The Big SHFT: Bill Ford, Environmental Industrialist

In 2000, Bill Ford spearheaded a sustainability report for the company his great-grandfather founded nearly a century earlier. “Sustainability issues are neither incidental nor avoidable,” he wrote in the report, “they are at the heart of our business.” At the time, the green ideas were not well-received. Today, in the wake of rising fuel prices and global economic crisis, they are at the center of Ford Motor Company’s strategy for success. 

Under Bill’s leadership, Ford has repositioned itself as the auto industry’s sustainability leader. From incorporating biodegradable materials in vehicle interiors and introducing eco-minded vehicles like hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and EVs, to improving energy efficiency at the factory level, Bill has radically transformed the way his company operates and the cars it produces.

“We want to be green, global and high-tech,” he says. “We are using our global resources to produce innovative technology for safer, cleaner, more fuel-efficient vehicles.”