* Sun Chips – This company, owned by PepsiCo, is shrinking its environmental footprint by using solar panels to power manufacturing facilities in Modesto, CA. But the most impressive development has to do with the packaging. The SunChips bag itself will be, safely compostable by Earth Day (April 22), 2010. Regardless of what you think of snack food, this is an innovation worth celebrating.

* Green Works – This cleaning products line generated substantial controversy when it launched over a year ago because it’s made by Clorox – a business not known for its kindness to Mother Nature. But Green Works succeeds because it’s “99%” natural – and can back up the claim with verification from former staunch critic the Sierra Club. Women love it because it’s as effective as conventional Clorox cleansers; because it’s cheap; and because it’s easily available. Other companies should take note.

*Kaiser Permanente – This huge health care provider is taking its “health” mission seriously. It’s a leader in eliminating mercury and other toxic products in hospitals. It’s also gotten rid of that nasty green jello you associate with a hospital menu in favor of whole foods. Kaiser even encourages its complexes to host famers markets in their parking lots; 30 around the country are doing so so far.

Check out the Sustainable Brands website to watch video of all presentations.

Create a Green Workplace

Start a Green Business

Green Commuting Options

Green Building Resources

Pollution Prevention and Recycling

Financing: Environmental Grants, Loans and Incentives

Like many businesses, medical practices use a lot of energy – but burning energy generates particulates that contribute to asthma and respiratory disease. Clinics and hospitals depend on a variety of materials that contain toxic substances like PVS and phthalates  – even though using and disposing of these substances puts patients at additional risk.  Healthcare facilities consume large quantities of paper and plastic, most of which deplete our natural resources and get thrown away after a single use.

These practices don’t only affect the environment or the patient. They impact your ability to run a profitable business, too. Wasting anything – from energy, to water, to paper, to supplies – wastes your hard-earned profits. When you take steps to “reduce, reuse and recycle,” you achieve triple benefits: you protect the planet, you safeguard people, and you strengthen your bottom line.

Five Ways to Green Your Healthcare Practice

1)     Choose the safest available materials and chemicals. Look for products that avoid mercury, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic, phthalates and brominated flame retardants, all of which have been linked to serious disease in adults and children. In addition to offering your patient healthier options, you’ll make your money matter. By shifting your spending to the healthiest, “greenest” products on the market, you’ll increase the available supply and set an example other healthcare professionals can more easily follow.

2)     Minimize waste. According to Medhunters.com, American hospitals generate more than two million tons of waste each year, at a loss of tens of millions of dollars. Alternatives? Replace disposable surgical and patient gowns with reusable ones. Use a scanner to save documents and e-mail to electronically circulate files to avoid making excessive paper copies that ultimately get trashed. Recycle paper, plastic and glass rather than throw them away. Have staff use reusable mugs and water bottles rather than disposable cups.

3)     Separate medical from nonmedical waste, and explore alternatives to waste incineration. As much as 85% of medical waste is noninfectious, says Health Care Without Harm. It should not be mixed with dangerous medical waste, which is often incinerated and could release cancer-causing dioxin and other toxins into the atmosphere.  Alternatives to incineration may include autoclaving and irradiation.

4)     Clean with green products. According to the Environmental Protection Agency and other health and environmental monitors, indoor air can become polluted by cleaners, disinfectants and air fresheners that contain dangerous chemicals and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Common symptoms include allergies, irritation, asthma, and headaches. More extreme consequences range from “sick house syndrome” to cancer, birth defects, and neurological and reproductive disorders. Solutions? Use fragrance free products that are also certified green cleaners . Adopt the least toxic pest management strategies. Use alcohol-based gels rather than those containing antibacterial agents for routine hand washing.

5)      Save energy. Replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents. Plug computers, printers, fax machines and other office electronics into energy-saving power strips. Buy the most energy-efficient appliances to meet your needs. Purchase ‘green’ energy (generated by wind power or biomass) from your local utility. Telecommute, car pool, or use mass transit. Attend webinars and conference calls rather than go to meetings in person.

 For More Information:

Health Care Without Harm

Environmentally Friendly Purchasing Policies

Practice Green Health 

Green Guide for Health Care 

Environmentally Preferred Products list 

Research done by Penn Schoen Berland and J. Walter Thompson.

Prior to the recession, 15% of consumers considered environmental attributes as a factor when they shopped. Today, that number is 16%, and once the recession bottoms out, as many as 22% of shoppers are expected to make green a priority before purchasing.

Interestingly, though price is the biggest factor affecting shopping decisions today, post-recession, quality is expected to carry the most sway in the marketplace. The lesson here? Producing high-quality green products and services offers the greatest opportunity for entrepreneurs who want to do well and do good at the same time.

