The truth behind sustainability labels from the people who integrate them

By Ralf Seifert and Joana Comas, IMD business school in Lausanne

(republished with permission)

More than three decades after the first ecolabeling program was introduced, what is the verdict on their effectiveness? To find out we asked managers and sustainability practitioners – over a thousand from 70 countries and more than 20 industries – to share their views with us.

In a nutshell, ecolabels have been useful in increasing sustainability awareness and performance, but there are also credibility concerns given the proliferation and fragmentation of such labels. And indeed, by now the Ecolabel Index lists 431 ecolabels in 246 countries and across 25 industries. [1]

In our survey concerning the adoption of ecolabels, we asked practitioners about the perceived level of pressure on environmental issues from different stakeholder groups. They noted that the main trigger is regulation, followed by pressure from employees and internal management. Perhaps surprisingly, consumer and non-governmental organization (NGO) pressure were lower down the list (Figure 1). One possible reason for the latter is that although NGO campaigns may be highly visible, their resources allow them to target only a limited number of companies.

Figure 1: Managers’ perception of the level of pressure from different stakeholder groups on environmental issues.

Overall, 87% of our survey respondents declared that their company’s level of adoption of more sustainable practices had increased over the last five years. Against this backdrop of increasing adoption of sustainability practices, companies must decide whether ecolabeling can help relieve stakeholder pressure and, if so, which labels to pursue. Given the wide range of labels on offer and considering their limited geographic recognition, this is not always easy. Nonetheless, even for companies that do not adopt them, ecolabels have become more relevant as environmental attributes and are increasingly integrated directly into business-to-business (B2B) procurement and public sector spending. And these attributes often do follow the underlying standards of ecolabels even if the companies need not apply for corresponding ecolabels as such. In the European Union, for instance, directives on Green Public Procurement (GPP)[2] were defined in 2004.

The growth in the number of ecolabels and green procurement guidelines can be interpreted as a sign of success. However, many practitioners believe that the ecolabeling landscape has become overwhelming and confusing for companies and consumers alike. We look at the pros and cons of ecolabels, as well as at strategies and future challenges.

Benefits

A key benefit of ecolabels in the eyes of managers is that they can help a company strengthen the brand. Moreover, ecolabels are a way of addressing customer demands for more sustainable products. In some cases, adopting labels or standards may provide a competitive advantage to early adopters; however, differentiation tends to be only temporary. Once the standard is successful, it becomes a “hygiene factor,” i.e. it is the bare minimum required to do business. In addition, ecolabeling can help reduce a company’s risk of being attacked by a pressure group and, should this happen, ecolabeling organizations can provide support in responding to it. The good practices induced by ecolabeling can also reduce the risk of supply chain disruptions and help to ensure long-term access to raw materials and crops. The third-party certification aspect of ecolabels can also be useful in satisfying investor demands. Taking a more holistic perspective, ecolabels have the potential to raise sustainability awareness and performance across whole industries.

Sources of skepticism
In spite of the recognized benefits of adopting ecolabels, managers also expressed substantial skepticism. The credibility of ecolabels and the rigor of the criteria and certification procedures are major concerns. The short time between applying for and being awarded an ecolabel – which according to respondents is often less than 12 months – does not contribute to the credibility of labels. The adoption of ecolabels was also criticized for being short-term- and marketing-oriented. Moreover, practitioners seem concerned about potential conflicts of interest experienced by ecolabeling providers. Ole Just Sorensen of Grundfos A/S Management emphasized the competition between different labels in a race to gain market share: “The market for ecolabels is very confusing and, in some areas, it looks more like a new industry of ‘selling stickers’ and where generating money seems more important than the outcome and the importance of the label.” An additional criticism is that ecolabels can act as technical barriers to trade. Tata Steel’s Graeme Peacock explained: “In the construction sector, most ecolabels are national or regional, so for global companies like ourselves, they act as barriers to trade.” A more essential source of skepticism about ecolabels concerns their effectiveness in delivering real outcomes and their potential to achieve market transformation. Some managers warned that by focusing too much on ecolabels, there is a risk of “missing the big picture.”

