Each year, we recognize outstanding small and medium-sized employers from around the U.S. for their leadership in sustainable enterprise – combining cutting edge business, environmental, employee and community practices.  Check out the video from our 2011 Green Plus Awards here.

Nominate your favorite triple-bottom line employer here by midnight, February 17, 2012. 

Categories include 

• Green Plus Sustainable Enterprise of the Year (any size)
• Green Plus Medium-Sized Employer
• Green Plus Sustainable Small Business of the Year
• Green Plus Sole Proprietor / Home Based Business of the Year
• Green Plus Non – Profit
• For – Benefit Corporation / Social Enterprise of the Year 

Nomination Guidelines
The Green Plus Sustainable Enterprise Awards are not only about ‘green’ (environmental) programs — they are an effort to recognize and encourage a balanced approach to community engagement, environmental stewardship, and good business management generally. We seek to promote traditional organizations engaging in extraordinary practices while raising awareness around the importance of sustainability in their communities. 

Award nominees can expect be notified by the Institute selection committee between February 29th and March 15th.

Rules
-Any smaller enterprise (an organization of under 500 employees) in the United States or Canada may be nominated for a Green Plus Sustainable Enterprise Award. 
-There is no fee to be nominated.
-There is no required membership in any organization to be nominated. 
-Winners of juried Green Plus Sustainable Enterprise Awards may not win a juried award two years in a row. 
-Nominees may not be related to or have an existing business relationship with staff or board members of the Institute for Sustainable Development

About the Institute
The Institute for Sustainable Development is a non-profit organization that helps smaller enterprises and their communities to become more sustainable, foster a new generation of sustainability leaders, and to promote dialogues about the theory and practice of sustainability across cultures. Green Plus, the Institute’s flagship program, exists to educate, network, and reward small enterprises in their triple bottom line efforts. Through Green Plus, the Institute strives to help smaller enterprises learn from one another as well as from experts and specifically seeks to celebrate enterprises that are trailblazers — innovating sustainable practices that one might not associate with a given business sector.  

Visit this link to learn about past Green Plus Sustainable Enterprise Award winners.

The Institute for Sustainable Development / Green Plus

www.gogreenplus.org 

Take a listen to this week’s podcast to hear more about how The Taylor Companies made money on what they considered garbage, and discover strategies you can implement to get your waste reduction efforts off the ground…

…and check out NPR’s Marketplace full interview with Jeff Baldasarri in 2010. 

“BALDASSARI: I am not a treehugger by any means. But by the same token, I’m a huge, huge fan of sustainability.

And here’s why: With all the savings on trash, plus energy efficient machinery, Taylor saves about $100,000 a year.

BALDASSARI: The guys in the factory, if I tell them, Hey, we save $100,000 a year by diverting this waste and saving on energy, they’ll think that’s three jobs that have been saved. If I talk to people in marketing, they’ll say that’s $2 million of sales. That’s the net profit from $2 million in sales. If I talk to people in accounting, they’ll think “Our overhead is less.”

The Institute for Sustainable Development / Green Plus

www.gogreenplus.0rg

There is rarely a magic sustainability solution, but these businesses will be sharing their experiences, how they learned about sustainability, and what they think are the most effective steps a business can take to get started.

Panel:

• Tim Naylor, Hughes Pittman & Gupton, Raleigh, NC
• Tom Morley, Lube Stop, Cleveland, OH
• Jeff Baldassari, The Taylor Companies, Bedford, OH

Moderated by Chris Carmody, Institute for Sustainable Development

Event Details

Date: 2/24/2011

Time: 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM

Where: Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, 800 S. Salisbury St, Raleigh, NC 27602

FREE for attendees — Please RSVP

Click here to register!

