Those were a few of the hopes some of the Triangle's largest employers articulated at a conference Tuesday. The challenge, some employers said, is being environmental stewards while making a profit.

"We must think dramatically different," said Aaron Nelson, president of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce. "No more shooting at each other. No more, 'Who's the enemy?' "

Historically, Nelson said, environmentalists have beat on the business community, which has disengaged from environmentalists -- a tension he wants to dissolve.

About 50 people attended the two-day conference on sustainability, broadly defined as meeting present needs without compromising those of future generations.

Stephen Jordan, executive director of the Business Civic Leadership Center, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce affiliate in Washington that promotes business civic involvement, applauded their efforts.

"There's a willingness to innovate and a willingness to accept change that we haven't necessarily seen in some other places," Jordan said. "It's refreshing there's a place that's out there that's actually looking forward on this."

Attendees included government leaders from Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Durham, environmental groups, Research Triangle Park employers and Duke and UNC-Chapel Hill officials.

Efforts are under way locally to help companies. The Institute for Sustainable Development in Chapel Hill has helped develop a tool that assesses whether a company follows sustainable practices. The institute expects to start testing the tool -- which includes a questionnaire, interview process and possible audit -- this summer.

This week's conference comes amid rising gas prices, the offshore oil drilling debate and increasing unease about the Triangle's water supply.

Some business leaders said they'd like to do more to protect the environment but can't afford to invest in new technologies or don't know where to turn for help.

"We feel like we're doing the right things, but we don't know if we're fitting into the broader agenda of making a difference," said Bill Shore, director of U.S. Community Partnerships with GlaxoSmith-Kline in Research Triangle Park.

Tobin Freid, the sustainability manager for both the city and county of Durham, said government needs to communicate better with businesses.

"We'd love to talk to you," she said. For example, "do we have codes on the books to make it difficult to put a solar panel on a roof?"

Cindy Shea, UNC-CH's sustainability office director, said even though local government and university leaders have made progress in seeking a sustainable community -- such as by putting a fare-free bus system in place in Chapel Hill and Carrboro -- more needs to be done statewide and nationwide.

"We have a huge wind resource here. We're not tapping into it yet," she said. "You can no longer make decisions and investments without thinking about sustainability."

And consumers are taking notice, conference participants said.

"The consumer is becoming more educated," said Jonathan Estes, a partner with Strategic Measures, Inc., a consulting firm in Chapel Hill. "They will begin to differentiate: Where did that product come from? How was it made? How is it ... thrown away?"