Strategies
Many managers told us that their ecolabeling strategies are adapted to each product and geographical region, according to the level of consumer awareness of different sustainability issues, thus creating “niche markets” for ecolabeled products. In order to better tailor ecolabeling strategies to products and regions, some companies delegate such decisions to specific business units, rather than imposing them at a corporate level. Other companies prefer a centralized approach because they believe that the risk of error in adopting the wrong ecolabel is too high. With regard to communication strategies, although most firms that adopt ecolabels actively advertise them and display them on their products, 35% of adopters only communicate about ecolabels through other channels (e.g. sustainability reports and the sustainability section of their website) and 11% of adopters do not advertise them at all.

Some companies firmly support ecolabeling based on their strong conviction that ecolabels have the potential to achieve market transformation by informing and empowering customers. Others prefer to integrate sustainability into their brands and define internal programs, which may or may not be independently verified.

Hans Wendschlag, who leads the Hewlett-Packard EMEA Environmental Program and has over 25 years of experience in the field, strongly recommends that companies get involved in defining criteria whenever possible and take a proactive approach, just as HP does. The company has a team of over 15 people around the world who systematically track changes in the procurement requirements of large public and private sector customers. This information is considered when HP revises its own procurement guidelines and allows the company to set priorities, for instance, in replacing specific substances.

From fragmentation to consolidation
Opposition to and frustration with the current fragmentation of ecolabels is one of the most prominent messages expressed. Not only has selecting an ecolabel become a highly complex decision for firms but consumers are also confused. One of the main causes of fragmentation is the lack of consensus on qualifying criteria; practitioners therefore strongly recommend that ecolabel providers move toward consolidation and international recognition of labels. Numerous managers pointed out the potential of international industry-wide multi-stakeholder initiatives to reach the desired consensus.

As Figure 2 illustrates, consumer confusion, fragmentation of ecolabels and lack of consensus on criteria are the most important challenges in ecolabeling – 92% of respondents considered these three issues to be medium to extreme challenges.

Figure 2: Managers’ evaluation of challenges in ecolabeling

Other challenges ahead
Figure 2 also shows how practitioners rated several additional challenges, including consumer pressure on low prices, which underscores the fact that sustainability is not a top purchase driver, such as cost or quality. In order to induce consumers to buy more sustainable products it might be useful to emphasize the “What’s in it for me” aspects associated with such products – which can include economic, health or any other direct benefits for the consumer.[3] Tools such as life cycle costing can be particularly helpful in identifying economic benefits for consumers. Additional challenges raised include the lack of comprehensiveness of labels and their lack of comparability within and across product categories.

Outlook
Overall, managers perceive that the initial momentum of ecolabels and the high expectation that they could be a means of achieving market transformation are declining as different challenges emerge. As Nestlé’s Duncan Pollard put it: “Fifteen years ago, certification and ecolabeling was considered to be the way forward. Now, we may be seeing the limits of its ability to transform markets and experiencing the first serious reappraisal of the conventional wisdom that if you wish to prove that you are sustainable you need a certification logo to prove it.”

Although greater efforts are needed in defining standards and in training, other constituents of certification schemes might be less necessary. In particular, external certification and labeling might not always be the most effective means of ensuring sustainability, especially in B2B. Nonetheless, as previously noted, the underlying criteria of ecolabels are increasingly being integrated into organizations’ procurement requirements, so companies cannot afford to ignore them.

Practitioners stress that, although ecolabels may be replaceable, sound sustainability strategies and top management commitment are not. Ecolabels can be useful in communicating about sustainability, but they should remain a means and not become an end. Although managers do not necessarily foresee an explosion in the use of ecolabels in the coming years, they do expect greater traceability of products and more transparency in the sustainability performance of supply chains.

The full 23 page report of this survey including the results of an empirical analysis of the adoption of ecolabels by companies is available upon request.

Ralf W Seifert is Professor of Operations Management at IMD. He teaches on the Managing the Global Supply Chain (MGSC) and the Orchestrating Winning Performance programs.

Joana M Comas is a PhD candidate at the Chair of Technology and Operations Management of the College of Management of Technology at EPFL. She previously worked for Nestlé-Nespresso after obtaining a Master’s in Industrial Engineering from the Technical University of Catalonia, UPC-Barcelona.

[1] http://www.ecolabelindex.com (April 5, 2012)
[2] http://ec.europa.eu/environment/gpp/index_en.htm (April 5, 2012)
[3] SustainAbility, 2011. Signed, sealed…delivered? Behind certifications and beyond ecolabels. November 2011.

