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Green decisions, smart decisions

By Rod Beckstrom

Global warming is clearly one of the greatest challenges we face today. However, there is some hope, and it lies in creating binding markets that reduce CO₂ levels in the atmosphere.

These binding markets, and the technologies they employ, create phenomenal business opportunities that many companies are already tapping into. What's needed now is for businesses to make the decision to participate in them.

The Kyoto Protocol created a marketplace where European countries, Canada, and Japan have taken on caps to reduce pollution. By and large they’re meeting those reduction targets successfully, because industries and entrepreneurs are being creative in developing methods to reduce greenhouse gases.

More green facts

Creative approaches

For example, to reduce methane pollution, you put a cap on a landfill; or change your sewage treatment plant and capture the methane that’s coming off of it. Then you burn the methane to create electricity.

Or you can reduce nitrous oxide by cleaning up an old ammonia fertilizer plant that may produce millions of tons of carbon equivalents each year.

Or, you can rebuild the energy system for a building, using co-generation, so the heat that’s kicked off one process is used to generate power in another.

You can create wind farms, and sell the credits that are created because you’re avoiding burning coal. The same thing can be done with solar panels.

There are thousands of approaches that are registered for carbon reduction through a process run by the Kyoto Protocol.

"Phenomenal innovations"

This is a multi-billion dollar market because these pollution reduction credits are so valuable that entire new businesses are being formed purely to create these reductions.

We’re seeing phenomenal innovations at every level of industry. There are venture capital investment opportunities in clean technology, and many funds are appearing to back new green technologies that clean up the environment.

We’re seeing new types of merchant banks such as EcoSecurities sourcing, creating and trading carbon credits.

Business opportunities at every level

There are business opportunities at every scale and region in the world.

As the cap in trade markets spread to include the USA, China and India, the market will become even more powerful and rich with opportunities. Take a look at your own industry and see where the opportunities may lie.

About the Author:

Rod Beckstrom is co-author of the recent book on decentralized networks entitled The Starfish and The Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations. He has been cited in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Financial Times, Newsweek, Business Week, and other publications.

He has spoken at the World Economic Forum, State of the World Forum, World Technology Summit, YPO Universities and other international events. Rod is a Top Rated YPO/CEO Speaker and has been a YPO member for 12 years.

Rod serves on the board of Environmental Defense, a global leader in designing, advocating and implementing environmental policy solutions such as the Kyoto Protocol and the California Climate Act. He was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of St. Galen and worked in London for two years as a derivatives trader for Morgan Stanley.

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