Oct. 10, 2008 - Fireman's Fund has created a green insurance program designed to help ship owners meet new U.S. air quality requirements - an industry first.

Oct. 6, 2008 - A Philipines-based company has launched an alternative cement brand that requires less energy during production - and costs less, too.

Oct. 2, 2008 - Visa Europe has launched a new credit card service for business customers that contributes a portion of each charge to renewable energy projects.

As this green thing moves from novelty to large-scale business opportunity, some firms are specializing in services that help their customers reduce their environmental footprint. If the green wave is the new gold rush, these companies are selling the picks and shovels. By Andrew Winston

Sept. 29, 2008 - IBM is expanding its new consulting offerings with a new service to help clients create greener products, from development and manufacturing through delivery and use to end-of-life reclamation and recycling.

Sept. 24, 2008 - Datacenter specialist Migration Solutions has launched a new green assessment service that aims to provide a "360-degree view of the environmental impact and performance of datacenters."

Sept. 19, 2008 - Verizon Business and GXS have partnered on an automated, paperless e-commerce service designed to boost efficiency and reduce waste in the supply chain.

Sept. 12, 2008 - Autodesk has partnered with green-product software developer Sustainable Minds. As part of the collaboration, Sustainable Minds plans to develop eco-design software that will interoperate with the Autodesk's Digital Prototyping tool.

Sept. 10, 2008 - Cisco is offering mid-sized companies a remote working solution billed as a resource-efficient - and therefore cost-effective - alternative to the brick-and-mortar office.

Sept. 9, 2008 - JohnsonDiversey says its new industrial floor-finishing system can help building maintenance companies slash waste and water use.

Sept. 9, 2008 - Xerox Canada says it will use only paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council when it sends its own employees to manage clients' document processes on site.

Sept. 4, 2008 - Tririga, a real estate software provider, is marketing a new software application that it bills as "the industry’s first environmental management system to measure, manage, and reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from buildings.

Aug. 27, 2008 - Sanyo has redesigned its refrigeration systems to cut energy consumption and lower operating costs by as much as 25%.

Aug 22. 2008 - Is America really ready for a change? We'll find out later this month when biodegradable hotel key cards made of wood debut in Denver hotels during the Democratic National Convention.

Aug. 7, 2008 - An event services outfit called Synanto is pitching conference venues on a highly energy-efficient electronic system to replace carbon-hungry, paper-based business meeting agendas, minutes, and presentations.