Have Consumers Forced Big Business to Go Green?

Big Business Going Green?
It's happening everywhere we look. Big Businesses are starting to realize that the consumers want Green. Consumers want to know that their purchase power is not damaging the planet we live on.
Among the top Green movers and shakers are companies like Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart is coming out with ads and promises about it's eco-friendly, sustainable plans. G.E. is coming out with ads and promises about brighter futures and less smoggy tomorrows. Mutual funds are starting to crop up that cater only to stocks of companies who are Green (Most notably perhaps is the Spectra Green Fund). All of a sudden it makes perfect business sense to use renewable energy, lessen unnecessary waste and emissions and to provide sustainable products.

Why?
Well, it seems that for today- it's the thing to do, going Green that is.
Businesses are realizing that they are viewed in a positive light when they are depicted as crusaders against the pollutants of yesterday. Businesses find that they have a much larger consumer base when they are eco-friendly. Consumers can feel good about shopping at places that tell them "we are working on the design for a facility that is carbon neutral", which says Wal-Mart about it's efforts to become eco friendly, or this vehicle uses "189,000 gallows of fuel less than its predecessor", which GE says about it's next generation Locomotive.
Also, the type of sustainability and efficiency that Green designs require has allowed businesses to realize that going Green doesn't have to cost money. In fact, more often then not, going Green makes designs more efficient, less costly and longer lasting. This what companies like Wal-Mart and G.E. realize, that green is not only what the consumers want- but it's a more efficient and stable way of doing business.