Alliance For Environmental Innovation & S.C. Johnson Create Task Force

(8 August, 1996 - Boston, MA) Today the Alliance for Environmental Innovation and S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc. announced the establishment of a joint task force to develop a range of new approaches for integrating environmental considerations into S.C. Johnson’s product formulation and packaging design process. The task force will apply these approaches to future product review and development efforts. After 18 to 24 months of work the task force, made up of four Alliance staff and five S.C. Johnson staff, will produce a report on their efforts.

The task force will enhance S.C. Johnson’s products and packaging by further integrating environmental protection, resource conservation and eco-efficiency principles into product design and development. Specifically, the goal will be to develop tools, practices, and policies that lead to new products and product improvements that significantly reduce environmental impacts.

“This project creates a real opportunity to thoroughly integrate environmental considerations into the creation and production of consumer products by a market leader,” said Jackie Roberts, senior scientist of the Alliance for Environmental Innovation. “By demonstrating that creative solutions can result in significant environmental improvements, this effort can help American businesses see how to enhance their environmental performance without sacrificing financial objectives.”

“People have always expected products to be effective, while also being safe to use and dispose. Making environmental improvements during product development can result in good progress toward meeting those expectations. However, we believe that our products can offer higher quality and value to people if we integrate eco-efficiency as a fundamental part of the initial product concept which is finalized before actual development of the product starts. This will enable us to use more environmentally responsible materials, and fewer of them, which in turn will reduce waste, risk and costs,” said Joseph Mallof, executive vice president, North American Consumer Products, S.C. Johnson.

“In this, the Alliance’s first project, we are charting a course to sustainability that embraces the positive contribution that businesses can make to environmental excellence,” said Ralph Earle, director of the Alliance.

The Alliance and S.C. Johnson will each bear their own share of costs associated with the task force and will independently pursue their business and advocacy activities on the environment throughout the task force process.