The 21st Century Revolution: Responsible Business

This guide will serve as a comprehensive tool for Bentley students to learn how to get a job in sustainability.

Background:

The term “Corporate Responsibility” has been around for a long time, but what does it really mean? As defined by Harvard University, “Corporate social responsibility encompasses not only what companies do with their profits, but also how they make them. It goes beyond philanthropy and compliance and addresses how companies manage their economic, social, and environmental impacts, as well as their relationships in all key spheres of influence: the workplace, the marketplace, the supply chain, the community, and the public policy realm.” This is an unbelievably powerful concept, where a business uses its influence to positively affect society at large. Although in the past this concept may not have been fully embraced by the majority of business, in the wake of the recent well-documented corporate scandals and ever increasing transparency created by the internet, some of the most powerful and innovative business leaders have changed the way in which they run their organizations. These leaders have learned that operating a business based on a set of socially responsible principals can enhance the value of the company. “Mission based business” provide a competitive advantage for organizations because they garner customer loyalty and attract top talent (i.e. Bentley University students). Moreover, since these organizations are working for more than simply profit, they can unlock the full potential of their workforce because while working for a paycheck isn’t very inspiring, working to save the world is wildly inspiring. In addition to these internal benefits to the organization, a responsible business creates value for society at large. A responsible business garners favorable opinions of the company and thus gives it the ability to continue expanding operations. Through the power of these large, yet nimble, corporations as well as the groundswell of upstarts with socially-minded goals, a revolution of responsibility is upon us.

This revolution might not be fully apparent quite yet, but it’s coming, and quickly for that matter. You are part of a group of students working towards your degree that have an incredible opportunity to get a job in this field today, and make a difference tomorrow. As climate change is the single most pressing issue that the world faces today there is no sector of the responsibility movement that has more potential than sustainability. According to the leading scientists in the field of climatology, we must decrease worldwide emissions by 80 percent by 2030 in order to avoid the most severe implications of climate change. Thus, there is an overwhelming need to address the issues of sustainability throughout the business world and with that comes the need for talented and passionate individuals, such as yourselves, to work towards achieving this goal.

There are several essential reasons why a career in sustainability should not be overlooked. First and foremost, as you may have already gathered from reading this, the sustainable business industry is still in its infancy and is growing rapidly. Even as the global economy has navigated through dire straits over the last couple years, responsibility, and specifically, sustainability-oriented business has continued to flourish.  A recent study by A.T. Kearney found that during the recession, companies authentically committed to sustainability outperformed their industry peers by an average of 15%, adding an average of $650 million to their market capitalization (Hollender). As more companies begin to realize that sustainable business is good business, there has been a rapidly growing, and often insatiable, demand for people with knowledge about sustainability and its applications in a business environment. This hunger for those educated in the realm of sustainability comes from consulting firms, large corporations, small business, and of course mission driven upstarts who are looking for people who share their vision. In addition to those companies who are currently looking for people with sustainability expertise, there is reason to believe that in the near future all businesses will be forced to act more responsibly due to pressure from the government. Thus, responsible business might well be the only business which creates a huge advantage for anyone with knowledge of how to make a business sustainable prior to regulation. You may be saying to yourself right now, “great, I see the opportunity, I’d love to get involved, but I know virtually nothing about what it really takes to help a business become sustainable.” That’s perfectly okay. There are very few real experts currently in this field and those who are experts became experts by getting their hands dirty and figuring it out on the ground. You, as a student, actually have a leg up on many of the people already in the sustainability world because you have the time to really educate yourself about the issues before getting thrown into the fire. We’ll go over how to educate yourself later in this guide.

Although it is important that you understand the potential for actually getting a job in this field, it is far more important, and frankly far more valuable, that you understand this next point. Although most people aspire to do truly meaningful work, many do not get the chance to. Thus, it is a great luxury that you are in position to do so, and this luxury should not be forgone. According to Plato, a person by definition is a “being in search for meaning” and as such it is vitally important that we spend our lives attempting to grasp fulfillment. Climate change, with all its complexity, scale, and utterly unfathomable consequences, offers us something that is immensely valuable-- the chance to participate in a movement which is truly great and noble. It is no exaggeration when you hear people say that our generation is in a position to change the world unlike any other generation before us. Businesses, and the markets in which they operate, are the most powerful force on the planet. By directing that force in a way that promotes the development of a sustainable society, we can genuinely and incomparably change the world.

The motivation for writing this piece is to get you excited about embarking in a meaningful career. As such, all of us at career services would like to leave you with this quote:

“The vision of a sustainable society, with its implications for equity, social justice, happiness, and hope, embodies the primary aspirations of most religious traditions: finding a way to live at peace with each other, the world, and our consciences; achieving a graceful existence; and building a framework for a

noble life.”

- Auden Schendler

The rest of this guide will serve as a comprehensive tool for Bentley students to learn how to get a job in sustainability.

Trends to Watch For

Sustainability is a very new field and is still in its growth phase, thus it is important to keep an eye on some developing trends that might cause the green job market to explode over the next few years. This section aims to identify some particularly important trends in the sustainability jobs market. Some of these trends have already begun to emerge and are relatively evident while others have yet to really bubble up but hold immense potential for sustainability oriented job creation.

Government Policy Spurring Growth in the Green Job Market

There is an exceptionally large need for the government to enact policies that will encourage the development of low carbon industries and provide incentive for businesses to become more sustainable. The most promising policy that would unlock substantial innovation towards solving climate change is putting a price on carbon. This may be done through a cap and trade mechanism or a tax on carbon. Putting aside the larger economic issues that would go into deciding which mechanism would be most beneficial; either mechanism would create massive investment in low carbon energy development, energy efficiency, and virtually any other climate based industry. Due to the immense need to solve climate change, international political pressure, and even pressure from some large corporations, there is a very high probability that such a policy will be enacted within the next couple years, if not sooner. If you are interested in any career in the sustainability market you must keep an eye on government policy because it holds massive potential, not only to solve climate change, but to make money in sustainability.

Sustainability Entering the C-Suite of Large Corporations

As corporations continue to see value in sustainable business many may seek to create sustainability specific positions. Currently, organizations who do have positions with a sustainability title generally only promote those jobs from within their current organization because most of the time the sustainability title is an add-on to a person’s job description, like “Director of Marketing and Sustainability”. Thus the person with the title generally has little working knowledge about sustainability and has to educate themselves before they can actually build strong initiatives. As more companies begin to realize the true complexity of integrating sustainability into an organizational structure there is a high probability that they will opt to hire people who already have experience in sustainability. As it becomes more mainstream to create sustainability specific positions, there is a good probability that effective sustainability personnel will be given the chance to rise to the C-suite level as a “Chief Sustainability Officer”. In fact this trend has already begun to occur as SAP, Sun Microsystems, Georgia Pacific, and Du Pont already have Chief Sustainability officers.

A Groundswell of Startups Driving Sustainable Change and Creating Sustainability Minded Jobs

The increase in consumer interest in sustainable products and services has lead to an explosion of sustainability oriented startup companies. Many organizations such as Stony Field Farms, Patagonia, Seventh Generation, and Method have been created to challenge the status quo in their respective industries and have achieved phenomenal success. Based on their success many new players, in a wide variety of industries, have started up to challenge “business as usual” in virtually every industry. This wave of activity means there are a large amount of organizations that are in their growth phase and thus looking to hire talented people. These organizations typically value young and innovative business people who bring fresh thoughts right out of the university. In return, these companies generally provide a fun and exciting work environment. Therefore start ups offer a great opportunity for Bentley students to get in at the ground level of a quickly growing company.

