Even if you’re not a tree hugger, it can’t hurt to help reduce your impact on ole Mother Earth. Following are innovative ways to stage virtual trade shows, increase business productivity, share information with members in your business, while saving you time, money and the planet in the process.

Online Meeting Options

* Webinars (online seminars) – inform, educate and share information with whomever you choose!

* Online presentations – upload your Powerpoint slides and select who you want to see it

* Meeting Planning Solutions – plan and manage events, lower expenses, meeting buyers, meeting suppliers

* Event Messaging Systems – for meetings, events, trade shows and conferences for 50-50,000 attendees used before, during and after the event.

Information Sharing/Communication

* Whitepapers – publish your authoritative report or guide that educates others on a specific issue and how to solve it.

* Video Presentation/Posting – welcome to YouTube where you can post videos available only to specific people or the world.

* Electronic Fax Service – send faxes from your computer and receive them at multiple email addresses. Delivered to your inbox via pdf or tiff format.

* Podcasting to share audio of meetings/conferences – publish on iTunes and people can download and listen on their computer, iPod or iPhone.

* Video Conferencing – we never thought the “Jetsons” video calls from the boss could happen, but alas! Up to 9 way video conference.

* Online forms using Adobe Acrobat Pro allows visitors to fill out forms online and email it to you once completed. Even allows for digital signatures.

Convenience

* Paperless registration and confirmation – The Web’s most comprehensive site about meeting planning and events technology.

* Electronic Travel and Ticketing – book travel online, generate automated expense reports and monitor employee spending.

* Online Project Management – share files, meet deadlines, assign tasks, centralize feedback and help projects run smoothly.

* Digital signatures and Electronic Contracts – eliminate the need for expensive overnight charges of important documents or faxing and using paper.

* Electronic Appt Scheduling – interactive online conference catalog and session scheduler application.

* Accounting – utilizing direct deposit, online bill pay, etc using Quickbooks

* PayPal – Send and receive payments electronically, email invoices, and take credit cards over the phone all while reducing check fraud, checks lost in the mail, bounced checks, mailing invoices, etc.

Marketing

* Advertise online instead of in the printed version. You can also measure your ROI by seeing exactly how much traffic that ad is bringing instead of wondering if anyone saw your print ad.

* eNewsletters – reduce printing, paper and mailing by sending out eNewsletters

* Phone, web or Twitter based audience response, q&a – think of American Idol’s success with it! Gather live responses for any venue: conferences, presentation, classrooms, print, TV and more.

* Online Surveys/Polling – signup through Constant Contact

* Social Media Integration through Social Networking, Bookmarking, etc

* Annual Reports, Company Catalogs – have them designed and converted to PDF to post on your website for download instead of having them printed.

eCommerce Tools

* Electronic Auctions – dedicated to fund raising success

* eCommerce website development – get your business on the web and start selling ebooks, audio files, products, services – you name it – it can be sold on the net!

By: Michelle Crossley

About the Author:

While many notable onlookers attribute Detroit’s decline to being insulated, arrogant, and slow to adapt, having been in the car business right out of college, I see their problems differently.

To me, car retailers are hopelessly stuck in a business model that depends on doing business by car. They haven’t fully grasped the implications of the Internet, and still insist on seeing prospects face to face.

Not only are the gas guzzlers they sell wasting energy and the environment, but by doing business through a traditional retail model, they’re forcing their customers to pollute as a pre-condition of buying.

Prove this to yourself.

Call a handful of dealers to get a quote on a lease or purchase. Sellers will hem and haw and do everything they can to avoid reciting figures, even ballparks, in favor of getting you into their showroom or offices.

They believe deals are made face to face and nowhere else.

Recently, I left a message for a senior executive at a company that owns several California dealerships. I suggested they consider selling their Prius and other hybrid models by telephone.

I wasn’t called back, and they probably thought I was a crank.

Let’s turn the clock back a few decades. I went to work for a Beverly Hills based auto leasing giant. Instead of trying to lease a car to everyone in my family, I picked up the telephone and made cold calls.

My manager thought I was nuts and doomed to an early retirement from the business.
To his utter astonishment, I leased not one but two very profitable vehicles to a downtown Los Angeles businessman whom I had contacted the prior week.

