A couple of decades ago, evidence of a relationship between business and the environment was limited to news stories about oil and chemical spills and a few products such as eco-light bulbs and “green” detergents that were seen as inferior to mainstream versions.

Today, the landscape has been transformed, with companies such as General Electric putting the environment at the heart of their business strategies. In May, GE revealed that it had doubled sales from environmentally friendly products to $12bn during the past two years.