The green is no bubble

The world of business green that seems out of nowhere dominates the covers of newspapers and magazines. Yet according to Joe Makower, a specialist in the matter, this business is not a bubble ready to burst, but a fundamental trend for long. Beyond the excessive hype, it explains why this phenomenon is deeply bound up in the economy. An analysis by 10 points which opposes About Robert Bell, chairman of the department of economics from Brooklyn College who predicted his side that this trend "began as the Internet bubble began in 1995 and will be explosive in five years ".

1 / The problems do not improve, and as global warming continue, and the environment will remain the No. 1 concern of companies who want to limit the risks to their business and to improve their image face of a phenomenon that will Sooner or later unanimous consensus

2 / The environment is becoming a political issue facing the lobbyists who align themselves growing increasingly views on this matter, which will be central to the US elections in 2008 (as it has been able to be in France this year and will be all the more in 5 years)

3 / Consumers are waking up. Although it is now a reality more in the polls than on the shelves, consumers become aware of the ecological stakes to their purchases this awareness inevitably encourage businesses to position itself increasingly on products Greens.

4 / Policies procurement and supply play a decisive role, particularly among large buyers such as Wal-mart that encourage its 60,000 suppliers of all sizes to reduce their packaging, remove dangerous products, introduce more " organic ingredients in their products, in short, to improve their production process.

5 / The environment becomes a financial matter. We see more and more banks, insurance companies, pension funds and talk about the environmental risk to their shareholders. Pension funds are also particularly pressure on the companies they finance so that they give them the visibility on their risk profile and reduce.

6 / The level of demand increases by the mere fact that there is no standard for locating a "green". So the argument of "carbon neutral" announced by a number of companies is becoming less a selling point enough.

7 / Companies will go beyond the "sustainability". Makower seems confident in the ability of firms to innovate and to excel not just to be "neutral". It will probably companies announce they absorb more carbon than they discard.

8 / Companies communicate more on these issues because that is what customers, investors, suppliers. And to escape criticism, companies will have to move in this direction.

9 / green technologies will change the situation. Perhaps it is here that the bubble might exist but it is thanks to them that businesses can produce ever more powerful and efficient, always using less toxic products, increasing renewable energy ...

10 / The environment is a profitable business. It is seen as a potential value added more than a source of cost reduction to believe the emergence of success stories around these subjects.