As companies scurry to appeal to a fast-growing eco-consumer base, the Federal Trade Commission is stepping in to bring clarity to the arena of green marketing. As I write, numerous stakeholders are developing their testimony for an April 30 hearing on environmental claims for product packaging. Here’s a rundown of the key issues, and why they’re becoming more important by the day. By Jacquelyn Ottman

Which products get the bad rap is not always logical or driven by real data - so how can you prepare? SLM expert-in-residence Andrew Winston has a few tips.

One of greenwashing's negative effects is that it dissuades genuinely green companies from promoting their own far more substantial green practices. Companies that are authentically doing good stay silent, for fear that they'll be tarred with the same brush as those who are carrying on with business as usual. This "greenhushing" effect is almost as negative as greenwashing. Here's why. By Jerry Stifelman (Treehugger) Read more...

Increasingly, apparel designers and buyers are asking “What is the source of our raw materials?" "Where were the materials harvested, processed, produced?" "What went into the process (inputs) and what came out (impacts)?" This mindset shift goes beyond sustainable agriculture and fair labor practices; if you're currently in the clothing business - be it design, production, or purchasing - expect carbon footprint to soon emerge as another key consideration. By Coral Rose

Executives are switching in droves from the computer industry to clean-technology firms. Do they have what it takes to succeed? (The Economist) Read more...

Procter & Gamble Co. and Unilever have battled over many things over the decades, from soap shares to spy scandals. But the latest battleground may be the most surprising and intriguing -- a race to show who's best at saving the world. (Advertising Age) Read more...

One more sign that we’ve reached a tipping point in the way businesses look at their logistics and distribution systems: British electronics chain PC World is sharing delivery-truck space with a sister company. Think that’s all well and good for businesses that operate under the same corporate umbrella, but don’t see the value for a company like yours? Have you checked the price of diesel lately? By Phil Berry

A recent survey shows many don't understand that a company's high score on social responsibility indices also signals good risk management. (BusinessWeek) Read more...

Green-market change is a challenge for companies and investors alike, but each group is acting on its own timeline - and (given our rapidly changing climate) the clock is ticking. Easily verified, widely agreed-upon standards for sustainability are quickest path to lasting change. With all the different programs currently in the marketplace, how do you decide which standard to go with? Here’s how I came up with an answer – and how you can, too. By Mary Hunt

Sustainability is the backbone of architecture firm HOK Canada's design philosophy - of which Honda is the latest beneficiary. The carmaker's new LEED-certified campus in Markham, Ontario, opened last November. (Report on Business) Read more...

Enterprises are looking past their datacenters’ infrastructures to the management of the data itself to find new ways to save energy. (Processor) Read more...

Global trends - such as the move toward "green" - are pushing supply chain complexity to new heights. Thanks to IT advances, the agility that is so critical to business success is more attainable than ever, says John Sookias, director at supply chain management firm Syncron. (Supply Chain Standard) Read more...

Hardly a week goes by without Toyota’s Prius making green marketing headlines. Let's take a step back and analyze why this product has been so wildly successful, attracting a broad swath of consumers — and not just deep-green ones — like a powerful magnet, all the while creating a new definition of automotive cool. By Jacquelyn Ottman

While the widespread adoption of sustainability language is a sign that business is responding to criticism and to the growing calls for environmental responsibility, the massive growth in rhetoric is generating some unintended consequences - such as more cynicism, says strategy consultant Stephen McGrail. (The Age) Read more...

Got a great green product but need a little financial help bringing it to market? Here are some ideas to get you started. (Ecopreneurist) Read more...

San Francisco's proposed "cost recovery fee" for the region's biggest corporate carbon emitters may have some unsettling regulatory consequences for business. By Will Sarni

Unlike many big banks, ING is more focused on getting things done than seeking green publicity, according to this Ethical Corporation magazine article. Read more...

Green computing promises an enormous win for IT - a chance to save money and the environment. Many companies are trying to go greener, but a few truly stand out. Here are Computerworld magazine's picks for the top 12 green IT users an vendors, including profiles of each. (Computerworld) Read more...

The trend toward greener operations at Harrah's Entertainment has grown from small strides at a few of the gaming giant's properties to the boardroom and executive offices. (Las Vegas Business Press) Read more...

