An Apple a Day...

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” - Steve Jobs, Standford Univerisity’s Commencement Address

Without a doubt the world lost a leader of innovation and creativity this week with the passing of Steve Jobs. He was responsible for bringing us the personal computer, the mouse, the iPod, the iPhone, the iPad and many other "magical" technologies. So many of which have inspired us, helped us learn, organized us, and simply made life that much more enjoyable. Apple is a company that has provided us with many amazing products, ones that have had amazing impacts on our everyday life.

How have those same products impacted our environment? If you visit the Apple website you will find a page devoted to Apple’s environmental footprint. Being an Apple fan, and of course an environmental science teacher, I am happy to say that once again Steve Jobs is a leader in the things that matter. Apple has seen a growth in revenue of 74% since 2008, however their greenhouse emissions have only grown by 57% during this time. They are also the only company in their industry to exceed the ENERGY STAR specifications. Apple has gone to great lengths to use less materials in their products, remove toxic substances, manufacture responsibly, reduce packaging materials, make energy efficient products, use recyclable materials, and create products that last longer.

Steve Jobs set out to create products that consumers love. There is no doubt that he was successful. In addition to providing us with wonderful products we love to use, Apple has continued to look to the future and manufactured products in an environmentally conscience way. Giving us the products we want, from a company in which we can be proud.

At least that is the picture painted by on Apple’s website. In April 2011, the website Appadvice.com published a story in which Greenpeace accuses Apple of being one of the worst environmental offenders in the tech industry. Greenpeace ranked Apple dead last in their reliance on coal, claiming that 54% of its energy is obtained from this dirty energy source. In contrast, the article later quotes Jonathan Koomey, a project scientist for the End-Use Forecasting Group at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, as saying that downloading music over buying it on a CD reduced emissions from 40 - 80%.

There is probably little doubt that Apple is not as entirely environmentally friendly as their website would have you believe. Of course when you take into consideration the raw materials no longer needed to create audio cds, movies, and books we can now enjoy as digital media, Apple has certainly changed the way we interact with and enjoy the things in life that move us. Maybe this is one more way that Steve Job’s has made the world a more enjoyable and environmentally friendly place.

Watch this old but inspired Apple TV ad from a long ago campaign. Should Steve's picture be included in the mix?