LANSING –Business leaders and environmentalists will gather April 25 in East Lansing to discuss ways to “green” Michigan companies and grow the state’s economy.           

Representatives from more than 150 companies will meet in the Sustainable Business Conference to talk about strategies for being environmentally friendly.  Some companies with success stories to share will help other businesses learn how to follow in their footsteps.

“Having lost nearly 300,000 manufacturing jobs in the last five to six years, Michigan is really being challenged on how it can maintain its standard of life,” said Bill Stough, chief executive officer of the Sustainable Research Group (SRG) in Grand Rapids and a planner of the event. 

SRG advises companies on how to develop and implement sustainable business practices.

“This forum’s going to help us learn how businesses can help lead the transformation of our economy based on smart businesses that help solve major environmental and social problems,” Stough said.

For example, representatives from ECD Ovonics, a Rochester Hills company that produces solar products, will discuss how businesses can be green and succeed. 

John Couretas of Ovonics said the company is expanding.  It plans to open two more plants in Greenville later this year.

There’s plenty of potential in Michigan to grow clean technology and boost the economy, he added.

“Alternative energy is one of the hottest sectors going forward,” Couretas said.  “We’re just at the beginning of what promises to be a high-growth industry, and there’s no reason that can’t happen in Michigan.”

Michigan offers Ovonics and other companies talented people and great universities, he said.

The forum is a collaborative effort by the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), environmental groups and business leaders.

Laura Rauwerda, a DEQ analyst, said, “We’ll not only be looking at business in terms of profit and economy. The focus is going to be on promoting advocacy of sustainable business practices throughout the state and potential policy support.”

Executives from General Motors Corp., the office furniture industry and suppliers to the auto and office furniture industries are expected to attend.

Thomas Gladwin, a professor of corporate strategy and international business at the University of Michigan, will speak about sustainability and how to best infuse it into new enterprises.

Stough said forum leaders hope to develop a “business road map” by the end of the day-long event to share with policymakers and corporate leaders.  It would identify key strategies used by sustainable companies and suggest how policymakers can help.

For more information on the conference, visit www.michigan.gov/deqworkshops.