Check out the latest in green product design with this slideshow of new offerings on display at the recent 2008 Greener Gadgets conference in New York. Includes peeks at Apple's new Macbook, a wind-powered MP3 player, and a heating and cooling device for personal environments. (BusinessWeek) View slideshow...

If you’ve changed your business and/or operational practices to reduce your carbon footprint, you should tell your customers about it. If you’ve changed your ingredients or manufacturing processes to be more environmentally friendly, you should take credit for it. But before you slap a green label on your product, consider this: While the benefits can be numerous, the potential pitfalls are equally so. Here are the pros and cons, and how you can make green labels work for – not against – your brand. By Matt Heinz

Recent reports from Gartner, Forrester, and McKinsey highlight the costs of and savings from implementing green-tech corporate strategies. (BusinessWeek) Read more...

What does it really cost for a manufacturer to deliver a more sustainable product or package to the retail store shelf - and what should the resulting price be for consumers? Dennis Salazar, president of Salazar Packaging, does the math. (Sustainable Is Good) Read more...

Charges of greenwashing are likely to irk more consumers than ever before. Here’s how to stay on the good side of hyper-sensitive green consumers. (MarketingSherpa) Read more...

What exactly is a carbon offset? In theory it's reduction in carbon emissions somewhere - through some action like planting a tree or paying for the spinning of a wind turbine - equal to your own emissions. Sounds easy, but the reality is very messy since the mechanisms for creating and buying emissions reductions and credits are incredibly varied. Here are four key questions to ask as you begin to think about your strategic choices in the (as-yet) mainly voluntary world of carbon offsets. By Andrew Winston

To truly green their supply chains, companies must consider their shipping platform - the way they package product in shipping containers for transport. When selecting or evaluating a shipping platform, companies should answer these five key questions. (IndustryWeek) Read more...

Is corporate competition making way for an era of collaboration as businesses face up to the climate change challenge? (BusinessGreen) Read more...

Chris Joyce, manager of REI's new LEED-certified distribution center in Pennsylvania, gives advice for going green. (Modern Materials Handling) Read more...

Steve Bishop, a global lead of Design for Sustainability at IDEO, advises marketers, "Instead of focusing on a green niche, focus on green behaviors that everyone can aspire to."(Harvard Business Review) Read more...

Traditional means of marketing by demographics simply will not work for green consumers, you need to be able to identify how they behave, says columnist Danny Bradbury. (BusinessGreen) Read more...

Green is better, but it may not always be best. Columnist Adrian Gonzalez points out that many green products and initiatives have tradeoffs that companies and consumers can't afford to ignore.

I'm learning that green doesn't go with everything, like those strange-shade-of-green pants abandoned in my closet.  The last time I wore them, all it took was a raised eyebrow from my wife for me to head back upstairs, head-down defeated.

BusinessWeek seems to have taken on the self-appointed role as debunker of green business, which as I've written before is an odd switch from the beginning of 2007. The trend continues: Last week, the magazine took an unnecessarily harsh (but not necessarily surprising) perspective on a new survey about interest in green values at work. By Andrew Winston

Eco-logos are all the rage -- but how valuable are they as a marketing tool? Are there some hidden risks that warrant a second look? Let's consider the three ingredients of an effective marketing logo -- green or otherwise -- and their implications for the savvy eco-marketer. By Jacquelyn Ottman

The FTC's inquiry into corporate carbon offset claims may have consequences the reach far beyond the marketing department, says climate expert and SLM commentator Will Sarni.

Is your datacenter including all mechanical, lighting, electrical, and computer systems designed for maximum energy efficiency and minimum environmental impact? If you're like most IT managers, the answer is probably no. In this primer, IT expert Manish Sethi outlines seven practical, concrete approaches to making the ideal closer to reality. (Express Computer) Read more...

