Fourteen years ago, I attended my first sustainability conference. The event was the Good and Green Marketing Conference in Chicago, IL. My personal and professional journey in space was just beginning and I returned from the trip invigorated and inspired to make a difference.
The blog post I wrote after that event crossed my desk recently and the thoughts are still relevant today. Rather than editing, below is the full post from the fall of 2009.
Original Post
Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the Good and Green Marketing Conference in Chicago, IL.
The two-day event was full of inspiring speakers and thought-provoking content. I’m now beginning to reflect on key messages that resonated. I’m looking for ways the ideas can influence my business and, hopefully, inspire yours. These two messages caught my attention:
“Sustainability is a goal, not a process” – Richard Seireeni, author of The Gort Cloud
“The journey to sustainability is long, but we are focused on progress” – Bill Morrissey, VP of Environmental Sustainability at Clorox.
I believe the reason these comments resonated with me is that they articulated the idea behind my company’s name – One Shade Greener.
These two speakers reinforced my company’s philosophy:
“If you have a desire to make a difference and to move the needle in a positive way, then you can push yourself and your company to be ‘one shade greener’.”
It doesn’t matter if your company markets a green product or was conceived with a sustainability mission, there are opportunities for all companies to strive to be better than they are today.
The key for any company is to begin to set goals and move along the path toward a more sustainable future. I’m sure many of you are currently in the middle of developing your 2010 business plans.
As you look at the plan, are there goals you can set that allow your company to begin the journey?
Explore all areas of the business for ideas – operations, facilities, office processes, marketing, travel, products, packaging, and more.
Start small or start big – the choice is yours.
My inspiration to you is to just take the leap and start somewhere.
Remember, sustainability is a goal, the journey is what matters.
Like any business journey, the key to success is developing a strong plan.
Enjoy the process and share what you learn with others along the way.