EBACE in Geneva tempts aviation buffs with its outdoor as well as indoor displays (photo, V Rajnak)

The airplane mobile above my crib taught me the word “plane” before I knew the word “car”.

Having a father whose passion is aviation, I grew up in an environment saturated with airshows, aviation magazines, GPS’, weekly trips to airfields, and flying around most of Europe since the age of one.

It’s a privilege to have a dad with a pilot’s license, but in addition to the many enjoyable trips I’ve also experienced landing in violent turbulence and peeing in a Travel John bag.

Geneva hosts two major events each year, making the GVA airport a busy place. First the Motorshow, and second the EBACE event (European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition).

Inside EBACE at Palexpo in Geneva (photo, V Rajnak)

I’ve visited EBACE many times—last year, for a change, acting as a hostess.

HondaJet interior, with glass cockpit (photo, V Rajnak)

EBACE is a 3-day event gathering the world of business aviation. There’s an impressive Static Display of Aircraft, ranging from Cessnas, TBM to Falcons, Gulfstreams and Boeing Business Jets. The display is my favorite part of the exhibition, to see the beautiful interiors along with the smell of leather and JetA1.

Inside of Palexpo planes like Pilatus and HondaJet are exhibited as well as helicopters. The exhibitors come from all over the world. They include the manufacturers, interior completion firms, business jet partners like TAG Aviation, jet charters like VistaJet and NetJets, airports, magazines, and all the possible accessories linked to flying such as Garmin navigation and Bose headphones.

Tickets may be pricy, but it’s definitely worth it for plane enthusiasts or the curious. Special rates apply for students.

Register to attend

EBACE
14-16 May 2012
Palexpo and Geneva International Airport

Viktoria Rajnak is a frequent contributor to GenevaLunch

This is going to sound crazy coming from a gym owner, but I’m about as anti-gym as it gets.

Something has gone very wrong with modern day gym culture the way that fitness is marketed to the public. Despite better awareness of the importance of being fit, the free and easy availability of fitness facilities (there is a gym on virtually every street corner in Geneva) and advances in science and technology, the world is facing an ever increasing problem in obesity.

I don’t think that Switzerland has as big a problem as some other big industrialised nations such as the USA, United Kingdom and Germany, but my own experience is that people are becoming less and less fit.

I see lots of people come into my fitness facility who regularly do some kind of traditional fitness activity like jogging, aerobics or a 30 minute circuit of weight machines at the local gym. Despite this, the majority have the mobility of a cement block and are about as strong as my 15 month old daughter. They are, by any objective measure, very unfit.

Personally, I put the blame squarely at the feet of the commercial gyms which are on the front lines of educating the general public about fitness.

Gyms should be service providers that take care of their customers’ needs

Gyms are business and as such should make money. However, they should also be service providers that take care of their customers’ needs. Unfortunately they have gone down the route of purely profit making enterprises that care little for the goals and desires of their members. In fact, their ideal client is one that pays for a year’s membership in advance and never actually turns up!

Most commercial gyms simply rent equipment to their customers. Beyond this there is no relationship, unless of course you forget to pay your dues. If that happens you can be sure you will hear from somebody! Despite making huge promises like buying a membership will give you the body you always wanted, there is no desire on their part for this to happen.

How many people do you know who have had this type of experience at a gym?

Customer: “My membership runs out in 6 months and I know that if I want to cancel I have to do it by tomorrow, otherwise it will automatically extend for another year (what is the deal with that by the way? 6 months in advance? Is that really necessary??). Here is my letter of resignation.”

Gym: “That is correct, but you have to send your cancellation notice by registered letter to our head office.”

Customer: “Ok, but I’m right here and I’m giving it to you now. Can you just pass it on?”

Gym: “No, our policy is that a letter must be sent by registered post.”

Customer: “But it is Saturday afternoon now. I can only send it on Monday, which is past the deadline. Can you please just take it for me?”

Gym: “No.”

Customer: “So now I have to pay for another year, even though I have no desire to come back?”

Gym: “That is correct, yes.”

Fade out to the thwack thwack sound of the customer repeatedly banging his head against the reception desk.

