And the successful voyage is just in time to counter the criticism against the shipping industry for green house gas emissions:

(From ENN)The maiden voyage was completed at a time when ship-related greenhouse gas emissions are under fire from several fronts. Earlier this week, a report commissioned by the U.N. International Maritime Organization surfaced, finding that ship-related emissions, at 3.5 percent of global carbon emissions, were grossly underestimated and nearly double than previous estimates of 1.4 percent.

Read more on the shipping industry’s environmental impact at DHL Completes More Eco-Friendly Ship Voyage as Industry Comes Under Fire. And see the ship set sail from Hamburg at Using Kites to Pull Cargo Ships Across the Seas.

Post from: EveryJoe

DHL Delivers via Kite-powered Cargo Ship

The program is the result of the research by Dr. Arpad Horvath of UC Berkeley and Dr. Cristiano Facanha of ICF International. Together, the two developed the algorithm that determines the carbon footprint from the manufacture of a product to its delivery at a consumer’s door. Because the algorithm is so accurate, the average cost for an offset is only 29 to 49 cents. – EL

The system seems to be ultra user-friendly and a great way for online retailers to have a more sustainable business without a lot of effort or cost. I’m always a little hesitant about offsets in general but in this case I think it makes a lot of sense.

What do you think? Would you incorporate this into your online business?

Also check out The Year Ahead with Jason Sperling, ShipGreen co-founder and CEO. triplepundit also has a nice writeup on ShipGreen.

Via EL

Post from: EveryJoe

Ship Green Gives Retailers Easy Offset Options