Who we are Product innovators and green advocates.

Our expertise in design strategy, design innovation, product

realization, and brand expression allow us to help clients

clearly define their goals, differentiate themselves from

competitors, lessen their impact on the environment, and

offer solutions that are wholly relevant to consumers.

We are a product innovation firm. We are in a unique position to affect positive environmental change.

To create strategies and products that affect change and promote sustainable thinking.

Our mission.

Who we are Committed to promoting sustainability.

When you’re considering the redesign of an existing product, we can help you find ways to make it greener. We begin with a

life-cycle assessment, an analysis of the materials, energy, wastes,

and emissions that go into the manufacture, distribution, use, and

disposal of the product. Armed with this data, we can determine

where best to focus our efforts.

The results at times may be counterintuitive. For example, in some

cases the benefits of using a biodegradable part may be more than

offset by a loss of durability that curtails the life of the product.

Altitude has both the knowledge to make an informed decision

and the experience to make the correct decision.

A good thing made better.Purchase

O.O.B.E.

Set-

upCleaning

Use

Material Acquisition

Retire / Reclaim

Mai

ntain

ance

Manufacturin

gDistribution

Preparation

Marketing (the 4Ps)

M

laim

Design

Altitude

Manufacturer

RecyclerPartnerInvolvement

Life-cycle assessment

1x Change Making existing products more sustainable.

A new product line or an emerging technology presents an exciting opportunity. We can incorporate sustainability into its

DNA. To do so, we must consider the big picture. What are consumers

looking for? What behaviors and habits must the product address?

How can we marry the latest innovations in materials and processes

with these consumer concerns to minimize environmental impact

and maximize appeal? How can we extend the product’s lifespan?

Is there something we can remove that won’t alter the product’s

effectiveness but eliminates waste? In exploring the answers to these

questions, we draw upon our breadth of experience as consultants.

We are constantly exposed to new ideas. An aspect of one project

could apply to another, cross-pollinating across industries.

Green from scratch.

5x Change Making inherently sustainable products.

Design can be a powerful tool for modifying or changing behavior. Success hinges on developing a deep understanding of

current behavior, the values and motivations that shape experience,

and the emotional connections that make an experience both

meaningful and desirable. Altitude’s Design Strategy Team

uncovers these critical insights and uses them as the framework

for conceiving of products or services that instill new behaviors

and experiences. The “magic” lies in satisfying expected value

and emotional demands while sparking change.

Greening behavior.

10x Change Making products that promote green behavior.

150

250

200

0

50

100

Air Travel 45% Commuting 21%

Carbon Footprint 2007 (228 MTe CO2)

Natural Gas 18% Electricity 16%

MTe

128MTe

59MTe 52MTe

47MTe

Global warming is just one of several environmental impact categories that we collectively need to address, but it is one of the best known and best documented. We decided that

Altitude’s Green Initiative should begin with a calculation of how we

are contributing to climate change. How much carbon are we putting

into the atmosphere each year? We totaled our utility use and our

modes of transportation, among other things. We discovered that

Altitude generated 163 metric tons of CO2 in 2007.

Now that we have this data, we have embarked on a second phase

of work: to make the numbers relevant to our daily lives. If we can

make the extent of our carbon emissions tangible to each of us—to

make it really resonate—then we stand a greater chance of making

the behavioral changes necessary to lessen our impact.

Our footprint. 285 MTe CO2 (8.11 MTe CO2 per employee)

In 2008, Altitude emitted the equivalent

of 285 MTe CO2 into the atmosphere, or

roughly 9.93 MTe CO2 per employee.

2008 Impact.

What we’re doing Measuring our impact.

Even with our recycling program a lot of our garbage ends up, well, in the trash. Just how much? Alex Tee, our Green Initia-

tive point man, got curious. He saved all of Altitude’s recycling and

garbage for the month of July. To his surprise, our recycling made up a

relatively small percentage of the pile.

To make this point hit home, Alex initiated “Trash Month.” For one

month, participating Altitude staffers saved their trash and recycling.

All communal trash cans and recycling bins were removed, even in

the restrooms. As Alex puts it, “people would be confronted by their

consumption on a daily basis.”

The results? The experiment certainly got us to think. Most of us were

stymied about what to do with damp paper towels in the bathroom. A

few of us secretly threw away trash in others’ receptacles. Some were

astonished at how much trash we accumulated, while others thought

the amount of trash was small. Even more telling, after the month

was over and trash pickup resumed, we went back to our old habits.

Trash Month really showed us the challenges of affecting long-term

behavior change.

Trash month.

What we’re doing Studying our habits.

When a client of ours asked us to design a new coffee maker, we decided to take the opportunity to view the product through a green lens. The first step in analyzing the environmen-

tal impact of a product is to set appropriate boundary conditions,

which in this case included both the product itself, as well as the

use phase. With the impacts understood, we could make informed

decisions and incorporate sustainable features, which are not only

environmentally responsible, but also economically viable.

We refined the most impactful aspects of the coffeemaker, such as the

heating element, non-insulated glass carafe, the ubiquitous clock and

digital interface, among other things. By thinking beyond the plastic

we were able to discover a cooler way to stay warm and deliver an

improved product experience with reduced environmental harm.

The results? Environmental Savings – 53,059 Millipoints

New take on a familiar friend.

What we’re doing ‘Green from scratch’ case study.

Responsibility to all.Altitude Inc.

363 Highland Avenue Somerville, MA 02144

www.altitudeinc.com

At Altitude, we believe in being accountable—not just to our clients and colleagues, but also to the environment and greater humanity. This is why we have launched our Green Advocacy

Initiative. It is a commitment to educating ourselves about the is-

sues and to being part of the solution. It is a pledge to infuse our

innovation process with sustainable thinking.617.623.7600

info@altitudeinc.com

What we’re doing Being accountable.

a product innovation firm