While Americans are focusing more than ever on the environment, big corporations are looking to draw these like minded people with policies and programs that are considered environmentally responsive. While some of these policies and programs are unquestionably just for show, other corporations are taking big steps in providing better services and products from a global warming point of view. The industry of environmental responsibility is going to have a force on this country in the next decade. Here we will review how some industries and companies are responding to the science.



One of the first foremost retailers to take great advancements forward in environmentally aware business practices is none other Wal-Mart. The company has made headlines in latest years through determined efforts to reduce toxicity levels in their products, moving away from plastic packaging which can take a toll on the environment, and an increasing their focus on the sale of superior quality, fluorescent light bulbs. While Wal-Mart is taking plenty of scrutiny for its business practices in the past, relatively few are coming out against this trend toward environmental awareness. Perhaps, it is because they are going beyond the call of duty when creating a layer of simplicity to their efforts. Of course, only time will tell if Wal-Mart remains steadfast to this new movement, but in the meantime they are taking great strides in becoming an international leader in the effort to clean up the Earth.

While many are still wondering what happened to the electric cars that seemed like such an foreseeable step in the last decade, the automobile industry is slowly implementing a shift toward alternative fuel sources. This includes the new wave of hybrid cars on the street, as well as hard work being made to develop increased fuel economy in fossil fuel combustion engines. There is also talk and study going in the direction of hydrogen fuel cells in the future, although some members of the investigative community are unconvinced. These actions come as gas prices in America are attaining record highs and there is an amplified demand to find ways of reducing our dependence on foreign oil. The movement to other methods of fuel not only satisfies this group but reduces the carbon footprint left by each car driver in the United States.

When speaking of carbon, the biggest overall development in the American business scene is a progression toward carbon neutrality. Of course this means offering services, products and packaging that leave the environment no worse off than it was before. As with anything, of course, analysts wonder how much of this theoretical carbon neutrality is simply hype, and how much is actually an effort to move in a new direction. The American consumer, as a whole, can sorrowfully not be expected to tell the difference.

It remains to be seen how much of our current trend toward green businesses and individual practices is here for the long term and how much is simply a passing trend. Unquestionably, people and government have been moving in a trend in the direction of recycling for some time, but much of this new concern has come from fiery media attacks, such as Al Gore's recent documentary. Meanwhile, it will be interesting to watch and see how many businesses jump on the environmental movement.