Funded by the pre-stimulus federal disaster preparedness funding, 8 months ago the University of Texas at San Antonio’s Institute for Economic Development launched the Sustainable Business Program. The SBP is designed to help businesses, with less than 500 employees, in Bexar, Nueces and San Patricio counties to operate sustainably.
The program has many areas of focus including: best practices, sustainable manufacturing, innovation, commercialization and disaster resiliency plans. These particular focuses, are also highlighted in the SBP’s seminar series which is designed as a sort of crash course for businesses who are unfamiliar with sustainable terminology and implementation. Other areas of advisement include: environmentally responsible purchasing, LEED certification, energy tracking and audits.
While serving as a liaison with TMAC and local SBDC’s, the SBP is also running a pilot program which offers financial support to firms looking to make sustainable investments. Though their support is limited to $5,000 their hope is that the cost sharing could possibly garner attention for its curricula principles enrolled in the program.
To help increase visibility between like-minded small businesses, SBP also offers a free monthly event which brings over a 100 people from varied backgrounds to network for 2 hours at a local restaurant. Future plans also include a brown bag luncheon, which will serve as yet another opportunity to build a support foundation for businesses interested in Profit, People and the Planet.
This is a great resource and asset for the business people of these counties. Their program reminds me of the SBDC at the University of Texas at Arlington, who also focuses on sustainability.
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