Authentic, verifiable positive impact behind concrete action is the true ticket to winning the hearts, minds, and brand preferences of today's green-minded consumer. By the same token, greening your brand communications requires far more than a few mere edits on a page. Here are four key elements to creating a smart, effective media strategy that wont call your green cred into question. By Matt Heinz

As I look out over the 2008 horizon, I predict some tectonic shifts in the world of green marketing that well-intended marketers should heed if they want to stay off greenwashing lists and legal department memos. Some are influenced by the FTC's hearings on green marketing claims and eco-labels this month, others the outcome of energy behind large retailers efforts to persuade suppliers to come up with trimmed-down products and packages. Here are my top four predictions. By Jacquelyn Ottman

Just a few short years ago, execs would roll their eyes at the idea of a "green MBA." Now business schools throughout the U.S. are incorporating the environmental and social costs of doing business into their curriculums. (AP via Kansas City Star) Read more...

In a market that demands nothing less than completely honest, ethical, and authentic corporate communications, it can sometimes seem like no green deed goes unpunished. The NFL catching flak for its not-quite carbon neutral Super Bowl 2008 is a case in point. By Jacquelyn Ottman

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The Federal Trade Commission is updating its guidelines for environmental advertising. How would green experts improve the system? National Public Radio's "Marketplace" asked its team of sustainability pros a.k.a. the "Greenwash Brigade" to weigh in.

All things being equal, if a potential employer paid for your time away from the office to volunteer for an Earth-friendly cause or provided you with free compact fluorescent light bulbs, or even a hybrid car, would you be more inclined to join them? Renewable energy firms are developing green employee benefits that align the core values of the company with the core values of each employee. (RenewableEnergyAccess) Read more...

Last year's barrage of green media coverage began in January with a BusinessWeek cover on the glory of the environmentally conscious corporation. Nine months later, the same publication opted for the "yeah, but..." angle with its "Little Green Lies" cover. (Not surprisingly, BusinessWeek just forecasted a green backlash as the first of their top ten predictions for 2008.) Backlash or no, media are shaping the green agenda in a profound way. It's important to look at how these players operate, both as a way to understand the risks they pose, and to uncover opportunities to use them to get your story out and build your brand. By Andrew Winston

As we round the corner into 2008, its worth taking a look back on what might easily be considered the year climate change got really, well, hot. From Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth to the Nobel Peace Prize to the Bali roadmap, global warming picked up a lot of press, often from unexpected quarters. So what were the key climate stories of 2007? For me, the real winners are the stories that foreshadow new developments in science, technology, politics, and innovation. Here are my top five picks , and why they still deserve your attention. By Will Sarni

Clorox bought Burt's Bees for $913 million in November, aiming to turn it into a mainstream American brand sold in big-box stores like Wal-Mart. Executives say Clorox has a lot to learn from the unusual business practices at Burts Bees many of which center on environmental sustainability. (New York Times) Read more...

Green aspirations top the business agenda in 2008, and that starts with an examination of a company's supply chain. But determining the carbon footprint of any supply chain is a complicated, expensive and uncertain endeavor. (CIO) Read more...

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BusinessWeek Innovation Chief Bruce Nussbaum talks to Innovation & Design editor Helen Walters about what's next for innovation in 2008, from shifts in the way that businesses work to new thinking about sustainability.

This month, Toyota will take the wraps off another product that could have embattled American automakers scrambling to catch up. Its new concept truck, dubbed A-BAT, packs a hybrid gas-electric power supply similar to the Prius sedan, likely the most well-known green machine on American roads. (BusinessWeek) Read more...

A January 2008 article in the Harvard Business Review identifies three ways that incorrect financial practices may suppress investment in innovation. Since green investments are largely investments in innovation, it's likely that these financial practices may hinder smart investments in green as well. Here's how.

Considering carbon offsets? Companies can get a better return by offering products and services that improve sustainability for others, says Dave Douglas, VP of eco responsibility at Sun Microsystems. (BusinessWeek) Read more...

2007 was the year businesses began to outgrow their datacenter facilities, balancing rising energy costs against the need for ever more computing power. In response, companies have embraced technologies and practices in the name of sustainability to wring as much performance as possible out of their existing datacenter infrastructure. Here's how it all broke down. (InfoWorld) Read more...

From low-flow water faucets to converting French fry oil to fuel, McDonald's is testing ways to reduce the impact its 31,000-plus restaurants have on the world's resources. (Reuters) Read more...

Sustainability reports offer plenty of eye candy, but can they actually help managers make better decisions? Yes as long as you know how to read the data. (CFO Magazine) Read more...

