Those nifty envicons (à la emoticons), like the one above, are spreading like wild fire in the dry corporate mails nowadays. First I didn't mind them, but seeing how they are spreading now at an amazing speed, made me wonder why are we not seeing more of those envicons?Maybe one that reads:
Please consider the environment by turning off the lights as you finish this meeting.
[icon of a cute little green lamp here]
Or we can turn up the intrusiveness a bit:
Please consider the environment by reusing this plastic cup you’re having your green tea in (yes, I can see you) for your next drink.
[icon of a green arrow pointing to where the cup is]
Or being a little bit more assertive, like:
Please consider the environment by recycling …you pig.
[icon of cute little piggie]
I’m down with the whole let’s be environmentally friendly and all, it’s just the method I'm questioning. Is that really an effective way? Picture this, you get a 15-page-long email (font 8) and procced to print it to be able to review it. Suddenly you see the envicon starting back at you, you realize this one is ‘marked’ and you can’t print it. This can only mean one thing: you need to get your printing-fix from one of the unmarked ones. File>Print, 100 copies. OK. aaaahhhhh the sweeeet sweeeet smell of freshly printed email. What, you don't do this regularly?
But if the person really cares about the environment and wants to help raise the awareness of others by doing something, aren't there more appropriate ways? For example, picking a worth cause, joining or donating to an NGO that actually does something about the environment instead of only preaching to others? I once had a meeting with one of them enviconics and she actually brought a print-out of her email (which had the super kool envicon at the end of it) instead of, like, I don't know, maybe bring her laptop to the meeting, like we all do?
Bottom line is, if you picked the environment as your cause and you are taking personal actions to help the environment and you live by those principles and this envicon is part of your cause, then respect. Otherwise please spare me this hypocritical, egoistic, feel-good, space-consuming piece of garbage... and please please don't print your own mails, that's just stupid.
20 comments:
Good point fesh. One sees a lot of waste in the corporatre world. It's a pity because there are so many ways to stop waste but all the effort is too half-assed. Or like your story, it's a lot of talk and no action.
Hey remember those stupid fucking bumper stickers:
"Save Water - Shower Togther"..
heheheh - now I want one!!!
Or even
"Save Air - Fart in a Bottle"
LOL - Oh I missed my those days.
(On a more serious note - those little messages are for those who print 2 line emails just so they dont forget instead of writing a reminder - or worthless stuff - instead of just saving it... It doesnt have to be for the 18page document man - It's not telling you to stop printing - it's just telling you to think: Do you really need to print that? Dont be so Anal about petty shit like that - Kabar Demaghak!)
PS: I have never attached those icons to my emails - dont get me wrong... am just as cool as you are!!!
Still Friends?
Wanna save Water?
Cheers babe!
Nilegirl, exactly! What I really respect is how some folks really change stuff in the office. So one dude had a proposal to our facilities to have recycling bins instead of trash bins. He submitted it to the them and they did it! Now that's kool!
*Fesh looks suspiciously at Jade
So you are saying you never used those icons? Are you sure?
....and yeah I know what it is meant for, but the world aint funny if you don't exaggerate :D
Wanna buy some Air? :D
EEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!
It's BOTTLED air!
have you ever been to an oxygen bar???? where people are served flavored oxygen instead of alcohol???
No I haven't! But I want to try it! So do you get a buzz out of it or what?
ya if they jack up the pressure...lol
hehehehehehe... tab dude, ma2olteish, what's your thoughts about the Corporate whores who add envicons to their emails?
Non serious reply: shouldn't it be "enviromoticon"? It just sounds more phonetically pleasing...
Serious reply: for most people, it just a way to buy into what's the current vogue in the corporate culture and be a good little suit-monkey, appearing to do something good and feeling better for it, without actually having to do anything about it. Harsh I know, but there you are.
I find it odd to pass judgment on something i am not so familiar with. We in the health business, hardly ever deal with corporate whores....we are whores of another kind....
Munqy, EXACTLY! Thank you! oh and enviromoticon does sound better but I'm too lazy to update it :D
Zero, but it's kool to pass judgment! especially if you are unfamiliar..... at least that's how we kool people like to think of it.
ya fashafeesho paying lip service is better than nothing :\ imho.
hehehehehehe always helpful Zero :D
Fesh, wanna know what my old company did? I'm a HUGE recycler who won't toss a single thing into the garbage that can be recyled. Luckily we had large recyle bins at my old job. Good so far right? Until one year into the job I found out that the recyle bins were getting emptied into the regular trash at the end of each day! i sent a little complaint to facilities in the form of me stomping into their office and lecturing them about waste (it's ok he was cool with me). Aparently he just found it easier and never bothered to have a recylcing company come pick up the material. Tab why bother having recycling bins aslan?
ARRGHH!!!
Oh and what does imho mean?
NileGirl, now that I think of it.. those shiny Recycle Bins they added at my office.... oh...it all makes sense now....
*Flashbacks of Fesh leaving the office late, while it's snowing... while the evil director of facilities Feshbert is emptying the Recycle bins into regular trash...
No but seriously, that's exactly the same thing, putting something be it Recycle Bins or those envicons or you know what gets on my nerves 3al akher those "We care about the environment, if you would like to reuse your towels again pls hang them" you find in hotel bathrooms ... COME ON.. it's all about bottom-line, less washing, less cost.... they don't care about the environment!
....and the "imho" is probably a gay kiss from Zero to me.... we have a strictly sexual relationship.
ahhh fesh blush....but
imho is not I'm a ho but
in my honest opinion=IMHO
*damn* and I thought it's a gay kiss.
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