ECO ICONS

Working Mother, Oct 2009 by Thomas, Kara

2009 Working Mother

We salute these 12 shining stars of environment-friendly practices.

ALLIANCE FOR CLIMATE PROTECTION

This nonpartisan advocacy group appeals directly to American families to help solve our climate crisis. Case in point: Its new We Campaign challenges high school students to create products that can reduce global warming.

APPLE

In its ongoing efforts to be green, last year Apple began offering customers estimates of products' greenhouse gas emissions. Now comes the MacBook Air: Free of mercury and highly recyclable, the laptop earned the highest rating for electronics using the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT), which was developed by using an Environmental Protection Agency grant.

BAYER

With ambitious long-term plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Bayer has allocated more than a billion dollars to invest in "climate-relevant R&D and projects" from 2008 to 2010.

CLOROX

Clorox has made eco-cleaning affordable and accessible with its Green Works product line. The company just introduced a Natural Laundry Detergent and Stain Remover made with plant- and mineral-based ingrethents.

DELL

Here, eco-consciousness is more than a decade old. Its Green by Design products include the EPEAT Gold Certified Studio Hybrid Desktop, which is 80 percent smaller than standard desktops and uses 70 percent less power.

DISNEYLAND RESORT

Mickey and the gang are into eco: The park's railroad and riverboat are fueled by biodiesel made from recycled cooking oil, and its resort trams are powered by clean-burning compressed natural gas.

S.C. JOHNSON & SON

With its Greenlist rating system for raw materials, this longtime green-thinking company is improving product ingrethents and formulas to create healthier homes.

SONY

Having founded the first national sponsored electronics recycling program, Sony this year introduced in-store drop boxes where consumers can safely discard small electronics.

UNITED HEALTH GROUP

Its newly constructed headquarters in Minnesota just received the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, thanks to its low-water fixtures, natural light, ergonomie workstations and energy efficiency.

WAL-MART

Its stores offer 500-plus budget- and earth-friendly products. Wal-Mart plans to develop a worldwide sustainable-product index, striving for higher-quality products with lower costs to consumers.

WASTE MANAGEMENT

Think of landfills as anti-green? Hidden in all that waste is renewable energy. Landfill gas can be harnessed to produce clean energy, and Waste Management supplies this gas to more than 100 beneficial-use gas projects.

ZARBEE'S

ZarBee's Children's Cough Syrupwith a base of antioxidant-rich honey - offers a natural, drug-free alternative for soothing kids' coughs and sore throats.

-KARA THOMAS