From sharing news or quality content, to communicating with friends and communities of interest, the micro-blogging platform Twitter has something for everybody. And there are few communities of interest that have swarmed around Twitter with more fury than the business community. Granted, maybe 'business community' is too large a group to even classify as a community, but 'green business community' isn't. On that note, we bring you the Earth & Industry 16 must-follows on Twitter.
Now, this is not exactly scientific, but it's not arbitrary either. It should also be noted that we left out companies and focused on individuals unless they are in the business of writing about green business. And, of course, this is by no means the definitive list, so please leave your suggestions in the comments below to help make it one. Without further ado and in alphabetical order:
@adamwerbach Named the youngest-ever national president of the Sierra Club in 1996, Adam Werbach is now a business trategist tweeting tips for running a sustainable business. Author of new Harvard Biz book, Strategy for Sustainability.
@AlexSteffen While not strictly a 'green business' guy Alex Steffen of World Changing delves deep into the underlying problems at the root of sustainability. This undoubtedly means he approaches the world of business at multiple levels, but from a different perspective than most 'business people.'
@britesprite Chris Milton is a UK sustainability journalist and writer. Chris says he's never met the opportunity to write a feature he didn't like: "The thing is everyone, every business, is a feature waiting to happen. Because everyone, every business, is in some way unique and ground breaking."
@DavidCoethica David Conor's bio tells us that he knows a thing or two about CSR and ethical business. Conor is a sustainable business strategist, environment specialist, speaker and now blogger, using Coethica "to make the world a better place to live and work."
@DCarli Don Carli's Twitter bio says he's into sustainability, CSR, green, advertising, media, design, marketing and tech. If that weren't enough, Carli is Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Communication, a nonprofit working to develop "the next generation of communication and media leaders required to create green jobs, foster environmental restoration and improve quality of life in the communities they touch."
@fabianpattberg Blogging at FabianPattberg.com, among other places, Fabian Pattberg writes prolifically on the topics of sustainability, corporate social Responsibility and the use of social networking for business and individuals.
@gfriend Gil Friend is an engaging speaker, strategic sustainability thought leader and consultant. Gil is the CEO of Natural Logic Inc. and author The Truth About Green Business.
@GreenBizTweets The man operating the switches of the the official and informal source of green business news and conversation from GreenBiz.com is Hugh Byrne. The GreenBiz social media machine is much more than a twitterfeed of the network's wide-ranging content, Hugh has made curation and promotion of others' good content just as important.
@greenskeptic Blogging the new green economy as The Green Skeptic since 2004, Scott Anderson lends his expertise on cleantech and social-entrepreneurial ventures. When he's not busy trying to win converts on Fox Business News, Scott likes to spend some of his time shooting hoops and following the Boston Red Sox.
@GreenSmith Paul Smith describes himself as a "Sustainable/Green Biz Consultant. Digital PR. Blogger for Triple Pundit. Ghost Writer for ____. Social Media Demystifier. Brain for hire." Check out some of Paul's work at Greensmith Consulting.
@jetsongreen Preston Koerner at Jetson Green covers green building, sustainable architecture and small-scale renewable energy better than pretty much anyone in the space.
@Makower Joel Makower describes himself as "Founder of GreenBiz.com; bestselling author; speaker, adviser, entrepreneur in green business, green marketing, clean tech, blah blah blah." We couldn't have said it better, Joel.
@MarcGunther Writer, speaker and consultant on business and sustainability, Mark Gunther is a regular contributor at GreenBiz and a leading voice in the sustainable business. You can find some of Marc's work at MarcGunther.com.
@sustainablog Jeff McIntire-Strasburg is no stranger to green social media. Writing about sustainability and green business at Sustainablog since 2004, Jeff still finds time to teach college students how to write in sentences longer than 140 characters.
@TriplePundit No, not a person, but I couldn't omit TriplePundit from this list as it. Led by founder, Nick Aster, Triple Pundit has grown into one of the most insightful and reliable sources of green business news and featured content on the Web.
@WillSarni Will Sarni is Founder and CEO of DOMANI Sustainability Consulting and a regular contributor here at Earth & Industry. Will's expertise on water issues, brownfields remediation and sustainability reporting strategy.
