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The Progress Group provides strategic planning and business and policy development in support of clean energy, sustainability and social justice issues. We focus on mobilizing triple bottom line companies to engage in the policy process – at the federal, state and local level – around these issues. And to accelerate change, we help develop partnerships among public agencies, private companies, unions and non-profits. We support organizations launch and then scale their innovative triple bottom line business ideas, sustainable products and policies into the broader marketplace. Believing that collaboration is essential to creating a greener economy, we create events that bring all the key stakeholders to the table. Our hands-on programs connect diverse organizations in ways that allow everyone to move beyond the cycle of blame and towards discovery of common values and purpose. The Progress Group convenes business and union leaders, social entrepreneurs, non-profits, policy makers, faith leaders and academics to further the connection between such issues as sustainable economic development, clean energy, corporate social responsibility and social entrepreneurship. Our ApproachThe Progress Group weaves diverse interests together. Today’s environmental and socioeconomic challenges present great opportunity. Americans are living in a time where our values and traditional measures of success are the subject of evolving debate and policy. The need to address climate change and alleviate poverty, while promoting clean energy must be tackled. Yet, no one sector – business, government or civil – has the resources to resolve these challenges alone. The emerging green economy calls for new types of partnerships and strategies that take into account the triple bottom line. This green economy will create new markets that benefit businesses and communities alike. But to make this happen, the private sector has to play an active role in crafting sustainable economic and energy policies. Toward this end, The Progress Group is dedicated to supporting progressive organizations expand their business model, build new partnerships and advocate for policies that move us toward a more equitable and environmentally sustainable economy. NetworkA national perspective, with no geographic bias. Our experience working on cutting, sometimes bleeding, edge issues has led to a network of collaborators with a keen awareness of emerging trends and opportunities. This network has been built from several decades working with socially responsible businesses and in clean energy sector at the international, national and state level. Having spent years living in New York City, Washington, D.C., New England and Colorado, Richard has established a national network of leading policy makers, financial and corporate leaders, entrepreneurs, labor, social justice and nonprofit leaders. StrategyWe understand trends and look for opportunities. It takes content and context to craft smart public policy. Knowing how the pieces fit together is crucial. So is looking at how the broader political and social environment affects a business plan or idea. Whether you want to restructure your business around core social and environmental principles, launch a new solar energy firm or develop a municipal program to link climate change abatement and economic development—strategy is critical. The Progress Group is in the business of providing srategic counsel through unique insight and political smarts. We understand the nuances that influence business as well as we do the drivers that influence government, non-profits or unions. Building PartnershipsWe look for common ground. The Progress Group builds effective partnerships by understanding how language impacts perceptions and priorities. We start by asking who has to be in the room and at the table. From there, we develop a set of ‘principles,’ identify expectations and help establish ground rules for how the partnership or coalition will function. In moving forward, the end goal must be clear, as should the desire to find a middle path, without diluting the overall goal. We specialize in recruiting companies to participate in clean energy policy with multistakeholder legislative and advocacy campaigns.
“Richard Eidlin and The Progress Group make the right metaphors in the right way with the right contacts in the green economy space.” Michael A. Peck, Founder, MAPA Group
Richard Eidlin, President of The Progress Group, has been connecting people and ideas for more than 25 years. During this time, he’s worked at the noisy intersection of business, politics and sustainable economic development. His specialty is linking business with environmental and community organizations around policy initiatives. Richard’s experience in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors (national and international) provides him with an appreciation of how the various sectors think and how to bridge their differences. Today, he is focused on building markets and promoting policies that help build a greener and more equitable economy. Richard is masterful at organizing conferences and programs that catalyze progressive action around issues of sustainability, environmental stewardship and capital mobilization. He has convened programs for the United Nations Environment Programme, The World Bank, The Apollo Alliance, AFL-CIO and many not-for-profits. These hands-on programs are experiential and results-oriented. They have one theme in common: convening forward-thinking people to accelerate progressive social and economic change Richard has been responsible for several notable firsts: developing a series of global energy and environmental investment conferences at the United Nations in the early 1990’s, helping start the Community Capital Bank in Brooklyn in the late 1980’s and pioneering regional business distribution models in the solar energy industry since the mid-1990’s. Advisory BoardsSenior Fellow, Global Urban Development |
Connecting Business & Community for the Greater Good