Green Options » Ban Ki-Moon

South Korea Joins Fray, Aims to Create 1 Million “Green” Jobs

Scott Cooney — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 01:02:05 +0000

Stimulus packages and bailouts have dominated the economic headlines of late, but perhaps running a close second in terms of economic trends is that many governments across the world have made serious pushes for creating green jobs. South Korea is the latest to join the fray, announcing this week a $32.7 billion program to create 1 million green jobs.

The spread of these kinds of initiatives is great news for aspiring ecopreneurs, as the market for green building, alternative energy, and other forms of green products and services becomes the ‘rising tide that lifts all ships’. Well, at least the ships in the sustainable sector.

Will Green Stay Hot As (Economic) Weather Gets Cold?

Scott Cooney — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 11:16:59 +0000

Green Crystal Ball It’s safe to say most people would be hard pressed to remember such a grim economic time as we’re experiencing. Businesses of all kinds are suffering, and many businesses are cutting back spending on sustainability efforts.

So, the question of the day is, what does the green tinted crystal ball say? The answer is, of course, it depends.

Some businesses will continue to thrive. Consumer confidence has plummeted, and even those that don’t need to cut back are reigning in spending on discretionary items.

As with anything, there are two sides of that coin. For consignment stores, it’s a bonanza, as consumers look at second-hand goods as a way to continue to fulfill their needs while cutting spending substantially. Those ecopreneurs who decided they wanted to make money by recycling used clothing, sporting goods, printer cartridges, or any number of other goods, the weather is warm and sunny, and the gods of industry are smiling upon them.

There is also tremendous opportunity created by economic downturns. There are a variety of reasons for this:

1.A tremendous labor pool supply. With unemployment reaching towards 9%, there are a great deal of educated, talented, and sometimes desperate workers out there looking for work, with a growing number of them looking for work that has a greater purpose.
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Fighting Starts Again in the Congo Despite Efforts of UN Peacekeepers

John-Paul Maxfield — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 07:19:29 +0000

The BBC reports that fresh fighting has occurred between rebels and government troops in DR Congo as African leaders, and the UN’s Ban Ki-Moon began crisis talks. Click here to read the full article and learn more about the conflict.

Photo Credit: By Photo Credit: Julien Harneis via Flickr’s Media Commons