Daniel Lubetzky

This video is so remarkable. Elephants are such noble and wise creatures.  And nature is the wisest of all.

An interesting article here describes Sweden’s experiment with climate change impact labels on food items – including on restaurant menus and grocery item labels.  The effort to educate consumers about the environmental impact of their food consumption sometimes clashes with nutritional advice – ie, avoid tomatoes because grown in greenhouses – and sometimes is aligned – ie, red meat doesn’t just raise cholesterol but raising cattle also emits far more CO2 pound to pound than almost anything else you consume.

I wonder if 50 years from now this will be a widely implemented practice that all of us follow as obviously needed, or if some will look back at how silly we were – either because it was too little too late, or just the wrong approach.  But it is certainly an interesting experiment worth following.

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Enough with such manipulation by the food-industrial-complex!  First Coca-Cola asserts that Coke is all natural! Then the Corn Refiners assert that High Fructose Corn Syrup is all natural, without regard to evidence, or to the damage that this causes to our bodies.  And most recently 10 of the largest food companies create a self-serving industry-designed nutritional scoring system that manipulates the truth to tout most of their food products – from mayonnaise to fruit loops – as healthy "smart choices."

When will these companies realize that effective marketing should be rooted in truth?

When will the food-industrial-complex recognize that our communities’ health is more important than profits at any cost?

When will hype and fads and simplistic diets hawked by marketers (100-empty-calorie-packs, low carb or low fat obsessions) give in to wholesome balanced truths about nutrition?

When will consumers and companies that are fed up with these shenanigans rise up in indignity to demand ethical behavior? 

Fortunately a number of nutritionists, watchdog groups like the Center for Science in the Public Interest, academicians from Dr. David Katz at Yale to Michael Pollan at Berkeley, and now even the CT Attorney General, are standing up to hold companies accountable and demand truthful assertions.

But if we are really going to overcome such concerted manipulation, a lot more will need to be done to educate consumers.

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Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust presents:

Tuesday, November 17, 7 P.M.

Making Money and Doing Good

Moderated by Andrew Ross Sorkin, The New York Times

Daniel Lubetzky, Kind Inc. and PeaceWorks Foundation/OneVoice Movement; Nancy Lublin, Dress For Success and Do Something; and Barry Nalebuff, Honest Tea

The news has been marked in recent years by the moral and literal downfall of prominent businesses. Meet a new generation of Jewish entrepreneurs who are leading a shift in corporate culture and philanthropy by integrating their business plans with social activism.    

Join us for a tour of The Morgenthaus: A Legacy of Service at 6 P.M.  Space is limited.  Pre-registration for tour is required. Call 646.437.4202.

TICKETS:

Free with suggested donation.

Advance reservations recommended.

TO RESERVE TICKETS:

http://www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&pl=jewishheritage&eventId=2817044

OR CALL 646.437.4202

In Person: Visit the Museum Box Office at 36 Battery Place, Battery Park City, New York.

Over the last several weeks I have been reading a Sunday NYT Business column that I find to be consistently useful for my professional growth:

http://projects.nytimes.com/corner-office

The columnist asks CEOs from diverse companies about their lessons in leadership and management and synthesizes them into concise interview pieces that are quite insightful.

About Corner Office

Corner Office, a feature by Adam Bryant in the Sunday Business section of The New York Times, offers highlights from conversations about leadership and management.

I was forwarded this really cool note from a KIND consumer that reached out to us regarding the KINDED movement…

Name: Melissa [last name removed]

E-mail: [removed]

Telephone:

Comment: Hello KIND team,

I happened to discover your "KINDED" card movement through my on-line subscription to "Springwise". It is an amazing way to encourage everyone (especially in this day and age) to take a moment out of our busy schedules to perform an act of kindness and then to encourage the receiver to do the same.

Next September, I will be marrying my best friend and we didn’t want to give out the usual favours that friends and family either leave behind, toss or eat. We wanted a favour that leaves a lasting positive note on our guests and the world we live in. The moment I read the article, there was no doubt that your KINDED cards are IT. Is there any possible way to arrange to have a bulk amount of cards? Approximately 100 to 150? We live in [removed] and we are willing to look at the cost of having these made, shipped, etc…If we could, we’d even include your snacks in our wedding treats but I understand that you can’t ship those outside of the US yet.

Thank you in advance for your consideration and we (eagerly and hopefully) look forward to your reply.

Melissa and Rob

Natalie in our team is following up to coordinate something with them.

Inspiring article…

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This article provides some proof that, Putin’s KGBesque bravado aside, Russia’s economy is a house of cards waiting to fall.

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Rep. Robert Wexler of Florida is going to lead the Center for Middle East Peace & Economic Cooperation, where our Honorary Board of Advisors member Ms. Toni Verstandig is a senior policy advisor (and one of three staff members). Very exciting.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking-news/story/1281623.html