U.S.'s First Eco-Intelligent Bank. Yeah, there's one of those!

Boston-based Wainwright Bank was selected as one of the first eco-intelligent banks by SustainLINK, which is a provider of sustainability scorecards for financial services providers. A sustainability scorecard is a new measurement for most industries and it is increasing in its need and benefits in the trend to increase reporting of sustainability.

Glimmers of companies starting to look up at what the ruckus is all about are starting to appear across industries, spurred by environmental think tanks and organizations engaged in CSR dialogue. In related news from the financial industry, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) today began a review of its social and environmental policies and its disclosure policy, which were introduced in 2006. These policies dictate what businesses and governments IFC partners with to foster sustainable development. For why this is a big deal, here is a number: For 2009, IFC's new investments total a whopping $15 billion--expected to play an important part in addressing the current downturn. Expected to evolve keeping in mind recent global environmental developments, these standards are anticipated to be revised by January, 2011.