As the owner of several energy-efficient light bulbs and a recycled umbrella, I'm familiar with the critiques of "ethical consumption." In some cases, it's not clear that ostensibly green products are better for the environment. There's also the risk that these lifestyle choices will make us complacent, sapping the drive to call senators and chain ourselves to coal plants. Tweaking your shopping list, the argument goes, is at best woefully insufficient and maybe even counterproductive. But new research by Nina Mazar and Chen-Bo Zhong at the University of Toronto levels an even graver charge: that virtuous shopping can actually lead to immoral behavior. In their study (described in a paper now in press at Psychological Science), subjects who made simulated eco-friendly purchases ended up less likely to exhibit altruism in a laboratory game and more likely to cheat and steal.
As the owner of several energy-efficient light bulbs and a recycled umbrella, I'm familiar with the critiques of "ethical consumption." In some cases, it's not clear that ostensibly green products are better for the environment. There's also the risk that these lifestyle choices will make us complacent, sapping the drive to call senators and chain ourselves to coal plants. Tweaking your shopping list, the argument goes, is at best woefully insufficient and maybe even counterproductive.
But new research by Nina Mazar and Chen-Bo Zhong at the University of Toronto levels an even graver charge: that virtuous shopping can actually lead to immoral behavior. In their study (described in a paper now in press at Psychological Science), subjects who made simulated eco-friendly purchases ended up less likely to exhibit altruism in a laboratory game and more likely to cheat and steal.
New Goldman Sachs Green Tower to Rise Near WTC [...] The bank's new world headquarters will rise in Battery Park City's last remaining commercial plot, known as Site 26. Designed by Henry N. Cobb of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the 740-foot-tall tower will earn Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification by incorporating "green" building technologies, such as water and energy conservation, and use of recycled materials.
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The bank's new world headquarters will rise in Battery Park City's last remaining commercial plot, known as Site 26. Designed by Henry N. Cobb of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the 740-foot-tall tower will earn Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification by incorporating "green" building technologies, such as water and energy conservation, and use of recycled materials.