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Title: Creating True Sustainable Value-a Complimentary Webinar from The Taylor Companies

Date: Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Time: 2:00 PM – 2:45 PM EST

Click here to register

Stay ahead of the industry on these issues. Join us on for a free webinar entitled “Creating True Sustainable Value”. During this presentation, Jeff Baldassari, President & CEO of The Taylor Companies, will share his Company’s seven year journey in sustainability. In addition, the following topics will be covered:

• Key manufacturing practices to review
• Product certifications myths
• How designers can better examine the totality of a furniture manufacturer’s operations to determine if they are truly committed to sustainability
• Pointed questions for designers to use to uncover greenwashing

This webinar is the second in a series of online events sponsored by The Taylor Companies to raise awareness on the impacts and benefits of sustainability in the furniture manufacturing industry.

Click here to register

Green Plus Targets Small Business Sustainability Gains

“In an economy where only the strong survive, the City of Cleveland is providing opportunities for small businesses and nonprofit organizations that adopt sustainable business practices not only to survive but to prosper.

Among these opportunities is Green Plus, brought to Cleveland by COSE (Council of Smaller Enterprises).  Green Plus provides small businesses with the educational and networking tools to integrate sustainability into their practices and policies.

Supported by a grant from The Generation Foundation, Green Plus is also a national platform for recognizing smaller enterprises who are committed to sustainability and have become Green Plus Certified or have achieved Green Plus Mover status.

“Cleveland’s effort to reward companies for triple bottom line  sustainability – good business, environmental, employee and  community practices – is groundbreaking,” said Chris Carmody,  Executive Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development,  the nonprofit that houses the Green Plus program.

“In a sustainable economy, ‘green’ jobs won’t only come from  clean energy or energy efficient businesses – they’ll also be  created by Main Street businesses becoming more competitive  through sustainable practices,” Carmody continued. “The City of Cleveland is providing an economic incentive for regional businesses to improve not only their bottom line, but their triple bottom line,” he concluded.

In creating a first-of-its-kind procurement policy, Cleveland is giving discounts similar to those of minority and female owned certified business (MBE and FBE) to local and sustainable businesses when bidding on city contracts.  Organizations that are certified receive a 4% discount on city bids.

Taylor Companies CEO Jeff Baldassari led the effort to upcycle or recycle every plant waste product.

Not only does the procurement policy directly reward small businesses that implement sustainability, the discount can be added to discounts for MBE and FBE certified businesses giving them more leverage when bidding on Cleveland’s contracts.

COSE was recently awarded a grant by the Ohio Department of Development to provide partial scholarships for 75 businesses as well as $250 towards a professional energy audit and access to resources to help businesses become more energy efficient.

COSE also commissioned the Institute for Sustainable Development to create an Energy Efficiency Guide for Small Businesses.  Smaller enterprises can be uniquely served by energy efficiency because their margins are often tighter. Consistently saving 10-30% off their utility bills allows them to put more back into running their business.

The first company in Northeast Ohio to become Green Plus certified was The Taylor Companies. With the assistance of recycling consultants, Taylor diverts more than 90% of the waste generated by its Bedford plant.

“Sustainability is a business opportunity,” said Jeff Baldassari, President and CEO. “When we built our new plant, we hired energy-efficiency experts to conduct an energy audit in an effort to find additional ways to become eco-friendly by reducing the consumption of natural resources. We cut our energy consumption of natural gas, electricity and water by 58.8%. In addition to Green Plus, partners in this effort are Entrepreneurs for Sustainability, Zero Waste NEO and Corporate Sustainability Network.”

“Sustainability may seem like a foreign concept to many, but it is really about getting back to the business basics,” said Generation Foundation President Glenn R. Brown. “This is true for a three-person cleaning company, a 70-person manufacturing plant, or a 2,000-person insurance company. Sustainability knows no boundaries and can be integrated by businesses in any industry and by business owners from any background.”

(January 6, 2010) Public Radio reporter Dan Bobkoff talks in depth with CEO Jeff Baldassari about how Taylor Companies has reduced its costs by $20,000 through waste reduction and $80,000 through energy conservation efforts.

