Eco-Efficiency: Making Money without Abusing the Planet
Wednesday, January 20th, 2010Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co (KKR) was founded by Henry Kravis and his business partner George Roberts in the mid-seventies with help from the First Chicago Corporation. But in the hope of making their portfolio of companies greener, they have launched a novel green project which has dramatically transformed the method by which business concerns and environmental agencies function.
Environmentally sound business practice went mainstream last year when Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co’s Henry Kravis and the non-profit environmental advocacy group Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) merged. Their mission is to offer encouragement to their affiliated firms in avoiding environmental menaces like greenhouse gas emissions as well as absurd consumption of water resources.
In order to attain these goals, they utilize a routine termed eco-efficiency which calls for techniques such as increasing the durability of products, waste reduction, and reducing the dispersion of toxic chemicals. The Green Portfolio Project was successful, but the firms who were taking part did not grasp the full benefits of the project until Ken Mehlman, the head of the program and global public affairs, assessed the project subsequent to a year in operation. Ken Mehlman observed that using eco-efficiency wasn’t merely preserving the local environment, but in addition it was helping to save businesses a considerable amount of money. Currently, Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co and Ken Mehlman have virtually all of their firms actively involved in the Green Portfolio Project. When you look at the fact that the group has a value of almost $100,000,000,000 dollars, you can see what an enormous feat this is. Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co along with Ken Mehlman are expanding the Green Portfolio project. For example, Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co got together with the Environmental Defense Fund’s Climate Corps Program a venture that instructs students studying for an MBA how to encourage cost effective, green techniques.
In addition, Ken Mehlman has been in close collaboration with KKR to produce a package of metrics that companies can utilize to evaluate resources. This type of data is crucial as any type of business may easily measure each of their day to day procedures and identify how they can improve while simultaneously letting staff to find out their environmental impact.
Henry Kravis, the KKR, and the Environmental Defense Fund are true pioneers when it comes ecologically friendly business practices. Their revolutionary ideas have made going green easier for businesses in every sector and proved to the world that running a profitable business need not entail the hefty price of negatively impacting our planet.