Nov 1, 2007

The Greening Of Everything

Sustainability isn’t just about venture-backed tech firms and big manufacturers. In this, Inc.’s Second Annual Eco-Advantage issue, we look at how green business practices are transforming the stuff of everyday life.

 
  • Nothing But Green Skies: Enterprise Rent-A-Car is one of the nation's top family-owned businesses, a $12 billion behemoth that dominates its industry. But CEO Andy Taylor feared it all could vanish in a puff of CO2. It was time to get greener. And quick.

  • Enterprise At A Glance: Enterprise has the world's largest fleet of rental cars (1.1 million), as well as the largest number of fuel efficient or hybrid vehicles. Here are some other facts about the company.

  • Going Carbon Neutral (PDF)

  • 10 Questions for Andy Taylor

  • Reinventing the Cheeseburger: Burgerville's Tom Mears took an icon of damn-the-whales consumer excess--the drive-thru cheeseburger--and turned it green. In the process, he reanimated his business.

  • What's In That Diaper?: In 2002, Jason and Kimberley Graham-Nye faced a decision: cloth (a hassle) or disposable (wasteful). "We looked at each other and said, 'That's it?'" says Kimberley. "There hadn't been any real innovation in diapers since the 1960s, when disposables hit the market." They set out to change that.

  • Let's Put On a Show: In the wake of September 11, Image 4, a designer of trade show exhibits, saw revenue plunge by two-thirds. That led CEO Jeff Baker to rethink everything--and rebuild his business in a radical new way.

  • Green Housing for the Rest of Us: Real estate developers at Full Spectrum NY had been told that sustainably designed buildings are only for the rich. The company's response? The Kalahari, a green high-rise with all the latest features but a reasonable price tag.

  • Long Live Rock: A family business found the right chemistry to take the symbol of the man-made world and bring it back to nature. A few nuggets about recyclable concrete.

  • Power Ranger: Computers consume a lot of power even when nobody's using them. If users won't take time to power down their PCs, Surveyor software will.