Taylor Companies was the first company in Ohio to become Certified Green Plus. In 2004, Taylor Companies, the oldest US manufacturing company, also set out to clean up a brownfield in Bedford, Ohio.  Brownfields are areas of land previously used for industrial or commercials purposes which have been contaminated by pollutants, chemicals, or hazardous materials.

After spending nearly 6 million dollars on the clean up, Taylor Companies has a new facility and has made an environmental, social, and economic difference in Northeast Ohio.

Click here to see CEO Jeff Baldasarri’s Zero Waste Northeast Ohio Page. Read (or listen) to ideastream’s Dan Bobkoff indepth news report of the story: http://www.wcpn.org/WCPN/news/28792 .

Click here to read the full article (starts on page 3) in North Coast Sustainability December Newsletter.

(North Carolina Research Triangle) Thirty-one businesses in the Green Plus^TM program were recognized by the Institute for Sustainable Development for their exceptional efforts toward triple bottom line sustainability. Seven businesses received full Green Plus^TM certification, and twenty-five were recognized as Green Plus^TM Movers – businesses that have completed the first major step in the Institute’s sustainable small business certification process. Businesses receiving full Green Plus^TM certification included Brick Street Botanical (AR), Business Class Inc, (NC), Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau (NC), Laser Plus (PA), PTA Thrift Shop (PA), The Taylor Companies (OH) and Warfel Construction Company (PA).

The Cary, North Carolina office of the oldest continuously operating university press in the world, University Oxford Press, became the first organization of its kind to complete the first step of the Green Plus^TM program.  Plymouth Church United Church of Christ in Cleveland, Ohio, is the first religious institution to be recognized by the Institute’s Green Plus^TM program as a Green Plus^TM Mover. Other Green Plus^TM Movers include Accentuate Staffing, Appraisals Online, Inc., Beyu Caffe, Cargas Systems, Cottman Transmission of Garner, NC, jke marketing and communications, the King’s Daughters Inn, Licata & Toerek, Moran IT, My Eco Lamp, Northgate Associates, Quality Sprinkling Systems, Pam Herndon – State Farm, Stitt Energy Systems, Inc, Town Planner Community Calendar, True Edge Performance Solutions, Urban Durham Realty, Watts Grocery, Weaver Street Realty, Wenger Feed Mill, Inc, and William H. Bunch, PA, CPA.  (Please see www.gogreenplus.org for more information on these businesses).

The Institute for Sustainable Development is a public-private partnership between centers at Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro and Greater Durham Chambers of Commerce, the Fenwick Foundation and the Foundation for a Sustainable Community. Major corporate supporters include GlaxoSmithKline and Lenovo. The Institute’s overall business plan for Green Plus^TM was commissioned in 2007 by Tony Waldrop, Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The Center for Sustainable Enterprise at UNC’s Kenan-Flagler School of Business developed the plan, and a partnership of centers at UNC, Duke University, chambers of commerce and philanthropic foundations built and tested the program with small businesses in North Carolina and Ohio in 2008. The program was formally launched in North Carolina in February, since then it has been launched in Arkansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Green Plus^TM is designed to provide small and medium sized employers with affordable educational tools and university assistance to strengthen their triple bottom line, access to a network of peer businesses tackling similar issues while sharing best practices, and brand support in the form of certification for those organizations with exceptional sustainability performance.  “Green Plus^TM is not simply about taking steps to be green in the way that we all are aware we should; it is about how making careful, sustainable decisions affects every aspect of your business life: the people you work with, the success of your organization, and, ultimately, the planet we all share,” said Mary Renner, president of Laser Plus, Pennsylvania’s first Certified Green Plus^TM business. “Green Plus^TM is not for wimps; it is a challenging, carefully considered assessment that will force you to look carefully at the reality of your daily practices. We chose to step up with the certainty that by accepting the Green Plus^TM challenge, Laser Plus has a deliberate and carefully defined vision of who we are, where we want to go, and how we will get there.”

