News Archives - Page 28 of 31

GreenBlue Value Innovation Methodology Helps Firms Make Business Case for Sustainability

Sustainability non-profit GreenBlue’s Advisory Services Group has begun employing a strategic process to help companies walk through a ten-step course of action that strategically links sustainability with innovation. The sustainability-focused adaptation of the value innovation methodology starts by helping companies identify their most important sustainability customer group. It continues with a series of contextual interviews with a representative sampling of the group and leads to an iterative plotting and validation of “as-is” and “to-be” value curves. These value curves serve as a roadmap to sustainability strategies and solutions. read more

Green Business Opportunities For American Economy

Green goods market growth image via Big Green Opportunity Growth rates for green business products and services are rising faster than conventional goods in America’s economy, outpacing the overall economy through the depths of the recession, and creating opportunity for the 88% of US businesses classified as “microbusinesses” with five or fewer employees. These findings come from “The Big Green Opportunity,” a new survey of 1,300+ businesses conducted in 2012. Respondents said the greener a product, the more likely its sales increase, with 75% reporting an increase in green business from 2008-2011 at a 19% price premium compared to traditional goods. Consumer Demand Creates Green Business Opportunity The survey hints at a shift in consumer demand toward sustainability creating “green competition” among businesses, especially those with high environmental footprints. 79% of small businesses – particularly those in the food, personal goods, and construction markets – sa…

Your Green Office: Energy-Saving Tips for Small Businesses

By Megan Totka (Read the full article at SmallBizTrends.com) Unless you enjoy working by candlelight on a manual typewriter, the power bill is a necessary evil for your small business. It’s also one of the last areas business owners consider when it comes to reducing expenses—but it should be at the top of the list. There are plenty of ways you can save big on your energy costs, while helping the environment at the same time. From small changes in your habits to investments that pay for themselves, here are some great energy-saving tips for your business. Your Green Office Let There Be Light (Sometimes) It’s easy to overlook the lights in your business. You turn them on when it’s dark, or simply out of habit at the beginning of the day and (hopefully) turn them off when you leave. But if you make a conscious effort to control excessive light use, you can save quite a bit on your energy bill. Here’s how. Inexpensive and Free: Turn off lights in any room that isn…

Sustainability Needs to be Integrated in the Communities

Dr Anna Gritching is seen with her students on a field trip in Qatar. As part of her teaching and research at Qatar University, she is looking at Food Security as a new paradigm for Urban Planning and Design. This involves examining how to integrate the production of food into the architectural, urban, and landscape design and also to design more productive landscapes. Just as change doesn’t necessarily imply a change for the better, movement does not always denote a forward escalation in a progressive direction. Similarly, while urban development is a positive step forward, there are aspects which can add impetus to the thrust and value to the larger picture and make the pace of progress even more progressive. Glance anywhere in Doha and there is one uniform feature that remains constant throughout the landscape — construction is everywhere, in one form another, as far as eye can see! Urban development and progress are more than just mere terms in Qatar’s environment yet s…

San Onofre Nuclear Plant to Shut Permanently, Edison Says

By PAT BRENNAN / ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER The two reactors at the San Onofre nuclear plant will be shut down permanently, Southern California Edison announced early Friday. The power giant cited regulatory uncertainty surrounding the proposed restart of one of the reactors, as well as costs, in its decision to retire the units at what is formally known as the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. “SONGS has served this region for over 40 years,” Ted Craver, chairman and CEO of Edison International, said in the statement released by Edison. “But we have concluded that the continuing uncertainty about when or if SONGS might return to service was not good for our customers, our investors, or the need to plan for our region’s long-term electricity needs.” Both reactor units have been offline since January 2012, after a small leak of radioactive gas prompted shutdown of one unit; the other was already offline for routine maintenance. Unexpected wear was found in the me…

Many Small Green Businesses Thriving Even in Rough Economy

The Greener the Company's Practices, the Higher their Sales from the CPA Practice Advisor Three out of four small businesses responding to a recent survey reported that, unlike much of the economy, sales for green products and services actually increased over the course of the recent economic downturn. Among those businesses, the greener the company's practices, the higher their sales, according to a major new survey conducted by Green America (GA), EcoVentures International (EVI), and the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO). In a report presenting the survey findings, the three groups note that, over the past 10 years, the market for green products and services has expanded dramatically. For example, the green building market has increased by 1,700 percent while the conventional building market has contracted by 17 percent. The organic food market has increased by 238 percent in comparison to the non-organic food market's expansion of only 33 percent. Con…