It seems to me that there are two ways to go about making the world more sustainable: individuals choosing to make a difference one person at a time or legislation.  To date, we have not seen the commitment required from the government to make broad based change to policy.  This is where business is starting to step in.  Thomas Friedman explained this quite well in the NY Times recently.

So, corporate social responsibility has become the new buzz word in business.  Why?  Because, business worldwide is beginning to realize that it is possible to turn “Green to Gold” as Andrew Winston titles it. 

But this brings up a relevant question, should business feel bad about making money becoming more green? 

I propose that businesses should be excited about the opportunity to make green profitable. 

Creating the market for more sustainable practices is even more productive, effective, and efficient than legislation.  As William Mcdonough And Michael Braungart explain, regulation is just the allowance to do harm.  On the other hand, if it is more profitable to do no harm, or better yet, to be restorative, it will be easy to ask customers, companies, and employees to make a difference one person at a time. 

It is possible to make money and make a difference.  The anecdotal evidence is astounding, and my own personal experience confirms this without question.