A study recently released found that businesses around the globe are interested in implementing the practice of “going green.” According to a Bloomberg news article, more businesses are intrigued by the concept of bringing in sustainable practices to increase their profits. The article stated that, “these efforts are increasingly paying off. Almost a third of companies said sustainable practices contributed directly to their bottom line last year.”
Nearly 3,000 companies across 113 countries were surveyed in a study by MIT Sloan Management Review and Boston Consulting Group and of that “about 68 percent of companies said their organization’s focus on sustainability increased in the past year, up from just 25 percent in 2009.”
Forbes reported “that two-thirds of companies see sustainability as a competitive necessity in today’s marketplace up from 55 percent a year ago.” The study was released just as Corporate Knight released its list of the 100 most sustainable businesses worldwide, with the United Kingdom toping the list, Japan in second and the United States in third place, according to Forbes.
As sustainability in business takes an ever-increasing role in today’s corporate world, the Sustainable Sites Initiative (SITES) also released its “first three projects to be certified by the nation’s most comprehensive system for rating the sustainable design, construction and maintenance of built landscapes,” according to an article by Business Wire.
SITES is a partnership initiative to develop “a voluntary, national rating system and set of performance benchmarks for sustainable landscapes in areas with or without buildings,” according to Business Wire. SITES hopes to increase sustainable practices in architecture and ongoing maintenance of businesses.
According to Susan Rieff, executive director of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center via a SITES press release, “These projects powerfully demonstrate how sustainably designed landscapes can produce environmental, economic and aesthetic benefits.”
-written by Katie Kelley, Social Media Intern, Winter 2011
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