Of course, you can also follow @earthindustry on Twitter. Earth & Industry focuses on the intersection of people, planet and profit, leading the discussion on how companies can maximize profits while being responsible citizens of this earth. Tweets from the Earth & Industry writing team, anchored by editor Tim Hurst (@ecopolitologist)
See also:
Women to follow on twitter for green business
Who to follow on twitter for environmental politics.
Photo: Spencer E Holtaway via flickr/Creative Commons
Follow Timothy B. Hurst on Twitter: 
Hi there,
Nice list to start with! Maybe you might mention me too!
Mario Vellandi, community engagement manager at Sustainable Life Media @slmcommunity
Also, you might want to mention our speaker, columnist, author, and pal Andrew Winston @greenadvantage
Cheers
Wow. Thanks for the honoured inclusion Tim!
There are some truly great and inspirational people on your list and I’d recommend them all, plus many more not included such as these:
http://twitter.com/christinearena – Award winning author
http://twitter.com/realizedworth – Corp volunteering / CSR
http://twitter.com/elainecohen – CSR reporting
http://twitter.com/timberland_jeff – CEO at Timberland
http://twitter.com/ecofashionista – top eco fashion info
Thanks for the suggestions David!
I’m pretty sure that I don’t deserve to be on the same list as Gil Friend and Joel Makower, but I do write for TriplePundit.
I do a combination of green business, technology and other interesting related topics at http://www.twitter.com/stevepuma
Cheers,
Steve Puma
Thanks Tim for including me here. I am honored!
Thanks for a great list. I’d like to suggest adding @MadawaskaDoors as a green supplier, their products can be used in the greening of new or existing buildings.
Great list and a wealth of information is available by following these people!
If you have the chance, give us a follow at http://www.twitter.com/GreenEnergyNews for a variety of sustainable news, green product reviews, and the latest in renewable energy developments. Now featuring original HD video content and launching a weekly news program (video) covering all things green in early 2010.
That’s a nice list, but why are they all men?
elsameow, I’m really glad you brought that up as I only realized the male-ness of the list this morning. Sometimes, I feel like Stephen Colbert in that I don’t see gender (like Colbert says he doesn’t see the color of people’s skin).
But in all seriousness, you raise an excellent point and it was certainly not intentional. Perhaps fodder for a follow-up. Thanks again.
Alright, elsameow, I made the list and gave you a shout-out:
http://earthandindustry.com/2010/03/the-16-women-you-must-follow-on-twitter-for-green-business/
Thanks, Timothy! Great list… just when I thought I knew them all!
Here’s a woman (me). @IC4ME — eco views, news and activism (Your Voice Counts #yvc activism especially today so check it out).
CHEERS
A woman, but not truly for green “business”. Are there any women tweeting green biz? I’d like to know and will find out!
How about @GreenWed @WorkingforGreen @TaigaCompany
Great, thanks for the start, Lynn.
Great list!
Please follow http://www.twitter.com/greensamurai
From a female sustainability colleague:
http://twitter.com/DoctorLorraine
and a few more of my favorites:
Annie Leonard @storyofstuff
Jennifer Woofter @jenniferwoofter
Vandana Shiva @drvandanashiva
Amy Fetzer @amyfetzer
Shari Aaron @saaron
Great suggestions, Lorraine! Now following you. Couldn’t seem to locate @amyfetzer
Cheers!
And the wefollow survey says these are tho most “influential” sustainability Twitters:
http://wefollow.com/twitter/sustainability
Try this for Amy Fetzer
http://twitter.com/amyfetzer
You should add @GreenBureau http://www.gbb.org
Happy to see I’m already following many of these men, and the few that I’m not….I’ll start to do so now!
Thanks for the great list!
Great list/resource and follow up comments for “add’s”.
Thanks for the shout out! We’ll keep ‘em coming!
Here you will find some light-hearted and some heavy-hearted green news, tips and advice. http://twitter.com/girltweetsgreen.com
SORRY – made a goof on the above link. I can’t even blame it on Monday! Hope you still follow!
BTW, I love this site – great connections!!
http://twitter.com/girltweetsgreen