“We are happy to be working with this new class of Certified Green Plus business and Green Plus Movers,” said Chris Carmody, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development. “Each of these businesses sets a great example and has something to teach other small businesses throughout North America,” Carmody concluded.

Warfel Construction Company’s leadership by example enabled the company to achieve full certification.  Since moving their headquarters to new space in an existing building, Warfel is applying for Silver level LEED Certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).  Warfel’s owners renovated their new office and used flooring made from recycled or rapidly renewable materials, built side windows and sun tubes to allow natural light into the buildings, extended the foyer before the lobby entrance to reduce the hot/cold air exchange from outside, and completed other modifications using recycled materials and to reduce energy and water consumption.

“We are honored to be the first Pennsylvania contractor to receive this distinction,” said Ralph Simpson, President/CEO of Warfel.  “I was intrigued that [this program] focused on many elements of business in addition to sustainability and green business practices.  Warfel Construction Company has always operated with the Green Plus principles of taking care of the environment, our employees, and the community while maintaining a financially successful business.  We have modeled our company this way for nearly 100 years, and the Green Plus Certification is a great way to enter our second century of business!”

Brick Street Botanical also made reusing recycled materials a top priority when it renovated an existing building to use as its new shop.  Owner Holly Mang also purchases all flowers and plant materials locally from organic growers.  Mang encourages customers to return their vases and flower container so they can be reused; this not only fosters reuse, it saves Brick Street Botanicals from having to purchase new containers which helps the bottom line as well.  “I have found the Green Plus program to be a fantastic business tool. As a new business owner I was pleased to find out I was already running my business in a “green” way. I am looking forward to using this tool to grow my business in an environmentally friendly way,” declared Mang.

Adhering to the central principles of sustainability is also just the way of doing business for PTA Thrift Shop in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, NC.  “I had long ago realized that “sustainability” and the three components which comprise it (people, planet, performance) were so core to our organization, just by our nature and our mission,” said Barbara Jessie-Black, executive director.  “However, having a tool complete with measurement and education components, as well as a best practice component, has helped us (and continues to) be more intentional about how we practice sustainability on a daily basis and the contribution we make to the community we serve.”

Getting your entire staff to participate and share ideas is one of the key ways to institutionalize the ideas around sustainability, but it can be quite a challenge.  Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau (DCVB) encourages its staff to participate by alternating leadership of staff meetings and encouraging suggestions from everyone.  “DCVB has always been conscious about sustainability issues, but going through the Green Plus^TM certification program helped us document all of our efforts around sustainability and green initiatives into a single place that could be shared with others,” said Shelly Green, President and CEO-Elect of the Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau.  “We are particularly excited about sharing ideas with Durham-based organizations and businesses that provide services to travelers since sustainability is an important piece in marketing a destination.”

Business Class, Inc. uses the tools and ideas found throughout the program as a way to share best practices with their clients.  “The [Green Plus^TM] program has provided additional structure for efforts at continued improvement.   It’s been a fun focus area for our interns as they search for best practices, bring them in for discussion;  write about them in the new “Good & Green” category of our website; and consider how they might apply the ideas within their own campus community,” said Jan Bolick, president of Business Class, Inc.

New Certified Green Plus Businesses

Brick Street Botanicals

This growing flower shop services northwest Arkansas and is located in Rogers, AR.  Owner Holly Mang is dedicated to providing her customers with striking, usually organic, products and designs that focus on the inherent natural beauty of flowers and plants through texture and design.

From using recycled and renewable materials to revitalize an existing space in downtown Rogers to encouraging clients to return vases so they might be used again, Brick Street Botanical is focused on the triple bottom line and is using those principles to grow.

Business Class

Based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Business Class provides resources for managers, business owners, and teams who want to boost productivity and morale.  By helping clients achieve better results through improved skills and attitudes, Business Class has helped organizations large and small improve their productivity.

