Remember the tired, worn adage - “If everyone went and jumped off a cliff would you do it?” Well…. to do what we can to try to stem the flow of the impending tidal wave of global eco-disaster, ArcStone’s officially going green.

Not that we weren’t green before, it’s just that our past policy was implicit and somewhat lazy. It’s past time to make it explicit and clear to everyone who works here or comes in contact with us.

So please forgive me for jumping on the green hybrid bandwagon, but it’s truly too important to remain complacent and do nothing. Imagine if every business did this. With enough critical mass, I’m sure we’d make an impact.

It starts with one household and one business at a time. As Lisa (my bride) so eloquently put it yesterday, “Action creates clarity.” We’ll clearly see results only if we act and adjust accordingly.

It’s time to act now - here’s the public unveiling of ArcStone’s First Greenification Agenda…

(I’ve written this in mostly general terms so others can copy and paste and use it themselves - ArcStone is following these guidelines and we will adjust as required and get feedback.)

1. Buy REC Offsets - Determine the amount of energy used within the last year. Here’s a calculator that can be applied for business (most seem to be for households). ArcStone generates approximately 103,000 pounds of CO2 per year. So we purchased RECs - Renewable Energy Credit) to offset our usage. View our certificate.
2. Consciously Consume - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

   Reduce
   - No paper plates, plastic forks, wax paper cups, etc.
   - Buy in bulk when applicable.
   - Favor local products with less packaging purchased from green suppliers.
   - Print only when necessary.

   Reuse
   - Sell and/or donate old office equipment.
   - Reuse draft paper printed on one side - set-up a station for this by each printer.

   Recycle
   - Black personal cans for trash - green for recyclables.
   - If there’s no recycling pick-up where you are - sponsor it (ArcStone is doing it for our building - good PR).
   - Dispose of waste / electronics properly.

3. Conserve Electricity / Gas - Use common sense. Turn on lights only as needed. Plug everything into power strips and turn off power strips when leaving the office. Program the adjustable thermostat, if you don’t have one, install one.
4. Encourage Sensible Commuting - Allow employees to telecommute as sensible. We typically allow non-support staff to telecommute two - three days a week. Encourage car pooling, mass transit, and muscle power alternatives for the work commute - at ArcStone green commuters (at least 3 / 5 day per week green commuting average) get earth day off and other special treats.
5. Meet Virtually with Clients / Vendors when Possible - Subscribe to an online virtual meeting platform and learn it well. We currently use - Adobe’s Acrobat Connect Pro which doesn’t require a software download for meeting guests. We like it.
6. Use Good Cleaning Supplies - Don’t buy cleaners with nasty chemicals - there’s really no reason for it. I like to ahere to the rule - if you can’t pronounce it, don’t buy it.

I consider this a draft of a living document - please feel free to comment and make suggestions….

In anticipation of Firefox 3’s release on a day TBD, Mozilla’s marketing team has created Download Day- Firefox 3’s 1,440-minute quest to make the Guinness Book of World Records for being the most downloaded software ever in one day. Download Day has a website, http://www.spreadfirefox.com/, created to spread the word and entice Firefox luverz across the globe to literally pledge their allegiance to Download Day. By clicking the “Pledge Now!” button, you increase your country’s number of pledges on a Google-Maps-esque world map. The cool part of the Download Day site is if you hold your mouse over a country on the map, you can view the aggregate number of pledges from that country.

Close to 175,000 of us Americans have given their pledges, while our friendly neighbors to the North have 30,000 on board (Good work Canada! You’re super!). How many people in Myanmar have pledged, you ask? Go see for yourself.

With already over a million pledges worldwide, Mozilla seems to be on track to grab the record, with potential to earn legendary status like Guinness Record Holders Jackie Bibby (most rattlesnakes held in mouth by their tails, 10, as well as three other rattlesnake-related records) and Niek Vermeulen (largest airplane barf bag collection- over 3,700). If you haven’t already, go make your pledge and become a part of history.

UPDATE: Firefox 3 will be released on Tuesday next week (June 17).

A few years back our friend Dave Schroeder of Pilotvibe decided it was time to put the Midwest on the ‘flash’ map, and started Flashbelt.

For those who don’t know - its an incredibly educational and inspirational 3 days of presentations, panel discussions and workshops. Speakers typically have a focus, whether industry (advertising, commerce, education) or specialty (flash audio, as3, animation etc) and often are well-known for their groundbreaking work in a specific area or project. Its a refreshing mix of Adobe Scientists, authors/gurus, well known designers/developers and independent experimental producers. Our own Nick Longtin even presented last year.

Whether you are someone who sells interactive projects, designs for the web, or develops flash interactive or other, I would highly recommend catching at least a couple of presentations. You will learn and walk away inspired. It rivals the feeling of Spring in Minnesota for the interactive industry.

June 8-11th in Minneapolis, MN - See you there