It’s one thing to tie people into long term contracts, but gyms also do a horrific job of educating their members on how to achieve results. Everyone gets the same program of 3 sets of 10 on the machines followed by 20 minutes of cardio. Folks, this program did not work in 1970 when strength machines were first marketed to the public, it sure as hell is not going to work now.

You should look forward to going to the gym

I firmly believe that going to the gym should be a community-based experience, a place where “everybody knows your name”. A place where people work hard, support and encourage each other, compete where appropriate, compare notes, get results and have a good time in the process. You should look forward to going to the gym, not dread the prospect of 30 minutes of tedium on the treadmill (provided you can even find one free) surrounded by people just a little bit too in love with themselves.

I also believe that it is entirely unnecessary to join a gym if you want to get in shape.

So what’s a fellow to do? Self educate is a great option. The internet is a fantastic place to learn about proper fitness and how to achieve it and there are plenty of excellent resources out there.

Get out of the gym cycle entirely by going to a bootcamp or hiring a personal trainer for a few sessions. There are plenty of great trainers around, they are not hard to find. Do they have a web site, a track record of testimonials and success, a passion for fitness and education? A trainer with those qualities can change your entire approach to fitness all for the price of a few sessions.

You don’t need expensive equipment like treadmills or leg press machines. All you need is some enthusiasm or a willingness to learn. There is a whole world of options out there away from the traditional gym so get out there and see what you can find!

Jon Ingram owns a small fitness facility in Geneva, CrossFit GVA.

After-work drinks at L'Evento in Geneva

L'Evento, Geneva

I’m always keeping my eyes open for new places to go to, and this time it was a nice discovery of something that stands out from the ordinary. I find the surroundings of a place as important a part of the experience as the food. L’Evento is an Italian restaurant/lounge/bar that lies a stone’s throw from the city center. After work stops: at 18:00, Monday through Friday.

L’Evento is in a glass veranda with great heights, situated between two buildings.

iPads for the bar at Levento

The bar is at the entrance level, overlooking the restaurant, and when you walk down to the restaurant level, another bar desk is filled with iPads! I’m guessing it’s the entertainment while waiting for placement, or if you drop by alone.

Instead of studying the menu, I studied the design of this place. The enormous lamps are in the shape of jellyfish.

The chairs are Kartell Mademoiselle with Missoni Fabric. The kitchen is framed and visible for us to peek into. On this live painting you see the chefs’ movements.

The fabulous drinks made a great end to my Monday. They were accompanied by a plate of Italian charcuterie and cheese. After-work was nice, and next time I’ll test lunch, or a late weekend night when there’s a DJ around.

Grazie Mille!

Restaurant L’Evento
50, rue du Stand
1205 Genève

Viktoria Rajnak is a business student at HEC in Geneva, where she has lived since 2003. She writes a blog, Remove Before Flight Blog and she will be contributing occasional guest posts here on a variety of topics including nightlift and shopping in Geneva.

Hold Up Art (photo:Hold Up Art)

By Viktoria Rajnak

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – When I was just a teenager, I used to hang out at with friends at the Carpe Diem Café, in the heart of Geneva. We would meet there in the afternoons, but mostly on weekend nights. There were DJs with fresh and new music, a party mood that was always charged and each time was a great time. A couple of years later, I walk into what has replaced it, Hold Up Art, which recently opened.

Standing at the door: I am filled with nostalgic emotions but curious to see the transformation.

The first impression doesn’t disappoint me. A small terrace at the entrance works perfectly well in wintertime, you can smoke shishas covered up in a blanket if you want to. Inside the music is blasting and the lights blinding. It’s like a mini-club with tables and a bar full of people. Hold Up Art is a bar/art lounge of its own style, inspired by Pop Art and Street Art. Other cities they plan to expand to are Paris, London and Dubai.

The pieces of art on display are for sale and new ones come in every month. The ceiling painting is renewed every six months. The interior is in constant change of decoration, and it’s what makes this place exciting to return to. Hold Up want to promote new talents so the DJs are renewed even more frequently than the pieces of art. Everything about it is original, the cage-like DJ booth, shots in what resembles a rack filled with test tubes and the displays downstairs. The place is also available for private events and catering.

The contemporary art all over the place is closely matched by a contemporary attitude making good use of social media: a nice homepage, a Facebook page and a Twitter account. Finally someone who is going with the mainstream flow!

