Eco-Friendly Corporations

632 Words2 Pages

Over the past 40 years there has been a surge of awareness, with regards to environmental issues, as more people are beginning to realize the dangers of air pollution, deforestation and the depletion of the Earth’s natural resources. This monumental shift in attitude has encouraged many individuals to lead more eco-friendly lifestyles and remain mindful of the fact that present day society has a duty to preserve the Earth’s resources for future generations. Undoubtedly, corporations and businesses are catching on to this trend, partly in an effort to comply with federal regulations, but also to fulfill their roles in the environmental movement as they realize the intangible benefits that can be gained. Indra Nooyi, chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, reflects this new attitude in a recent statement where she observed that “big companies in particular should be a force for good in society.”

The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a global management consulting firm, collaborated with the MIT Sloan Management Review in fall 2009 to launch a global survey of more than 1500 corporate executives and managers about their “perspectives on the intersection of sustainability and business strategy.” Compiled nearly 2 years ago, their findings indicated that many corporations have neglected to boost their sustainability efforts. Although 92% of survey respondents claimed “that their company was addressing sustainability in some way,” more than 70% later admitted that their company had yet to develop a clear-cut strategy for handling the issue. Despite these shortcomings, companies realize that sustainability has and will continue to have an impact on both stockholders and customer views on their reputation. A major corporation’s failure to adhere t...

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...equivalent to eliminating almost 30,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide or approximately 60,000 barrels of oil from our PET plastic bottles.”

Moreover, the Coca Cola Company has invested $60 million in research and development to “advance the use of climate-friendly cooler technology.” They are working towards purchasing 50% of all new coolers and vending machines without hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by 2012 and “transition all new purchases to 100% HFC-free equipment by 2015.”

As leading corporations do more each year to regulate their practices as it relates to environmental protection, they are setting the standard higher for future companies.

Works Cited

http://www.bcg.com/documents/file29480.pdf

http://businessroundtable.org/uploads/general/2011.05_.11_BRT_Sustainability_Report_.pdf

http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/ourcompany/pdf/nutrijuice.pdf

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