Green businesses from the experience of 16 entrepreneurs from the Region Andina of Colombia

Abstract

This article consolidates a study conducted between 2022 and 2024 by researchers and research assistants from the Faculty of Economic, Administrative, and Accounting Sciences at Universidad Libre. The research is based on the analysis of multiple green business cases located in the Andean Region of Colombia and relies on interviews conducted with the entrepreneurs of these businesses.. The aim was to identify the challenges, opportunities, and socio-environmental responsibility practices in alignment with the nature of each business initiative.

In the first version of the study, seven businesses were analyzed; in this second version, nine additional cases have been included, totaling sixteen green businesses in the analysis. Among the main findings, several challenges for green businesses in the region were identified, such as a lack of government interest and support, financial difficulties due to a lack of trust in these type of businesses, high costs and bureaucracy in the creation of sustainable enterprises, as well as the perception that government initiatives remain only theoretical and disregard the National Green Business Plan, which limits their participation in proposed strategies. Despite these obstacles, they recognize opportunities in long-term profitability and n generating social and environmental value. Likewise, concerning the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the interviewees identified that their businesses significantly contribute to advancement of SDGs 6, 12, 13, and 15 in the “planet” category, and SDG 8, int the "Prosperity" category. They emphasized the need to incorporate environmental values into businesses in general and to promote a cultural shift towards sustainability.