The spirit as described on the homepage: “Pass by and see for yourself, weekly new DJ’s, saxo’s, shishas, shots and EVERY DAY WE SHUFFLING !!!”

Hold Up Art

Rue du port 4 , 1204 , Geneva
Homepage: http://www.holdupart.org
Twitter: @HoldUpArtLounge

After 25 years of being heavily into personal development and growth, I have made this my cardinal rule. Ready? Here goes.

Spend the first 90 minutes of your day religiously taking care of what matters most.

That’s it. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Spending the first 90 minutes of your day doing what matters most. But let’s dig a little deeper. In fact, let’s analyze what a typical day for most of us looks like once we get into the office.

Right after getting our must have morning coffee, we usually do one of two things: we open our e-mail app and start firing away or we go into a meeting.
Which really translates into one thing–we start looking and acting busy. Now, if I were to run into you in the hallway and ask you “what is the most important thing that you do to make sure you are successful in your job?” I am willing to bet the answer is not going to be either of those.

Looking good at the office

More likely, it will be things like reflecting on major business issues, talking to clients, developing proposals, writing or other things. What do most of those have in common? Right, you need some peace and quiet to do them–and they don’t look like work.

For years, I went into the office and did meaningless stuff first because I thought it made me look good. I thought that if I went into the office and rushed straight into a meeting, it would give me the image of a go-getting, high-flying super talent. Guess what? Nobody cared.

What my boss, and pretty much anyone else, cared most about was getting results. Results they could see, measure, touch and feel. Results that mattered. Results that–dare I say–made them look good.

It seems like things haven’t changed much: a recent study by the University of St Gallen and London Business School confirms that “only about 10 percent of managers take purposeful action”. The remainder are busy, just not very effective: 40 percent were energetic but unfocused; 30 percent had low energy, little focus and tended to procrastinate; and 10 percent were focused, but not very energetic”.

Once I realized this, I started spending the first 90 minutes of my day doing what matters most. Now, I have coached and worked with entrepreneurs, startup CEOS, future executives and other movers and shakers.

Invariably, when I told them to do what matters most first, two things started happening. Those who tried it say they can’t live without it anymore. Those who didn’t said “I can’t do that, what will people think/what will my team makes of this/what will my boss think”.

Those who tried it told me countless stories of the massive impact it had on their performance and their life. Those who didn’t? Well, there wasn’t much to talk about

90 minutes is all it takes

Spending the first 90 minutes of your day working on what matters most is like the gift that keeps on giving, but a few things jump out from what people have told me they experienced:

• a massive increase in productivity as they take less time to “do the really difficult stuff” when they are at their freshest and most productive
• a flow of new and innovative ideas that often results in dramatic improvements or radical new solutions to tackle problems
• a feeling of achievement and purpose when they look back on their day, week or month and realize all that they’ve accomplished
• a feeling of being in control of their own career and orchestrating events rather than being swept around by them; interestingly enough, this one came from a very senior executive.

Finally, nearly all the people who tried it told me that focusing on what matters most in the first 90 minutes of the day has earned them the reputation of someone who gets things done, someone you can turn to when you need a problem solved and, ultimately, someone whose performance makes him or her stand out by a mile.

So there you go. My Top-5 Performance Hacks. Five principles that I live by on day-to-day basis. Five things that have dramatically and positively impacted my performance and that of many others. And five things that could do the same for you – if you give them a chance and put them into practice.

Ed. note: This is the first in a series published at brandingthroughpeople.com. Republished with permission (note: with slight modifications). Marketing consultant Ago Cluytens has previously contributed guest posts to GenevaLunch.

One thing overseas Americans seem to have systematically overlooked so far, in our efforts to try to bring about changes in the current US tax legislation, is the fact that many in Washington may have their most fundamental core beliefs about taxation not based upon reason at all but elsewhere, and possibly most powerfully in the various versions of Holy Scriptures.

We have traditionally built our appeals almost entirely on the basis of facts, common sense, secular history, and so on. Perhaps we have been fundamentally deluding ourselves in terms of how the process really works today, and what the most powerful neuron motivations really are in the benighted City Upon a Hill.

If we want to have an effective impact on future deliberations in the Congress, and in the Executive Branch, too, we might be well advised to spend some time now trying to build up the metaphysical dimensions of our arguments in favor of what we think would be greater equity in the way we are being treated, and especially as justified by appropriate divine commitments.