That being said, choosing and working for a startup company is much different than taking a job with an established corporation. In order to thrive in a startup environment you must be very entrepreneurial, self directed, willing to work long hours, and willing to take a risk on an unproven company. You must also be very critical of the business model and the people who have started the company. Many start ups fail and in order to shield yourself from that risk you must chose an organization that you truly believe in.

Where the Green Jobs are now and where they are going to be

As you can gather from the Sustainability Companies Chart most of the sustainability jobs are currently clustered in several geographic locations. These locations are California, New York, Massachusetts, Colorado, and the Washington DC metro area. However as the sustainability market continues to grow there will be an increasing amount of opportunities in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Texas, Washington, Oregon, Michigan, and Florida.

Opportunities in Sustainability

Sustainability is a very broad term and as such there are a wide variety of opportunities that are available in the sustainability marketplace. This section will provide an overview of these opportunities. Please note that these opportunities are sorted by student majors to provide clarity on how these fields apply to the Bentley student. This should in no way discourage people who are interested in certain fields but are not in the major program that the field is listed under. Many of these fields are very new and with proper planning and initiative (See the How to Get a Job section for more detail) the individual student could break into ANY of these fields, regardless of major.

For Accounting Majors

Greenhouse Gas Accounting, Reporting, and Verification

As climate change continues to garner serious attention from the business world there is a need for professionals who have the ability to measure and account for the greenhouse gas emissions produced by individual entities. This is an extremely important but very new field in the sustainability market. As a society we must be able to measure the impact of emissions from specific sources, such as businesses, in order to seriously combat climate change. Currently, there is no clear career path for people who have an interest in greenhouse gas accounting; however there is immense potential in the field due to demand from businesses, governments, and nonprofits. This is an excellent opportunity for a self starter who would be willing to develop their own career path.

An excellent resource for those interested in this field is the: GHG Management Institute (http://ghginstitute.org/)

Environmental Accounting

Environmental accounting or full cost accounting adds environmental information to the financial information of conventional accounting. Environmental accounting identifies, measures, and communicates the costs to the environment from a company's past or future actions in either financial or physical terms1. This is a relatively developed field and most large accounting firms offer this service.1 Definition from http://www.wiserearth.org/aof/810.

Two excellent resources for those who would like to learn more about this field are: National Environmental Accounting by Joy E. Hecht and the Environmental Management Accounting International Website (emawebsite.org).

CSR Metrics, Reporting and Auditing

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) metrics and reporting is the identification, valuation, and reporting of the social and environmental impacts of an organization. As businesses become more transparent there will be increasing pressure from stakeholders and external forces for companies to report all of their impacts. As this trend develops there will be a growing opportunity for careers in this field. Currently there are several CSR protocols, most importantly Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI), Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI), Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP and UN Global Compact Communication on Progress (COP), which companies adhere to. It would be prudent for interested students to familiarize themselves with these protocols. In addition, as the volume and importance of Sustainability Reporting increases, there is a growing demand for third-party auditing of the reports.

To learn more about this field check out these websites

GRI website (http://www.globalreporting.org/Home) DJSI http://www.sustainability-index.com/ CDP https://www.cdproject.net/en-US/Pages/HomePage.aspx UN Global Compact COP http://www.unglobalcompact.org/COP/index.html and this CSR reporting PowerPoint Presentation developed by Seventh Generation.

http://www.justmeans.com/usercontent/companydocs/docs/company_docs_1242109239.pdf

For Finance Majors

Environmental Credit Trading

This field encompasses the trading of environmental assets in the form of credits. These credits can be made up of emissions reductions such as Carbon Dioxide and Sulfur dioxide, pollutant reductions such as Phosphorus and Mercury, and other environmental assets such as biodiversity and ecosystem stewardship. Currently, the markets for all of these credits, except for Sulfur Dioxide, are voluntary. However, as demonstrated by the mandatory market for Sulfur Dioxide set up by the Clean Air Act, environmental credit trading has huge potential for achieving the drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions that we need to solve climate change. Due to this potential there is relatively little doubt that carbon will be regulated in the near future which will cause the value of carbon credits to skyrocket and thus creating a huge market opportunity for the financial and consulting worlds alike. (See the Government Policy Spurring Growth in the Green Job Market section)

Check out ClimateBiz (http://www.greenbiz.com/climate) for more information about environmental credit trading. You may also like to consider a local company in this business; i.e., World Energy, Inc. http://www.worldenergy.com/

ESG Investment Analysis

ESG Investment Analysis is the integration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into investment decisions. This field lays the ground work for socially responsible investing (covered below) through research and data mining. It is critically important that proper ESG analysis is completed before

investment takes place in an SRI fund. Without this analysis there is no way to verify that an asset is truly behaving in a socially responsible manner and thus the value of the portfolio would be in jeopardy.

For a better understanding of the principles related to ESG analysis you can visit the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment website (http://www.unpri.org/principles/) and for an example of how these principles are utilized by a specific firm you can see this report: http://www.regnan.com.au/documents/ValDABrochure.pdf

Socially Responsible Investing (SRI)

Socially responsible investing (SRI) is the creation of financial portfolios that invest solely in companies or projects that have are viewed as having a positive social and environmental impact. Over the past few years many of these funds have actually outperformed the S&P 500 and thus provide significant evidence that these investments provide potential advantages for long term investment. Due to this perceived advantage SRI funds now make up 2.71 trillion dollars, or approximately 11 percent, of the U.S. investment marketplace2.

To learn more about SRI go to the Social Investment Forum’s website (http://www.socialinvest.org/) or read the Socially Responsible Funds Outperform Benchmarks article on Financial Planning’s website (http://www.financial-planning.com/news/Woll-Trillium-SIF-2665566-1.html)

Community and Economic Development Finance

This field used applies financial mechanisms to social and environmental issues. Many firms using these principles are categorized as social enterprises who take a business approach to solving society’s most pressing issues.

To learn more about how financial principles can be applied to solving societal problems and why a career in this field is worth looking at read this article by Investopedia: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/financialcareers/07/social_finance.asp

Alternative Energy and Energy Efficiency Finance

Alternative energy and Energy Efficiency finance is the use of financial mechanisms to spread the upfront cost of a renewable energy and energy efficiency projects over the course of the projects life. Most alternative energy and energy efficiency projects require higher than optimal upfront investments and then reward the developer with savings over the life of the project. Energy finance overcomes the hurdle of high upfront costs by providing the necessary capital to develop the project, then capturing the profit from the energy savings by entering into an agreement with the developer where the developer pays the financer a fixed rate over the course of the projects life. This field is particularly appealing today for solar project financing due to the high value of Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SREC’s) which provide a higher return on investment for the financer.

To learn more about this field go to the Energy Information Administration’s website (http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/finance/index.html) or the UNEP’s Sustainable Energy Finance Initiative’s website (http://www.sefi.unep.org/).

Sustainable Real Estate

2 Statistic from http://www.socialinvest.org/resources/sriguide/srifacts.cfm

Sustainable real estate is the investment and development of environmentally preferable properties. Typically sustainable properties have more value over the life of the asset because they are built with the intention of maintaining long term viability and energy efficiency while traditional buildings and properties are simply built to code in a low cost manner.

To learn more about these opportunities you can read the Journal of Sustainable Real Estate (http://www.costar.com/josre/default.htm)

Microfinance

Microfinance is the use of small loans and other financial mechanisms to help people escape poverty. Microfinance has challenged the rules of traditional financial institutions by providing financial services to people who traditionally are considered to be too risky. This field has proved very impactful for poverty reduction in the developing world.

