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I am no expert on the best green businesses to start today. But I want to be. Can anyone here start listing out what they believe are hot businesses to start up that have green written all over them?




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Rich Sloan , Co-Founder, Chief Startupologist, StartupNation

Rich

Forgive me if this sounds picky, but what constitutes a green business?  Green is the next bandwagon and everybody is going to jump on.  Some businesses like Patagonia have "green" embedded into their mission and strategy (and have been doing this for years).  Others buy "credits", claim to be carbon neutral, and it`s business as usual except they claim to be "green". 

I`m tossing this out for the sake of dialogue because 1) everybody is going to say they are green soon, 2) the definitions are blurry, and 3)  the issue can be somewhat emotionally charged.

Technology/consulting services!

I do all my contact electronically, don`t drive because I work from home, no paperwork or physical products ...

There`s no way I couldn`t be a green business unless I did something silly like got a real office.

Also ...

I`m totally into Terracycle right now. I think what they are doing is great.

Digital media ... no gas, no deliveries, no picking up movies - just get them right on your laptop or use your handy-dandy Apple TV thingy to beam them to your TV. (Great long tail application.)

My mom has been working with these new building materials that look like cement blocks but weigh less than my laptop. Apparently they keep the building cool in summer and warm in the winter, saving on energy costs and such. There`s a lot of advances in her field (structural engineering) in terms of green building right now, and she gets to work on a lot of those projects.

This helping any?

After talking with her on IM, she says they are called "AAC block, Aerated Autoclave Concrete". In case anyone was wondering.

IMO? The credits thing doesn`t count. 

I think that the business that I am creating might be green (not sure though).

I am in the process of building a website dedicated to providing outdoor recreation education to families (parents with children from 1-15). 

I think that one of the most important things that we can do as adults is share the outdoors with our children so that they can experience it in a first hand way.  By providing this experience, they are more likely to identify and relate to the outdoors and therefore appreciate natual places and protect them for future generations.

So am I a green business?  I`m not really sure.  I`m not specifically trying to be, but maybe someday my efforts might inspire some young people to be good stewards of a wild place.  I certainly hope so...

I don`t think this is picky at all. This is one of the biggest challenges facing the movement today. I also think that before we go looking for green businesses to start, we need to first answer that fundamental question.

Because you can not build a green business until you understand the issues of sustainability.

These are just some of the first questions we need to ask if we are going to operate a truly green business:

• Am I creating additional waste by producing things that will eventually be discarded?
  
  
• Am I consuming non-renewable resources that deplete the environment from which they came without putting anything back?
  
  
• Am I conducting sound business practices that actually enrich the world I operate in?

These may sound judgmental or idealistic, but they are the fundamental questions at the heart of the green issue. If you can`t answer these honestly, you can`t claim to be green. (Notice I didn`t say what your answer should be.)

For those of you who believe that conducting digital-based businesses are green by definition, I hate to tell you that you`re wrong. The digital industry (manufacturers and service providers alike) are massive polluters.

In order to truly be green, you need to consider and take action in the following areas:

• Creating a specific purchasing and supply sourcing policy
  
• Reducing energy and water consumption
• Minimizing (or eliminating) your waste stream
• Considering the life cycle of your product (or the ramifactions of your service)

etc etc.

I get very frustrated by businesses that approach sustainability as though it`s a simple add-on to the regular way they do business. (I`m not directing this at anyone here, by the way.) Incorporating these things into your business takes a lot of effort and a lot of careful thought. There are many easy, simple things we can each do right now to start to make a difference, but the fact remains that the bulk of the solutions aren`t easy nor are they always obvious.

Just something to think about before diving into a "green business." This ain`t some social networking craze where you can throw up a blog and call yourself 2.0.

—Jess


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Roughstock Studios | Notes From the Rodeo | Newsletter
Strategic communications without the selling of souls.

I think that your opinion in grouping all digital businesses together is a little wrong. Just because some are polluters doesn`t make all of them this way.

I also think that "green extremism" puts people off. For example, many people can make a difference doing small things, like walking instead of driving, or carpooling instead of driving alone.

But when you start getting down to every little number and spend 20 minutes analyzing cloth napkins vs paper ... not only do you make people feel wrong, but you make them feel that every bit isn`t counting. This actually *hurts* the effort towards sustainability, not helps. Because if they thought they were helping by doing ______ and you tell them it`s wrong/not enough/whatever ... people will just stop bothering. Heck, if they have been using cloth napkins when they really wanted to use paper towels, and that turned out wrong ... they might as well start using their car again! Screw it.

I think this shouldn`t be about "green perfection" ... it should be about doing whatever we can to make it better, one bit at a time. More "baby steps" and less "in your face".

I not sure what is hot to others but I know what I am excited about.

My business will focus on dealing with the ever increasing e-waste stream by reusing, remarketing and  properly disposing of  electronic trash.




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Steven Lewis
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“Do or do not... there is no try.” - Yoda

I think that your opinion in grouping all digital businesses together is a little wrong. Just because some are polluters doesn`t make all of them this way.