Airlines have taken a battering from environmental lobbyists for their impact on climate change, so how are carriers building the environment into their strategies? (Flight) Read more...

Haworth, Inc., a designer and manufacturer of flexible work spaces, made most of its product line eco-friendly in 2003. Now the companys Manhattan showroom is, too. The new LEED-certified showroom is intended to show how Haworths work spaces eliminate the costly and continuous tear-down and rebuilding cycles that companies go through as they grow or downsize. (New York Times) Read more...

Wal-Marts carefully parsed progress report shies away from straight talk, says reporting expert Kathee Rebernak. Here are six ways the retail giant can improve its transparency track record.

ZDNet blogger Paul Murphy makes the case for "Net Present Impact," an alternative business metric that considers lifecycle assessment in financial decisionmaking with surprising results. Read more...

There are plenty of reasons to consider green factors when planning for your next exhibit. If your industry is not traditionally linked with environmental movements, having a green exhibit is a great way to stand out from the crowd. Add to that the fact that youre doing your part to make the world a better place, and youll feel less guilty for blowing your competition out of the water. Here are ten tips for going green at your next exhibit. By Graham Green

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Adam Grosser, general partner of Foundation Capital, describes the different categories of green technology and the challenges they face. (BNet)

What do Nestle, Proctor & Gamble, Unilever, and Dell have in common? Theyve all put their suppliers on notice to provide concrete, meaningful data on their carbon footprint. Why? These companies are seeing real business value in measuring energy use and carbon emissions upstream to gain business efficiencies, reduce costs, forge closer links with supply chain partners, and make the most cost-effective reductions in their total carbon emissions. By Phil Berry

Entrepreneurs are commonly seen as risk takers, but the best ones are actually risk mitigators: designers who create ways to get reliable results amid chaos and confusion. The recent influx of green entrepreneurship is a sign that sustainability is taking hold, economic tradeoffs and incentives are shifting, and theres a chance to out-compete, if not subvert, the dominant paradigm. By Gil Friend (Sustainable Industries Journal) Read more...

Last week's Bali Communique, in which the world's top business leaders called for a legally binding framework on climate action, has netted media attention aplenty both positive and negative. SLM climate expert Will Sarni says both sides might be missing the point.

Going public too soon sets you up for accusations of green washing. Waiting too long can leave you behind your competitors, losing the first-mover advantage. So how do you decide when you're ready to tell your sustainability story? By Darcy Hitchcock

As with any organizational initiative, successful implementation of sustainability relies on a coherent and thoughtful plan. Easier said than done! For your sustainability plan to work, it must have each of these five key components. By Marsha Willard

Some environmental issues are impossible for one company to handle on its own. Often the only real solution is for companies to work together with direct competitors to level the playing field. Here's how some industry partnerships are balancing the competitive and cooperative. By Andrew Winston

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A Sao Paulo design agency, Chelles & Hayashi, aims to help companies create products that reduce the amount of raw material needed in their production process. A washing machine from Mueller that uses 4 kilograms less of raw materials than conventional machines and 20 litres of water per load is featured. (via Environmental Leader)

If you can't sell your green programs to your own employees, how will you ever sell your company as a sustainability leader? Frogfile Office Essentials, an online source for greener office products, offers these ten tips for getting green buy-in within your enterprise.

Going green can drive environmental and bottom-line benefits at the same time, but it takes an organizational culture change and a long-term perspective. This cover story from Supply & Demand Chain Executive makes the case that the best place to start a green initiative is inside the four walls of the enterprise. Read more...

Green marketer beware you're likely to be stretching the truth, according to a recent study by TerraChoice Environmental Marketing. The Six Sins of Greenwashing found that of 1,018 common consumer products ranging from toothpaste to caulking to shampoo to printers, 99% were guilty of greenwashing in some way. In fact, the environmental shortcomings were so prevalent that TerraChoice separated them into six categories.

Here are the Six Sins, so ye may avoid them.