To learn more about this field you can read The Microfinance Promise by Jonathan Morduch at http://www.nyu.edu/projects/morduch/documents/microfinance/Microfinance_Promise.pdf.

You can also get involved in Bentley University’s microfinance initiative by contacting Professor Chip Wiggins or going to http://www.bentleymicrofinance.org/.

For Economics Majors

Sustainability Consulting

Sustainability Consulting represents one of the largest opportunities in the sustainability marketplace. As more companies realize that green business is good business there will be an increasing need for people who understand how sustainability works and how it can be applied to individual organizations to create value. Some of the larger organizations will choose to internalize sustainability development (See the Sustainability Entering the C-Suite of Large Corporations section), but most companies will not have the budget to create a department specifically for sustainability. Therefore, there will be a need for outside consultants to take the lead on sustainability initiatives for most firms. Sustainability consulting requires a large knowledge base due to the complexity and interrelated nature of how businesses effect the environment. The sustainability consultant must not only have a good grasp on the science of sustainability, but also on organizational dynamics and general management consulting best practices. Although a large knowledge base is a prerequisite to being an effective sustainability consultant it is also very valuable to have an expertise in a specific area, such as project management, lifecycle analysis, renewable energy development, or whole systems thinking.

To learn more about this field go to the Triplepundit website (http://www.triplepundit.com/tag/sustainability-consulting/) or the Greenbiz website (http://www.greenbiz.com/)

Carbon Management

Carbon Management is very similar to sustainability consulting as they both work with organizations to make them more environmentally friendly. The difference lies in the scope of what sustainability consulting aims to accomplish compared to carbon management. Sustainability consulting takes on a wide variety of projects from organizational behavior to supply chain management. In contrast, carbon management firms are more narrowly focused on initiatives that reduce an organization’s greenhouse gas

emissions. Many of these firms also develop carbon reduction projects in conjunction with environmental credit brokerages who then sell the environmental assets that the carbon management firm created.

To learn more about Carbon Management read the CarbonNeutral report: The Business Case for Offset Inclusive Carbon Management (http://www.carbonneutral.com/interface/files/knowledgecentre/business%20case%20for%20offset%20inclusive%20carbon%20management.pdf)

Environmental and Natural Resource Economist

Environmental economics,”undertakes theoretical or empirical studies of the economic effects of national or local environmental policies around the world [...]. Particular issues include the costs and benefits of alternative environmental policies to deal with air pollution, water quality, toxic substances, solid waste, and global warming3.” Natural Resource Economics aims to put a value on the services provided by natural resources, such as clean drinking water and clean air. As new environmental policies develop in response to climate change there will be a great need for people to study environmental issues from an economic prospective in order to ensure that properly beneficial policies are enacted.

To learn more about these fields go to the World Resource Institute’s website (http://www.wri.org/).

Bentley University also offers an undergraduate level course in environmental economics (NASE 364).

For Marketing Majors

Green Marketing

Green marketing deals with creating marketing strategies for organizations to display their environmentally preferable products or services. As more organizations attempt to capture market share by creating environmentally friendly products there will be an increasing demand for people who have an expertise in promoting green products. This is one of the fastest growing fields in the sustainability market due to the favorable opinion that green products currently hold.

To learn more about this field visit the GreenBiz Marketing and Communications webpage (http://www.greenbiz.com/business/browse/marketing-communications) or read Green Marketing: Opportunity for Innovation by Jacquelyn A. Ottman.

Green Brand Management

Green brand management is the development of strategies for an organization to appear green from a public perception point of view. This is extremely valuable for an organization because if the public believes that an organization operates in an environmentally friendly way they will tend to trust the company more and have a generally more favorable opinion of the firm. However, once a firm is positioned as a sustainable or responsible organization there is a lot of pressure for the firm to live up to its values because if it is exposed as being environmentally irresponsible it will quickly lose the trust of the public. Therefore, there is a need for people to help organizations develop sound brand management strategies to make sure that the brand is ready to proclaim itself green.

For more information on this field read the APCO Worldwide Viewpoint Journal article: Business and Policy Perspectives on Corporate Responsibility at http://www.apcoworldwide.com/content/pdfs/Viewpoint_Journal_Corporate_Responsibility_2008.pdf

3 Definition from the  National Bureau of Economic Research 

Cause Marketing

Cause Marketing is the generation of marketing campaigns that build awareness for certain issues. Marketing is an extremely powerful way to create awareness and support for specific issue. Cause marketing is not a new niche in the marketing world but it remains crucial for any cause or mission based organization.

For more information go to the Cause Marketing Forum’s website (http://www.causemarketingforum.com/)

For Communications Majors

Green Communications

As companies attempt to “jump on the green bandwagon” they will have to be careful about how they communicate their initiatives. This ties in heavily with green brand management (see above) as it is vitally important that the public believes a firm is genuine in its efforts to go green. Thus, firms need people who have an understanding as to what should be publicized in each stage of a green campaign.

For more information of this field go to the GreenBiz Marketing and Communications webpage (http://www.greenbiz.com/business/browse/marketing-communications)

Green PR

As more and more organization develop green initiative PR departments will have to learn how to properly publicize these projects. This would be an interesting niche for anyone pursuing a career in PR.

To learn more about the field go to Green PR’s website (http://www.greenpr.com/)

For Information Technology Majors

Green IT Development

Computing technology has rapidly made our society work quicker and more efficiently. The next generation of information technology promises to make all the systems we rely on work cohesively and therefore achieve far greater efficiency. Achieving greater efficiency is the most cost effective way to combat climate change. There are many ways to direct an IT career in a way that is beneficially to the environment. An IT professional has the tools to work on vital projects such as the creation of a smart power grid, the development of process software which makes businesses work more efficiently, and network virtualization which can make organizations drastically decrease the power consumption of their IT needs.

For more information about Green IT go to http://www.greenbiz.com/computing

Sustainability, Energy Management, and GHG modeling Software

A rising trend in the sustainability market is the creation of software programs which help organizations understand their environmental impact and achieve their sustainability goals. These programs range from applications that model the GHG emissions of an organization and pinpoint the main sources of those emissions to products that allow an organization to see, in real time, how much energy they are using and what the cost of that energy is. Programs such as these are extremely valuable for behavior modification and collection of meaningful data that can be used to inform decisions as to which sustainability initiatives hold the most potential for reducing a company’s impact on the environment.

For more information read the Software Solutions Ease Sustainability Management and Reporting article by the Environmental Leader website (http://www.environmentalleader.com/2009/07/17/software-solutions-ease-sustainability-management-and-reporting/)

Green Website Design

As more organizations are created to deliver sustainable products and services there is a growing need for website designers with specific knowledge of how to build a “green” website.

For more information check out these examples of green website design services: (http://www.planetmediazone.com/?gclid=CO3uiN_G2aECFUFM5QodbD5hKQ), (http://creativeslice.com/), (http://www.greenwebdesign.com/)

For Math Majors

Risk Management

As sustainability and social responsibility risks continue to become more apparent with the rising tide of corporate consciousness there is a need to manage these risks appropriately. Due to this need the field of sustainability risk management has been born. According to an article by Dan Anderson of Allbusiness.com, “Sustainability risk management deals with emerging environmental and social justice risks. Risk managers will need to anticipate these risks and develop appropriate risk mitigation and financing strategies for them…”4 The valuation of sustainability risks are not just important to large corporations but also to insurance companies. Many insurance companies are beginning to incorporate the risk of climate change related disasters into their insurance premiums for particularly at risk areas such as Florida.

