"If you want to reduce energy costs, asking people to turn off lights won't cost anything. But changing lightbulbs and installing motion detectors to get larger savings will clearly take some capital. The ROI will be high and the payoff fast, but it still requires some up-front expense.

"The critical distinction here is between costs and investments. ... The logic for going green is no different from the logic for pursuing other business strategies. Companies look to drive profitability, innovation, customer loyalty, employee engagement, and so on. But unlike with most other strategies, the external forces driving green thinking make this topic unique and unavoidable."

From: "Green Cost-Cutting: Five Ways to Get Lean Now," a 30-page special report excerpted from Green Recovery, forthcoming book from Harvard Business Publishing. Click here to download the free excerpt.