Betsy Long: Alleged wrong-way drunk driver is green-biz entrepreneur

Betsy Long.

It's a far cry from the portrait of Long presented by GreenEdgeDenver.com, a site designed to promote environmentally friendly businesses.

The site lists Long as the president of Sources Sustainable Business Solutions, LLC. Here's how she describes herself in a "Who We Are" section:

As president of Source SBS, Betsy is focused on combining her planning, training, and communications expertise with her knowledge of the key components of successful sustainability strategies to assist clients with maximizing the return on their sustainability investments. By providing assistance in developing strategy, building relationships with key stakeholders, and effectively managing projects, she guides business leaders to the intersection of sustainable business initiatives and a healthier bottom line.

Her current clients include Connected Organizations for a Responsible Economy (CORE), the Denver Office of Economic Development, and the University of Colorado Denver Business School.

Betsy holds an M.B.A. from the University of Colorado Denver, where she was the first to graduate from the "Managing for Sustainability" specialty track. She also holds a B.S. in biology and zoology from Colorado State University.

On Green Edge Denver, Betsy will be joined by leaders in the local green business community who will share their expertise, experience, and ideas via guest blog posts, interviews, and other contributions.

In another website feature, entitled "Programs, Plans, and Projects -- Part 1," Long presents herself as a high-powered player in the Denver green community:

As a member of the Greener Denver Business team, I'm often asked about local and state green business-related initiatives, and how they all relate to one another. Fortunately for us, we live in a place where answering this question is no simple matter! So, I'd like to kickoff this Programs, Plans, and Projects series by focusing on a summary of the information I've gathered on the City of Denver's activities:

Greenprint Denver:
What: Action agenda for sustainable development for the City and County of Denver.
How: Focuses on 10 key action items focused primarily on city-wide waste reduction, responsible use of resources, and thoughtful economic development
Business Notes:

• Guiding principles include support of sustainability as "a core business value" and a commitment to "partner with businesses to achieve broad impact"
• Goals include engaging business in energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction goals

Mayor Hickenlooper received numerous requests from residents and businesses regarding how they could best support the Greenprint Denver action items. These requests, combined with City's commitment under the US Mayors Climate Protection Program leads us to...

Denver Climate Action Plan:
What: Plan for reducing Denver's 1990 per capita greenhouse gas emissions by 10% by 2012
How: Provides a series of recommendations for individuals, businesses, and the City
Business Notes:

• The first recommendation on the list, "Corporate and Residential Climate Challenges" calls for these two groups combined to contribute 28% of the overall reductions.
• Other recommendations stand to affect business activities, including energy conservation incentives, enhanced recycling programs, and energy efficiency standards for new and remodeled buildings.

Clearly both of these initiatives have strong ties to local business, which leads us to...

Greener Denver Business:
What: One component of the Denver Office of Economic Development's Greener Denver Program, a multi-faceted approach to greening the local economy, and supporting the goals of Greenprint Denver.
How: Provides no-cost support to local businesses in greening their operations. Includes free courses taught by local experts, an online community, and strategic networks focused on industry-wide initiatives.
Business Notes: Greener Denver Business provides opportunities to gain one-stop access to useful local green business resources through simplified access to information, local experts, and peer networking opportunities.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but hopefully it provides you with a jump start on increasing your understanding of the City's various initiatives!

Long's ambitions for GreenEdgeDenver.com appear to have been cut short. The top item on the page announces an official launch of May 14, 2009 -- but no additional info is presented.

And now, she's got much more serious distractions.