can be with hungry kids. 

The principal asked people to be patient while they organized things. The teachers took to their stations, and the feast began. There were Perogies and Korean noodles, a type of first nation flat bread, roast chicken, Kolbasa, Pakura’s, a huge Caesar salad… mountains of food from all over the world. Everyone lined up, everyone filled their plates and there was plenty of food left when everyone was done. It was delicious.

I spent the meal talking to an old lady from the Squamish nation, and a Filpino woman who was the mother of one of the kids in Felix’s class… I turned up thinking it would be one of those chores you do as a parent, I left with a belly full of food and a reminder that community can be satisfying on many levels.

If you happen to be in central Oregon… Kierstin is giving a presentation at the AdFed’s conference. The theme? ‘Sustainable Marketing – Making an impact without leaving a trace’.

Should be interesting… they’re thinking ‘environmental’, and she’s gonna let them know that for consumers it’s more than green. I’ll let you know how it goes…

Happy Earth day, by the way... keep it green and blue - and purple, red, pink, gold....

Building on the SHIFT Report data and specific insight on gamers and sustainability, Ci has developed an interactive multi-media platform called UnEarth. Set in the year 2325, UnEarth will be an episodic mobile device gaming experience that highlights the dire consequence of 20th Century living using rich story-telling and engaging characters.

As finalists we have been invited to attend a series of Development Lab workshops to shape and finesse the idea with the help of mentors in this space. UnEarth is a big idea with multiple touchpoints and we look forward to sharing more as this gaming experience takes shape and comes to life.

This year’s lab runs from March 25th to 27th at the Centre for Digital Media on the Great Northern Way Campus with the winner of the CBC development award will be announced in May… stay tuned!!!

I've worked in the ad agency/ marketing world for years, and that has meant working closely with others… I have always marveled at the fact that although I was in the room with the same people, when it came to discussing what was said in a meeting my creative partner, Ian (Check out the very cool and quirky design book he published) always seemed to pick up on stuff that I missed, and vice versa.

Who didn’t watch Obama’s inaugural address the other day? We all did. But what did he say to you? What did you pick up on?Me? Naturally, given my work and passion for sustainability, I heard him loud and clear when he said “We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories”, and .. "roll back the specter of a warming planet”. And totally think he was on point when he reminded us that the US – in fact everyone in the West – can longer “consume the world's resources without regard to effect”. Of course, this was gold to every ‘environmentalist’/ 'conscientious citizen' ear… but for me, the biggest theme was the simple fact that we have to Remember...

Remember “the sacrifices borne by our ancestors”, the men and women who worked hard in their labour… remember the way we used to live - if something was broke, it was fixed – you didn’t buy a new one. You took only what they needed, because taking more often meant someone close went without. And if you truly wanted extra, you worked for it – you didn’t just stick it on a credit card.In our ‘new era of responsibility’, I hope that we all take the time to appreciate the values that Obama identified for success - honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity – are, as he mentioned, old.

And that the cultural shift to sustainability - as we have mentioned before - is not new, but a forgotten culture.

We have our work cut out for us… but at least we can all find confidence in the fact that it has been done before.

For us, sustainability is simply about understanding the culture in which business operates.To do this, we look through a number of cultural lenses – fashion, art, music, food, films… and video games.

Now, I know what most of you are thinking: Sustainability + video games? A disproportionate number of video games – including hugely successful ones like Halo 3 (US$300 million revenue in its first week) and Grand Theft Auto 4 ($500 million in its first week) – are ‘murder simulators’, where you exercise you thumbs in ultra violent kill fests, right?

In many cases - yes, but it is also a hugely important industry that rakes in more money and - arguably as a result – now has more influence than Hollywood. It has a grip on the minds and hearts of millions of people and is a legitimate storytelling platform… it’s a medium that is going through a renaissance with acres upon acres of room to grow, so you can imagine how pleased I was to see read about Jason Rohrer, a video game programmer stationed in upstate new york, and particularly delighted to play his game – Gravitation(You can download it here).

It’s an extraordinary game – ridiculously simple, by contemporary standards. You – a character made up of 12 pixels – play ball with your son. The more you play, the greater your world becomes and the screen expands to reveal a ‘mario bros’ style platform above… jump up and your can reach the stars. These represent ideas, and once you reach them you head flames. Spend too much time collecting stars and you world shrinks, and when you descend to the lower level to play ball with your son again he’s not there anymore (this symbolizes the fact that he has grown up and moved on!). Spend too much time playing with the kid, and you don't get to fulfil your creative aspirations - or score points!

The point?? It’s about finding that balance between work and family. You don’t have to be a parent to understand this sustainability challenge – one that many of us tackle on a daily basis. In fact, 90% of North Americans ranked ‘Leading a balanced life’ as an important sustainability issue in the latest instalment of SHIFT.

Jason Rohrer – along with contemporaries such as Rod Humble and Ian Bogost – make up a 'new wave' of game developers keen on giving games more depth and purpose. Rohrer himself has been hired an ‘idea guy’ for Stephen Speilberg’s latest gaming creation.

In truth, I am not all surprised to see this shift. I have long been interested in the gaming industry - both as a gamer and cultural anthropologist, and with some purpose we asked respondents in our latest research, if they played or purchased video games. Crossed tabbed against a list of sustainability issues, you might be surprised at some of the findings. For North Americans who play video games almost every day:
-    ‘Feeling connected to my family, my friend and my community’ was important to 86% of everyday gamers;
-    ‘Pollution’ is considered a more important issue than global warming with 68% ranking it important compared with 59%;
-    67% of them believed ‘Being part of a better society’ was important to them;
-    to support the need for a game such as ‘Gravitation’ 86% of once a week gamers believed it was important to lead a balanced life; and finally
-    to punctuate the need for more depth and purpose in the games that are made, as many 62% of users believe ‘Higher purpose and spiritual contentment’ is an important issue.

I could go, there’s lot more, but the long and the short of it points toward the opportunity for mainstream gaming companies to create games with an equal measure of substance + style, safe in the knowledge that mainstream gamers (we have the data) want to be aware of the issues and are looking for a (gaming) life with some meaning.

Tragic, there’s no other word for it. A Wal-Mart Employee was trampled to death yesterday by a shrieking mob of shoppers desperate to make the most of the bargain-hunting ritual known as Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.

Ugly shopping scenes have become commonplace in most recent years but surely this is a shocking reminder that we - as a culture - need to revisit what is most important. Worse still, the NYT article noted that when shoppers were told they had to leave – that an employee had been killed - some people responded by yelling ‘I’ve been on line since yesterday morning’.

Terrible, terrible news… buoyed by the overall cultural shift to sustainability we are seeing in the marketplace, I am disappointed that people are still consumed with the notion that they need more stuff, regardless of the cost it has on others.

In a related story, in a Wal-Mart 15 miles away a customer sustained a cut on her leg when she was trampled by another crowd of overeager shoppers but she opted to finishing her shopping before filing the police report... I'd laugh, if it wasn't so sad!