Ah, the Macbook Air. I saw it on TV yesterday and thought it was something I could really fall in love with–till I remembered my tendency to break things, so something as slim as this will not last a week with me.
But apparently, the Macbook Air is more than an effort to create a new iconic Apple product and launch the thinnest laptop evar, it is also Apple’s response to criticism that the company isn’t doing enough to make their products more eco-friendly The casing is made of aluminum, and it’s free of harmful chemicals and materials normally used in laptop parts.
However, it’s still not enough to appease Greenpeace, Apple’s fiercest critic.
“Apple is getting greener, but not green enough,” said Rick Hind, the legislative director of Greenpeace’s toxics campaign. “The Macbook Air has less toxic PVC plastic and less toxic BFRs, but it could have zero and that would make Apple an eco-leader,” he added.
Of course, the group has been known to exaggerate its reports on Apple’s ungreenness, so who knows how all this will end. If I have any say in the matter, I’d love to tell Greenpeace to be more encouraging and not shoot down any efforts the company makes. Instead of saying, “Yeah, you tried, but it’s not good enough, dammit!” the group should be more optimistic about the attempt and offer more ideas for improvement. Work with companies, don’t antagonize them. They sound just like a parent who’s piling on a lot of pressure on his or her stressed child.
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