While it is our policy as a company not to endorse political positions or candidates, we are excited to find a new application for our virutal PBX and unified communications technologies in political campaigns. As we have been touting these technologies as enabling greener solutions and more democratic solutions for the workplace (see previous blogs on our project with BGI, and partnership with WorldBlu), we are feverishly trying to keep up with deploying our virtual calling platform for a number of state headquarters in the Obama-Biden Campaign for Change including campaign offices in Nevada, Colorado, New Hampshire, Montana, Wisconsin, Virginia and Pennsylvania....

The 2008 SVN fall conference is off and running and the energy level is higher than ever – – just saw a great presentation from Phil Angelides and Jerome Ringo, leaders of the Apollo Alliance. What an amazing organization with a great vision! The Apollo Alliance is a coalition of business, labor, environmental, and community leaders working to catalyze a clean energy revolution in America to reduce our nation’s dependence on foreign oil, cut the carbon emissions that are destabilizing our climate, and expand opportunities for American businesses and workers....

Over the past few months, BetterWorld’s carbon footprint has been audited by BeGreen (www.begreennow.com), and we are pleased to report that we have moved our carbon footprint certification to BeGreen. BeGreen Carbon Offsets are the latest sustainable product offered by BetterWorld Telecom customer and partner, Green Mountain Energy — BeGreen’s parent company....

Many companies and industries have taken up the cause of sustainability and are helping to lead us into our next phase of evolution. Out front is the building/construction/design industry, behind the work of the UG Green Building Council and the LEED standard, successful, pioneering companies such as Patagonia and REI, as well as Clean Tech, alternative power and alternative fuels....

Earlier this week I spoke at the 2008 Green Business Works Expo in Atlanta, great to see such great representation across all aspects of the business and government worlds in Atlanta. My talk focused on the coming Green Communications revolution that we have begun to implement with many of our customers, saving precious dollars while trimming organization’s carbon footprints at the same time....

The Green Collar Economy On October 7, Green For All founder and president Van Jones will release his first book: The Green Collar Economy. The book is a powerful argument for a national commitment to green economic development as a way to address our environmental and economic crises at once. On the heels of sky-high fuel prices this summer, a massive financial crisis has sent the economy into a tailspin this fall....

Today we welcome our newest volunteering and donation partner, the Arthritis Foundation. Erin and I were fortunate to attend the DC Chapter annual breakfast this AM, Commitment to a Cure…we learned so much about Arthritis and how pervasive it is as the leading disability in the U.S. now numbering over 46M patients, we were inspired by doctors and both young and old who are afflicted with this terrible disease....

Congratulations to our customer World of Good on their eBay launch! On Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008 WorldofGood.com by eBay launched to the public. By the next morning, there were over 400 plus stories about the new marketplace. Millions of people learned about WorldofGood.com through the Associated Press, Reuters, San Francisco Chronicle, PC Magazine, MarketWatch, and news outlets in South Korea, China, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, and many other countries around the world....

Visiting the peaceful and serene Presidio is always a pleasure for the senses – but especially when we get to meet an organization that is helping make it a better world every day. The Pachamama Alliance is one of those organizations that takes the harder, less traveled road, knowing that their efforts will take longer to bear fruit, but in the end they are planting seeds that will grow into sustainable forests of change....

Plug into the sun! Tucked away on a semi-quiet street in Berkeley, CA lies one of the more amazing companies we’ve met yet – BetterEnergy Systems has basically created a whole new industry segment around renewable gadgets – portable solar charging devices, recycled (from truck tires) device carriers and cases, and with a whole list of new and innovative products to soon hit the market....

The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association has long been at the forefront of the exploding wireless/cellular industry and this week took significant strides forward in helping to further the green dialogue within the industry at this week’s CTIA convention in San Francisco. Most folks have no clue that the Telecoms industry in the US, both wireline and wireless, is now over $900 Billion per annum, and eats up an estimated 3%-5% of ALL the power produced in the country....