Jennifer Woofter, the brains behind Strategic Sustainability Consulting, encouraged the audience to consider “green” in the context of their overall operations and profitability goals. Businesses can meet their needs for economic growth by adopting environmental strategies that save energy and reduce waste, she said. She encouraged entrepreneurs to set their priorities and be flexible in working towards achieving them.

Antonella LoRe, the founder of Capital Green Cleaning, described her experience establishing a new commercial cleaning company in and around Washington, D.C. Most of her clients are offices, banks and private schools whose administrators and employees want to work in a healthier, safer environment. Despite the challenge of launching her business during a recession, she noted that demand for her service is high because protecting the environment is on the top of everyone’s agenda.

I encouraged the audience to develop a “Breakthrough Blueprint” so they can get started and stay on track.

Remember that “what gets measured, gets done,” I noted.

“You can make a greater difference – to yourself, your employees, and your bottome line – if you chart a greener course.”

Good news, right?

Not if those businesses never make any money.

Historically, while women start more businesses than men, far fewer of those businesses ever earn a million dollars or more.

Nell Merlino wants to change that. I met Nell when we were both speaking to the annual meeting of Executive Women in Government, an association for the most senior women in the federal government who aren’t political employees. I talked about the power of women’s consumer clout in the marketplace. Nell tackled the topic in a slightly different way, noting that women would have a lot more clout if they had a lot more money!

Nell’s organization, Make Mine a Million Dollar Business, is designed to do just that: help enterprising women business owners and entrpreneurs make more money.

A Big Green Declaration for Change argues that you can do that, in part, by using resources more wisely, saving energy, and cutting costs for waste and travel. We lay out all the “how to’s” in our Breakthrough Coaching Program. Sign up now so you can make yours a million!

The Heart of Green award “recognizes those who are helping bring “green” messages to the mainstream,” wrote TDG editor Dan Shapley. “Your work influencing the buying habits of women fits the bill.”

Women now make up at least 50% of purchasing agents for companies. We’re buying the paper, pens, desks, chairs, computers, fleet vehicles, and even coffee mugs for the businesses we own or help manage. The Big Green Breakthrough coaching program focuses on how to make those purchases as environmentally as friendly as possible. After all, there’s no reason why we all can’t be “green” at heart, is there?

And not just any garden, either. She’s planting an organic garden right on the White House lawn.

She’s digging into dirt that’s lain fallow for a very long time. She’s trying several different varieties of vegetables and herbs. And she’s planning on “networking” to get her garden to grow: President Obama and their two daughters will have to pull weeds; friendly insects will keep plants healthy and pest-free.

When asked why she decided to get her hands dirty, she said she wanted to do something that would benefit her family’s health. But she wanted to set an example for the community, too.

Sound familiar? As we point out in A Big Green Declaration for Change, protecting our health and improving our community are two of the main reasons why women are greening their businesses these days.

In fact, starting a business is a lot like starting a garden. You’re motivated by what it can be, despite the challenging work it might take to get there.

I’m thrilled that Mrs. Obama’s garden will be “green” in every sense of the word. She’s setting an inspiring example for all us entrepreneurs who are planting our own “green” seeds in business.

Atlanta's Kathleen Plate makes "Smart Glass" jewelry (like these earrings) out of empty soda and beer bottles.

What are you doing to “go green” in your business?

Recycling counts. So does allowing your employees to telecommute. Do you make organic shampoo or make-up? (Don’t laugh – the market for eco-friendly personal care products is HUGE!) Or have you started one of those incredibly popular green cleaning services?

Leave a comment to let me — and everyone else who could be in the market for your product or service — know. (Don’t worry if you’re just getting started – a lot of women are. That’s what makes this all so exciting!)

According to the State of Green Business 2009 report released today in San Francisco, we’re not gaining nearly enough ground in reducing the carbon dioxide that contributes to climate change, and we haven’t really begun to take water conservation and pollution seriously.  In other words, despite all the talk of the “green revolution” that’s supposedly going on, we’re not making nearly as much headway as we should be.

On the more promising side, Joel Makower, the report’s author, notes:

* Green building is on the rise, spurring new technologies that save energy and money while creating more healthful workplaces.

* A green race is taking place in the automobile industry, with every major manufacturer planning to introduce electric vehicles.

* Leading consumer product makers and retailers are starting to rigorously assess the environmental impact of their products using sophisticated metrics, sending signals up the supply chain that tomorrow’s products will need to hew to higher levels of environmental responsibility.

* U.S. patents for clean-energy technologies — wind, fuel cells, hydroelectric, tidal, and geothermal — in 2008 were at their highest level in seven years.

* American industry has been doing more with less energy for decades. The amount of energy required — in the form of electricity and fuel — per dollar of GDP has dropped more than 75 percent since 1950.

According to the report, top green business trends include the growth of college curricula on environmental management; a desire to educate employees about green shopping and living; and the increased use by companies of green design principles like green chemistry and biomimicry.

Download the free report here.