“We have a passion for business and making it fun, satisfying and productive for all involved,” says Founder, Jan Bolick. Bolick has combined her experiences as a CEO, general manager, salesperson, leader, follower, organizer, volunteer, fundraiser, teacher, student and parent, to develop customized training and coaching programs to suit the needs of each client.

Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau (DCVB)

The Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau has been Durham’s marketing agency for over 20 years.  During the first 15 years, DCVB more than doubled the number of visitors who came to Durham and it continues to market the city of Durham, educated visitors as to the plethora of recreational, entertainment, and dining options, and maintain Durham’s brand.

More than 15 years ago, DCVB started initiatives to recycle and use soy ink.  In 2007, they conducted an energy audit that lead to a new HVAC system complete with zoning, computer controls, and automatic sensor lights which has increased the quality of life in the building and significantly reduced energy bills.  They’ve also installed a cistern to collect rain water and use that to irrigate the grounds.  DCVB is also committed to engaging and inspiring the 3,000 hotels and restaurants in the area and identifying those who’ve made efforts to go green in the Durham Visitors Guide.

Laser Plus

As the first Pennsylvania business to receive Green Plus certification, Laser Plus has offered quality print supplies and reliable customer service for printing equipment and office machines since 1986. Committed to going green in the printing industry before most individuals have even heard of sustainability, Laser Plus has championed the ideals of a profitable, cost effective business with fervor for environmental integrity.

One way in which Laser Plus has become an innovative sustainable business is through development of their Solid Waste Savings Report program. The Solid Waste Savings Report is used by Laser Plus customers to demonstrate savings in operating costs and reductions in solid waste. For example, last year, one of Laser Plus’ insurance companies kept 1,724 pounds of solid waste out of our local landfills at a financial savings of $21,000. By providing high-quality, environmentally friendly printing solutions that encourage recycling and smarter printing practices, Laser Plus have aimed to perform well in the profit margin while treating their employees well and maintaining environmental integrity.

Warfel Construction Company

Started in 1911, Warfel Construction Company has grown into one of the most successful and respected contractors in south-central Pennsylvania.  They’ve survived and thrived because of commitment to honesty, integrity and fairness, what their founder, David S. Warfel, called it practical business sense.

Warfel has been building “Green” for years, long before “sustainable design” and “LEED” were buzzwords in its industry. Whether the clients are hoping incorporate sustainable elements in their project’s design or planning on receiving LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification, Warfel has a team of experts ready to offer valuable insight and direction on how to proceed.  They are constantly innovating and testing new designs and ideas.  Their clients benefit by getting the most cost effective, efficient facility possible without sacrificing important budget and schedule objectives.

PTA Thrift Shop

The PTA Thrift Shop has been in operation since 1952. Serving for the benefit of Parent Teacher Associations in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the PTA Thrift Shop gives all year-end profits back to Chapel Hill and Carrboro schools. Funding from the thrift shop helps pay for teaching materials, playground equipment, cultural arts programs, computers, school wide events, and a host of other programs for middle and high school students.

With the help of volunteers, the PTA Thrift Shop has managed to donate more than $40,000 per year to the Interfaith Council each year, as well as numerous food and personal items which cannot be sold by them. By focusing on all three aspects of the triple bottom line, the PTA Thrift Shop also encourages their employees to volunteer in the community. They also work to find new ways to create revenue out of unsellable items and are devoted to expanding their water and energy conservation plans. As a community organization, the PTA Thrift Shop is committed to enhancement and innovation of their business in the most sustainable way possible.

