Climate Neutral Network - Finding the Route to a Better Climate.

While efforts to address the issue of global climate change may seemed stalled by international policy debates, the fact is, new breakthroughs are happening all the time. The leadership on this issue is coming from the US business community. In fact, as we approach the critical intersection on global climate issues when we must decide what to do and how to do it the US business community is in a unqiue position to provide policymakers with valuable advice based on real-world experience.

The Buy Recycled Business Alliance, and its partner, the National Recycling Coalition, are pleased to bring you this series of coverwraps on environmental issues. We believe that the best solutions to environmental challenges facing the business community will be developed through freely sharing information and new ideas. It is in this spirit that we devote this final issue for 2000 to profiling business initiatives that address global climate change. We are confident that you will find innovative, informative and effective models to follow.

Private Sector Business Models

Many businesses throughout the country now accept that action must be taken to complex environmental challenges such as climate change, even when doing so will be difficult and expensive." says Eileen Claussen, director of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, Arlington, VA.

This represents a major shift for many companies, according to US State Department chief negotiator for climate issues Frank Loy. He says that there has been a corporate shift from ćbeing climate skeptics to climate activists. Loy and others credit The Pew Center and its Business Environmental Leadership Council as a driving force through its policy level discussions and public outreach. Again, according the Claussen, Council members think that the smartest approach for industry is to help shape solutions instead of having solutions imposed on them. As a result, a number of innovative business models have emerged. Here are some examples:

These efforts still will not be nearly enough to achieve emissions spelled out by the Kyoto Protocol," believes Claussen. "More effort is needed by our business and political leaders, because this is an issue that will not go away, regardless of who is elected president in November or who controls Congress.

"Our elected leaders would be wise to recognize that industry has ideas about how to deal with greenhouse gas emissions responsibly, effectively and in ways that bring business and government together to shape solutions," Claussen says.

Following this lead, two other new partnership programs were launched this year to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Through the Climate Savers program, sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund's private iniatives program, companies like Johnson & Johnson and IBM have agreed to make greenhouse gas reductions that outside auditors can verify. According to Joesph Romm, director of the nonprofit Center for Energy and Climate Solutions which will audit companiesā results, most savings will come from new energy-efficient equipment, co-generation and use of renewable energy. With a different focus, the Environmental Defense (formerly known as EDF), launched the Climate Protection Partnership in which a number of companies have pledged to design and implement greenhouse gas management programs that can serve as working models of emissions trading for policy makers, as well as demonstrate to Wall Street how this increases shareholder value.

Partnerships between business and government

Because greenhouses gases are not regulated in this country, everything that is happening is based on voluntary efforts. At the heart of most programs is the drive toward energy efficiency which can also boost corporate profits. Business-government partnerships have produced significant reductions and savings. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Natural Gas STAR program works with companies to reduce emission of methane a greenhouse gas that is 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Participating companies representing about 50% of US natural gas production and 70% of the transmission and delivery chain - have reduced methane emissions by 110 billion cubic feet, equal to more than $220 million in savings. This is enough natural gas to heat about 800,000 homes for a year.

Another EPA partnership which focuses on solid waste reduction and recycling,called Waste Wise, companies such as Verizon, Coca-Cola, Target and C&A Floorcoverings are redesigning their waste reduction and recycling programs to further reduce carbon dioxide emissions. For example, in 1998, Verizon's waste and recycling programs prevented almost 40,000 metric tons of CO2 and methane from being emitted ö this is the equilvalent of taking 30,000 cars off the road.

Energy Resource Planning for the 21st Century

While national level efforts to reduce energy consumption are in full swing, one of the most pressing issues at the state and local level is how to meet the need of growing populations for cleaner energy and more of it. An innovative program developed by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power sought to address this problem. In a bold move uncharacteristic of many cities, Los Angeles instituted a long-term plan to make the city energy-sufficient by focusing on development of energy efficiency and renewable energy measures. Through its 2000 Integrated Resources Plan, DWP is setting up solar cells on public buildings to convert sunlight into electricity. Their goal is to become a green power center with natural forms of energy such as solar, wind, biomass and geothermal.

In addition, the city is investing in electric transportation, as well as installing charging stations throughout the city to encourage businesses to use electric transportation and residents to lease electric cars.

As added benefits, LA is also instituting a mass tree-planting program and extensive recycling program. These collective efforts over the next decade will make Los Angeles not only a leader in providing its residents with an good environmental quality of life, but a strong competitor in attracting and keeping thriving businesses.

Branding for a Better Climate

Expanding beyond current platforms of energy and emissions reduction, the Climate Neutral Network — an alliance of 25 corporations and other organizations — is focused on achieving a net zero impact on the earth's climate while offering opportunities to increase profits through innovative brand marketing partnerships.

Through the Network, participating companies not only reduce greenhouse gases, but also invest in offsite partnerships to completely offset their companiesā emissions. According to Daniel Lashof, Senior Scientist, Natural Resources Defense Council, "This is an exciting way for a diverse group of leading companies, environmental groups and public policy advocates to work together to create good business value for companies, achieve livable communities, and help eliminate their climate impacts."

These goals are facilitated through the Climate Neutral Network and its certification process. To date, three companies have passed certification. Shaklee U.S., a consumer products manufacturer; Interface, a founding member of Climate Neutral Network and international carpet manufacturer certified for a new flooring product, and The Saunders Hotel groups for its Climate Neutral accommodation options offered at The Lenox and Copley Square Hotels (Boston, MA. Each of these companies, in addition to emissions reductions, has invested in innovative partnerships. For example, Philips Lighting and The Saunders Hotel groups have partnered to create energy efficient lighting in their Boston hotels — substantially reducing energy costs and emissions. In another example Shaklee U.S. and Interface have partnered to offset their emissions and fulfill their commitment to education by retrofiting boilers in the Portland (Oregon) Public Schools, an investment that both put back over a quarter million dollars of savings into the school system and eliminated the companies' greenhouse gas impact. Other innovative programs in process include TripleE — a 21st century alternative to traditional corporate travel and consumer automobile clubs — that will offer Climate Neutral travel, insurance and roadside services, and the Energy Foundation which intends to become the first non-profit Climate Neutral enterprise. Other leading companies like Cognis, a manufacturer of next generation chemicals, are investigating partnerships that also promise to produce significant outcomes.

According to Sue Hall, Executive Director of the Climate Neutral Network, the objective is to help companies develop products and services with zero impact on the earth that are highly credible, merit stakeholder support and are scientifically sound. "We achieve this," she said, "through a set of Design Principles that have been developed in consultation with leading environmental groups such as the NRDC, the Nature Conservancy and the Rocky Mountain Institute. These are the "gold standards" for which companies strive." According to Carliss Baldwin, Professor at the Harvard Business School, "the Climate Neutral Network is creating the next generation of market-based incentives to help protect our climate. It helps companies open new markets; enhance brand equity; create new profit areas, while fulfilling social and environmental commitments."

The Road Ahead

In the last few years the debate over global climate change has dramatically shifted from if we should do something to what should be done. The organizations and studies profiled in this issue demonstrate rich, creative and varied approaches. In the best tradition of America, companies are choosing to work collectively, not alone, to find creative and effective solutions. And in the best tradition of business, they are finding ways to converge actions for the good of the planet with opportunities to build markets. There is little doubt that we are entering a new economy where we will do business radically differently than in the past. But this new economy is as much about succeeding in a world of increasingly scare natural resources and fragile climate conditions, as it is about new technology. The road ahead is uncertain, but by using the roadmaps created here, negotiating the intersections ahead will help us to make more informed and rational choices.