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Taking Care of Business The greening of products seems to be picking up speed, as companies look for opportunities to more efficiently use energy, water, and other resources; decrease packaging or make it more recyclable; reduce or eliminate toxic ingredients; and make products more recyclable or reusable. Already this year, we recently reported on Green Works, Clorox's first new product line in 20 years, and other stories have followed. This week we report on a new alliance of sustainable furniture makers, Wal-Mart's new packaging scorecard, and HP's accelerated cartridge-recycling program. You'll be hearing much more about green product design in coming weeks, as we gear up for Greener By Design, our inaugural product design conference, to be held June 12-13, in Alexandria, Virginia. In the next few weeks we'll be announcing speakers, sponsors, and some program innovations that we think will set this event apart. Stay tuned. Meanwhile: We're still riding high from last week's very successful launch of State of Green Business 2008, including extensive coverage by both the mainstream media (Wall Street Journal, Wired, USA Today, CNBC) and the blogosphere (more than 100 blogs). If you haven't yet downloaded your free copy, visit www.stateofgreenbusiness.com. -- Joel Makower, Executive Editor New on GreenBiz Radio: Envisioning Green: Getty Images and the Pictures and Colors That Sell In this interview with Denise Waggoner, the vice president of creative research at Getty Images, Joel Makower finds out what colors and images make consumers think green -- and that not all shades of green are created equal. You can listen to GreenBiz Radio online, download programs to your desktop, or subscribe to the GreenBiz Radio RSS feed. THIS ISSUE'S SPONSOR Want to be a GreenBuzz sponsor? Click here. Subscribe to GreenBiz.com RSS Headlines The Latest News on Business and the Environment AAMCO Aims for Zero-Waste, Increased Efficiency With New Initiative The automotive service center's ambitious new AAMCO Eco-Green certification program helps both franchise owners and customers boost their performance and reduce their impact by implementing energy-efficiency measures, promoting alternative fuels and closing the loop on service centers' waste streams. UK Food and Drink Companies Vow Water Reductions Twenty-one major food and beverage companies have agreed to review and change their water use to save resources and money. HP Speeds Up Ink-Cartridge Recycling Program Hewlett-Packard has already made more than 200 million ink cartridges by recycling old cartridges, and is stepping up its production of recycled-content products to reduce overall waste. Wal-Mart Packaging Scorecard Begins Today Wal-Mart began using a scorecard last week that will rate its suppliers' progress on making product packaging more sustainable in its bid to reduce overall packaging 5 percent by 2013. GM Starts Big Push to Green Its Chinese Operations As part of a wide-ranging effort to drive sustainable growth in China, General Motors will fund a $250 million research center in Shanghai, and the automaker's Chinese division has launched a three-pronged strategy to address its environmental impacts. Global Wine Industry to Tackle Carbon Footprinting Sensing an opportunity to expand markets and boost its brands and image, the global wine industry plans to explore the calculation of its carbon footprint. New Online Resource Gets the Skinny on Eco-Labels Ecolabelling.org aims to take the mystery out of the bewildering herd of green labels by studying the foundations of all types of eco-labels aimed at both consumers and corporations. Air France Pledges $3 Billion a Year to Cut Carbon Emissions In an effort to cut fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions, Air France plans to spend about $2.94 billion a year on improving its fleet. Energy Dept. Gives Up Plan to Build Clean-Coal Power Plant Facing ever-increasing costs to build what would have been the world's largest clean-coal power plant and carbon sequestration facility led the U.S. Department of Energy to scrap its plans for the Mattoon, Ill., site. Act Now Brings Its Sustainability Skills to Publicis Groupe By merging with Publicis' Saatchi & Saatchi S network, the consultancy led by Adam Werbach will boost the organization's sustainability services and further engage with companies seeking to green their practices. Design Green Alliance Hopes to Boost Sustainable Furniture The newly-formed Design Green Alliance offers sustainable furniture makers and vendors sales and marketing opportunities to increase their presence in the industry. Hawaii Poised to Become Big Green Power Player Costco Wholesale boasts the distinction of having the two largest solar energy installations in Hawaii, a state that could become a major player in tomorrow's renewable energy market. Calif. Crafts Path to Greener Chemistry The state EPA has released a report with 818 ideas addressing how to reduce the impact of toxic chemicals on people and the environment. Put GreenBiz news on your site for free! Learn more... > MORE NEWS HEADLINES Featured Resource A Wealth of Hands-On Help California Green Chemistry Initiative -- Phase 1, Options Report Through more than 800 ideas, the California Environmental Protection Agency hopes to encourage the state to create the country's first comprehensive chemical policy. Cal/EPA outlines the ideas in a report issued yesterday, the first phase of the California Green Chemistry Initiative, an effort aimed at reducing the impact of toxic chemicals on the state. > MORE TOOLS > MORE WEB SITES Columns and Features Insight and Inspiration from the Experts The Greening of Transport, One Mile at a Time By Sarah Fister Gale With the soaring cost of fuel and transportation's dramatic impact on the environment, companies have no choice but to look at logistics as a place to go green. Some successful initiatives rely on small common sense programs that deliver incremental results, such as reduced idling or more direct truck routes. Secondary Packaging: A Silent Threat to the Environment By Dennis Salazar While direct contact, retail and primary packaging has been receiving all of the attention and well deserved scrutiny of the world, secondary packaging, without much attention at all, has been quietly filling our landfills. The Importance of Measuring Building Energy Use By Brandi McManus With companies rapidly seeking out every possible way to improve their environmental performance, many are finding that tracking down inefficiencies in building energy use is a quick and easy way to make a noticeable difference. GreenBiz Blogs Marc Gunther on Corporate America: My Florida Trash Tour > More from Marc Gunther David Wigder's Green Marketing Strategies: Green Content Syndication: Part II - Top Environmental Diggers > More from David Wigder Wanna write for GreenBiz? GreenBiz is looking for guest and regular columnists and feature writers. We're seeking contributions from business leaders as well as the journalists who write about them. If you're interested, send a brief query to managing editor Matthew Wheeland, at editor@greenbiz.com | Read our editorial guidelines > MORE COLUMNS > MORE FEATURES