The U.S. Navy can teach businesses a thing or two about going green, says Dave Johnson at bNet. Citing a Harvard Business Review ^[1] report, Johnson notes that the Navy is leading the way toward energy independence. But this isn’t an easy mission—nor one without risks.

Still in the process of transformation, the Navy example offers some valuable lessons for business. They include:

1. Link “going green” to core business goals.
2. Highlight the benefits of your green initiative in real dollar amounts.
3. Demonstrate the value of the initiative to employees. Will it help them do their jobs more efficiently and effectively?
4. Silence the doubters. As the Navy SEAL team recently showed in their take-down of Osama bin Laden, the best way to quite the nay-sayers is to prove them wrong.

Read more at bNet ^[2].