We view a lot of new products as fads because they become part of the national conversation today and disappear tomorrow. Products and services like Facebook, Twitter, and the iPhone will certainly go the way of the Rubik’s cube within 10 years.
One topic that has emerged over the past few years is being “green”. I have personally seen many products advertised as “green”, which is a stretch for some of these products. However, they put “green” sticker on the package anyway as an incentive for us to buy it because of our altruistic nature. Ironically, even British Petroleum was promoting itself as a “green” oil producer prior to the Golf oil spill. As with most fads, it will become overused and the public will eventually become bored with it.
In my opinion, being “green” is a fad. However, fads are often sudden “high impact” events or topics that bring a certain issue to the forefront of the national conversation. The fad itself may not live on, but it will generate a trend that will continue to persist for many years. The term “green” may go away, but environmentally friendly products and services are here to stay.
The benefits of being “green” include reducing our carbon footprint and saving money. Being “green” will thrive in the future due to the need to repair the damage that we have caused to the environment and its financial benefits.
Fleet vehicles are among the top contributors of carbon emissions. Statistics from the EPA and other sources say that they contribute up to 30% of the carbon dioxide sent into Earth’s atmosphere every day. They also state that an idling fleet vehicle emits 12 pounds of carbon dioxide for each hour that it idles. Smart fleet operators will take steps to control excessive idling and speeding. These two activities are the most frequent wasteful activities found within fleets and consume the most fuel and emit unnecessary carbon emissions into earth’s atmosphere.
Various technologies exist to help fleets curb excessive idling and speeding. We provide a GPS fleet management solution that monitors these activities through reports and alerts. A wise fleet manager would evaluate all of his or her options in order to control fleet idling and speeding in order to reduce carbon emissions and fuel costs.
Being “green” is today’s fad that is forcing us to think about how we are impacting our environment. It will become a long-term trend that will change the way we treat the environment and operate our businesses.