I told my prospect: (1) I’d be happy to order his cars and what the lease prices were to the penny, what his mileage allotment would be, along with the equipment he’d get; and (2) We’d buy one of his existing cars, though we needed to see it first to determine its cash value.

Then, over the weekend, I mailed the leases to him for signature.

“You didn’t drive out to see him and ink the deal?” my boss snorted. “He’ll never buy that way!”

But he did, and as promised, we bought his used car.

Within two weeks, all new trainees at my leasing company spent at least some of their time cold calling by phone, because I demonstrated it could be done, and quite efficiently.

You would think that in the intervening years the car business would embrace telephone effectiveness and telemarketing, but it hasn’t. Like so many industries it wastes its human and financial capital driving and flying places to get done what can be accomplished for a fraction of the cost by a combination of phone, fax, email, and the Web.

With gas now well above $4 a gallon, and predicted to rise much higher, all organizations should explore alternatives to pressing the flesh face to face.

You’d expect me to say this, being the best-selling author of You Can Sell Anything By Telephone! And Reach Out & Sell Someone™.

But what alternatives do we have?

The best mileage we’ll ever get is from the trip we don’t take. Put the phone to better use, today.

After all, it’s “The Green Machine™, the best way to ring up sales, perform customer service, and help the environment at the same time.

By: Dr. Gary S. Goodman

About the Author:

You can save face as a responsible, “green” corporation while also saving money on buying solvent. In many cases, if you buy a solvent recycler from a knowledgeable vendor, your investment could be paid off on an average of less than one year from time of purchase. Not only will the investment pay for itself, but you can avoid waste removal costs, excessive solvent purchasing costs, and give your company a public profile that promotes your stance on being responsible to maintaining a clean environment.

There are obvious advantages to recycling your own solvent. The first advantage stems from the recent positive publicity from “going green.” While it is beyond the scope of this article to discuss issues such as global warming or water conservation, these and other environmental issues have taken center stage in the media. If your company already recycles its solvent, taking advantage of your contribution to the well-being of the environment will make other companies want to do business with you. The trend of “going green” will stay around for a while. Other companies such as Wal-Mart and Starbucks ride their green reputations to profitability. Even if you are involved in the B2B community, other companies want to do business with companies that are seen as responsible.While using solvent recyclers helps your green profile, your bottom line should also be helped in a more concrete way as well. Whether your company uses solvents in the manufacturing process or in some other manner, solvents cost money. Disposing of used solvent also costs money. Not only is the price of solvent going up, but the price of disposing also goes up. By recycling solvent, instead of procuring new solvent, your company can reuse over and over. Also, since regulations require that used solvent be disposed of in a lawful manner, you become dependent on your waste hauler to take care of this service. Waste haulers can end up charging you a lot for this service, knowing that you are in position to not be able to refuse. Your supply of solvent can be reused with solvent recyclers. You also lose your dependence on waste disposal businesses.

Solvent recyclers generally pay for themselves within the first year. A competent, professional vendor of solvent recyclers can help you determine the type of machine appropriate to your operation. There are no “one-size-fits-all” solutions to recycling your solvent. Each industry and each business within an industry uses various amounts of solvent. A machine that is too small will be inconvenient while a machine that is too big will be wasteful overkill. Also, some businesses want a solvent recycler that can be automated to a large degree. After all, these organizations are not in the recycling business. They want to spend as little time as possible having to mind the recycling machine. Your solvent recycler should work within your organization. It should dovetail with your company’s processes. Contacting a supplier of solvent recyclers should help you achieve this end.

Owning a business in these times is more challenging than ever. You not only have the responsibility to your bottom line, but now there is the added responsibility of being a good corporate citizen. The good news is that you can balance these needs. Regardless of your industry you can save money through the use of solvent recyclers. Not only can you save money by reducing the costs of purchasing new solvent, you can also control your waste disposal costs. The added benefit of having these machines also comes from your ability to promote your business’s ecological consciousness. By contacting a qualified vendor of solvent recyclers, you can get the machine that fits your business and reap these benefits.