If you Google the question: “taxation in the Bible”, as I did this morning, within 6 seconds you will have the option of viewing more than 6 million responses! Wow! Obviously a lot of folks have already been there and done that.

Three of the articles that popped up among the very first on this enormous list are below, as well as a website that has a lot of additional chatter about taxation in the Bible, provocative questions about taxing only “foreigners” and why the role of Jesus in tax issues might have contributed to his crucifixion!

So if we want to be properly prepared from now on when we meet key leaders on the Hill, we should try to get up to speed on their possible meta-fiscal sensitivities and vulnerabilities too. Yes, yes, I know that this is a very sensitive issue. But that doesn’t mean we should simply ignore it.

Here in this summary table is an overall breakdown of religious affiliations of the current members of the 112th Congress.

Now, over to you. Please share your thoughts on this new dimension of our common endeavors.

Could paying attention to this additional dimension of an already immensely complex and highly emotional issue possibly contribute productively to a quicker and more efficient game-changing resolution once and for all?

What Google gave me:

What does the Bible say about paying taxes? by Mary Fairchild, About.com

The Bible speaks on taxation (tribute) by Pastor Art Kohl, Faith Bible Baptist Church, 2002

Taxation, liberty and the Bible – Biblical tax and the various tithes by Martin G Selbrede, The Covenant News, 25 January 2009 . Martin G. Selbrede is the Vice President of the Chalcedon Foundation.

If you want to have some more fun, go to this website and read what this analyst has to say: What is taxed, which starts off with Who would Jesus tax? Data mining the Bible.

Ed. note: Andy Sundberg, founder of American Citizens Abroad and a fellow of the Overseas American Academy, occasionally contributes to this guest blog.

By Andy Sundberg

October 16, 2012, will be the 50th Anniversary of the signing of legislation that brought to an end the right of Americans living and working abroad to compete in world markets under the same terms and conditions as everyone else.

As background text for the solemn jubilee mourning of this sad event, the attached 50 page document has been prepared to help you better understand the myriad arguments that have continued to be put forward to keep justifying not only this strange and uniquely self-destructive fiscal initiative, but also many other changes in US laws and regulations that have been introduced during the last 50 years that also have also contributed to the ever mounting difficulties overseas Americans face all over the world today.

The first steps of this sad story were taken only three months after John F Kennedy became president in January 1961. In a tax reform message addressed to the US Congress, President Kennedy stated on 29 April 1961:

“It is no more justifiable to provide tax exemptions for individuals living in the developed countries than it is to provide tax inducements for capital investment there. Nor should we permit totally unjustified tax benefits to be obtained by those Americans whose choice of residence is dictated primarily by their desire to minimize taxes.

“I, therefore, recommend that the total tax exemption now accorded the earned income of American citizens residing abroad be completely terminated for those residing in economically advanced countries; that this exemption for earned income be limited to $20,000 for those residing in the less developed countries; and that the exemption of $20,000 of earned income now accorded those citizens who stay (but do not reside) abroad for 17 out of 18 months also be completely terminated for those living or traveling in the economically advanced countries.”

Read this again very, very carefully because it will henceforth be set in stone as the subsequent conventional mindset which will be adhered to by both American political parties. There is no virtuous reason why a US citizen would want to live and work abroad. All such decisions are “dictated primarily by their desire to minimize taxes”! How does he know this? He doesn’t say, nor does he or any of his successors ever feel the need to do so.

And this being by definition the default nefarious motivation for living overseas, the US Government obviously should then apply the appropriate punishment and go after overseas Americans, harass them, and keep taxing them no matter where they live and no matter what they might actually be doing. Sadly this negative and retributive attitude will never thereafter change.

The following year, on 16 October, 1962, when a significant portion of President Kennedy’s proposal had quickly been enacted and had now become the new law of the land, he issued the following triumphal statement saying:

“I HAVE today signed H.R. 10650, the Revenue Act of 1962. This is an important bill – one possessing many desirable features which will stimulate the economy and provide a greater measure of fairness in our tax system.

“It includes several provisions designed to reduce tax avoidance on incomes earned by American companies and individuals at home and abroad. By limiting the opportunities to escape tax liability, it makes the distribution of tax burdens fairer and increases our total tax revenues from those sources.

