It seems that every holiday season brings not only presents and parties, but also predictions for the new year. (We at WhatTheyThink are no exception, as the
Print & Creative 2010 Yearbook and 2011 Forecast report, published last month, proves.) What lies in the year ahead for environmental responsibility and sustainability?
Business Green offers 11 (as in 2011) things to look for in the next 12 months. Some are a bit UK-centric, but some general expectations:
1. The rise of the electric car
2. [R]ecord oil prices
7. Ethical consumer spending will keep rising
11. Something catastrophic will happen
As for that last one, they add:
You do not have to tell this to those Australians living in Queensland where an area the size of France and Germany combined is currently under water, but 2011 will see a large number of weather-related disasters.
We cannot say how many – we cannot even say with any confidence that there will be more disasters than last year. But we do know that, statistically speaking, climate change is making extreme weather events more likely.
Certain groups may choose to ignore or dispute this reality, but the people who analyse risk and sell you insurance for a living are not amongst them - they are worried. Climate-related tragedies will continue to occur with a worrying frequency and those businesses and governments that heed the warning will step up investment in climate adaptation measures during 2011.
About Richard Romano
Richard Romano is Managing Editor of WhatTheyThink. He curates the Wide Format section on WhatTheyThink.com. He has been writing about the graphic communications industry for more than 25 years. He is the author or coauthor of more than half a dozen books on printing technology and business. His most recent book is “Beyond Paper: An Interactive Guide to Wide-Format and Specialty Printing.