For more information about sustainability risk management read The Critical Importance of Sustainability Risk Management by Dan Anderson (http://www.allbusiness.com/finance/business-insurance-risk-management/4074002-1.html)

For Management Majors

Project Management

Project management skills can be applied to a wide variety of undertakings in the business world. Project management skills are extremely valuable for any manager or consultant but there is a specific need for project managers to coordinate green building projects and alternative energy projects. This is one of the best ways for business majors to break into the alternative energy and green building development fields.

For more information about how project management skills can be applied to green projects read this USGBC Report (http://www.usgbc.org/ShowFile.aspx?DocumentID=5494) and consider the Project Management Institute as a resource www.pmi.org

Other Options: Nonprofits, Responsible Corporations, and Socially Driven Start ups

You don’t have to work in an “eco-centric” specialty field to be part of the sustainability revolution. Business majors ranging from accountants to managers are needed in a wide variety of organizations that

4 http://www.allbusiness.com/finance/business-insurance-risk-management/4074002-1.html

aim to create social and environmental progress. These organizations vary from nonprofit advocacy groups, to socially minded startup companies, even to well established “mission based” corporation. In such organizations, Bentley students can use their business education to help the firm reach its goals. Opportunities in organizations such as these provide an excellent way for students to make a difference in their careers without having to specialize in a sustainability specific field. Some examples of these firms are listed in the Sustainability Companies Chart located at the end of this guide.

Make a Difference in Any Career

Even if you do not choose a career in a sustainability specific field, or even a socially minded organization, you can still make a real difference at work. You can be an environmental champion at any organization and voluntarily take on sustainability initiatives that will make whatever organization you work for more sustainable. In addition to taking on specific initiatives you can also help the company you work for realize why green business is good business. In order for our society to effectively combat the climate problem every job must become a sustainability job and therefore it is vitally important that no matter what organization you end up working for you bring your ideals with you.

There is a plethora of materials that can help you be an environmental champion in any organization. If you are interested in learning more you can read The Necessary Revolution by Peter Senge or any of hundreds of articles on Greenbiz.com.

How to Get a Job in SustainabilityThis section explains the process in which interested student should follow in order gain experience and ultimately full time employment in sustainability.

The Process

Getting a job in sustainability is not quite the same as trying to find employment in a traditional field. Although it requires a lot more effort from the individual student, there are also significant long term advantages in taking the time to find a job that is fulfilling on more than a monetary level. Below are a set of steps that should put you in a position to gain full time employment in sustainability upon graduation.

Step 1: Educate yourself—Do this throughout your college and professional career

Education should be an ongoing process. As stated earlier in this guide students are in a unique position to learn about sustainability before they actual have to put that knowledge to the test. Being that sustainability is such a new field most sustainability professionals today have simply learned by doing and have of course made their share of mistakes. Today, many of the top sustainability professionals have written books detailing their experiences and outlining theories and practices that work in the real world. These books provide invaluable knowledge to any budding sustainability professional. There is nothing more impressive to a prospective employer than being truly knowledgeable on relevant topics. Therefore it is imperative that you learn as much as you possibly can about sustainability while you are still in school. The External Resources section of this guide is filled with great sources of information for a student to learn all they need to about sustainability.

Step 2: Customize your degree with an LSM—Do this by Junior Year

Liberal Studies Majors have the ability to give students who are interested in sustainability an edge over other business students. Many sustainability oriented companies value a science background in addition to the top flight business education that you are receiving at Bentley. The Earth, Environment, and Global

Sustainability LSM provides students with a unique opportunity to learn basic and sustainability specific science concepts that every sustainability professional must know in order to be successful. Not only should students who are interested in sustainability enroll in the Earth, Environment, and Global Sustainability LSM but they should also choose as many sustainability specific courses as possible. It’s all too easy to choose a course just because it double counts for your LSM and another requirement, but keep in mind that the LSM has the potential to really educate you about pertinent sustainability issues if you chose the right classes.

Step 3: Find that initial position using Bentley resources—this should be done sophomore or junior year

Every student, regardless of the field they wish to work in, runs into the same cliché. A potential employer wants to see that you have experience in the field but you don’t have any experience, and the only way to gain the necessary experience is by working with an employer who wants you to have prior experience. Obviously this is a bit of a conundrum, but how do you overcome it? One way that you can solve this problem is by using your resources here at Bentley. There are many professors that do, or would be willing to do, sustainability oriented project with interested students. These projects could be anything from doing research on corporate responsibility to consulting for a local small business. The best way find a professor to work with is by speaking with professors you have had in the past or by going to the Natural Science Department. Another great resource at Bentley University is the Office of Sustainability. The Office of Sustainability can generally offer interested students with an opportunity to gain sustainability experience and make a difference on campus. Once you have just a little bit of experience on your resume many doors begin to open!

Hint: One great way to have a professor help you is by having them sponsor an internship for credit. Internships for credit are available through most departments. The Service Learning department has sponsored sustainability internships in the past.

Step 4: Research, research, research!!!—this should be done beginning your sophomore or junior year

Unlike a traditional business field, getting a job in sustainability requires a lot of research. As detailed throughout this guide, there are many up and coming fields within the sustainability market. Many of the firms in these fields do not advertise open positions or do not regularly update their careers page. It is very important that any student interested in sustainability takes it upon themselves to find, and reach out to, companies in their field of interest. The best way to find such companies is by going on the green jobs pages (See External Resources), doing Google searches (See the Hint below), and by generally keeping your eyes and ears open for companies that sound like they have an environmental or social mission. It cannot be stressed enough how important independent research is for finding your “dream job” in sustainability.

Hint: When searching for sustainability oriented companies on Google the best way to find firms is by using the specific industry title and the location that you want to work at. For example, searching “Sustainability Consulting Boston” yields pages of relevant results.

Step 5: Find any position in ANY sustainability minded organization—this should be done during the summer before junior year

At this point you should have at least a little bit of sustainability work experience. Although it would be an advantage to have this experience it is not completely necessary at every organization. Here you should aim to get any internship with a sustainability oriented company. Relevant work experience is the most important item on your resume and in order to build that experience you must be willing to take what you can get at first. If you can afford to, unpaid internships offer a great opportunity to gain work experience

with some of the top firms in the industry. Since so many students are aiming for careers in sustainability many firms do not see the need to pay interns, while other firms would like to pay interns but simply do not have the funds to do so. Regardless of the reason, unpaid opportunities should not be overlooked. One advantage to unpaid positions is that they are seldom full time; therefore if a student needs to make an income over the summer they should still be able to on a part time basis.

Step 6: Building credentials through certifications—this can be done throughout your academic and professional career

Another great way to bluster your resume is through certifications. There are many certifications out there that can help you stand out from other students who are competing for jobs in sustainability. Certifications show that you are willing to take the initiative to educate yourself and are a great supplement to internships. In addition certifications provide real world, applicable, knowledge that add value for any sustainability professional. However, it is important to remember that many of these certifications are relatively expensive and time consuming. Also, due to the demand for sustainability credentials, some certification organizations have popped up to take advantage of unsuspecting people who want to differentiate themselves from the crowd. Therefore, when choosing a certification make sure that you do thorough research to confirm that the program is worthwhile.

Hint: A cost effective way to get certifications is by taking an unpaid internship with a firm that offers relevant certifications. Some of these firms will allow you to take the certification courses for free if you fulfill an internship with them.

