Students promote eco-eateries

College sophomores Doug Miller, Lambros Theofanidis and Ori Kedar love to visit local restaurants — but not just for the food.

The three are members of Green Acorn, a student-run certification program started at the beginning of last semester. Green Acorn endorses restaurants, food trucks and stores around campus as environmentally friendly.

“We first want to recognize local green business and raise awareness in the student body,” said Miller, director of Green Acorn. “Then, we want to reward the businesses by telling students why they’re better for Philadelphia and the world.”

They plan to raise awareness by flyering on Locust Walk and possibly advertising on the Penn Environmental Group’s web site.

Green Acorn is funded by Penn’s new Green Fund, which welcomes ideas from the Penn community about ways to improve the University’s environmental performance.

The members use criterion such as waste minimization and disposal, conservation of resources and pollution prevention to certify businesses.

“For businesses that already meet our standards, it’s win-win because they get free advertising,” Theofandis said. He added that other businesses can save money by conserving water and electricity.

So far, four businesses have been certified by Green Acorn: Hub Bub Coffee, at 38th and Spruce Streets on weekdays; Milk & Honey, at 4435 Baltimore Ave.; Coup de Taco, on 40th Street between Spruce and Locust streets and Copabanana, at 4000 Spruce St.

“We don’t want to reach just a few elite businesses, but also smaller ones that didn’t know they could do these small changes that add up.”

Another incentive for business owners is a tax break of up to $4,000 for the tax years of 2012 through 2017 for 25 businesses in Philadelphia that are certified “B Corporations” through the nonprofit organization B Lab.

“[Our] working with these buildings will give them a head start on these tax credits,” said Theofanidis.

Despite the benefits of environmental awareness, Green Acorn’s members sometimes face difficulty in recruiting businesses.

Though the practices endorsed by Green Acorn result in a negative long-term externality, some businesses prefer the short-term benefit of saving money, Theofanidis explained.

For example, one business owner told the group a switch from Styrofoam to compostable material would constitute a 20-percent cost increase. Other businesses, though already environmentally aware, appear uninterested in attracting students as a customer base.

“They’re intent on being a strictly neighborhood joint,” Miller said.

Despite these difficulties, the group is hopeful.

“We want [Green Acorn] to be a fixture,” Miller said. “We want students to look for Green Acorn certification, and to tell owners that they heard they were Green Acorn certified.”

“Eventually,” Theofanidis said, “businesses won’t need to be certified — though we always want the green mentality.”

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