Has the combined power of a major recession, indications of global cooling, and the resignation of Van Jones sent a signal that the Green bubble has now burst? It could be argued that our world will wobble a bit, but will return to a homeostasis that allows the hard-working people of the world to regain a sense of normalcy and reprieve. Every issue has a kind of zenith that it hits that is followed by a more moderated cycle. Just look at the charts of Wall Street and the Dow Jones average. It seems that many huge issues have their trends and episodes of crisis and calm.
If there is any truth to the argument of declining environmental concern, it is both unfortunate and misleading. Few people can read Thomas Friedman’s book, “Hot, Flat, and Crowded” and come away unconvinced. The recession has produced a tight-fisted approach to spending by many companies, and that has frankly hurt the environmental cause. Businesses, especially small to medium sized businesses, realized that surviving a recession meant holding onto every dime was the order of the day. Therefore, Greening a business was deferred or turned into token Green efforts.
As the recession gives way to a better economy, the believe that we can start the return to business as usual brings along an artificial belief that the environmental issues will likewise pass in importance. It will not! Certain factors are already at work that will not pass like an ugly storm through the night. World population is a constant issues with no reprieve in sight. Our growing world population is compounded by an emerging multi-national middle class that demands more goods and resources. So, regardless of your believe about climate change, the environmental will continue to impact our lives in major ways.
Walmart is a leader in environmental commitment. Some believe that Walmart’s environmental is a smart marketing effort to defer the employee pay issues of the recent past. Nonetheless, Walmart has found a winning issue here and set a tone that others must follow or be left in the dust. Michael Dell of Dell computers has taken a similar tact hiring a bevy of Green advisers to move his company into a zero impact company over the next ten years.
T Boone Pickens has just mothballed $2 million of his hyped wind mills, but that was the result of miscalculation rather than environmental trend. The car industry is now committed to building more sustainable cars, and school age children are being ardently taught to be serious environmentalists. There is no possible way that environmental causes can be continually deferred into the future. The time is now and the tipping point is happening in our generation.
The right response is to step up to the issue, and the recovering economy should provide new opportunity for moving forward with Green improvements. Adding even more opportunity to the Greening process is the Green Business League’s program of Green Practices that provides a readily-accessible standard for any business to earn a nationally recognize Green business certification.
Every business can do the right thing and contribute to the larger solution of environmentalism. The Green practices allows any company to accumulate points toward a Green business certification. Since the environmental crisis is a universal problem, it requires universal participation. While not everyone can own a LEED certified building, it is true that anyone can install Green practices and contribute to a massive, worldwide improvement campaign. If you need help with installing Green practices in your business, contact a Certified Green Consultant from the Green Business League. Those wishing to roll up their sleeves and act as the Green Officer for their company should attend one the regionally offered Green Officer Training events.