Toyota leads seven Center for Corporate Citizenship members in a green parade to the top 10 of Interbrand’s list of the Best Global Green Brands 2011.

A report in the Miami Herald notes that Interbrand’s recognition of Toyota’s green efforts goes beyond the Prius, its best-selling hybrid, and extends to “the company’s partnership with Tesla, Toyota’s company-wide environmental initiatives and energy efficiency programs as well.”

Joining Toyota in a Center-member sweep of the top three spots are 3M in second place followed by Siemens. Read the rest of this entry »

While I have always been concerned about fresh water quality and availability, it wasn’t until I attended a recent Boston College symposium, “Sustainability: Through the Lens of Water,” that the reality really hit me: just 0.3 percent of the water on Earth is actually potable and, furthermore, while world population continues to grow (possibly reaching 28 billion people in 60 years), the available fresh water is expected to decline as demand increases and contamination affects remaining water sources. Of the 6.8 billion people on the planet today, 2.6 billion lack sanitation and 1.1 billion have no access to treated drinking water. Moreover, 1.6 million people die each year of diarrhea-related diseases, 90 percent of whom are children.

While the United Nations has officially declared water as one of the basic human rights, we still lack effective policies to protect this valuable resource for both people and companies. We have too many policies and regulations Read the rest of this entry »

Companies often struggle to develop an integrated CSR strategy – a social and environmental strategy that is truly part of the business strategy. There are many ways stakeholders judge such strategies but two of the most critical elements of an integrated strategy are developing sustainable products/services and improving transparency.

The Clorox Company best known for making bleach and other cleaning products, launched its first CSR report in October 2010. The report was a result of a long journey to build an integrated CSR strategy that today is organized around five pillars: People, Products, Performance, Planet and Purpose. But what I found most exciting is the company’s commitment to developing “green” products and to becoming more open and transparent. Read the rest of this entry »

More than 250 representatives of business, government, academia, NGOs and investors came together recently to participate in the New England Green Chemistry Networking Forum. Organized by EPA Region 1 and held at MIT in Cambridge, Mass., the Forum created opportunities to begin strategic discussions and collaborations around new ways to achieve a safe and green sustainable future. I found the event to be highly inspirational and full of energy. It helped raise awareness, connect people and chart new strategies for advancing Massachusetts’ green economy.

The EPA defines green chemistry (also known as sustainable chemistry) as “the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances.” There are 12 principles of green chemistry such as prevention of waste, design for energy efficiency, and design for degradation and use of renewable feedstocks, among others. Through its Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge awards program, the EPA recognizes and promotes innovative chemical technologies that prevent pollution and have broad applicability in industry. Since 1996, many companies and other organizations have received the prestigious award. Among the 2010 award recipients honored for their collaborative innovations are Dow Chemical and BASF, Merck & Co. and Codexis, and Easel Biotechnologies LLC and the University of California at Los Angeles. Read the rest of this entry »

On September 28, Center member Timberland will host a stakeholder call about The Real Impact of Tree Planting. Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz will host the call and will be joined by David Deppner, founder of Trees for the Future. Timberland has planted more than 1 million trees since 2001 worldwide as part of its commitment to create environmental and economic benefits in the places its employees live and work. Trees for the Future operates in over 26 countries around the world and shares Timberland’s vision for tree planting to be a viable way to create sustainable agriculture, environmental restoration, and socio-economic development.

Sign up for the call by emailing csrinfo@timberland.com. Be sure to register by Sept. 24!

Hear podcasts from previous calls and see more details at http://earthkeeper.com/CSR/Stakeholder-Engagement-Calls.

Many companies striving to be good corporate citizens today face an internal tug of war between giving attention to community initiatives that address social problems and the growing demand to make environmental issues paramount.

At Cummins Inc. they found a solution not by making a choice but by facing a challenge.

On the occasion of the company’s 90^th anniversary in 2009, 62 teams of Cummins employees from 11 different countries accepted a challenge to develop projects to improve the environment in their community. Read the rest of this entry »

Everyone knows that today, “green” is the new “black.” But how are companies creating new strategies that can move a company from looking at the environment from a philanthropic perspective and instead using environmental programs to create business value? Stan Mierzejewski at the Tennant Company, Michael Dupee from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, and Bruce Klafter at Applied Materials showed that their diverse companies – one’s a coffee roaster, one’s a floor-cleaner manufacturer and one’s in nanotechnology – were each benefiting from introducing new products, cutting costs and/or differentiating themselves from competitors using green business strategies. Read the rest of this entry »

Study after study, including the Boston College Center’s 2009 State of Corporate Citizenship Survey, has found that environmental sustainability efforts have continued to grow even during the deep recession of 2007-2009. Moreover, they have become even more important. Driven by bold government actions, customer and consumer demand, and opportunities to cut costs and diversify, a growing number of U.S. companies are trying to “ride the green wave.” But not every environmental strategy is successful and challenges include difficulty developing the business case and ensuring successful execution.

Read the rest of this entry »