By: Mike Imprixis

About the Author:

Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.
-Cree Indian Proverb

2001 was when it first hit him. He was in a public rest stop on a highway in upstate New York using the men’s room. While there, he noticed a big poster on the wall saying “Proud to be cleaned by Lysol”.

He thought to himself, “They’re proud to be using Lysol? That’s horrible!” [Note: Lysol has known carcinogens- chemicals quite toxic to humans.] Cleaners in public spaces should be all natural and non-toxic for all involved. Including the planet.

Shortly thereafter he started Ecologic Solutions, Inc.in his apartment. Eight years later it is one of the most successful all-natural commercial cleaning supply companies in the country with 100% annual sales growth for the past three years. Rejecting a corporate buyout offer, they are wrapping up a multi-million dollar round of investment financing.

The man who started the company is my baby brother, Anselm.

People frequently ask me “Can a business really thrive in being ‘green’?” I tell them about Anselm and several of my clients whose companies are all growing at similar rates in their “green” companies.

They often also ask, “Is ‘green’ business just another modern-day gold rush, like the internet boom in the late ’90′s and the real estate boom that just collapsed?”

My answer usually surprises them, “‘Yes’, for some. And ‘no’ for everyone else.”

Continuing I explain, “50% of the world’s wetlands have been lost in the last 100 years, 50% of the world’s forests have been chopped down, 70% of the world’s major marine fisheries have been depleted, 100% of the world’s coral reefs are at risk, and 6.3 billion people on the planet with another 3 billion coming in the next 40 years. This might be a fad for some, and for everyone else this is a permanent change we must address now. By showing businesses how to make money taking care of the planet will be the fastest way we’ll reverse these trends.”

In order to successfully launch a new “green” product or company, the following eight steps might be helpful:

1. Pick from the Top Ten Environmental Issues for one(s) you are most passionate about.

2. Build your product/service around that issue. If you do not see a relationship between what you know how to do and that issue, create one. For example, you’re a chiropractor and you are passionate about air pollution, find creative ways to reduce customer travel to your office, use low energy consuming equipment in the office, start or contribute to a fund for pollution control, or have your office offer discounts to those who bike to your office.

3. Define your target customer. Who would be most interested in your new product/service or company? What are their demographics and psychographics (interests).

4. Study your competition. What are they doing towards your chosen issue? How are you better or different? In order to avoid “greenwashing” (promoting being “green” without really being “green”), you must be authentic and accurate.

5. Establish your credibility. To add to the legitimacy, show your experts on staff, credentials (licenses, degrees, etc.), testimonials from credible sources/clients, case studies of those who have used your product/service (or ones similar), and/or scientific resources backing up your research/claims.

6. Determine start up costs. Do you need to finance the project? There are many government-backed financing programs starting now with the “green jobs” initiative being pushed heavily in Washington. An expert on this is Franklin Madison at Industrial and Technology Assistance Corporation here (ITAC) in NYC. Frank and ITAC have a 10 year history of working with and providing access to funding for green businesses (particularly technology-based businesses.)

7. Hit the market. Make sure you present your product/service in a way your target customers are going to get it. Speak their language when explaining how it benefits both them and the planet. Use stories and examples. Masters at explaining their products are The Body Shop and Patagonia.

8. Have a blast. Make sure it is what you are passionate about. You will get knocked around a lot and when you do, what will get you back up is your passion for making it happen.

And by following these steps just might get you to where my brother, Anselm’s, business is right now.

Action Steps for the Week

Although green businesses started gaining traction in the early ’90′s, only recently has it become a really hot market. For this reason, it will take some serious focus and intention for you to catch up to the wave. Here is what you will need to do ASAP:

* Determine what “floats your boat” regarding environmental issues.

* Research that environmental topic until you understand the key issues.

* Define your product/service new business.

* Study your competition. Who is doing this already? How are you unique or better?

* Integrate plan into your business.

* Write up your marketing strategy.

* Got expenses to start? If so, where will you raise the capital?

Do not get discouraged or delay on this. The time for this is now, because in this economy and this hot market you can imagine how many people are innovating just like you.

Get going and Be UnReasonable!

By: Stefan Doering

About the Author:

In the summer of 1989 I was taking a subway home with some friends that I co-founded an environmental non-profit with here in Brooklyn. I remember complaining about how tired I was of having to search and buy eco products in mail order catalogs (this was pre-internet days).