Listed below are some good organizations that offer sustainability certifications:

1) Strategic Sustainability Consulting (SSC) (http://www.sustainabilityconsulting.com/) – SSC provides three certification programs:

a. Green Auditor Certification – This program teaches people how to write a sustainability report, give educational speeches, do basic carbon footpriniting, and do a basic energy audit.

b. Corporate Sustainability Office Master Class – This program is a series of webinars that teach people how to lead sustainable change in their organization by equipping them with the basic skills needed to carry out sustainability tasks.

c. Sustainability Consulting Master Class- This four-part series is designed to educate sustainability consultants. Each 90-minute session takes on a different aspect of the industry, combining key messages with a highly interactive discussion session.

2) U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) (http://www.usgbc.org/)- The USGBC is the creator of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standard which is the most widely used gauge of building sustainability. The USGBC offers several LEED certification programs for individuals. Please note that in order to qualify for any LEED certifications you must have worked on a sustainability project and to qualify for the Accredited Professional (AP) program you must have worked on a LEED project in the past.

3) The International Society for Sustainability Professional (ISSP) (http://sustainabilityprofessionals.org/issp-certificate-programs)- The ISSP offers several certification programs:

a. Sustainability Professional Certificate (SPC) - This certificate program blends sustainability concepts and practices with organizational change theory to provide you with the leadership skills and knowledge to lead a sustainability program.

b. Climate Professional Certificate (CPC) - This certificate focuses on the practical knowledge and skills to manage climate action and greenhouse gas reduction programs.  Through the electives you also benefit from exposure to broader sustainability management concepts and practices.

c. Life Cycle Assessment Professional Certificate (LCAPC) - this certificate would prepare you for the LCA exam (not offered yet). 

4) The Natural Step (http://www.naturalstep.org/)- The Natural Step offers several levels of its Sustainability for Leaders programs. These programs, however, are not online so you will have to either wait for the program to be offered near you or organize a group of 10 or more people so the program will come to you. The Natural step also offers several eLearning courses which provide a great foundation in sustainability.

5) University of Vermont (http://learn.uvm.edu/igs/)- University of Vermont offers a variety of Leadership Programs and Sustainability Course each summer through its Institute for Global Sustainability.

6) Additional Resources: For further certification opportunities check out these links:

a. http://www.aashe.org/resources/certificates.php (List sustainability certifications offered through universities)

b. http://www.trainingforquality.com/ (ISO and Six Sigma Certifications are valuable) c. http://www.lcacenter.org/certification.html (Offers lifecycle assessment certifications)

Step 7: Get a paid or prestigious unpaid internship in any field of sustainability—this should be done during the summer going into your senior year.

At this point you have accumulated some good experience and maybe a certification or two. Now you are ready to start getting picky. Do you research and apply to any and all internships that you have interest in. Then once you have accumulated some offers make sure you choose an internship that is either paid or a very prestigious unpaid position. The reason being is that a company that is willing to pay you is more likely to hire you in the future and if you get a prestigious unpaid position you also have a very high likelihood of receiving a job offer from a company in the field. But what about the startup company that can’t pay you now but will most likely hire you upon graduation? As stated earlier, working for a start up can be very rewarding, but there are also several risks involved. Do your homework on the start up and if you genuinely believe in what they are doing and think they will be around to offer you a job when you graduate, then by all means you should take the unpaid position with them.

Step 8: Find a full time position in an area of sustainability that you are truly interested in—this should be done during your senior year.

At this point you’ve done everything you need to do in order to get your dream job. You have the experience, you have the knowledge necessary to wow anyone in the industry, you’ve done the research and have the contacts needed to find your dream job, and you have the references to land the job!

External ResourcesIn this section you will find a list of job sites, informational sites, professional organizations, and books and articles to further your knowledge of sustainability.

Job Sites

http://jobs.greenbiz.com/

http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/greendreamjobs.main

http://jobs.treehugger.com/?campaign=th_nav_jobs

http://www.sustainlane.com/green-jobs

http://bsr.org/resources/jobs/index.cfm

http://www.ellenweinreb.com/Sustainability_Jobs.html

http://svn.org/index.cfm?pageId=795

http://jobsinsustainability.jobamatic.com/a/jobs/find-jobs

http://www.greenjobs.com/public/index.aspx

http://www.greencareersguide.com/

Informational Sites

http://www.greenbiz.com/

http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/

http://www.treehugger.com/

http://www.csrwire.com/

http://www.fastcompany.com/topics/ethonomics

http://www.businessweek.com/green_business_news/

http://www.reuters.com/finance/greenBusiness

http://www.environmentalleader.com/

http://www.triplepundit.com/

http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/008717.html

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/

www.greenprof.org

http://www.grist.org/

Professional Organizations

http://sustainabilityprofessionals.org/

http://svn.org/

http://www.linkedin.com/ (Always important)

Books

Preferred Reading

Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution by Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins, and L. Hunter Lovins

Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things by William McDonough and Michael Braungart

Ecology of Commerce: A Declaration of Sustainability by Paul Hawken

Strategies for the Green Economy: Opportunities and Challenges in the New World of Business by Joel Makower and Cara Pike

Getting Green Done: Hard Truths from the Front Lines of the Sustainability Revolution by Auden Schendler

Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins and Jerry I. Porras

Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage by Daniel Esty and Andrew Winston

The Necessary Revolution: Working Together to Create a Sustainable World by Peter Senge, Sara Schley, Bryan Smith, Nina Kruschwitz, and Joe Laur

The Responsibility Revolution: How the Next Generation of Business Will Win by Jeffery Hollender, Bill Breen, and Peter Senge

Confessions of a Radical Industrialist: Profits, People, Purpose—Doing Business by Respecting the Earth by Ray C. Anderson

Hot, Flat, and Crowded 2.0: Why We Need a Green Revolution and How It Can Renew America by Thomas L. Freidman

Other Suggested Reading

Zoom: The Global Race to Fuel the Car of the Future by Vijay Vaitheeswaran

Earth: the Sequel: The Race to Reinvent Energy and Stop Global Warming by Miriam Horn and Fred Krupp

Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis by Al Gore

Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw it Coming by Paul Hawken

The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems by Van Jones

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t by Jim Collins

Stirring It Up: How to Make Money and Save the World by Gary Hirshberg

Creating a World Without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism by Muhammad Yunus

Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty by Muhammad Yunus

Common wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet by Jeffery D. Sachs

The Global Deal: Climate Change and the Creation of a New Era of Progress and Prosperity by Nicholas Stern

The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism by John C. Bogle

The Sustainability Revolution: Portrait of Paradigm Shift by Andres R. Edwards and David W. Orr

Mid-Course Correction: Toward a Sustainable Enterprise: The Interface Model by Ray Anderson

Sustainable Value: How the World's Leading Companies Are Doing Well by Doing Good by Chris Laszlo

Capitalism at the Crossroads: Aligning Business, Earth, and Humanity by Stuart L. Hart and Al Gore

The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time by Jeffery Sachs

Green Recovery: Get Lean, Get Smart, and Emerge from the Downturn on Top by Andrew Winston

Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail of Succeed by Jared Diamond

Lean Thinking: Banish Waste and Create Wealth in Your Corporation, Revised and Updated by James P. Womack and Daniel T. Jones

Strategy for Sustainability: A Business Manifesto by Adam Werbach

Revolution in a Bottle: How TerraCycle is Redefining Green Business by Tom Szaky and Paul Hawken

Return on Sustainability by Kevin Wilhelm

The Bridge at the End of the World: Capitalism, the Environment, and Crossing from Crisis to Sustainability by James Gustave Speth

Earth, Inc.: Using Nature’s Rules to Build Sustainable Profits by Gregory Unruh

The Omnivores Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan

Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want by II Pine, James H. Gilmore , and B. Joseph

Africa Rising: How 900 million African Consumers Offer More Than You think by Vijay Mahajan

Ecological Intelligence: How Knowing the Hidden Impacts of What We Buy Can Change Everything by Daniel Goleman

Now or Never: Why We Must Act Now to End Climate Change and Create a Sustainable Future by Tim Flannery

Saving the World at Work: What Companies and Individuals Can Do to Go Beyond Making a Profit to Making a Difference by Tim Sanders

Leading Change by John P. Kotter

Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

Hint: Most of these books can be downloaded as an MP3 file. Listen to books is a great way to get reading done while you’re on the go. You’d be surprised how much reading you can get done by just listening to a book while running errand or on your commute.

