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A study released earlier this year that received only moderate attention was conducted by Deloitte Resources.
It was designed to capture the views of American consumers and businesses about their attitudes and practices when it comes to sustainability and the use of natural resources.
Referred to as the Deloitte Resources 2017 Study, this annual study was based on their findings for calendar year 2016.
As to businesses, the researchers conducted more than 700 online interviews with what were termed "business decision makers." These decision makers all worked in companies with more than 250 employees and were in a variety of different industries.
"The gist of what they found," says Stephen Ashkin, CEO of Sustainability Dashboard Tools. "Was that companies are getting much more involved in resource and energy management. In fact, it has been increasing in increments for nearly a decade."
As to why these companies are moving in this direction, 54 percent said cutting costs was the primary factor.
"However, they found something else evolving," Ashkin says. "According to the study, more than eight in ten now say they are shifting from merely focusing on cost reduction to risk reduction."
Reducing risk, he says, is how companies can be more resilient to unexpected price increases in energy, fuel, and water, or survive significant storms, such as the recent hurricanes.
Among the other findings of the study were the following:
"On the consumer side," Ashkin says, "the researchers found that Millennials are strongly behind sustainability initiatives. They promote and share innovations on social media and are willing to put their money where their values are."
