At the fall meeting of Gotham Green held at the famed, Friars Club, we received an informative presentation on JetBlue's sustainability strategy from Sara Lindenfeld, Sustainability Analyst. Jet Blue was named a 2015 Gotham Green Award winner for their commitment to sustainability.
One of their more visible projects is the T5 farm at JFK Airport where they farm blue potatoes, herbs and kale using organic methods. A portion of the organic soil for the container farm comes from composted food waste collected from Terminal 5. The composting is done by farmers in NY state. Employee volunteer to work in the garden and they pick produce for their families to eat at home. The blue potatoes are taken to Terra's nearby manufacturing facility where they are utilized for blue potato chip in new product formulation and testing.
While the T5 farm is highly visible to staff and customers, the JetBlue team is focusing on other important sustainability issues as well such as reducing emissions through using plug in vehicles (PEVs) to service their fleet of planes and biofuels for use in for existing fleet. Sustainability is part of everyone's job everyday.
The JetBlue leadership team views sustainability as an important part of creating financial value for the organization. One of the major markets served by JetBlue is the Caribbean. If the beauty of the beaches in the Caribbean is degraded through climate change, then JetBlue stands to lose a popular tourism route. Environmental stewardship is not only good for preserving natural biodiversity, but it is also good for preserving an organization's bottom line.
