So far the sustainability internship has provided additional perspective to my role at BWB. While I am familiar with many aspects of BWB, I now have more motivation to view my work and the business with sustainability in mind. As such, from the general sustainability perspective there appears to be many opportunities to improve the impact the company is having on the environment. However, while the company is sincere in its efforts and eager to find the balance between the 3Ps (Planet, People, Profit), there are financial realities of the business.
An example of trying to find balance and harmony between the 3Ps (2Ps at least) is in the book drop box program. These drop boxes allow the community to donate books to a location that will ensure books find the best possible home. This is where we have one challenge of finding the proper balance between Profits and Planet. Picking up each bin requires company resources and also the Earth’s natural resources (most notably, gasoline). So in one very simplified scenario:
Thirty miles from the warehouse, 1st Street has 3 drop boxes that are located within 1 mile of each other. Bin 1 is full and needs to be picked up. Bin 2 is 75% full. Bin 3 is 50% full.
Given the distance from the warehouse and proximity of the 3 bins, do you collect all at once? Or do you collect them only when they become full?
From a simple environmental perspective, you would collect all the bins at once. The use of gasoline (System Condition #1 violation) and the impact of having a truck on the road makes that conclusion a no-brainer. Additionally, gasoline cost money as does the time of the driver making the pick-up. As gas cost X and the driver is paid Y, picking the up all the bins at once is X+Y. Making the pick-up separately is X+Y+ X+Y+ X+Y . So, if you thought picking up all the bins at once is the correct thing to do… you’d be wrong.
Long story short, processing a half-full bin is inefficient. A half-full bin will need to be processed twice to produce the same sales as a single full bin. Ultimately the price of gas and pick-up is only a fraction of the processing costs. The exciting news is that the program is still new and will offer many opportunities for improvements to maximize profit and environmental efficiency. But for the time being it is: Profit 1 Planet 0.
It’s been sometime since I attended this university. I’m talking decades but it’s always great to come back and see you still trying to change the world.