Facility Management the Unsung Heroes of Sustainability

Facility Management the Unsung Heroes of Sustainability

This post highlights how facilities management is an important, if often unsung part of so many businesses… any businesses with facilities, in fact. Sustainable facilities management is an area that can have a profound and near term impact on overall business sustainability. Very large potential energy savings and hence carbon footprint reduction could be realized in facilities management areas such as HVAC or lighting for example; the embodied energy of facilities — their materials and recurring requirements; how runoff is handled and so forth all are areas in which sustainable facilities management can really impact the triple bottom line in a positive way.

Make Sustainability Personal–and 12 Other Tactics To Engage Employees

Make Sustainability Personal–and 12 Other Tactics To Engage Employees

Sustainability does not engage employees unless it first and foremost solves problems they experience in their lives. You make sustainability personal and create the best conditions and incentives for employee engagement by making it voluntary, localizing it, listening, demonstrating the effect of the action, making it cross-functional, solicit and respond to employee ideas, give employees as a way to take immediate action, give rewards for successes, make it regular, and build culture around sustainability goals.

US Sustainable Business Spending to Double to $60 Billion By 2014

US Sustainable Business Spending to Double to $60 Billion By 2014

Using financial data from 1,833 firms with US revenues of more than $1 billion in 2008/09, independent analyst firm Verdantix finds that spending on 29 sustainability initiatives will grow from $28 billion in 2010 to $60 billion in 2014. Over the 2009 to 2014 period the US sustainable business market will experience a 19% compound annual growth rate. The sustainable business market forecast finds that growth of 11% in 2010 will increase to 16% in 2011 and 24% in 2012. Growth in spending is driven by improved economic growth, risk drivers, competitive dynamics, innovation diffusion, higher oil prices, state-level GHG regulations and renewable energy policies. The study covers all industries and all sustainability initiatives from energy efficiency to spending on strategy, risk and brand.

Live Blogging SB ’10 – Best Green Brands, Metrics for Success, CSR Best Practices, Responsible Profit, and More

Live Blogging SB ’10 – Best Green Brands, Metrics for Success, CSR Best Practices, Responsible Profit, and More

We have a busy live blogging schedule today. The Green Economy Post team will be reporting on 11 sessions. In addition to our live blogging team, we will be streaming commentary from 0ver 70 SB ’10 attendees. Topics include: key market drivers, the best green brands, the metrics of qualitative growth, responsible profit, incfluencing consumers, drivers behind sustainable brand innovation, GreenXchange and eco-Innovation, CSR best practices, CSR Reporting Case Studies, tools for measuring environmental and motivating mainstream consumers to make sustainable choices. See our live blogging schedule for today

Employees Should Be Part of Any Green Solution

Employees Should Be Part of Any Green Solution

There are a tremendous number of business benefits of environmental and sustainability education for employees, including: improved operational efficiency, strengthened customer and community relations, innovation, supply chain management, and increased employee recruitment and retention.

How to Create Green Change in a Conservative Culture

How to Create Green Change in a Conservative Culture

The six keys to driving change in a conservative corporate culture include: top-level support; management-level and administrative support; minimal risk; a clear path; bottom-line value; and political awareness.

The Traits of a Highly Effective and Successful Chief Sustainability Officer

The Traits of a Highly Effective and Successful Chief Sustainability Officer

Verdantix, recently released a free report, that explains why the Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) is needed, defines the role of the CSO, and provides a profile to guide the appointment of the CSO. It also explains why organizations face a climate change and sustainability management deficit, why fixing sustainability governance gains is becoming a major priority by a growing number of firms, how the CSO can spearhead business transformation, who the ideal candidate for the chief sustainability officer role is, and what are the three priority areas of domain expertise.

Sustainability Initiatives are Viewed as Strategic but Lack Measurement

Sustainability Initiatives are Viewed as Strategic but Lack Measurement

A recent survey found that the majority of corporate sustainability leaders believe that their sustainability initiatives have significant strategic value for their organizations, but also feel that measurement for these initiatives are lacking, which makes communicating the outcomes of their efforts more challenging.