B Corporations, a new type of corporate structure, use the power of business to solve social and environmental problems as well as make money.

When Derek Yach, a former executive director of the World Health Organization and an expert on nutrition, took a new job with PepsiCo (PEP), his mother worried that he'd lost his mind. "You are aware they sell soda and chips, and these things cause you to get unhealthy and fat?" she asked him. Yach's former colleagues in public health circles murmured similar concerns.

Worldwide, 2,706 buildings have been declared "green" by the U.S. Green Building Council. More properly, they've been awarded platinum, gold, or silver designations, or merely certified, under the council's Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) ranking system. Of these winners, barely two dozen are head offices of big-name employers, with McDonald's (MCD) among the latest to join this elite group in April 2009.

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U.S. companies may be contributing unwittingly to the exploitation of workers imported from India and elsewhere by tech-services outfits.

A focus on short-term profits to the exclusion of all else led to the current financial crisis. And guess what? Companies with the steadiest moral compasses have sailed through it.

Dancing Deer Bakery in Boston has found a winning recipe for entrepreneurial success. It's making money for its founder, employees, and charitable organizations. Each of its 70 workers in the inner-city neighborhood of Roxbury receive health and disability insurance, educational reimbursement, retirement plans, and a financial stake in the company.

Dancing Deer's goods, including its popular molasses clove cookies, are sold by major retailers such as Whole Foods and Williams-Sonoma. It donates 35% of the proceeds from its line of cakes and cookies to education, housing, and job training for the poor.

Not really sure what all this talk about corporate social responsibility means? Kath Burke offers this essential guide.

What is it?

Good question. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) seems to have attained all the holistic mystery of a Hollywood new-age religion. And since there are almost as many definitions of CSR as there are companies who say they’re doing it, the European Commission’s take seems as good as any. Brussels bureaucrats define CSR as “a concept whereby companies decide voluntarily to contribute to a better society and a cleaner environment”.

For more information in business structures, see the Small Business Administration's tutorial.

These guidelines are a document of conduct that IBM has established for itself to help it comply with good ethical practices and the law.

The national wave of auto dealership closures has come crashing down on thousands of people who are on the hook for used-car loans that dealers were supposed to absolve.

When a car buyer still owes money on a vehicle he is trading in, the dealer promises to pay off the outstanding loan, then resells the vehicle. But as more dealers go out of business, some are sticking consumers with the bill. Lenders can then go after the previous owner who thought the debt was paid, or repossess the car from the new owner who assumed it came with clear title.

Please tell me that "green" isn't a fad.

I don't know about you, but for the past two years I have been on green overload. Everywhere I turned, read, listened, and watched, the race to say "I am greener than you" has been on for individuals and businesses alike.

But that was then. With a struggling economy and oil prices falling fast, I think we will soon see just how real all those green aspirations are. And I for one sure hope the commitment to the environment and green technology is enduring. Unfortunately, I am not so sure that's the case. I just read the results of a recent corporate responsibility survey conducted by Business for Social Responsibility and Cone LLC and found them troubling.