Five Green Industries That May Surprise You

Five Green Industries That May Surprise You

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In researching my upcoming book, Green Careers For Dummies, I've had the opportunity to write profiles of 45 growing green industries. I have been amazed at the resources I'm finding, the innovations I'm seeing, and the dedication so many industries are taking to make their products and services more sustainable. It's been an eye-opening process for me and my team.

As many of you know, my team and I have been studying the green economy since March 2007 when I decided to launch a green career business. On a daily basis we scan online resources and media announcements to gather as much information as we can about the growing, evolving green economy. Even with these 29 months of research behind us, I was surprised and amazed by some of the industry news I found in my research.

In a few instances the industry wasn't on our radar at all and in other cases the rate and/or depth of the industry's movement toward green/sustainable actions was unexpected.

Environmental Education and Training - When I first started researching this industry I figured it was mostly about teaching students about how the environment works. A worthy cause to be sure. Giving students the educational foundation to understand why we need to rethink our actions is a crucial part of moving toward a more sustainable world. What I wasn't expecting was the degree to which the environmental education field also includes teaching employees about key environmental issues to raise their eco-literacy. More and more, corporations are turning to third party training organizations to bring their employees up to speed on the issues and the actions required to make sound environmental decisions that are sustainable.

Check out this sneak peek resource: National Environmental Education Foundation: (http://www.neefusa.org/)

Green/Organic Textiles and Fashion - The movement in this industry is just sneaking onto my radar due to a news release I saw in late August. It may or may not make it into the book at this point, but I thought it was still important to share it with you. Just last month LEAF invited industry stakeholders and concerned individuals to weigh in on a new eco-labeling system for the textile and apparel industry. When the public comment period is over, this group will unveil a new centralized labeling system that brings together the 15 or more certification systems that already exist. In my research I've seen that implementing a unifying labeling system is a sign the industry is ready to work together to make a difference. The initial system will target three aspects of the textile supply chain from sustainable/organic materials and environmentally sound manufacturing processes to fair labor practices in manufacturing plants. Eventually the program will extend its reach to cover other key issues in this industry such as packaging, fair trade for farmers, and distribution.

Check out this sneak peek resource: Labeling Ecologically Approved Fabrics™ (LEAF) (http://www.leafcertified.org)

Waste-to-Energy - Waste has always bothered me. It seemed such a waste to use up good land to dump waste that was going to take decades to decay, if not longer. As I was researching the renewable energy industries I came across an industry called Waste-to-Energy. This rather established industry has 87 waste-to-energy facilities that burn organic and manufactured waste in carefully designed boilers that incorporate modern pollution control equipment to scrub the emissions from the burn and precise heat conditions to ensure that all waste matter is completely combusted. For each ton of municipal solid waste combusted, 500-600 kWhs of electricity are produced. The electricity can be added to the grid while the steam produced can be used to heat buildings. These plants currently process only 8 percent of the waste produced in the United States each year, which means this industry has ample room to expand. Keep in mind; this is not like burning garbage in your back yard. Although this technology has a ways to go from a political point of view, it has been perfected over the last forty years. Many experts believe it is a viable solution to minimizing the impact on landfills while creating energy that removes more carbon emissions than it emits. I consider this to be an industry to watch closely to see how it fares politically.

Check out this sneak peek resource: Energy Recovery Council (http://www.wte.org/about)

Personal Care and Beauty - It's no surprise to me that some consumers have a preference for personal care products that have natural and organic ingredients. I'm sure it doesn't surprise you either. You may even be one of these consumers. What did surprise me is the rate at which this consumer driven push is impacting the personal care, beauty, cleaning, health supplements, and pet product industries. According to In-Cosmetics, the natural personal care market has experienced "double-digit growth annually" since 2003. Within the cosmetics world alone, natural products and those inspired by nature, make up 6% of the general market. The debate raging in each of these industries is what's the best way to define the terms: organic, natural, nature-inspired, and natural extracts. And then, what's the best way to educate consumers honestly and clearly. Too many certifications and labels just leads to confusion and mistrust in consumers' minds.

Check out this sneak peek resource: Global Cosmetic Industry (http://www.gcimagazine.com)

Green Medical Centers - Hospitals use a tremendous amount of resources to provide care to patients. A movement is gaining momentum to help hospitals become more sustainable through more efficient energy use, more water conservation, better waste reduction methods through reuse and recycling, more sustainable purchasing decisions, and adherence to greener building practices. Rethinking how hospitals and medical offices provide care has the potential to reduce this industry's carbon footprint dramatically.

Check out this sneak peek resource: Practice GreenHealth: (http://www.practicegreenhealth.org/)

Actions You Can Take:

If any of these industries appeal to you, begin your exploration with the link I've provided.

Keep in mind, these are just a few examples of the range of information we are finding in our research for the book. Every industry continues to experience changes as the new green/sustainable mindset takes hold.

About the Author:
Green Career Expert Carol McClelland, PhD, is the author of the forthcoming book, Green Careers For Dummies and founder of Green Career Central, a membership website with useful programs, 400+ pages of effective, targeted information to help you identify your green niche, find a green job, start a business or further your education. Visit http://www.GreenCareerCentral.com to request our free report - "Six Strategies to Find Your Green Career"



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