MNN - Mother Nature Network

Activists and entrepreneurs can join the Green Breakfast Club on Sept. 12 for yet another enlightening event, at which sustainable business proponents will swap stories, wisdom and resources. This month's event will feature acclaimed author Carol Sanford, a leading expert on green business strategies.

 

The Green Breakfast Club held its first monthly event in June 2011, and already the group has made tremendous strides in helping like-minded businesses share their talents and insights with one another. As the only facilitator of resource bartering among New York's sustainable businesses and start-ups, the group's monthly meetings have attracted big names from green business world such as Doug Cohen and Jacquie Ottman.

 

September's keynote speaker Carol Sanford will be discussing concepts from her newest book, "The Responsible Business: Reimagining Sustainability and Success" (March 2011). Carol Sanford has been a leading green business consultant for nearly 30 years, forging long-term advising relationships with Colgate Europe and Africa and DuPont Canada, U.S., Asia and Europe. She also works with new-economy companies such as Intel, Agilent and Seventh Generation.

 

After publishing numerous works to advance green business philosophy, Sanford's newest book hones in on how to transform green policies into tangible improvement — a stage of maturity that is easier said than done for most well-intentioned businesses. Her message primarily emphasizes the need for a systems approach to greening, or taking green initiatives beyond CSR programs and actually integrating them into a company's overarching business model. Her book explains how to "reimagine success" and turn the triple bottom line into "the quintessential top line."

 

Sanford stresses the importance of employees, suppliers, partners and contractors each feeling just as accountable for a company's green performance as its CEO would. This can be achieved, she explains, by breaking down hierarchies and helping each player recognize his or her personal role in advancing a company's green behavior.

 

Next Monday's event will be held at Green Spaces at 394 Broadway, 5th floor. Anyone connected to green business, entrepreneurship, nonprofit work or advocacy is encouraged to come and share both what you need for your initiative to grow and what you're willing to offer other attendees in terms of skills, resources and collaboration. Reserve a spot today by visiting the Green Breakfast Club's registration page.