Over the past few weeks, we've participated in a number of external stakeholder reviews and listened to presentations on several green corporate strategies. The general media tend to publish stories about how the abstract entity of "business" is working to become more sustainable. But after our recent travels we're reminded that these changes aren't achieved on a wholesale basis, but rather one company at a time.

For firms that have not yet started on their journey toward a more sustainable business, the steps may feel more like they should come from Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. The five-step program for businesses embracing a sustainability strategy (which almost always includes an environmental component) might look like this:

Desire: The need for a company to

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a nonprofit organization working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable, and healthy places to live and work. Recently, the USGBC brought together 22,835 individuals from corporations, builders, universities, government agencies, and other nonprofit organizations for its annual Greenbuild International Conference and Expo.

This year's host city was Chicago, quickly becoming as known for growing over 3 million square feet of green roofs as it is for mayoral dynasties (by the end of his term in 2010, Richard M. Daley is slated to be the longest serving mayor in Chicago's history, a record currently held by his father who spent 21 years in the office). Late in the week, we met with the founder of a large

The recent passing of Body Shop founder Anita Roddick lacked the kind of coverage in the U.S. press that one would expect her legacy to receive. Perhaps this is always how we feel when someone we've met and who's influenced us passes away. But Anita had important lessons for business leaders and especially those who are positioning their companies at the forefront of sustainability. Below are four lessons we can all learn from Dame Anita Roddick.

Lesson One: Create the Culture

Close to twenty years ago, when I first traveled to Body Shop’s pagoda-like offices in Littlehampton to consult with the company, I thought they had discovered a great "green" marketing hook for selling cosmetics and soaps. After a week of meetings that ranged from senior executives to

Dell is now using its direct model in new ways to showcase the company's environmental commitment, which it has identified as a key strategy for future growth.

With energy prices continuing to climb and many business leaders expecting federal carbon legislation to appear soon, companies are taking energy usage issues seriously, and many utilities have already developed programs to help CIOs keep energy costs in check.