barbecue patriots

A digression from my normal posts on sustainability, politics, business, etc., but deeply relevant to my interests nonetheless.

A narrative examination of what makes traditional wood-cooked NC barbecue so great.

Having wood-cooked my own whole-hog and shoulder-only barbecue over wood and only wood, I can definitely concur that it's tough work, and even harder to get right. The places that consistently serve up a good plate have worked barbecue magic and learned lessons only time and practice can teach.

Appreciate the work that goes into your foods. And don't mess with the basics of what makes it great. Barbecue is simple, but made with sweat and care. "Artisanal" is just a fancy term for how we've always been doing it.

(Belated) Spring cleaning

Clearing out my inbox and reader, I have a few links I've been meaning to share.

1. Every time someone states the obvious, an angel gets conked over the head by a wiffle bat. This is only relevant if you're stating that across all business, there's no unified view from CEOs of what sustainability's implications are. I start to understand why consultants are seen as so frivolous. It's partly a misunderstanding of what they do (ideas vs. implementation), but partly because they tend to make obvious and/or redundant statements.

2. Like the new plate-based nutrition guidelines, I dig the better presentation of information on the new fuel economy stickers. I'm a fan of the QR-enabled interactivity, and think it does a far better job of helping consumers visualize their choices.

3. A rough roadmap to true sustainability. The emergence of natural/climate capitalism as a philosophy, and what it means to pursue climate capitalism in the near-term and long-term, excerpted from L. Hunter Lovins's latest book. As an aside, I've heard her speak, and she's a truly effervescent thought leader in this area. I've been really pleased by the increasing authority lent to her and Amory Lovins as they work toward impactful change in the business world.

This oath I make freely, and upon my honor.

I just thought I'd give a little shout-out to the fine folks who put together the MBA Oath, an attempt to hold business professionals to the same standards of doing no harm to society as doctors, lawyers, and other trade professionals.

Check it out here.

from the trenches

I'm in the midst of trying to graduate with my MBA (tomorrow at noon, formally!), and have been absent. I know all of you missed me terribly, right? (Or at least my mom.) Anyway, just wanted to post an interesting bit of research from Boston Consulting Group dissecting how the rapidly inflating labor prices in China and the increase in the Yuan's value will ultimately result in a total landed cost favorable to onshoring labor within the next few years. Interesting, and also related to a post I made long ago about how the US was already becoming gradually rediscovered by services and manufacturing firms that had previously (often hastily) fled toward lower labor costs.

I don't necessarily think the US will become the primary most-attractive country overnight (if at all--I suspect, rather, that some other country will replace China as a low-cost workhorse), but it's an interesting thought.

Breaking Wind News

Er, I'm ashamed to say that was intentional.

Still, Spanish wind developer Iberdrola has accomplished what seemed like the impossible: creating a plan for a large-scale wind farm in NC that has yet to draw controversy.

What's that feeling in my heart? Is it heart failure?

"Hope"?

What's that? Is it terminal?

Sticky light

By far the coolest thing I've seen since Saturn's rings and moons:

Sticky light

Another link-dumping

This time, on sustainability:

I: Top Ten Cleantech Companies

II: Given the current political things of note (i.e., potential shutdown of the government), it only seems appropriate to post this bit on where the states are going on clean energy. Generally not in a good mood about politics lately.

III: I think without commentary, you can come up with your own conclusions about Del Monte's latest "green" initiative. Maybe you can even come up with clever names for them.

In brighter news:

IV: North Carolina's bright opportunity

V: If you can believe Walmart is in the "in brighter news" section, their efforts have really blown the top off of others' corporate sustainability programs. It may not be perfect, but it's moving things.

VI: In vaguely related news, it seems that shareholders respond to sustainability initiatives, but only when they appear to have real teeth.

VII: Iceland is looking to make a big investment in clean tech infrastructure and transmission.

and just for kicks:

Arty photos of TVs being turned off.