Sustainability Companies

Name of Firm Category Industry Headquaters Website

Convention on Biological Diversity Biodiversity Advocacy Nonprofit Montreal, QC http://www.cbd.int/

The Carbon Neutral Company Carbon Management Consulting New York, NY http://www.carbonneutral.com/

Carbon Management Council Carbon Management Consulting Washington, DC http://www.carboncouncil.org/

3Degrees Carbon Management Finance San Franciso, CA http://www.3degreesinc.com/

FirstCarbon Solutions Carbon Management Finance West Chester, PA http://www.firstcarbonsolutions.com/

MGM International Carbon Management and Trading Finance Miami, FL http://www.mgminter.com/index.asp

Equator LLC Carbon Management and Trading Finance New York, NY http://www.equatorllc.com/aboutus.html

First Climate Carbon Management and Trading Finance Washington, DC http://www.firstclimate.com/en.html

CamcoCarbon Management, Venture Capital, Carbon Consulting Finance Broomfield, CO http://www.camco-international.com/en/globalhome.html

Brighter Planet Carbon Reduction Advocacy Nonprofit Shelburne, VT http://brighterplanet.com/

Point Carbon Carbon Trading Finance Washington, DC http://www.pointcarbon.com/

Cause Creative Marketing Cause Marketing Brand ManagementSan Fernando Valley, CA http://www.causecreative.net/

Carbon Disclosure Project Climate Change AdvocacyAdvocacy Foundation New York, NY http://www.carbondisclosureproject.com/

CleanAir-CoolPlanet Climate Change Advocacy Nonprofit Portsmouth, NH http://www.cleanair-coolplanet.org/Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility Corporate Responsibility Advocacy Nonprofit New York, NY http://www.iccr.org/

Corporate Accountability International Corporate Responsibility Advocacy Nonprofit Boston, MA http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/

The World Bank Economic Development Finance Washington, DC http://www.worldbank.org/

Solimar International Ecotourism Consulting Washington, DC http://www.solimarinternational.com/

Xola Consulting Ecotourism Consulting Santa Fe, NM http://www.xolaconsulting.com/index.php

APX Emission Reduction Consulting Consulting Hoboken,NJ http://www.apx.com/index.asp

Pinyon Partners Energy Consulting Consulting Falls Church, VA http://www.pinyonpartners.com/

Community Energy Energy Development Renewable Energy Radnor, PA http://www.communityenergyinc.com/

Trust Element Energy Efficiency Consulting New York, NY http://www.trustelement.com/

EnerNoc Energy Efficiency Consulting Boston, MA http://www.enernoc.com/index.php

Greenwich Energy Solutions Energy Efficiency Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.greenwichenergysolutions.com/index.htm

Just Energy Energy Finance Renewable Energy New York, NY http://www.justenergyllc.com/index.html

Mercury Solar Systems Energy Finance Renewable Energy Port Chester, NY http://www.mercurysolarsystems.com/index.asp

Sol Systems Energy Finance Renewable Energy Washington, DC http://www.solsystemscompany.com/

EMC Energy Management Consulting Hopkinton, MA http://www.emc.com/

Synapse Energy Economics Energy Management Consulting Cambridge, MA http://www.synapse-energy.com/

Lime Energy Energy Management Energy Efficiency Elk Grove Village, IL http://www.lime-energy.com/

TMEEnergy Management and Green Building Consulting Little Rock, AR http://www.tmecorp.com/index.php

PriceWaterhouseCooperEnvironmental Accounting and Sustainability Consulting Audit and Advisiory New York, NY http://www.pwc.com/

DeloitteEnvironmental Accounting and Sustainability Consulting Audit and Advisiory New York, NY http://www.deloitte.com/view/en_US/us/index.htm

Environmental Defense Fund Environmental Activism Nonprofit New York, NY http://www.edf.org/home.cfm

Green America Environmental Activism Nonprofit Washington, DC http://www.greenamericatoday.org/about/

World Wildlife Fund Environmental Advocacy Nonprofit Washington, DC http://www.worldwildlife.org/

Roux Inc Environmental Consulting Consulting Islandia, NY http://www.rouxinc.com/

Wells Fargo Environmental Finance Finance San Franciso, CA https://www.wellsfargo.com/

Karbone Environmental Finance Finance New York, NY http://www.karbone.com/Karbone.html

Carbon Finance International Environmental Finance Finance Washington, DC http://www.carbonfinanceinternational.com/index.htm

EcoSecurities Environmental Finance Finance New York, NY http://www.ecosecurities.com/

Forest Trends Environmental Finance Finance Washington, DC http://www.forest-trends.org/

World Resource Institute Environmental Think Tank Economics Washington, DC http://www.wri.org/

Ecolect Green Building Consulting Providence, RI http://www.ecolect.net/

CH2M Hill Green Building Consulting Englewood, CO http://www.ch2m.com/corporate/default.asp

U.S. Green Building Council Green Building Advocacy Nonprofit Washington, DC http://www.usgbc.org/

CDM Green Building and Energy Efficiency Consulting Cambridge, MA http://www.cdm.com/

GreenShapeGreen Building and Sustainability Consulting Consulting Washington, DC http://www.greenshape.com/

Ecological Green Building Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://ecologicalgroup.com/index.html

YRG Green Building Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.yrgsustainability.com/index.jsp

Prologis Green Building Development Consulting Denver, CO http://www.prologis.com/index.html

Brooklyn Ecopolis Green Building Resource Center Education Brooklyn, NY http://www.brooklynecopolis.org/main/Home.aspx

Field15 Green IT IT Brooklyn, NY http://www.field15.com/

Green For All Green Jobs Advocacy Nonprofit Washington, DC http://www.greenforall.org/

Earth Advertising Green Marketing Advertising New York, NY http://www.earthadvertising.com/index.html

OligvyEarth Green Marketing Brand Management New York, NY http://www.ogilvyearth.com/

Motum Green Marketing Brand Management Tortonto, ON http://www.motumb2b.com

Cone Green Marketing Brand Management Boston, MA http://www.coneinc.com/

J. Ottman Consulting Green Marketing Marketing New York, NY http://www.greenmarketing.com/

Vesta Green Marketing Solutions Green Marketing Marketing New York, NY http://www.vestagms.com/

Flash Green Communications Green Marketing Marketing Denver, CO http://www.flashygreen.com/

Grassfed Media Green Marketing Marketing Washington, DC http://grassfedmediadc.com/

Koroberi Green Marketing Marketing Brooklyn, NY http://www.koroberi.com

Saibot Green Marketing Marketing New York, NY http://saibottechnologies.com

FrugalMarketing.com Green Marketing Marketing Hadley, MA http://FrugalMarketing.com