Basic eco-products like toilet paper made from recycled and non-chlorine bleached paper.

Back then there were no stores in NYC that sold it. In order to get it, you had to buy a case via mail order. A case of 96 rolls.

I remember complaining, “What am I going to do with 96 rolls of toilet paper in my small apartment!”

And that is when it hit me. What about having a retail store that screened all its products for their environmental impact? The task of researching and learning about the environmental (and social) issues that go into making products can overwhelm most customers.

I asked them, “So what if we created a store that did that for the customer? And you did not need to buy 96 rolls of something to get it.”

At the age of 25, that was the beginning of Earth General, which opened two years later in 1991.

Within six years Earth General grew to being one of the largest environmental retail stores in the country with over 3,000 products all screened for their environmental impact. Things like organic cotton clothing, natural body care, green cleaning products, recycled office supplies and stationery, all natural gardening products and so on.

Yet while our stores were popular in New York City, the concept was a bit ahead of its time and my investors and I closed them in 1998. Today, 10 years later, they would probably do quite well.

In fact today, most things (authentically) “going green” are looking very promising. For example, one of the mainstream issues on everyone’s mind is energy. And of the many things being developed in the energy sector, one segment to really watch in the very short term is nanotechnology.

If you are not familiar with nanotechnology, you need to be, as it looks likely to be dramatically changing our lives within the next couple of years.

According the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology (CRN) Nanotechnology is the engineering of functional systems at the molecular scale. It is all about building things and using materials at a very small level. From this things like new, lighter, yet sturdier materials can be built.

For example, imagine cars made from materials as light as plastic, yet sturdier than steel. Lighter materials in our automobiles mean more energy efficiency, which in turn means more miles per gallon.

For more about this as well as a sense of the many, many applications currently being researched in nanotechnology, read “GreenBiz” recent article, Sweating the Small Stuff: A Market Opportunity.

Still need convincing that going green is a wise choice? On May 12th, The Wall Street Journal published an excellent story, Does Being Ethical Pay?

While the authors found consumers would be willing to pay a premium for ethical products, they also found consumers would also punish an unethical company… to a much greater degree (by only buying that company’s products at a steep discount.)

Perhaps it’s time for you to consider ramping up your green factor?

10 Steps to Determining Your Green Product / Service:

1. Pick your passion- what about the environment are you most passionate about? What do you notice really “burns your bacon”? For help, refer to January 30th’s Power Boost: Top 10 Business Issues into Environmental Opportunities.

2. Define your target-who is your market? What customer base are you most comfortable serving?

3. Get in their head-what is the need of that customer base? What are their pains? Remember to relate this to what you are most passionate about in the environment (remember my frustration that created Earth General?)

4. Relief is on the way!-what is your solution to your target market’s pain and to their needs? Especially if they do not even know they have it! Be clear as possible on this one. Make it really stand out.

5. Support is the key-who is on your team? What expertise do you need and who will have it? What are these people’s motivations for working with you (hint: your vision on where you would like to take your business.)

6. Name the players-who is your competition? How are you better and/or different? How can you authentically show your strengths over them? No competition, then your product/service niche is too small!

7. Be a hurdle jumper-what are the barriers to entry for competition to join you down the road? Is it difficult to gain entry? If not, how can you make it difficult or how will you retain customer loyalty (hint: focus on the green/social impact of what you do!)

8. Keep clearing those hurdles-how to keep in front of the barriers to entry. As the market continues to develop, what new, cool, authentic green (and social) components can you add to the mix? Stay ahead of the pack. Stay on top of your market research.

9. It’s all in the girth-and how scalable your product/service is. Compare it with how big you want to go with this idea. Look to balance the two. It’s OK if you want to stay small, just get clear before you take off.

10. Review your passion-how do you feel about your product/service? If you feel something is off, you must address it before moving forward. If not, it will bite you in the butt later. Don’t step over this. Find solutions to what is keeping you from really playing full out.

Once you’ve worked through these 10 steps, you should be ready to rock. I’d love to hear what cool, unreasonable green business you’re ready to launch.

Action Steps for the Week:

Whether you’re working for the man or the man is working for you, it might behoove you to examine your green business game plan.