With all due respect, every single one of us is a polluter, whether we like it or not. When I say "digital businesses" I mean anyone who relies on computer technology to do what they do. Fact is, the computer industry is a brutal polluter across the board by definition—the materials and components are highly toxic (e.g. CRT screens and even LCDs). Nothing you or I can do about that except make informed choices—purchase LCDs (which have less mercury, etc.) and push the manufacturers to find new—sustainable—ways of building their machines. In addition to the actual hardware, you`ve got the issue of energy consumption. Every server sucks energy. Again, it`s about informed decisions. I`m in the process of researching hosting, for example, to try and find one that is both reliable and is powered by renewable energy (my current host just buys carbon credits, which is iffy).

I hate to burst your bubble, but ALL OF US rely on computers these days, which implicates us in the supply chain. ALL OF US are polluters and are adding to the environmental problems we see in the world. Which is why it is so important for EACH of us to cop to it and start trying to take steps towards a more sustainable way of doing, purchasing, using, etc. Instead of getting upset at being called out, just admit it and move on. Try to find a better solution. People keep getting offended that they`re being held accountable for their own actions. It`s time to move on.

I also think that "green extremism" puts people off. For example, many people can make a difference doing small things, like walking instead of driving, or carpooling instead of driving alone.

But when you start getting down to every little number and spend 20 minutes analyzing cloth napkins vs paper ... not only do you make people feel wrong, but you make them feel that every bit isn`t counting. This actually *hurts* the effort towards sustainability, not helps. Because if they thought they were helping by doing ______ and you tell them it`s wrong/not enough/whatever ... people will just stop bothering. Heck, if they have been using cloth napkins when they really wanted to use paper towels, and that turned out wrong ... they might as well start using their car again! Screw it.

I think this shouldn`t be about "green perfection" ... it should be about doing whatever we can to make it better, one bit at a time. More "baby steps" and less "in your face".

Who said anything about perfection or extremism? Please don`t put words in my mouth. I can only assume your comment about cloth vs. paper napkins refers to the recent entry on my Small Failures blog? If you had read further, you actually would have discovered that my approach is far from demanding perfection from anyone. The blog offers practical, useful advice for how to slowly and bit-by-bit incorporate sustainability into your daily life. The whole point of it is that perfection is impossible, so we need to instead address the daily (and small) habits and choices that we each make every day.

I`m sorry that you feel spending 20 minutes analyzing whether or not your actions are bad for the environment is a waste of time but quite frankly, that`s why we`re in the trouble we`re in. And 20 minutes spent worrying about the napkins you use seems to me to be a far easier decision than deciding to never drive again, no?

Seems to me that the more we avoid the little decisions, the easier it is to avoid the big ones. Hence climate change and water shortages and all the other problems we`ve brought on ourselves. I guess I`m just tired of hearing people complain that they`re being treated unfairly for simply being held accountable. Is this really what we`ve come to?

And honestly, I`m a little surprised that I`m being taken to task for helping people find small ways that they can make a difference. I`m sorry if you feel like throwing up your hands and just saying "screw it," but don`t put that on me. That`s your reaction, and it`s not me that`s causing it. Over a thousand people every month read Small Failures and the bulk of them think it`s very cool that there`s a non-preachy resource out there holding their hand through the difficult process of learning about these issues. Clearly, you`re not one of them and that`s just fine. I don`t tell people what to do, and I don`t tell people that they`re doing something wrong. If you don`t like people pointing out facts, that`s a whole different story. Judgment has nothing to do with it, though.


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Roughstock Studios | Notes From the Rodeo | Newsletter
Strategic communications without the selling of souls.

First let me say that I totally believe that we need to do what we can to be wise with our resources and be conscious of how our actions affect the world at large regarding renewable resources and pollution...

Having said that, I believe there are a number of "green" initiatives out there that may actually do more harm than good.  Ethanol is a great case in point.  I have yet to make a personal determination about ethanol but I think it is unwise to blindly assume it`s the answer to all our fuel problems just because there is so much noise saying it is.  I acknowledge the apparent benefits, but have the proponents truly given the potential negatives any consideration.  Here`s just a couple links that bring up questions:

Wikipedia - Ethonal Fuel  - Wikipedia seems to be fairly balanced noting the benefits but also noting that the manufacture of ethanol is more polluting than previously disclosed...

Ethanol`s Growing List of Enemies - An interesting article on businessweek.com

Please don`t assume I am anti-green because that`s the furthest from the truth.  I`m just tired of all the knee-jerk reactions these days without any honest consideration for both sides of an issue.  I believe that we can be responsible and take care of the planet and everything so long as we are all willing to consider that maybe, just maybe, we`ve missed something and should at least give serious and honest regard to the another viewpoint.

Then of course there are times when the each argument has it`s merits and the final determination is 6 of one, half dozen of the other.  You just have to make your pick and hope your side wins, but don`t be angry if you loose, acknowledge the other side and continue to try and convince them your view is best.  Just be civil about it...

R-


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Quaerite Primum Regnum

"There's a fine line between genius and insanity. I have erased this line."
~ Oscar Levant ~

Twitter: @rossb