Now Reading
Business Civic Leadership Center and Green Plus Launch Environmental Help Desk for Small Businesses & Local Chambers
Business Civic Leadership Center and Green Plus Launch Environmental Help Desk for Small Businesses & Local Chambers
Published 04-23-12
Submitted by U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC) and the Institute for Sustainable Development’s Green Plus™ program today announced the creation of an online help desk to assist U.S. small and medium-sized enterprises with environmental business issues. The Environmental Help Desk for Business, launched to coincide with Earth Day 2012, will provide clear, accessible advice on green supply chain requirements, green business certifications, and environmental innovations that can reduce both cost and environmental impact.
“Entrepreneurs, business development experts, and small business owners are becoming more and more engaged in “green” business opportunities, processes, tools and techniques,” said Stephen Jordan, founder and executive director of BCLC. “This is why BCLC is proud to team up with the Institute for Sustainable Development to create the BCLC Environmental Help Desk to research and answer these questions.”
The Institute for Sustainable Development’s Green Plus™ staff will manage the Environmental Help Desk for Business, with support from business, environmental, and policy graduate students from Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and other universities in the Green Plus™ network. Additionally, a variety of experts will offer insights about cutting-edge innovations and green supply chain trends.
“The Environmental Help Desk partnership with BCLC is a great way to extend our mission of making sustainable business best practices available to America’s small business community,” said Chris Carmody, executive director of the Institute for Sustainable Development and the Green Plus™ program. “Being green and sustainable is no longer only a cost-reduction tactic for small business – it’s also the price of admission to competing for business from the world’s largest companies.”
Since 2007, the U.S. Chamber BCLC has managed the Office Depot Foundation-sponsored National Disaster Help Desk for Business. This service has fielded more than 18,000 inquiries from across the nation and has directly served nearly 8,000 small businesses and chambers of commerce by connecting callers with simple and fast information. The success of this original help desk paved the way for the Environmental Help Desk for Business.
The Environmental Help Desk can be reached by phone: (919) 886-4228, on Twitter, and through Facebook. Visit the Help Desk online for more information.
About The Institute for Sustainabe Development and Green Plus™
The Institute for Sustainable Development / Green Plus™ is a 501(c)3 non-profit partnership of business and universities in North Carolina’s Research Triangle. The Institute is dedicated to democratizing sustainability, helping small businesses and their communities understand and use best practices in business and environmental management, as well as excellent employee and community engagement. Through its Green Plus program, the Institute provides open source sustainability expertise throughout the U.S., and serves business in the Green Plus™ Certification program in fifteen states. For more information on the Institute, please see www.gogreenplus.org.
About BCLC
BCLC is the U.S. Chamber’s resource and voice for businesses’ social and philanthropic interests. Its mission is to advance the positive role of business in society. Visit http://bclc.uschamber.com.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center
U.S. community development. Emerging-market development. Disaster response. Social and environmental innovation – businesses play an important role in all of these issue areas.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center is recognized in the corporate citizenship field as a source for fresh thinking, exceptional networking and practical lessons learned.
The Foundation works to strengthen collaboration and understanding among companies, corporate foundations, chambers of commerce, NGOs, and governmental offices. As a partnership facilitator, The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center helps businesses find highly effective ways to invest in local communities, be responsive in times of disasters, and improve lives and livelihoods across the globe.
The Foundations mission is to work with businesses to make the world a better place. Email ccc@uschamber.com to learn more.
Connect with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center on:
More from U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center