If you have one, review it again and see what of the 10 steps (from above) might need some refining. And if you’re new to the subject, really take inventory on how and what to implement into your business.

The more thought you put into this, the more likely you’ll be whistling Dixie later on.

By: Stefan Doering

About the Author:

GREEN Signage and Display Solutions for Business

Did you know?

Many people do not realise the impact to the environment that a simple sign, display or graphic has to the environment. Let me start by saying that i am not a scientific expert and have no collected data, but i will tell you what i know and what practical steps and questions you can undertake the next time you advertise. WHY? because the Earth is OUR HOME!

What Impact?

For an Example, let’s start with a basic product that is used commonly in nearly every store in nearly every part of the world. A Perspex board sign with vinyl lettering.

Ok, so at the factory in Malaysia, they will use acrylic resin (a byproduct of oil) which may be useful instead of putting it in the ground. Each sheet has a low tack PS or PE mask to protect the sheet (please use PE or plastic masked as it can be re-cycled and is easier to peel off).

Next we come to the vinyl lettering, A real environmental disaster. Most advertising signs use this product which involves a wax coated liner and a pre-mask that gets thrown away and can’t be re-cycled. On top of that, eventually the actual signs get thrown away and the vinyl itself can’t be recycled. Probably tens of thousands of meters of vinyl clogs landfill every day.

What can we do?

Everybody can do something. I’m sure there will be some study in the future of digital signage vs traditional (electrical costs etc) but in the mean time, there are some great alternatives out there.

For all outdoor and most indoor wall advertising boards, use Aluminium composite boards (contact us for different brands). Aluminum composite boards are not only light weight (which cuts down on structure material), but they are rigid and come in a large range of colours. This material is 100% recyclable and re-usable, has sound and thermal properties and uses efficient manufacturing process.

For illuminated signage, switch to LED solutions. Lexan makes a great Polycarbonate opal panel which is suitable for LED lights without spotting.

For all printing and graphics use the latest technology – Flatbed printing. Flatbed printing will allow direct print to most substrates (including the above suggestions). This will prevent all the wax paper land fill.

Recycle!

Some companies will offer to recycle existing displays and signs. Some businesses think this involves more labour, but we’d rather follow the mentality of – why throw it away, it’ll come in handy for something. Materials like Plexiglass can also be recycled or re-used.

B Green

By: Stephen Francia

About the Author:

With the environment being a hot topic these days, any business would do well to see how it could reduce its carbon footprint. Customers are currently seeking out greener companies and there is a demand for greener products.

Even as a small business, there is a lot any manager can do reduce waste and be more energy efficient. Going green does not need to be a chore.

One easy solution is to switch to energy saving light bulbs wherever possible. Energy saving bulbs last longer, which means you are saving money and reducing waste. They also do indeed save energy, which will have a positive impact on the company’s electricity bill.

Any business, even a small one, tends to go through a lot of paper per year. A lot of paper is used just for the scribbling of notes and reminders. This amount can be reduced by using the backs of paper thrown away because of failed print-outs and faxes. If the printed material is not of a sensitive nature, it will do just as well as using a whole new sheet simply to note down a thought or to scribble down the time someone called. Afterwards, the paper can be shredded like always.

In the long run, this will save on paper and is therefore more environmentally friendly. It also saves on waste and money.

If your business produces items using packaging, have a look at how much packaging you are using. With media attention focussed on landfill and biodegradable goods, there could be room for improvement. Plastics especially are a cause for concern. Products with an elaborate amount of packaging are scrutinised. If you can minimise this, and possibly use a better, recyclable/biodegradable solution, you are reducing your carbon footprint, your products will appeal to consumers and again you are cutting down on waste and expenses.

Where possible, do not leave electric goods on standby or on for longer than needed. This may sound simple, and it is. Many a business leaves computers running, to name an example, when they could be shut down for hours on end because the users are in a meeting or elsewhere in the building.

Recycle. It is wise to look at your company’s waste and see what can be recycled. Recycling makes sense, is good business practice, reduces landfill and is good for the environment.

If you would like to move beyond those simple solutions, it would be worthwhile to have a look at the company’s electricity provider. Are they using renewable energy? If so, why not? There are plenty of providers around these days offering energy from greener sources.

