How to make a sustainable company

"Sustainable" means a lot more than recycling and wind power. Sustainability has to work practically, but also economically and socially. Companies looking at sustainability have a unique combination of resources and motivation (in the form of regulation and public opinion) that can position them right on the cutting edge of sustainability. So how does a company become sustainable? Not surprisingly, one of the leaders in corporate sustainability is Google. One pillar of Google's approach is clean energy. Google is exploring plug-in hybrid vehicles, intelligent home power metering and one of the largest solar panel installations in the world:

In the summer of 2007, with an eye toward bringing solar power into the mainstream, we switched on one of the largest corporate solar installations in the United States at our Mountain View headquarters. Our 9,212 solar panels produce 1.6 MW of electricity, which is enough to power approximately 1,000 average California homes. It reduces our carbon emissions and makes good business sense too; the installation will pay for itself in about 7.5 years.

Another leader in sustainability is Eleek, based in Portland, Oregon. Paul Smith writes:

Beyond being gorgeously designed, it goes about being as sustainable as possible in a very practical, thorough, committed matter. As an example, the company sources 100% post consumer scrap for its Masa cabinet hardware line. Rather then obtaining materials from disparate sources in locations unknown, processed in China and shipped back, Eleek’s materials come from right down the street at the ReBuilding Center, which itself can be enlisted by the public to “deconstruct” buildings, retaining as much reusable material as possible.

We love the idea of "doing well by doing good". The motivation that leads there might be, in part, simple commercial self-interest, but building a corporate culture that considers (and benefits) the community around it is a big part of real sustainability.

• Eleek Takes ‘Go Local’ Ethos into Green Building
• Newsweek: 2009 Green Rankings

Posted by Administrator on Thursday, July 29, 2010

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