Doing Well By Doing Good

Oakwood Worldwide is working hard to educate the world about the importance of being ‘green’

By Kayla O’Brien

RISMEDIA, July 26, 2007–Did you know that when you leave your cell phone charger plugged in all day long—even after your cell phone has been charged—it burns just as much electricity as if you’re still charging it? If your answer is no, there’s probably a lot more you don’t know about global warming and the effects of our everyday actions. And you’re not alone. But today, there’s help from companies like Oakwood Worldwide, which is on a mission to help spread awareness and assist in minimizing our ecological footprint on Earth as we know it today.

From Hollywood to Congress and local hometown companies, over the next few years, a global greening effort is going to be a part of our everyday society. In 2006, Oakwood, impassioned by Chairman Howard Ruby, launched a company-wide campaign to minimize their contributions after personally seeing the effects of global warming.
With over 3,000 employees and numerous clients and guests, the company has unveiled three parallel programs, working to improve energy conservation efforts and find ways to protect the environment. Its three programs have spread from its corporate offices, to its apartment guests and clients.

Oakwood’s Corporate Program entails a $2 million investment in environmentally friendly washers and dryers, toilets and shower heads, roofing materials, hot water systems, and air-conditioning units for all of its properties throughout the U.S. In addition, at most of Oakwood’s facilities, traditional light bulbs have been replaced with fluorescent bulbs that use less energy and have a longer lifespan.

Moving forward, Oakwood is researching more environmentally friendly procedures across the company, analyzing all of the products it purchases and investing in more Earth-friendly products. What’s more, the company is gathering information from all properties, offices and branches to determine their ecological footprint.

The guests who stay in one of Oakwood’s residences are encouraged by the company to do their part: reuse towels and sheets, preset thermostats, turn off electronics when not in use, and only leave a small light on when not at home. Reminders, such as stickers and decals, are placed strategically throughout all corporate units. Beginning in October, guest residents will receive a calendar, featuring new polar bear photography (snapped by Ruby), global warming information and tips to help conserve energy.

Oakwood has also formed the Corporate Greening Committee, which includes 50 associates from 15 U.S. cities, the U.K., and all divisions throughout the company. These associates are responsible for leading Oakwood’s green activities. With its Educational Outreach program, associates “Adopt a Classroom” and receive lesson plans, polar bear cards, DVDs, and other materials they can use to volunteer in local classrooms to spread the effort to students and their families.

Under the leadership of Ruby, Oakwood is moving its efforts even outside of the corporate arena as a sponsor of the Global Warming Crusade. A zealous photographer, Ruby personally saw the effects that warming temperatures had on polar bears during expeditions to the Arctic. After speaking with Ruby on his endeavors, it’s impossible not to realize the importance of his mission.

Real Estate magazine: When did you realize global warming was a present issue rather than a future issue?

Howard Ruby: The world has hit this major epiphany that it is in trouble this year, but I noticed this when I was photographing polar bears three years ago on a trip to Northern Canada. On the tundra, you get really close to the polar bears and they were spectacular—spectacular to photograph and be around. They’re so human-like.
I became so engrossed and touched by them that I started reading information that indicated their habitat—sea ice—was melting. And all of the irrefutable evidence was there. Last year, we noticed that the ice didn’t freeze until 10 days later than it did the year before. We were in a boat 450 miles from the North Pole, 300 miles north of where it was about 20 to 30 years ago. They’re saying now that summer sea ice will be completely gone around 2020. Being there, seeing it for myself, to see what’s actually happening, it’s no movie.

RE: What sort of assistance have you requested in supporting your company-wide greening initiative?
HR: We’ve had the help of graduate students from the University of Santa Barbara’s Bren School of Environ-mental Science & Management to study our environmental impact. They’re really doing a major study for us; they are analyzing what they call the footprint/impact in terms of green house gases, trucks emissions, energy consumption, chemistry and water from laundry, dishes, and sheets, etc.

RE: How are you leaving your impact on your temporary housing guests?
HR: Since we have a turnover clientele, we’re leaving things in the apartments for them to learn more, disguised as fun things like calendars and polar bear cards. These cards are trading cards for their kids with information on global warming and the habitat/life of the polar bear.

RE: What was the experience like getting an entire company on board toward this one goal?
HR: We got involved as a company with 3,000 people with offices across the country. We said, “How would you like to have one cause that we would support nationally?” There was a resounding response to work with global warming and the environment. We got started with getting our company in line to do all we could do with our apartments, corporate headquarters, warehouses and our trucks across the country.
We launched a major campaign to have our associates go into classrooms and teach elementary school children about global warming, the Arctic, and the future of the polar bear. We even have one program we’re doing with one of the banks, where they’re going into 1,000 classrooms, co-sponsoring with us. Each child gets 10 cards that they can start collecting and they’ll learn from the presentation and DVD. They can then go on to the site (www.Global-WarmingCrusade.com) to order more trading cards.

We’re also working with the National Wildlife Federation, creating professional training courses to help our associates learn how to teach the children. Part of the program is giving them time off to go into the classrooms. We hope to eventually, through the kids, reach the parents. A mother recently thanked me in a sort of tongue-and-cheek way, for creating an absolute mess of their household. Her daughter walks around the house with a spiral pad writing tickets when people leave their lights on. It’s an indication of how the kids will be teaching the parents.

RE: What positive effect do you hope to have on the global warming movement?
HR: Whether you believe the causes are from man or nature, to me that doesn’t make any difference. If we look back 20 years from now, and it turned out to be unequivocally man, wouldn’t we be sorry we didn’t do anything about it?
We’re going to have a classroom-in-a-box kit that corporations will soon be able to purchase at virtual cost so that they can go into classrooms themselves with their employees. It’s basically a prepackaged social responsibility program.

RE: What words of advice would you offer those looking to get involved?
HR: Many of our clients, from the vice president and above levels of the company, are starting to work on social responsibility. This is a new phenomenon and companies are even starting to advertise green. There’s one phrase that’s really important to remember for the business person—they don’t have to be a member of the National Wildlife Federation or Green Peace—but they can do well by doing good. And we’re making it easier for them. Five years from now brokers will be showing houses and saying, “of course this one is green.” We’re saying if you can do well, you’ll sell more houses because you know more about the subject of green and have a green organization. You’re going to be ahead of the pack. Remember, in the future you will be doing well as a company, by doing good.

For more information, visit www.GlobalWarmingCrusade.com.

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