Lead Dog Marketing Group Green Marketing MarketingNew York, NY and Boston, MA http://www.leaddogmarketing.com/home/greendog.php?url=true

Expedition PR Green Marketing Public Relations New York, NY http://www.expeditionpr.com/

Green Microfinance Green Microfinance Microfinance Phoenixville, PA http://www.greenmicrofinance.org/

Planet Earth Promotions Green Promotions Promotions Phoenix, AZ http://www.planetearthpromotions.com/pilot.asp

MASCIA Management Green Property Management Real Estate New York, NY http://www.masciamgt.com/

GHG Management Institute Greenhouse Gas AccountingAccouting and Training Virtual http://ghginstitute.org/

ClimateCheckGreenhouse Gas Accounting, Validation, and Verification Consulting San Franciso, CA http://climate-check.com/

Clean Light Green Light LED Sales Energy Efficiency Marion, MA http://www.cleanlightgreenlight.com/

READ Global Literacy Advocacy Social Enterprise Washington, DC http://www.readglobal.org/

Criterion VenturesNonprofit and Social Enterprise Consulting Consulting Haddam, CT http://www.criterionventures.com/

LBM Systems Paper Saving Software IT New Canaan, CT http://www.lbmsys.com/green1.htm

Emergent Energy Project Development Renewable Energy Boston, MA http://emergentgroup.com/

New Energy FinanceRenewable Energy Consulting and Finance Renewable Energy New York, NY http://www.newenergyfinance.com/

La Capra Associates Renewable Energy Development Consulting Boston, MA http://www.lacapra.com/index.php

Sustainable Energy Advantage Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Framingham, MA http://www.seadvantage.com/index.shtml

SunEdison Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Beltsville, MD http://www.sunedison.com/

SunTech Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy San Franciso, CA http://www.suntech-power.com/

First Solar Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Tempe, Arizona http://www.firstsolar.com/en/index.php

Horizon Wind Energy Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Houston, TX http://www.horizonwind.com/home/

Nordex Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Chicago, IL http://www.nordex-online.com/en

Nordic Windpower Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Berkeley, CA http://www.nordicwindpower.com/index.html

Antares Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Landover, MD http://www.antares.org/home.html

AWS Truepower Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Albany, NY http://www.awstruepower.com/

Harvest Power Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy Waltham, MA http://www.harvestpower.com/

Innovation Fuels Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy New Haven, CT http://www.innovationfuels.com/index.html

Wind Analytics Renewable Energy Development Renewable Energy New York, NY http://www.windanalytics.com/index.html

Organic Valley Responsible Corporation Agriculture LaFarge, WI http://www.organicvalley.coop/

American Eagle Responsible Corporation Apparel Pittsburgh, PA http://www.ae.com/web/corp/index.jsp

Patagonia Responsible Corporation Apparel Reno, NV http://www.patagonia.com/web/us/home

Coca Cola Responsible Corporation Beverage Atlanta, GA http://www.coca-cola.com/index.jsp

Du Pont Responsible CorporationChemcial Development Willmington, DE http://www2.dupont.com/DuPont_Home/en_US/index.html

United Airlines Responsible Corporation Commerical Airline Chicago, IL http://www.united.com/

Sodexo Responsible Corporation Food Services Gaithersburg, MD http://www.sodexousa.com/usen/default.asp

Timberland Responsible Corporation Footware Stratham, NHhttp://www.timberland.com/corp/index.jsp?page=workingHere_locations

Nike Responsible Corporation Footware Beaverton, OR http://nikebiz.com

Sun Microsystems Responsible Corporation IT Redwood Shores, CA http://www.oracle.com/us/sun/index.html

interfaceFLOR Responsible Corporation Manufacturing Atlanta, GA http://www.interfaceflor.com/

GE Responsible Corporation Manufacturing Fairfield, CT http://www.ge.com/

International Paper Responsible Corporation Manufacturing Memphis, TN http://www.ipaper.com/index.html

Johnson & Johnson Responsible Corporation Manufacturing New Brunswick, NJ http://www.jnj.com/connect/

Walmart Responsible Corporation Retail Bentonville, AK http://walmartstores.com/

Whole Foods Responsible Corporation Super Market Austin, TX http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/

HP Responsible Corporation Technology Palo Alto, CA http://www8.hp.com/us/en/hpinfo/index.html

Navigant Consulting Risk Management and Compliance Consulting Chicago, IL http://www.navigantconsulting.com/

RiskMetrics GroupRisk Management and Sustainability Analytics Consulting New York, NY http://www.riskmetrics.com/

BrightFarm Systems Roof Top Agriculture Agriculture New York, NY http://www.brightfarmsystems.com/

Ford Foundation Social AdvocacyAdvocacy Foundation New York, NY http://www.fordfound.org/

WITNESS Social Advocacy Nonprofit Brooklyn, NY http://www.witness.org/index.html

Free Range Studios Social Communication Communications Washington, DC http://www.freerangestudios.com/

TED Social Communication Social Enterprise New York, NY http://www.ted.com/

New Sector Alliance Social Enterprise Consulting Consulting Boston, MA http://www.newsector.org/index.php

Echoing Green Social Enterprise Development Social Enterprise New York, NY http://www.echoinggreen.org/

Ashoka Social Enterprise Network Nonprofit Arlington, VA http://www.ashoka.org/

Morgan Stanley Social Finance Finance New York, NY http://www.morganstanley.com/

International Finance Corporation Social Finance Finance Washington, DC http://www.ifc.org/

RSF Social Finance Finance San Franciso, CA http://rsfsocialfinance.org/

ShoreBanl Social Finance Finance Washington, DC http://www.shorebankcorp.com/bins/site/templates/default.asp

Global GreenGrants Fund Social Finance Finance Boulder, CO http://www.greengrants.org/index.php

MicroCapital Social Finance Microfinance Boston, MA http://www.microcapital.org

Accion Social Finance Microfinance Somerville, MA http://www.accion.org/

Project Enterprise Social Finance Microfinance New York, NY http://www.projectenterprise.org/

Root Capital Social Finance Microfinance Cambridge, MA http://www.rootcapital.org/index.php

Grameen Foundation Social Finance Microfinance Washington, DC http://www.grameenfoundation.org/

Unitus Social Finance Microfinance Seattle, WA http://www.unitus.com/

Blue Orchard Social Finance Microfinance New York, NY http://www.blueorchard.com/jahia/Jahia/pid/1

Shared Interest Social Finance Microfinance New York, NY http://www.sharedinterest.org/

FINCA Social Finance Microfinance Washington, DC http://www.finca.org/site/c.erKPI2PCIoE/b.2394109/k.BEA3/Home.htm

F.B. Heron Social Grant Writing Finance New York, NY http://www.fbheron.org/index.html

APCO Worldwide Social Responsibility Communications Consulting Washington, DC http://www.apcoworldwide.com/

Trillium Asset Management Socially Responsible Investing Asset Management Boston, MA http://trilliuminvest.com/

Calvert Investments Socially Responsible Investing Finance Bethesda, MD http://www.calvert.com/

KLD Socially Responsible Investing Finance Boston, MA http://www.kld.com/

FinArc Socially Responsible Investing Finance Needham, MA http://www.finarc.com/index.html

AZZAD Socially Responsible Investing Finance Falls Church, VA http://www.azzad.net/new/default.aspx

GAMCO Investors, Inc. Socially Responsible Investing Finance Rye, NY http://www.gabelli.com/index.html

