The Cast Iron Park Bench

Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co (KKR) was set up in the mid 70’s and to begin with their specialty was in highly leveraged transactions. But only a year ago they have assembled a unique green proposal that concentrates not simply on how lucrative an enterprise is, but likewise on how environmentally aware each of the firms in their portfolio are.

When Henry Kravis from KKR and the non-profit Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) joined forces only a year ago green matters all of a sudden became a mainstream topic. Issues like hazardous chemicals and overblown water consumption are high on their agenda.

Eco-efficiency (the phrase was initially submitted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development) is the formula applied to achieve these targets, applying policies like reducing the intensity of materials, increasing the durability of products and recycling programs. Although the program was an enormous success, people simply did not recognize how significant the effects truly were until Ken Mehlman, the executive responsible for the Green Portfolio Project, carried out the review of the first year. Only at that point did Ken notice that the project wasn’t solely cutting impact on the environment, but in addition it was helping to save business concerns a great deal of money, and consequently the program was almost an immediate success. Almost all of the firms held by Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co and Ken Mehlman nowadays are involved in eco-efficiency techniques. If you consider that the whole portfolio is valued at 86 billion dollars, you can imagine what an enormous achievement this really was. Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co with the Environmental Defense Fund alongside Ken Mehlman are further developing the initial project. For instance, KKR got together with the EDF’s Climate Corps Program a venture that teaches MBA students how to introduce cost-effective, environmentally friendly principles.

KKR and Ken Mehlman have taken the time to create metrics that measure and manipulate resources. These metrics can assess a company’s environmental impact and discover any underlying problems.

Henry Kravis, the KKR, and the Environmental Defense Fund really are pioneers when it comes to advancing green business techniques. These radical concepts have set a benchmark for companies in every industry and demonstrated that making profits need not entail the hefty price of negatively impacting our planet.