“In summary, this bill makes a good start on bringing our tax structure up to date and provides a favorable context for the overall tax reform program I intend to propose to the next Congress.”

How President Kennedy and his administration came to the conclusion that adding a unique and complicated extra tax burden to US citizens living abroad was supposed to help the economy of the United States is an extremely enigmatic and complicated story, and one whose legacy endures to this day. It established a new orthodoxy that every subsequent administration and Congress has loyally adhered to.

It is also well worth noting that neither President Kennedy, nor his two immediate successors, Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, showed any real interest in coupling this extra tax burden with even a modicum of new benefits, nor even the right of overseas Americans to be able to vote in U.S. federal elections. It was history turned upside down and destined to be another period of “taxation without representation” that would make a mockery of one of America’s most fundamental founding principles.

This voting right only eventually became possible fourteen years later after the necessary legislation had finally been enacted during the Ford Administration, and even then it was and would remain a complicated and far from fair process. And, given the role that individual States continue to play up to today in setting some of the most important qualification parameters to vote in their States, many U.S. citizens who are born abroad to parents from these States, and who remain abroad, cannot qualify and still today cannot enjoy this right to vote in Federal elections.

And, sadly but emblematically, no President has ever felt the need to propose offering overseas Americans the right to have their own direct representation in the U.S. Congress, or even to have a separate voice of their own anywhere else in the U.S. Government.

During the subsequent five decades, as the U.S. tax code ballooned from 14,000 to more than 70.000 pages, many nefarious innovations were introduced. The U.S. dollar became the default currency in which overseas Americans were assumed to be transacting all of their financial activities, and so with moving exchange rates they could be making dollar apparent capital gains on transactions in a foreign currency that were actually real life losses. But this didn’t matter. They would be required to declare all such transactions and pay U.S. taxes on these real loses because in dollars they looked like apparent gains. Where they were supposed to find the funds to pay the taxes on these losses would be a problem that overseas Americans had to solve for themselves. But if they failed to declare these transactions, and pay the subsequent U.S. taxes on these losses, they might face not only fines but actually be charged with a felony and be sent to jail.

And then along came the requirement to file annual reports about every foreign bank account that an overseas American possessed, and submit reports about all transactions above a certain minimum amount. And, once again, failure to file such reports could lead to heavy fines and possible jail time, and this, not for having done anything wrong, but just simply for failure to file such reports! And with the new FATCA impositions about to be implemented, this reporting fiasco will explode!

Finally, it merits at least some mention that fifty years ago, before these extra fiscal and financial reporting burdens were put on the shoulders of overseas Americans, and while they were still fully able to compete with the citizens of other countries in the same foreign markets, the United States had enjoyed more than sixty-seven years of unbroken trade surpluses with the rest of the world. During the subsequent decade, after this new toxic tax burden was imposed on those living and working abroad, the U.S. foreign trade position began to weaken, as many had predicted, and a trade deficit appeared for the first time in the 20th century in 1971. As the tax burden on overseas Americans became increasingly heavy and increasingly incomprehensible, these deficits soon became a permanent fixture of U.S. trade performance, and we are now in our 36th straight deficit year with the cumulative amount of these trade deficits now exceeding $8 trillion.

It is not very obvious so far that the current Administration in Washington, despite the enthralling campaign promises that were made in 2008, has any serious interest in leveling the worldwide playing field for trade. The results for the first eleven months of 2011 already show an impressive deficit for this most recent year of more than $500 billion, which is the worst trade performance of the last three years, and this deficit still grows each and every day at a rate in excess of $1.5 billion. The aggregate trade performance for the first three years of the current administration is now a negative $1.4 trillion!

This history of the sad and incomprehensibly self-destructive behavior of the United States during the past 50 years, which is unique among all of the major trading nations of the world today, is well worth reading and contemplating.

As has been stated many times before, major world powers don’t always decline due to destruction coming from outside. They sometimes infect themselves with terminal obsessions from within that, alas, seem to then become incurable. This doesn’t have to happen this time to Uncle Sam, but to avoid it something rather urgent needs to be done before it becomes too late.

So Let Us Now All Rise Up, Join Together to Throw off These Shackles, and Take Appropriate Action to Prepare for a Much More Positive Future for All of Us, our Heirs and for Our Country. After five decades of living passively with increasing insults and incomprehensible harassment, now is the time for overseas Americans everywhere to join together to resist our government’s self-destructive behavior.