After a slight break from the blogosphere, we are back in force with a number of visits and events over the past week. My colleague Jacob and I were fortunate to attend a great event/salon the other night in San Francisco – The Good Capital Movement: How Everyone Can Be a Social Investor....

As part of the opening of our new Portland, OR office – we had a wave of new meetings in the past few weeks and were fortunate to stop by and meet with the folks at New Seasons Market, based in the Portland Metro area. We first read about New Seasons in the Marketing That Matters book, written by fellow SVN members Chip Conley and Eric Friedenwald-Fishman, published by Berrett Koehler with support from the Social Venture Network....

Yesterday, most of the BetterWorld team spent part of the day helping out at the Heart of America Foundation – packing up and readying boxes of books to be delivered to kids around the country. We continue to support the Heart of America Foundation as they cross two of our three main support pillars: children and education....

Last week we had the pleasure to visit with Mercy Corps out at the their Global Headquarters in beautiful Portland, OR – – where we have just setup BetterWorld’s Northwest operations at the downtown World Trade Center. We have provided services to Mercy Corps in their DC and Gulf Coast locations for some years and have always marveled at how one organization can have so much impact....

Well known inside the beltway and around the world, but probably not to most of America is the Meridian International Center. Long time a BetterWorld customer, Meridian is beginning to refocus its efforts and bring its international and political resources/expertiseto bear in the area of social and environmental sustainability. Wewere fortunate to meet with Meridian’s leadership this past week to discuss how we can partner in these areas and help each other’s efforts....

As part of our regular quarterly meeting team day – most of the BetterWorld staff could be found earlier this week delivering meals all over the Northeast section of Washington, DC. As part of our regular volunteer work with Food & Friends, driving meals to those in need, struck down by chronic illnesses is both eye opening and rewarding....

Last week we were fortunate to spend a few days with the team from Seven Star, a long-time customer and friend of BetterWorld. Seven Star is experiencing stellar success and growth – – now the green event planner for all the Green Festivals, Sol Fest, assisting with this year’s Democratic National Convention, and many more events....

Every so often, I visit an organization and think back to the scene in Wayne’s World where they kneel before Alice Cooper and exclaim, “we’re not worthy!” – clearly TS Designs is one of those organizations. If everyone had their level of social and environmental commitment, we would not be in the global pickle we are today....

Over the past week and a half, we had a couple great work projects that saw some of the BetterWorld team getting their hands in the dirt. As part of our sponsorship and participation in the BALLE chapter, Lowcountry Local First, we were out shucking corn with Fields to Families in the Lowcountry, South Carolina....

Even though the weather was downright Londonesque most of the week, things really heated up in the Student Center at Boston University this past week. Hundreds and Hundreds of leaders came from all over North America (largest contingent I’ve seen from Canada yet to date), to discuss the merits of localizing all aspects of the economy and our communities....

When our colleague, Dave O’Leary, brought the Appalachian Mountain Club to our attention some months ago – – we immediately contacted them to set up a meeting and see if we could discuss ways for us to work together. Over the past few months, we have met with them a few times and learned so much more about their amazing and rich history....

Ali Gunertem, BetterWorld Director of Customer Operations writes: One of the organizations we have joined and helped support over the past six months is the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC). Since we joined NVTC, members have expressed a strong interest in the organization playing a more active role in setting the region' s green agenda....

I attended a Rally for clean energy on Thursday May 8th co-hosted by Appalachian Voices (BetterWorld is a member of the Appalachian Voices Business League), the Southern Environmental Law Center and other local organizations and residents of Richmond. The rally was inspired by numerous outcries opposing Dominion Power’s construction of a new coal mining plant in Wise, VA....

Now is the Time: Create the World You Want to Live In, was the conference theme…Wow, what a great conference, having been on the Board of Directors for the past 3 years and a member for 5 years- I have to say this was one of the best conferences for connecting with old friends and making new ones while learning how we are all Creating the world You Want to Live In…....