A new study has been released by Ceres, a coalition of environmental advocates and investors, ranking 63 of the world’s largest businesses based on the company’s efforts to minimize the impact of their operations on the climate.
The biggest public relations white hat goes to IBM with the highest overall score. Abercrombie & Fitch received the lowest score possible – 0! According to the report Abercrombie “has not made public a formal strategy to address the risks and opportunities posed by climate change.”
The report focused on analyzing consumer products and information technology companies in 11 industry sectors – apparel, beverages, big box retailers, grocery & drug retailers, personal & household goods, pharmaceuticals, real estate, restaurants, semiconductors, technology and travel & leisure.
It is no big secret that consumers like doing business with companies they can feel good about and investors don’t risk their dollars on companies with a poor public perception or potential government regulatory issues. It will be interesting to watch how large companies and small businesses recognize these realities and create or enhance their own green identity.
View the entire study here: http://www.ceres.org/Document.Doc?id=398