Dont join the growing number of marketers throwing around phrases like environmentally friendly, Earth friendly, and ozone friendly." While such claims have a calming ring, they can be very misleading. Here's how to avoid some common traps. By Jacquelyn Ottman

PLA and PHA have a new acronym in their ranks NOP (natural-oil polyols), a soybean-based precursor to polyurethane (PUR) that will target flexible applications in foam, coatings, adhesives, and sealants. Dow claims to be the largest producer of NOPs, putting the weight of a market leader behind a greener alternative. (Modern Plastics) Read more...

Is it possible to bring hundreds of delegates together without leaving any environmental footprint? Not yet. But this article in Canada's Globe and Mail has some simple suggestions for taking an event from brown to green(er).

Global companies like Hewlett Packard and IBM have long considered the environmental and social performance of their suppliers. Recently, many others have begun to show positive signs (hello, Wal-Mart). Opportunities abound! Now is the time for you, the supplier, to begin telling your sustainability story. Here are my top tips for selling yourself as a green asset to business customers. By Phil Berry

The process for making Lay's potato chips devours enormous amounts of energy, and creates vast amounts of waste in water, starch, and peelings. Now, Frito-Lay is embarking on an ambitious plan to change the way one of its factories operates and, in the process, create a new type of snack: the environmentally benign chip. (New York Times) Read more...

How do suppliers get companies to pay attention to their green offerings? The smart ones save procurement professionals a lot of legwork by seeking independent verification for their own environmental claims. Here's how some savvy SMEs are grabbing a bigger slice of the green-purchasing pie. (Smart Company) Read more...

Some unscrupulous marketers view consumers' growing interest in environmental issues as an opportunity for trend exploitation. Branding consultant Larry Light (formerly of McDonald's Corporation) urges marketers to mind their P's and Q's. (Advertising Age) Read more...

Just a few steps behind green tech, green chemistry is the latest movement that's both a source of technology innovation and a rallying cry for environmentalists. (CNet News) Read more...

Regular audits are a critical component of any green supply chain strategy, but how do they work? Hewlett-Packard's Karl Daumueller, a veteran of supplier checks, explains the HP Supplier Code of Conduct and discusses how the company's audits deliver results. (BusinessGreen) Read more...

Earlier this year, the magazine FastCompany partnered with two San Francisco investment firms to fill a glaring gap in business metrics: there was no single way to measure a company's net impact on people and the planet, much less tie such a metric to financial performance. The result is the HIP Scorecard (Human Impact + Profit), a new way to look at how human impact drives innovation, shareholder value, and the bottom line. SLM sat down with Paul Herman of HIP Investor, one of the developers of the framework, to find out how companies can use this new metric to competitive advantage, and what it means for socially responsible investors.

Reporting can be an important part of building a Green to Gold culture where everyone knows their weaknesses and identifies opportunities for eco-advantage. But what if you crafted a comprehensive corporate sustainability report...and nobody read it?

Family owned Curtis Packaging Corp. has been in the container-making business for 152 years, but the Newtown, Conn., company isn't an advocate of doing things the way they've always been done. Over the past six years, the company has invested $20 million in equipment to make high-end product packaging that's 100% recyclable. (Hartford Courant) Read more...

The International Herald Tribune calls it "Phase 3" of the greening of corporate America: Companies have embraced alternative energy, bought hybrid fleets, and otherwise cleaned up their own acts. Many have helped customers go green, stocking green products, selling carbon offsets along with airline tickets, or letting them choose to pay extra for "green" electricity. Now they're looking to their supply chains as the next frontier for combating climate change. Read more...

At the recent 40th-annual Tokyo Motor Show, people kept flocking back to the Mitsubishi pavilion to take a closer look at the i MiEV Sport electric minicar, the Concept-CX compact SUV, and the Concept-ZT clean diesel 2.2-liter premium sedan, all three of which represent Mitsubishi's key auto-manufacturing values of Driving Pleasure, Safety, and Environmental Responsibility. Click here for a closer look. (Roadtrip)

Think you've got to use industrial cleaners to get your facilities up to spec? Think again. SLM editor-at-large Andrew Winston has seen a product innovation he thinks might just be the Prius of janitorial products a machine that can make floors sparkle without using any chemicals at all.

The latest brass plaque to join the C-Suite is earning raves from some and grumbles from others. What are corporate social responsibility officers actually for and are they able to get the job done? BusinessGreen blogger James Murray gives a balanced view of the CSR function and how it fits into the larger organization.

