There’s a trade association for just about every profession, and a local business group in practically every town. These days, there are even professional groups for green business.

If you own or operate a green business, it can be a time consuming process to sift through your options and determine which groups actually offer value and which are little more than official greenwashing operations.

The Green Business Alliance has received publicity recently for its efforts to ‘greenify’ businesses. The organization focuses on helping companies implement sustainable strategies, as well as certifying business as green. The Green Business Alliance site lists off some simple steps:

Getting Started
- Complete a very brief enrollment form and pay your annual application fee (as low as $475.00).
- Receive an email with our Greenify Guidelines
- Work to implement the items on the list. Let us know any time you have questions.
- Fax or mail the signed Greenify Guidelines Submission page to Green Business Alliance.

Greenified...
Upon review and acceptance of the Greenify Guidelines, you will receive:
- Greenified Seal to proudly display on your company’s website
- Press Release you can distribute announcing you are a Greenified company
- Greenified plaque to prominently display in your office
- Window decals with the 2008 Greenified Seal
- Greenified wrist bands for green leaders
- Green Business Alliance lapel pins for your business executives
- Placement in the GreenVisibility Directory

For $475, you do seem to get plenty from the Green Business Alliance, but it seems to me that this operation doesn’t have a good certification method for green businesses. Hilary Kusel, the Executive Director of Green Business Alliance, responded to an email I sent requesting information. I had asked what methods the Green Business Alliance used to check that companies comply with the ‘greenify’ guidelines. In response, Hilary wrote, “Once a company completes the Guidelines to Greenify, the business leader submits to Green Business Alliance a signed and notarized document stating that they have implemented the guidelines.”

It’s good that the alliance is transparent, but there really is no guarantee that a company actually complies with their ‘greenify guidelines’ before sending in that form. Sure, it has to be notarized, but that just means that the person signing the form can prove that he is who he says he is.

If you turn in a check and sign a form, you’re practically certified immediately. Officially, you’re paying for an email with the Green Business Alliance’s Greenify Guidelines. From the sample on the Alliance’s site, these guidelines only cover the surface of developing a green business. Moreover, anyone capable of running a Google search can access the same sort of tips online for free.

Another red flag: Members of the Green Business Alliance must renew their membership yearly — although there appears to be no requirement to prove on an ongoing basis that a company has continued to adhere to the green guidelines.

I have no knowledge of Kusel’s motives, but there is a reason that organizations certifying companies usually require a more stringent form of proof of compliance (on-site visits, receipts, etc.). Without a further system of checking on member compliance, I would not trust that a company certified by the Green Business Alliance is truly green.

If you’re searching for an organization to help you develop your green business or to make your business more environmentally friendly, it may be worth looking closer to home. While there are benefits to working with national associations, groups accustomed to the challenges in your geographic area or with your particular industry may be of more use in the long run. There are state and city-level organizations throughout the U.S., and depending on your industry, there may even be a local green group just for your type of work.