Veris Wealth Partners Socially Responsible Investing Finance New York, NY http://www.veriswp.com/index.html

Ceres Socially Responsible Investing Investment Boston, MA http://www.ceres.org/page.aspx?pid=705

Pax World Investments Socially Responsible Investing Mutual Fund Portsmouth, NH http://www.paxworld.com/

Parnassus Investments Socially Responsible Investing Mutual Fund San Franciso, CA http://www.parnassus.com/

Green Century Funds Socially Responsible Investing Mutual Fund Boston, MA http://www.greencentury.com/

Portfolio 21 Socially Responsible Investing Mutual Fund Portland, OR http://www.portfolio21.com/index.php

Domini Social Investments Socially Responsible Investing Mutual Fund New York, NY http://www.domini.com/index.htm

Winslow Management Company Socially Responsible Investing Mutual Fund Boston, MA http://www.winslowgreen.com/home/default.aspx

Good Capital Socially Responsible Investing Mutual Fund San Franciso, CA http://www.goodcap.net/index.php

Renewal Partners Socially Responsible Investing Venture Capital Vancouver, BC http://www.renewalpartners.com/

NatsourceSocially Responsible Investing and Sustainability

Asset Management and Emission Reduction New York, NY http://www.natsource.com/index.asp

New Mountain Capital Socially Responsible Investment Finance New York, NY http://www.newmountaincapital.com/index.php

Envirolution Sustainability Advocacy Nonprofit New York, NY http://www.envirolution.org/home.php

Cameron-ColeSustainability and Greenhouse Gas Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.cameron-cole.com/

MTS Sustainability Certification Certification Washington, DC http://mts.sustainableproducts.com/

Green Seal Sustainability Certification Nonprofit Washington, DC http://www.greenseal.org/index.cfm

Sustainametrics Sustainability Consulting Brand Management San Diego,CA http://www.sustainametrics.com

Sustainable Value Partners Sustainability Consulting Consulting Great Falls, VA http://www.sustainablevaluepartners.com/index.html

Sustainable Life Solutions Sustainability Consulting Consulting Bolton, MA http://www.sustainablelifesolutions.com/index.html

Corporate Citizenship Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.corporate-citizenship.com/

Booz Allen Hamilton Sustainability Consulting Consulting McLean, VA http://www.boozallen.com/

Greenland Enterprises Sustainability Consulting Consulting Gloucester, MA http://greenland-enterprises.blogspot.com/

Natural Capitalism Solutions Sustainability Consulting Consulting Boulder, CO http://www.natcapsolutions.org/

Rocky Mountain Institute Sustainability Consulting Consulting Snowmass, CO http://www.rmi.org/rmi/

ICF International Sustainability Consulting Consulting Fairfax, VA http://www.icfi.com/

PE International Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.pe-international.com/

Accenture Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.accenture.com/

Mckinsey & Company Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.mckinsey.com/

Boston Consulting Group Sustainability Consulting Consulting Boston, MA http://www.bcg.com/

BSR Sustainability Consulting Consulting San Franciso, CA http://bsr.org/

GreenOrder Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://greenorder.com/

Blu Skye Sustainability Consulting Consulting San Franciso, CA http://www.bluskye.com/

Domani Sustainability Consulting Consulting Denver, CO http://www.domani.com/

Green Canary Sustainability Consulting Consulting Austrailia http://www.greencanary.com/home.html

Strategic Sustainability Consulting Sustainability Consulting Consulting Herndon, VA http://www.sustainabilityconsulting.com/

InterfaceRAISE Sustainability Consulting Consulting Atlanta, GA http://www.interfaceraise.com/

SustainAbility Sustainability Consulting Consulting Washington, DC http://sustainability.com/index.asp

Natural Logic Sustainability Consulting Consulting Berkeley, CA http://www.natlogic.com/

Great Forest Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://greatforest.com/

PA Consulting Group Sustainability Consulting Consulting London, UK http://www.paconsulting.com/welcome/

Kuhn Associates Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.kuhnassociatesllc.com/index.php?page=homepage

Cadmus Group Sustainability Consulting Consulting Washington, DC http://www.cadmusgroup.com/

Waste Management Green Squad Sustainability Consulting Consulting Houston, TX http://www.wmgreensquad.com/index.asp

Five Winds International Sustainability Consulting Consulting Boston, MA http://www.fivewinds.com/english/

EcoCentric Sustainability Consulting Consulting Destin, FL http://ecocentricsustainabilityconsulting.com/

ROC One Sustainability Consulting Consulting Meadowlands, NJ http://www.roc-one.com/

ProBorea Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.proborea.com/

Steward Earth Sustainability Consulting Consulting Mckean, PA http://www.stewardearth.com/index.htm

Monica Becker & Associates Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.monicabecker.com/home

Delta Sustainability Consulting Consulting St. Paul, MN http://www.deltaenv.com/

EcoLogic Solutions Sustainability Consulting Consulting Brooklyn, NY http://els-consulting.com/

First Environment Sustainability Consulting Consulting Boonton, NJ http://www.firstenvironment.com/index.html

Kinetix Sustainability Consulting Consulting New York, NY http://www.kinetixllc.com/index.html

Altanova Sustainability Consulting Consulting Long Island City, NY http://www.altanova-energy.com/

Industrial Ecology Consultants Sustainability Consulting Consulting Newton, MA http://www.industrial-ecology.com/home.html

Pure Strategies Sustainability Consulting Consulting Boston, MA http://www.purestrategies.com/index.htm

IntertekSustainability Consulting and Risk Management Consulting New York, NY http://www.intertek.com/

Ice Stone Sustainable Business Manufacturing Brooklyn, NY http://www.icestone.biz/

RecycleBank Sustainable Business Social Enterprise New York, NY http://corporate.recyclebank.com/home

New Voice of Business Sustainable Business AdvocacyAdvocacy Foundation San Franciso, CA http://www.newvoiceofbusiness.org/index.cfm

GEMI Sustainable Business Advocacy Nonprofit Washington, DC http://www.gemi.org/GEMIHome.aspx

GreenWorks Community Development Corporation Sustainable Community Development Nonprofit Brooklyn, NY http://www.greenworkscommunity.org/

Galley Eco Capital Sustainable Development Finance San Franciso, CA http://www.galleyecocapital.com/

Pure Project Sustainable Development Finance New York, NY http://www.pureproject.org/

Aedi GroupSustainable Development and Social Innovation

Sustainable development and social innovation Waltham, MA http://www.aedigroup.com/index.html

New Ecology Inc. Sustainable Development Consulting Consulting Boston, MA http://www.newecology.org/

Karp Resources Sustainable Food Consulting New York, NY http://www.karpresources.com/#/main

Blue Sky Commerical Realty Group Sustainable Real Estate Real Estate Fort Lee, NJ http://www.blueskycommercial.com/ourcompany.html

Class Green Capital Partners Sustainable Real Estate Real Estate New York, NY http://www.classgreencapital.com/

EcoLogic Development Fund Sustainable Rural Development Social Enterprise Cambridge, MA http://www.ecologic.org/en

Paradigm Group Sustainable Supply Chain ManagementSupply Chain Management Syosset, NY http://www.paradigm-grp.com/

IIPT Sustainable Tourism Advocacy Nonprofit Stowe, VT http://www.iipt.org/index.html

Majora Carter Group Sustainable Urban Development Consulting South Bronx, NY http://www.majoracartergroup.com/

Second NatureSustainablility Activism in Higher Education Nonprofit Boston, MA http://www.secondnature.org/