A Brookings Institution Press and American Enterprise Institute publication Federal policies have made great progress protecting the environment. But the policies sometimes have imposed inordinate costs on local governments. Managing Green Mandates describes how various federal environmental directives do not suit diverse conditions at the local level, and compel local communities to spend their revenues on reducing relatively minor risks to the public health. While policymakers have thrown far-reaching requirements at the feet of local authorities, the federal government is providing them less aid to comply with the increasingly stringent standards. The burden of these underfunded mandates can further disadvantage many overtaxed municipalities. Pietro Nivola is a senior fellow in the Governmental Studies program at the Brookings Institution. He is the author of The Laws of the Landscape: How Politics Shape Cities in Europe and America (Brookings 1999). Jon Shields is a graduate student in the Department of Government and Foreign Affairs at the University of Virginia.

A Brookings Institution Press and American Enterprise Institute publication Federal policies have made great progress protecting the environment. But the policies sometimes have imposed inordinate costs on local governments. Managing Green Mandates describes how various federal environmental directives do not suit diverse conditions at the local level, and compel local communities to spend their revenues on reducing relatively minor risks to the public health. While policymakers have thrown far-reaching requirements at the feet of local authorities, the federal government is providing them less aid to comply with the increasingly stringent standards. The burden of these underfunded mandates can further disadvantage many overtaxed municipalities. Pietro Nivola is a senior fellow in the Governmental Studies program at the Brookings Institution. He is the author of The Laws of the Landscape: How Politics Shape Cities in Europe and America (Brookings 1999). Jon Shields is a graduate student in the Department of Government and Foreign Affairs at the University of Virginia.

The intent of this book is to give interested parties an overview of green and its impact on business, without spending countless hours researching the subject. It provides information in a manner that can be used to help businesses determine the role green will play in their futures. The book is not intended as a detailed implementation guide, but as an aid in understanding the current thinking on what green really is and what an organization can do. The book is presented in three major sections. The first section is intended to give an overall understanding of what is meant by green, a brief history of the environmental movement as it relates to business, trends in carbon measuring and reporting, and definitions of green. The second section discusses standards, certifications, and measurements that relate to green and environmental management. The final section presents methods that may be used to implement and manage green processes within an organization, along with tools and a road map that may be used by those companies seeking to become green. The road map utilizes process improvement tools that will be familiar to many organizations.

Policymakers and program managers are continually seeking ways to improve accountability in achieving an entity's mission. A key factor in improving accountability in achieving an entity's mission is to implement an effective internal control system. An effective internal control system helps an entity adapt to shifting environments, evolving demands, changing risks, and new priorities. As programs change and entities strive to improve operational processes and implement new technology, management continually evaluates its internal control system so that it is effective and updated when necessary. Section 3512 (c) and (d) of Title 31 of the United States Code (commonly known as the Federal Managers? Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA)) requires the Comptroller General to issue standards for internal control in the federal government.

The business world is undergoing dramatic change that is driven by tough new legislation, expanded market based incentives and increased consumer awareness of environmental issues (e.g., hazard ingredients in products, alternative energy, reduction in greenhouse gases). This is forcing companies to reassess the life cycle of their products and the efficiency of their supply chains. Environmental issues are becoming business critical. Good to Green provides the vital information, backed by case studies and examples, that gives progressive business leaders the strategic know-how to pro-actively manage environmental issues and realize the business benefits of going green.

Public financial management (PFM) consists of all the government’s institutional arrangements in place to facilitate the implementation of fiscal policies. In response to the growing urgency to fight climate change, “green PFM” aims at adapting existing PFM practices to support climate-sensitive policies. With the cross-cutting nature of climate change and wider environmental concerns, green PFM can be a key enabler of an integrated government strategy to combat climate change. This note outlines a framework for green PFM, emphasizing the need for an approach combining various entry points within, across, and beyond the budget cycle. This includes components such as fiscal transparency and external oversight, and coordination with state-owned enterprises and subnational governments. The note also identifies principles for effective implementation of a green PFM strategy, among which the need for a strong stewardship located within the ministry of finance is paramount.

Environmental sustainability creates both tremendous business opportunities and formidable threats to established companies across virtually all industry sectors. Yet many companies tackle the issue in a superficial or passive way, rather than considering fundamental changes to their existing business models. By ignoring the opportunities of Green Business Model Transformations, companies exclude themselves from a large variety of potential means to create economic value. In addition to ordinary product and process innovations, they can change “the rules of the game” within an industry towards environmental sustainability. Green Business Model Transformations, however, are challenging ventures: New, green business models with all their uncertainties and inherent complex systemic characteristics are difficult to design, assess, and implement successfully, particularly in the context of established companies that often entail complex structures and considerable inertia. As a result, there is a great need for guidance in management practice. This publication addresses this need with a general approach to Managing Green Business Model Transformations that is based on a broad theoretical foundation, illustrated by many real-world examples from various industry sectors.