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Forecasters predict it will happen. Research studies concur with
the findings. Consumers reinforce the statistics: Environmental
actions will be one of the single most important criteria by which
businesses will be judged in the 21st century. In the not-too-distant
future, the brightest graduates from today’s business schools
will choose an employer not by the starting salary, but rather
by a company’s social agenda. In the not-too-distant future,
consumers will make the majority of their purchasing decisions
based on companies’ pro-environmental stances. In the not-too-distant
future, the triple bottom line philosophy will mean that social
equity and environmental performance will take their place alongside
economic performance in determining corporate success or failure.
In fact, the movement has already begun, and its momentum is unstoppable. Driven
by creative ideas and practical implementation, in case after case, sustainable
practices are being incorporated into buildings, products and processes and proving—overwhelmingly—to
be both a practical and financial success.
The evolution is being led by extraordinary people who are contributing inspiration
and innovation to transform ordinary ideas into powerful and convincing strategies.
This premiere issue of Green@Work, and all the issues to follow, will tell the
stories of the visionaries who are pioneering sustainable initiatives and making
them a part of everyday life in both the public and private sectors. Green@Work
will profile the agents of change who are taking a pro-environmental stance and
turning it into a competitive advantage. Each issue of the magazine will feature
the individuals, corporations and organizations who are thriving because of their
environmental agendas, not in spite of them.
Sustainability is happening on many fronts, in all sorts of industries, at a
variety of levels within the corporate framework. This first issue focuses on
the positive steps being taken by the automotive industry—an industry heavily
targeted by environmental activists and which has responded in recent years with
a number of high-tech, environmentally friendly solutions. From electric vehicles
to fuel cells to hypercars, the automotive industry is putting in motion the
wheels of change that will propel automobiles, and their occupants, down a greener
path.
Subsequent issues this year will explore sustainability efforts by the retail
industry, the growth in eco-tourism, green design and building practices as well
as developments in the technology field. Above all, it will focus on the individuals
from these industries who are making change happen. People who believe that being
green at work is the right thing, the only thing, to do.
Welcome to Green@Work. We hope you enjoy the stories of the champions included
within its pages. We hope you can learn from and perhaps implement the hundreds
of ideas presented here. And lastly, we hope you’ll tell us about others
who are doing great green work. For that is what Green@Work is all about.
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