Gem of the day

For anyone who has ever had the pleasure of immersing themselves in the Tesco consumer experience, you'll see why this headline is a gem:

"Tesco Installs Energy Monitors to Motivate Employees"

That's right, the megachain is installing touch-screen energy boards in 500 stores across the UK to 'empower' employees to monitor their store's consumption. Leaving aside the fact that the consumer giant has over 3,000 stores in the UK alone--making this installation effort a fraction of their impact--this kind of initiative is what I call the 'Wal-Mart faux-sustainability effect'.

Energy efficiency is important for Tesco, but not nearly as significant as the broader social and economic dimensions of sustainability which the company is distinctly lacking. Compare the impact of Tesco's carbon emissions with its wider impact on the UK: massive, a-human megastores blighting the suburban landscape, annihilating small businesses and steamrolling local communities, encouraging behaviours like driving, creating a plethora of extreme low-wage jobs.

So let's hear it for those monitors--ah, incremental innovation.