Additionally, you could have a look at encouraging your employees to use public transport to travel to and from work. The practicality of this will depend on your location, the average distance of travel and your budget, but there are companies that offer employees money towards travel expenses. This is a good incentive to use public transport, avoid delays because of traffic congestion and again a step closer to going green.

Solar panels are becoming increasingly practical. They are, however, still rather expensive. It is advisable to see what difference they could make for your business. Some smaller companies are already switching over and they are getting media attention because of their efforts. Positive advertising will never hurt business.

All this may seem like a lot to look into and to put into practice. However, the switch-over to a greener way to do business is not as daunting as it seems. Many employees would be happy to make minor changes. After all, these changes do not get in the way of day-to-day business and will soon become part of the normal way of doing things.

A green company is a company with a conscience. This tends to get noticed. What’s good for the environment is certainly good for business!

By: Kit Marsters

About the Author:

The present version of Green business is generally very motivated to promote any Green virtue to the buying public. Thousands upon thousands of businesses have learned the popularity of Green marketing is working, and yet the quality of the environmental commitment supporting those Green claims is often very shallow. This is why the phrase Greenwashing has become a backlash issue that will continue to embarrass more and more companies as the buying public looks a little closer only to discover that they have been deceived.

Take for example, the purchasing department of the ostensibly Green-promoted company. Regardless of the boasts made by the Green company, it is interesting to scratch the Green surface to see if it is more than a Greenwashed coat of marketing hype. Does the company asking the public to “Buy Green” also “Buy Green” when the public is not watching? In most cases, this breach of Green ethics is completely ignored, and that is more than unfortunate.

In order to perpetuate a Green marketplace, vendors must do more than sell Green, they must also buy Green. Buyers must have sellers as certainly as sellers must have buyers. This cycle of market integrity cannot be ignored. Any company that cannot sell its goods or services will go bankrupt. This is a basic business reality, and yet this business fact seems to be almost totally ignored by the vast majority of businesses in this country.

Solving this contradiction is actually fairly simple. The inclusion of a “Green Certification” clause in all contracts, RFP (Request for Proposal), and bid requirements is not difficult. In most cases, it requires the insertion of one obvious paragraph, and the whole purchasing department would be revolutionized. That clause might look something like this:

As an environmentally concerned business desirous to participate in the sustainable practices that impact our community and our world, our company requires all services and vendors to demonstrate similar environmental commitment by providing a Green business certification that comes from an audited verification by a national organization. Concerns for Greenwashing and ethical application of sustainable practices encourages our company to require all vendors to comply with verified environmental compliance.
The question of whether this demand is a viable business practice will be easily dismissed by reviewing the actions of WalMart in the last year. Coming off a lot of bad publicity for employment and salary issues, WalMart mounted an impressive campaign to be the leading Green business in America, and it worked spectacularly well. Eventually, WalMart imposed a Green demand on all vendors, and they scrambled to comply with every demand.

The public may rarely hear of the honest efforts of a company to apply Green practices throughout the operation, but in time, the certainty of a credibility issue will be tested. The vast majority of people are still fresh to the concepts of a Green or sustainable business. At this point, it is simple to fool most consumers. In fact, TerraChoice did a study in 2009 concluding that 98% of all Green products on store shelves were Greenwashed in some form or fashion. Sadly, this not only applies to cleaning products. It also has serious implications for all businesses that are promoting their Green qualities.

To complete the loop of Green credentials, the demand for a Green provider should require more than a website logo that can be bought for a fee. Green certification should come from a nationally recognized, third party that has conducted a live audit of the Green practices of the vendor. The challenge of the Green movement now is the quality and character of the changes being claimed. Without an audit, the participants are encouraged to embellish, over-promote, and mislead the depth of their environmental change. Only a Certified Green Consultant has the training and resources to conduct a true audit for Green practices.