New Green Plus Movers

• Accentuate Staffing
• Appraisals Online, Inc
• Beyu Caffe
• Cargas Systems
• Cottman Transmission of Garner
• Jke marketing and communications, Inc
• The King’s Daughters Inn
• Licata & Toerek
• Moran IT
• My Eco Lamp
• Northgate Associates
• Oxford University Press in Cary
• Plymouth Church United Church of Christ
• Quality Sprinking Systems
• Pam Herndon, State Farm
• Stitt Energy Systems, Inc
• Town Planner Community Calendar
• True Edge Performance Solutions
• Urban Durham Realty
• Watts Grocery
• Weaver Street Realty
• Wenger Feed Mills, Inc
• William H. Bunch, PA, CPA

Cleveland, October 14, 2009-

Green Plus™ is a three-part program to help smaller enterprises improve their performance through becoming more sustainable. In the first stage, employers take an online assessment which evaluates their management, environmental, employee and community engagement practices. In the second stage, participants become part of an online network and can receive advice from other business owners and university-based content experts on how to improve their sustainability performance. Employers with exceptional scores across the Green Plus™ assessment’s People, Planet and Performance sections may be Certified Green Plus™, recognizing their specific efforts and providing exposure to their current and potential customers and business partners in communities throughout the U.S. and Canada.

“COSE’s endorsement and support of the Green Plus™ process, is focused on helping small businesses take the first steps to greater profitability through sustainability,” said Steve Millard, President and Executive Director of COSE.

Green Plus™ has been adopted as the official small and medium sized enterprise sustainability program of the American Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE). The program is available at a substantial discount through participating chambers of commerce throughout the U.S. and Canada in the 1,300 chamber ACCE network. The program costs $550, but will be available to COSE members with five or more employees for $350 and to COSE companies with four or fewer employees for $75.

“There are many great home-grown sustainability efforts already going on in our region,” said Millard. “Green Plus™ gives our members the opportunity to both learn new practices and share their own knowledge across North America – while also opening up new business opportunities,” he added.

For more than ten years, COSE has been a provider of electricity and natural gas savings options to small and mid-sized businesses, helping them to save money and becoming a stronger partner for small business energy management efforts.

Additionally, COSE has been designated by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio as the small business energy efficiency administrator for the First Energy Service territories.  In this role, COSE is working to find efficient and effective ways to improve and lower the energy demand of small businesses, resulting in additional profitability for small firms.

Green Plus™ was developed by the North Carolina Research Triangle based Institute for Sustainable Development — a combined effort of universities and chambers of commerce to provide smaller employers with affordable tools to improve their triple bottom line sustainability. The Green Plus™ model was developed by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler School of Business in 2007. UNC Chapel Hill and Duke University developed online sustainability tools for small business that were tested in Ohio and North Carolina throughout 2008. COSE was the Institute for Sustainable Development’s partner in beta testing the Green Plus™ program with Ohio businesses.

“Smaller enterprises employ most North Americans and are the key engine of new job creation,” said Chris Carmody, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development. “Large employers have benefited greatly from their sustainability efforts. Green Plus™ was created to give small employers the same opportunities to save and make money while going green and being sustainable,” Carmody continued. “COSE’s ongoing advocacy and innovative programs for smaller employers makes it the ideal Green Plus™ partner,” Carmody concluded.

Green Plus™ is not a product-specific certification program, but a broad small business sustainability certification. Employers currently participating comprise professional firms, restaurants, hotels, landscapers, printers, designers, small manufacturers and others. Green Plus™ is also designed to help non-profit organizations that want to improve their sustainability.

COSE member, The Taylor Companies was recently recognized as the first Ohio Certified Green Plus™ business on September 28, 2009 for its exceptional practices business, environmental and community practices. More on Taylor Chair’s certification can be found at www.gogreenplus.org. Other COSE members are beginning to participate in this program from the legal, landscaping and non-profit sectors.

For more information on Green Plus™, please see www.gogreenplus.org.

About COSE

COSE is one of Ohio’s largest small business support organizations, striving to help small businesses grow and maintain their independence. Comprised of more than 17,000 member companies, COSE has a long history of fighting for the rights of all small business owners through group purchasing programs for health care, workers’ compensation, or energy; advocating for specific changes in legislation or regulation to benefit small business;and, providing a forum and resource for small businesses to connect with and learn from each other. (www.cose.org)