Grubb & Ellis Company, one of the largest commercial real estate services and investment companies, released its 2010 Real Estate Forecast, expecting the recovery of commercial real estate to begin in 2011. “The national economy has begun a slow and cautious recovery, but the labor market, which often lags the broader economy, will turn around only gradually with sustained improvement unlikely before the second half of 2010. Because commercial real estate lags the labor market, it still has a ways to go before reaching its own low point,” said Bob Bach, senior vice president, chief economist of Grubb & Ellis. Read More

With Thanksgiving only two days away, we wanted to post this story about Greening your Thanksgiving by Sierra Club’s Cara Longpre. Read More

FedEx and UPS are both becoming green. Are they doing it to help the environment or as a better business practice? An article by Marc Gunther explores both UPS and FedEx’s sustainability practices. Regardless of who is “greener,” the fact that major companies are competing to be more environmentally efficient and sensitive makes everyone win. Read More

Jim Witkin of the New York Times and Green Inc. recently interviewed Eric G. Olson a management consultant and author of the coming book “Better Green Business.” Read More

There’s an interesting article published recently about “earn-outs,” by merger-and-acquisition guru Scott Lochner. Read More

Applied Materials is one of the most important U.S. companies you’ve probably never heard of. It makes the machines that make the microchips that go inside your computer. The chip business, though, is volatile, so in 2004, Mark Splinter, Applied Materials’ CEO, decided to add a new business line to take advantage of the company’s nanotechnology capabilities- making the machines that make solar panels. Read More

Ever wonder how that little radio you bought for less than $5 at Radio Shack was made? Where did the materials come from, who assembled it, how did it make it all the way to your local store for less than five bucks, and where does it go when you throw it away? Read More

I recently read a statistic from the National Association of Home Builders that between 40 to 50% of homes to be built in 2010 are expected to be green. With the word “green” being thrown around a lot these days, I decided to talk to Keith Rodgers of Rome Construction in South Carolina. Rodgers has been in construction for over 23 years and has helped lead the charge towards sustainable home building in the South since 2004 when he built the first Earth Craft (green building standard) home in South Carolina. Read More

I think that everyone interested in alternative energy should take the opportunity to visit the Solar Power International Conference. Read More

We all know that our economy has had its ups and downs, and we are definitely in a down cycle! I was just at an investment conference and there are a few data points that I would like to share with you. A boom is a period of economic growth while a bust is a long term cycle of contraction. From 1854 to 1945 that boom/bust lasted 21 months. Now fast forward to after WW II and the expansions have lasted about 50 months and the contractions have lasted 11 months. Read More