While it’s easy to get dragged down – what with a lackluster performance at Copenhagen, no real climate treaty to supplant the Kyoto Protocol, and climate change denier operations in full swing – it seems that 2010 might be looking pretty bright, after all:

Green Business Initiatives
It’s official. Sustainable business practices are green in the very best, most important way: financially. The days of small independent operations being the only ones with a conscience and a sustainability initiative are gone. Industry giants like IBM, Nike and Coca-Cola are charging ahead with their own programs, despite the lack of regulation coming from Washington. The reason? It’s good business (and they know a price on carbon is just around the corner – good business sense says ’stay ahead of the curve’). These companies are trimming supply lines, shaving energy consumption and sourcing new materials, and it all pays off for them in real, green dollars. What’s in your wallet?

Subnational Environmental Accords
California is leading the way once again. If the talks in Copenhagen turned out to be just that – talk – then Governor Schwarzenegger and many of his equivalents around the world have decided not to wait. The time to act is now, and act they are. “Action is needed at the national and international levels to reduce the effects of global warming, but California has shown that state and regional governments can also institute policies on their own that will see real environmental improvements and grow green jobs,” says the Governor. “R20 will continue that subnational leadership around the world by recognizing that meeting the challenges of climate change requires an unprecedented level of cooperation and collaboration through all levels of government.” As an example, California is working on agreements that would help preserve huge swaths of rainforest in Brazil and Indonesia as a carbon sink.

Green Jobs
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is finally getting into full swing, with funding for numerous green energy and green job development projects coming online in 2010. These programs made news long ago, but things like this move slowly, so the actual jobs take longer to materialize. 2010 seems to be the time when green jobs go from being a discussion in the produce section at the market, to becoming a reality for a lot of people, even those in the hard-hit industrial centers of the midwest.

Cap and Trade or Carbon Tax
It is likely this year that we will see legislation coming out of congress that puts a price on carbon one way or another, leading the way for a market-based shift away from fossil fuel technologies. While the right wing disinformation machine is running full force, confusing the issue for many home-town Americans, in congress you might be surprised to find many republicans, while skeptical about the means, agree that the ends are necessary. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was quoted recently saying “you will never become energy independent until you price carbon.” There is also a stick available, if the carrot proves ineffective: If congress doesn’t pass legislation, President Obama could open the door for carbon regulation through the EPA, a prospect no republican can find appealing.

Green Buildings
Another way for businesses to find real green savings is in new building design. LEED certified building projects are way up, something that would be difficult to forecast in a down economy, unless they provided more than just warm, fuzzy feelings. These concepts have proven effective at mitigating environmental impacts of office and operational buildings, but more importantly, they’ve proven to positively affect the bottom line. Expect more of these green shoots in the new year, too.

So here’s to 2010. May we see more honesty, integrity and forward motion.

Tags: cap and trade, carbon tax, green buildings, green business, green jobs