Environmental Business

Business Loans, Angel Investors, Venture Capital and Start Up Capital for Environmental Businesses

I wish I could take about a week to give business people an introduction to Green business practices. Environmentalism has become an immense diversity of issues, and even scaling down to the parts that apply to business leaves enough information to fill a truckload of books. Even the dedicated environmental professional will need to spend a great deal of time to master the concepts that apply to business.

Add to that the challenges and demands of running a business, and it is easy to understand why taking a business Green is frankly beyond the resources of most businesses. It is a practical matter of necessity. The needful chores and obligations of business are back breaking. How can you fit an elephant of environmental challenges into a coffee cup of available time? That is why most businesses are forced into a token form of environmental contributions. The solution is not squeezing another load of duties onto an overworked staff.

The smart answer is that the Green transition of a business is best accomplished by bringing on a Green consultant as the outsourced expert that brings a carefully crafty plan to move the business to a Green operation. This professional can make sense of a very confusing subject by stepping the business through the best ideas for that company. Businesses outsource a variety of tasks rather than trying to pay for an internal staff member that will cost a great deal more in salary, benefits, and health care. For a fixed price, a Green consultant will provide an year-long process that will move the business toward a successful GCI Green Building certification.

Other programs can make the Greening process far more costly, complex, and over-reaching. Frankly, why are bike racks and proximity to public transportation part of the Green business formula. While they may be good ideas and help in the greater world issues, they do little to improve the health and operation of the business and its employees. Are Green roofs the singular “Best Idea” for each and every business? If you listened to some narrow-thinking advisers, it would seem so.

In fact, there are hundreds of ideas (small and sizable) that may be applied to a business, and we know that no two Green plans are exactly alike. The businesses differ in their practice, budget, and geography. It is also important to understand that Going Green is a progressive effort that cannot be accomplished in a once-forever approach. New innovations, new revelations, and new ideas are emerging month by month. The Green consultant is therefore the Ad Hoc expert bringing the best Green ideas to the table for consideration.

The last concern for Green business transition is the cost of the changes required. To be honest, getting some Green certification can be a $25,000 entry fee and a $250,000+ ultimate investment. There are elite and pretentious services that ask for more exorbitant fees to take your business Green. However, it is also very possible to take your company Green for a few thousand dollars. Spread the cost over a year, and the process becomes affordable and less intrusive.

To find out how earn your Green Consultant certification, visit the Green Business League website. Courses are offered in several major cities in four-day sessions. These classes are powerful and part of a national network of Green consultants. Check out the curriculum and consider if you are ready to start one of the most innovative businesses in the country.

Ready to start a Green program in your business? Check with our team to host a Green Awareness seminar, or to install a Green Management program that will earn your business the coveted GCI Green Building certification.

Michael Richmond is the director of the Green Clean Institute, key trainer the Green Clean Consultant program, and chief adviser for the Green Business League.

Author: Michael Richmond
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

photo credit: Kevin

When looking at what are the most profitable small businesses, there are many avenues to explore. One of the challenges small business owners and home business owners face is marketing their business effectively. In addition to sound marketing methods, marketing to popular trends and markets with growing interest is important.

Advertising can be very expensive, but there are very effective ways of generating free exposure, especially today. With the technologies available via the internet many small business owners are generating massive profits with little or no marketing expense.

There are many opportunities right now for having a profitable small green business.

photo credit: woodleywonderworks

With President-Elect Obama’s announcement that he will establish an “Apollo Project” to develop a Green Economy, there is no doubt that “the Green Technology train has left the station.” Indisputably, investors will start to invest heavily in companies that appear to possess commericializable Green Technology that will enter the marketplace as the US embraces the Green Economy and develops the necessary infrastructure to make this happen. Before staking a claim to one or more of these companies, however, investors should understand whether existing patent rights owned by third parties could undermine the investment potential of even the most promising Green Technology innovators.

photo credit: Wonderlane

In today’s depressive stock market it is hard to find a silver lining. Green investing is a way to feel good about your stocks and mutual funds while having the potential to make a healthy return on investment. Socially responsible investing makes sense during the corruption on Wall Street and the search for alternative energy sources. Green investing is finally coming into the mainstream. People can do what’s right for the environment and build wealth too! Socially responsible investing has been around for decades and is now becoming popular. SRI already has $2.3 trillion in investments. SRI started by appealing to investors who wanted to avoid sin stocks, the stocks of companies that are involved in alcohol, tobacco, and gambling.

Today, Social Responsible Investing is an all encompassing term that generally means screening companies out that are abusive to the environment, practice poor labor relations, are not responsible to their communities and lack corporate integrity. SRI has evolved to serve in an advocacy manner.

photo credit: Gustty

Instituting environmentally friendly practices does not mean sacrificing your competitive edge. Business owners are realizing that they can make a bigger impact by changing their business policies than by changing their personal behavior, and this has lead to a change in corporate culture over the last few years that has resulted in a notable environmental impact.

In the past, efforts to institute eco-friendly business practices were admirable, but these efforts appear negligible compared to the changes that are being made today. Minimizing the consumption of paper products and electricity are still effective ways for companies to save money and help the environment at the same time, but many companies are stepping outside these standardized boundaries to effect big changes.

photo credit: Ben Kokolas

Food isn’t just something that we want, it’s also something that each and everybody needs. Without food we would all perish, which is why you can make a great business selling things that can be eaten.

If you are willing to put in a lot of hard work then there is no reason why you can’t create a profitable business by selling herbs and spices. It’s possible to start this business as quite a small concern, but then increase it easily in the future. In the south you can even get free bay leaves.

In order to make your fortune you shouldn’t just sell the fresh and dried herbs.

photo credit: h.koppdelaney

Environmental & Economic Benefits

The “green gold rush” is on. Global investment in renewable energy surged some 60 percent, to $148 billion last year. Investment in clean energy from wind, solar and biofuels rose three times faster in 2007 than predicted by the UN Environmental Program, with wind power attracting $50.2 billion, a third of all clean energy investments. Investment in solar energy soared by 254 percent to $28.6 billion last year. This “green gold rush” is propelled by the soaring fossil-fuel prices, and concerns over carbon dioxide emissions that fuel global warming.

photo credit: Victorrjr

Going “green” is big business today. Not only is going “green” an environmentally responsible approach for businesses of all sizes to take and one that is the current rage, but going “green” can leverage profit dollars to your bottom-line too.

First, what exactly do we mean by having your business go “green”? When we talk about “green”, we mean making a concerted effort to save our natural resources concerted action. Actions such as:

1. Saving on paper supplies – consider going digital for all of your internal office correspondence thereby saving on office supply costs and saving trees at the same time.

photo credit: Choubistar

In today’s global market place people are looking to go green for many reasons.
One good reason is the environmental impact going green has.

If you consider the impact of fuel burn in the daily commute to work the overpowering reason to go green is the cost of gasoline.

More and more the ability to stay at home and telecommute is taking first choice for many people.
Inter the home business arena and the ability to have family time when you want it, work in your sweats and slippers, not have to suck the exhaust fumes of the traffic ahead of you on the daily commute is another environmental plus.

photo credit: Paul Lowry

The most important fundamental step to launching a successful PR campaign is to target the right audiences. The one question every business owner will ask is simple, “Show Me The Money”. As a PR professional you want to ensure that you are directing all of you’re PR campaigns on profitable paths.

Many times PR pros can benefit from hot trendy markets. This is an ideal opportunity to create a demand for products and services offered in PR campaigns. The task here is to find solutions to implement products and services that will add value to hot trendy markets. Therefore increasing a demand and revenue earnings.