An icon in the world of design, Herman Miller has also been applauded for efforts related to social and environmental responsibility. However, until last week, the company had never released an official report documenting company policies related to these actions.

You can read the entire report (PDF) or, for the time starved, here are a few of the social and environmental highlights from the press release.

• Waste reduction programs were recognized by the U.S. EPA.
• More than 27.5% of energy came from renewable resources.
• All new products were evaluated according to the company’s Design for the Environment protocol.
• 33,000 hours of volunteer work by employees.
• One of the country’s top ten companies for supplier diversity.

Enterprise has agreed to plant one million trees per year for the next fifty years in an announced partnership with the National Arbor Day Foundation and the U.S. Forest Service. Each year the National Arbor Day Foundation will identify tree planting projects and Enterprise will fund the planting of one million of the needed trees.

In addition to funding this project, the founder of Enterprise and his wife donated $25 million to fund the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute for Renewable Fuels.

50 Million Tree Pledge web site.

Buying solar isn’t exactly like buying a new car these days. Price transparency is virtually non-existent and asking friends what they paid for their solar installation probably won’t get you too far since most folks haven’t made the jump yet.

Enter Go Green Solar, a new online marketplace designed to bring homeowners and contractors together in a reverse auction format. Homeowners post the details of their desired solar installation and registered contractors bid for the business. Once the price gets to an acceptable level, buyers accept the bid and everyone is happy. Contractors pay Go Green Solar a 3% commission and the homeowner pays nothing.

Visit Go Green Solar.

Long the target of environmentalists, the bottled water industry may begin to see greater resistance as people begin to realize the amount of waste associated with bottled water. Not only does it create tremendous amounts of packaging, but the production and shipment involve massive amounts of energy and raw materials.

However, executives from Coca Cola make a good point. “Consumers are making a choice of bottled water versus another beverage,” says Greg Koch, director of global water stewardship for Coca-Cola. “Do I want a Coca-Cola? Do I want a coffee? Or juice? Or is it happy hour? There’s a time and place for bottled water, as there is for milk and juice and beer.”

Is bottled water really that wasteful if you drink it when the alternative would be another packaged drink? The problem arises when people drink it when there is a plentiful source of clean water (home, office, etc.) and crack open a new bottle instead of using a refillable container.

Story from Fortune.

We’ve just reduced prices on Final Sale Items and you can now find clothing from your favorite designers at up to 75% off.

Final sale items cannot be returned for a refund, but can be exchanged for a different size or item.

Shop Final Sale now, as inventory is limited.

From the land of mega salaries, chartered jets, and incredible cars, comes the first glimpse of environmentally responsible building and recycling. The new Washington Nationals (baseball for you non-sports fans) stadium will be the first pro sports stadium to be LEED certified and will be followed closely by the new home of the Minnesota Twins (also baseball) which is expected to gain similar certification.

Some other notables in pro sports:

• Seattle Mariners recycle 97% of the plastic drink containers they sell.
• Philadelphia Eagles have eliminated 6.4 million pounds of greenhouse gases since launching the “Go Green” program in 2003.
• AT&T Park (ballpark of the S.F. Giants) will soon have 600 solar panels.

Story from the Arizona Republic.

If everything goes according to plan, residents of New York City are about to see a lot more green in their lives. With the city is on pace to see a population increase of 1 million residents in the next two decades, and carbon emissions jump by 30 percent, Bloomberg is intent on laying out a plan that reduces the strain on the environment and infrastructure before it’s too late.

The plan calls for fees to be paid in order to drive in certain parts of Manhattan and the planting of 1 million trees in the next ten years. The trees will be planted along city streets, in parks, and in public lots. The canopy provided by trees can cool the surface temperature up to 3.5 degrees, remove pollution, and reduce ozone.

Story from the Associated Press.

In a move that we hope signals that Ford is going to take its impact on the environment a bit more seriously, the company has announced the promotion of Susan Cischke to head the environmental group. Most significant is that she now reports directly to the CEO, an org chart win for all who fear that she will be nothing more than a figurehead relegated to canned quotes in press releases.

Ford ranked behind only DaimlerChrysler in average fuel economy in 2006. With a strong dependence on SUVs, Ford certainly has some work to do.

Story from Business Week.

Ecomedia and IMG have teamed up to produce a new celebrity home makeover show focused on helping the rich and famous “green” their homes. The first of four episodes is set to debut on Earth Day and current plans call for the show to be a quarterly series.

The first show features the Los Angeles home of Ron Livingston (Sex and the City, Office Space). Other shows will help add a green twist to the homes of Alison Janney (West Wing) and Patrick Warburton (Rules of Engagement).

For show details and schedule, visit the EcoZone web site.

Expanding on a decade-long commitment to environmental programs, The Home Depot has launched Eco Options. The program classifies eco-friendly options so that they are easily identifiable to shoppers at the world’s largest home improvement store.

The program covers 2,500 products in categories as diverse as wood, light bulbs, appliances, home and garden, and more.

In celebration of Earth Day, visit your local Home Depot on April 22^nd and receive a free CFL.

Eco Options on The Home Depot web site.