Leslie Christian
Founder, Upstream 21 & Portfolio 21, Seattle
"Small companies are critical to the future of our communities," says
Leslie Christian, 62—so she helped concoct an innovative way to support
them. Upstream 21, whose board she
chairs, is a Portland-based regional holding company that acquires and
supports small, locally focused, privately held companies in the Pacific
Northwest—currently, three
forest-products companies that are embracing sustainable practices.
Right from the drafting of its foundational document, Upstream 21
aimed to break away from business as usual: "Our corporate charter
specifically states that the best interests of employees, customers,
suppliers, the community, and the environment must be balanced with
those of the shareholders over both the short and long term," Christian
explains. She is also president and CEO of Portfolio 21 Investments, which
specializes in environmentally and socially responsible investing,
offering a "healthy," if not hefty, return on investment. (Watch
Christian explain the Upstream 21 vision here.)
Mike Mathieu
Founder, Front Seat, Seattle
After working at Microsoft and founding an Internet publishing firm,
Mike Mathieu, 41, decided to put his software smarts to work for the
greater social good. Seattle-based Front Seat,
which he founded and chairs, has launched "civic software" projects like
Walk Score, which shows you how
"walkable" any given US address is, (Grist HQ scores a whopping 98 out
of 100—a "Walkers' Paradise"), and City-Go-Round,
which spotlights innovative public transit apps like Exit Strategy
NYC, which shows you exactly where you should stand on the subway
platform to arrive directly in front of the exit at your destination
(brilliant). Walk Score has already started to change the way the
real-estate industry thinks about walkability; its scores have been
incorporated into sites like Zillow.com as well
as many agents' individual listings, giving prospective homebuyers more
info about the kinds of neighborhoods and lifestyles they might be
buying into.
To read the full, original article click on this link: 14 Innovators Who Are Changing Green Business | Mother Jones
Author: MotherJones
