Squint hard enough and you might be able to make out traces of this past New Year's Eve in the rearview window, which means there's a good chance you're probably still grappling with your new year's resolutions as well. For the overwhelming majority, those probably take the form of something to do with fitness, diet or cigarettes, but as the news (and weather) reports remind us on an ever-increasing basis, there's no shortage of alternate paths to self-improvement. While pro-bono charity work has been a part of agency culture for decades now, it's no longer the only way for a company to make a positive mark. From technological advancements to environmental regressions, the changing face of the world has opened up all kinds of new opportunities for businesses to give something back.

The good news is that some initiatives make just as much sense from a business standpoint as a philanthropic one. In a Powerpoint presentation delivered during the 2010 Town Hall panel at last October's Boards Summit, Taxi president Paul Lavoie predicted that, in four years, success would become synonymous with an environmentally-friendly outlook.

Indeed, according to CEO John Hackney, the London-based firm Euro RSCG Skybridge's decision to pursue carbon neutral status was driven as much by business concerns as by his own conscience. "We had that kind of policy that [was] very limp and non-specific," he recalls. "It was fine in its intention but it was no greater than that. I felt like we needed a stronger, more robust environmental policy because, on a purely self-serving basis, people were demanding it... we were being asked more and more about what our environmental position was."

Using an office move as motivation to get up to standard, Euro RSCG Skybridge tapped energy-conservation consultants CarbonNeutral to perform an analysis of the company's carbon levels and make recommendations on how to reduce them. "That meant lighting systems in rooms that turned themselves off when you're not there, no paper towels in the washrooms, doing away with company cars, giving people ability to use subsidized public transport - things like that," says Hackney. From there, Skybridge addressed its remaining usage by entering into CarbonNeutral's offset program, effectively a subsidized tree-planting project.

By staking its entire business model on carbon neutral and other eco-friendly initiatives, Santa Monica's Instant Karma Films is taking that commitment one step further. And, with recent statistics pointing to the entertainment business as Los Angeles' second-largest polluter, it's not a moment too soon. Since opening in July and promptly shooting the first ever carbon-neutral spot (for Maybelline in New York), Instant Karma has evangelized the carbon-neutral production experience while simultaneously exploring other approaches to production. "We're using alternative, more climate-friendly fuel, and hybrid vehicles and generators," says president Tanya Hunger. "Production with a conscience is what we're about."

Designed in conjunction with Carbonfund.org, Instant Karma has even created a production-specific carbon calculator for other companies to use. Based on a typical bidding form, it considers things like shooting days, crew size, vehicle types, total miles driven, electricity usage, air travel time and film processing costs to arrive at its final offset tally.

Carbon offset schemes have some vocal detractors, but Hackney dismisses the arguments outright. "People say all you're doing is passing your guilt on to another organization or buying your guilt away," he says. "The way you should look at it is that every company and every household is going to have some degree of carbon production because it's impossible not to. You have to try and reduce it as much as you can."

While global warming is on everyone's mind, other companies are using their resources to help areas of the world we don't pay enough attention to. The LA-based, IOWA Interactive offshoot Wiredrive lends its digital content management services free of charge to a charity called Video Volunteers, which empowers civilians in India with film equipment. "We're jaded by the power of media because we have that luxury," says Wiredrive president Bill Sewell. "When you hear stories about women producing their own documentaries and forcing the hand of local governments to improve their roads or schools, it feels phenomenal."

It's also proof that the advent of inexpensive technology is opening doors for companies to enter into new kinds of charitable partnerships. "They're shooting videos that they can post to their Wiredrive service and use to tell their story to a wider audience," says Sewell. "We're helping to spread the message."

Even those little gestures, says Sewell, can yield huge returns. "At the end of the day, helping [to] make advertising is a good business, but it's not like you go and brag about it to your grandmother," he laughs. "When you can help people do something that's socially meaningful, even on the periphery, by enabling them to do their jobs better, it gives you a whole other level of appreciation and helps you enjoy what you do."

Euro RSCG Skybridge http://www.eurorscgskybridge.com
Carbon Neutral http://www.carbonneutral.com
Instant Karma Films http://www.instantkarmafilms.tv
Carbon Fund http://www.carbonfund.org
Wiredrive http://www.wiredrive.com
Video Volunteers http://www.videovolunteers.org