A new report suggests that businesses are overestimating the carbon savings from energy-efficiency measures because they tend to reinvest the money in energy-hogging initiatives. So how do you counter the "energy rebound effect"? (BusinessGreen) Read more...

Companies that want to get ahead of the curve and stay there need to begin thinking green now and develop an approach to sourcing and supply chain management that factors this new reality into their plans. It sounds like a daunting task. But with the following ten simple steps, procurement organizations can jumpstart their efforts and get on the path to success. (Electronics Supply & Manufacturing) Read more...

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Created by Robert Kaplan and David Norton, balanced scorecards provide a way to look at business strategy that digs deeper than just the financials. More than 50% of Fortune 1000 companies now use balanced scorecards to measure business performance. In this mediacast, BNet director Jay Gulick breaks down the fundamentals.

Auto makers' efforts to green their products and processes means good news for Chemico Systems, Inc. The 18-year-old company, which helps businesses reduce chemical consumption in their plants and switch to cleaners with lower toxin levels, expects revenues to jump 35% this year. (Detroit Free Press) Read more...

The founder of organic food supplier Abel & Colejust sold a big stake in the company to private equity investors. He claims the deal will not change the firm's values. But how do independents really fare when big business takes over? This article from The Guardian looks to Ben & Jerry's and The Body Shop, among others, for a realistic answer.

Ever wish a well-meaning, well-to-do investor would come along to sweep your green venture off its feet? Your chances are looking better and better. Private investors and high-net worth individuals are actively recruiting start-up and middle-sized companies dedicated to the environment and society. (SocialFunds) Read more...

In 1993 Hugh Hough opened an ad agency specializing in green issues and everybody thought he was nuts. Now consumers are catching on to the idea that they can effect positive change through their purchases, and companies can't reposition themselves fast enough. Here's some advice on reaching out to these "awakened consumers," from a guy who's probably been thinking about it a lot longer than you have. (Adweek) Read more...

So says Huffington Post blogger Andrea Learned. Thanks to two "too-successful" marketing campaigns that just happened to conflict with each other (Dove's focus on women's self-esteem coupled with Axe deodorant's raunchy bad-boy ads), parent company Unilever has been taking heat. Learned says cause marketing "demands serious research and some degree of corporate integration to succeed." Here's why you, as a green marketer, should take particular heed. Read more...

Make a new plan, Stan! Fast Company's "50 Ways to Green Your Business" sets itself apart from those smug little checklists by offering real-world examples that show how global brands have put each strategy to good use. (And if you don't already know, this is as good a time as any to figure out what a widget is.)

For every successful green project, there are five or ten that never get off the ground due to poor planning and execution or lack of top-management support. Even programs that can be concretely shown to save money or boost revenue hit the occasional brick wall. Don't let your next environmental initiative meet the same fate. We asked Eric Woodroof, Ph.D., a specialist on green project implementation, where management often goes wrong, and how you can avoid making the same mistakes.

The increased availability of bio degradable or recycled materials has contributed to a global rethink among food and drink manufacturers and retailers about the type and quantity of packaging they use. And it's is not just vanguard organic retailers such as Wholefoods that are switching to more sustainable packaging. (Financial Times) Read more...

Senior executives from banking giants Barclays and HSBC are arguing for more green action by the financial sector, pointing to their own leading efforts in climate management. Speaking at Ethical Corporations Sustainable Finance Summit last month, Barclays group vice chairman Gary Hoffman laid out his firm's five-point plan on climate change, while Jon Williams, head of sustainable development at HSBC, outlined his bank's post-Kyoto vision. (ClimateChangeCorp) Read more...

Green products are all the rage these days. Citing buzzwords such as non-toxic, recyclable and sustainably harvested, consumers are now scrutinizing products at every phase of their life cycle, from the raw materials products are made of and how they are manufactured, to distribution methods, marketing materials, in-use impacts and how products are recycled or eventually disposed of. Weve come a long way, baby! Or have we?

Like the ongoing debate over the meaning of climate change data, emissions trading schemes continue to spark heated debate among key players in business and government. Is carbon trading the best mechanism for reducing emissions or a devils bargain that steers profits to polluters?