Vendor and supplier contracts do not come up at one time. This is why the transition to Green can take one to two years at the very least. The very nature of a Green program is progressive anyway. There is no one-time fix that makes a company environmentally friendly. Changing the lights is one piece of a very large project. Going Green is a holistic approach to the business operation. The best attitude to the Green transition of a company is to look at the task as a three to five year effort. This allows the costs to be spread out over time. It also allows the company to realize some of the savings that come with a better program to offset other costs. Finally, Going Green is also about a behavior modification process that is never satisfied with an office memo. The commitment to become an authentically Green company will demonstrate the character and ethical backbone of any program. Greenwashing will be an eventual black eye that will only get worse.

It is time that Green is embraced as more than a marketing ploy that most often is not supported by the practice side of the business claiming to be environmentally friendly. Going Green is an investment into the future of the company and the future of our world. This is one time that it does not pay to do it poorly.

By: Michael Richmond

About the Author:

I had occasion today to encounter a question that was very simple yet profound. It was “What is the standard for Green?” The EPA has recorded the 12 Principles of Green Chemistry, but these are not universal. If you ask a person interested in the biosphere type of Green, the phrase “Sustainable” is the major issue, questioning whether will an item’s use will be depleted or can it be sustained naturally. Sustainability is a big issue in a world of consumerism, but does not encompass the definition of Green for other areas of Green concern.

Those interested in the oceans are concerned about “Marine Life” and how man has impacted the animal life in the oceans. It looks at the discharges poured into rivers, lakes, and the oceans asking if we are harming the animals that feed us. If mercury goes into the water, will it return to us in the tuna we eat at lunch? So, the pollution of the water is a part of the Green definition.

“Green House Gases” seem to preoccupy those concerned about the atmosphere. In an industrial world, the manufacture of the things we wish to market creates a lot of waste that we need to dump somewhere. The EPA has long fought the dumping of chemicals from manufacturing plants and the amount of pollutant coming out of the smoke stacks of our factories.

Those concerned with the preservation of nature argue that the Green movement stems from the preservation of the tree, forest, plains, and natural habitat from the forces of developers. From the energy side of Green, we are concerned about the “depletion” of our resources. So, you can quickly see that “Going Green” is not the same for any strategic side of the Green Movement.

The Green Clean Institute is focused on the Green Office, Green Buildings, and Green Maintenance of the workplace. This is something that needs definition, so here is how we DEFINE GREEN. Green Maintenance is concerned for two aspects of our biosphere (in this case, buildings). One aspect of the Green evolution is what is the definition of Green for the janitorial and building maintenance world.

Green as we define it is:
The Immediate Impact of our products and practices, and The Residual Impact of our products and Practices.

If we are causing harm at either of these two levels, whatever we are doing is not a Green practice. It is the broader concept of Green Practices that define those who work on and in our homes, school, offices, and public buildings that define our contribution or damage to the environment. People are impacted by the workers who are involved in the building, cleaning, and maintaining of our buildings. This has little to do with the outside world except that there are other issues out there as well. Inside a building are distinct issues of a smaller biosphere that can quickly turn into a sick building or create Building Related Illness (BRI). The spread of disease is a community issue that requires knowledgeable people to break the cycle of contagion. Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) cannot be neglected because the floors are dull and require very caustic chemicals to strip and finish the floors. Every piece of furniture added, every chemical used, and every sick person adds to the well-being of the others in the recirculated air of that biosphere.

The Green Practices Initiative is a new effort to retrain our industry with the new wave of innovations that are hopefully going to provide us a better world, a better workplace, and a better cleaning program. Our business is not an environmental program in the tradition sense. While we all want to be a part of the solution rather than a part of the problem, I know that we have a sphere of influence that is peculiar to our industry. It is here that we can make a difference as well as a business income. This is a new website that will be looking for Green Editors to contribute to a Wikipedia type project in the Green Practices Initiative. While in construction right now, those who would like to write articles for Green Practices should inquire at the website.

Green Clean News is a parallel effort as the project is about a wider area of Green News including Green Homes, Green Office, Green Buildings, Green Products, and Green Innovations. Green Editors will be chosen to contribute news articles in there selected area of Green news. Educating people on the importance of a Green workforce is difficult, but it starts with informing people and getting those to set the agenda, issue the contracts, and act as decision-makers to require more than Green products. They must require Green Clean Certified workers (Green Janitors) including a Green Practices Clause in all contracts and bid submissions.

By: Michael Richmond

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