Let’s get appropriately organized to work creatively, diligently and effectively to reclaim our rights to be respected and to be able once again to compete all over the world free of the self-defeating impositions that have been so gratuitously imposed upon us by our own U.S. Government. We need to bring back the respect and fundamental rights we once all enjoyed, and that we fully deserve to all enjoy once again. Let’s go for it! As our nation’s history has clearly shown, working together the right way really works!

Andy Sundberg is a Fellow and Secretary, the Overseas American Academy, Geneva

We all felt the pressure to find the perfect gifts for our loved ones for Christmas.

Let me introduce you to two of my favorite shops in Geneva that share a similar concept: Hot Box and Butterfly, both of which were great for gifts, and now that the January sales are here young people will be heading back through their doors.

Hot Box

Once you’ve passed the doorstep it’s difficult to leave empty-handed unless your wallet is anorexic.

My friends and family know that if they get me something from here they cannot get it wrong. I believe this is the case for many young people.

As I enter the shop, several different events present themselves in my head: cozy sweatpants for home, jackets for the ski slopes, dresses for a party, or jeans for just an ordinary day. Sporty, elegant, chic—you name it! You can go for any style you like.

The shelves are packed with well-known jeans brands all the way up to the roof. The tags include 7 for all mankind, Citizens of Humanity, J Brand, Blank NYC and many more. The rest of the shelves are neatly filled with Juicy Couture sets, Scarlett sweaters in all the colors of the rainbow, as well as funky t-shirts with text. Latest item in is the Alberto Bini cashmere sweater with the words “Love” or “Dream” written on the back.

On one hanger there’s fur, on the next one you see glitter.  Sparkling party tops and dresses, beautiful tunics with studs, sequins or Swarovski crystals. Suspended are Moncler and Parajumpers jackets and vests.  The small goodies around the cashier’ s desk look very tempting to the eyes:  Hanky Panky lace thongs, fun bracelets, and unique belts.

And that’s not all! The other half of Hot Box is for men. I recommend the beautiful shirts from Drunkenoala. The shirts have either an accent color, or a pattern on the collar, the end of the sleeves and on the seam down the middle. Very classy!

The clothes are very popular among students. Despite that they only have a number of copies of each item, I ran into a friend dressed in the same top I was wearing at last year’s New Year’s party in the mountains. We both burst into laughter, taken by surprise.

An extra little detail that I love is the fragrance of the shop that follows you home in the paper wrapped around the clothes. There is a certain magic of scents. They can evoke memories and feelings. Sort of a discrete marketing trick – reminds you of the shop.

Addresses in Geneva:

Hot Box: 1^st floor, Confédération Centre de Genève
Butterfly: 4, Rue du vieux-collège

Viktoria Rajnak is a business student at HEC in Geneva, where she has lived since 2003. She writes a blog, Remove Before Flight Blog and she will be contributing occasional guest posts here on a variety of topics including nightlift and shopping in Geneva.

Jack Widdowson 3 November in Bern:Ballett performance, "Ein Winternachtstraum" (photo©2011, Stadttheater/Philipp Zinniker)

From Cathy Marston

Jack has been an apprentice dancer with the Bern:Ballett since August through our collaboration with the London Contemporary Dance School. He is on a post-Graduate course in performance.

Although he only started dancing a few years ago he has enormous talent.

His creativity and dedication are inspiring to all around him and he is very hungry to learn from the experienced dancers around him.

On Thursday 3 November he danced the role of Demetrius in our world premiere “Ein Winternachtstraum” (“A Mid-Winter’s Nights Dream”, after Shakespeare’s Midsummer Nights Dream) with my choreography.

He had jumped into this solo role from the corps de ballet after another one of the company’s dancers broke his arm three weeks beforehand. Jack was wonderful on stage and displayed a great ‘presence.’

(photo©2011, Stadttheater/Philipp Zinniker)

(photo©2011, Stadttheater/Philipp Zinniker)

As choreographer and director of the Bern:Ballett I am devastated that such a talent may not be able to develop.

The dancers of the company are shocked and upset; Jack is a much loved, funny and kind colleague.

We are hopeful though, that his determination to recover will bring him back to us in due course.’

Thank you for your work to find the person who did this to Jack.

Cathy Marston