The Copenhagen climate summit has ended -- with a whimper, not a bang. The pundits will be rehashing this one well into the new year, but no spinning can hide a simple fact: The marching orders many companies were seeking on carbon management have failed to materialize.

That's bad news for the planet, of course, but also for business. Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of forward-thinking global companies had awaited the outcome of COP15 with the hopes that it would establish the framework with which each country could create regulations, voluntary programs, or other carrots and sticks to steer their respective economies toward a low-carbon future, with all of its potential for innovation, business efficiency economic recovery, and job creation. (See my blog post on the topic.)

Where will that framework come -- and when? And how will these forward-thinking companies' carbon strategies adapt or shift in light of the global leadership voice? Those will be key questions in the green business world for the foreseeable future, and we hope to bring context and insight from the executive suite.

One place we'll be doing that -- two places, actually -- will be at our 2010 State of Green Business Forums, February 4 in San Francisco, and February 9 in Chicago. Both events will feature a conversation, "Carbon Management After Copenhagen," focusing on what happens next. Attendees will hear from companies as varied as UPS and Yahoo!, as well as from experts from EcoSecurities, The Climate Group, and other organizations on the front line of business and climate.

Until then, I invite you to peruse the more than 70 stories and blog posts my fabulous editorial team produced -- with generous contributions from executives at a wide range of companies, including Accenture, EMC, General Electric, GreenOrder, IBM, Johnson Controls, KPMG, Microsoft, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Timberland. And, of course, from my prolific colleague, GreenBiz.com senior contributor Marc Gunther. Thank you all for helping us tell the COP15 business story from so many perspectives. You can find our full COP15 coverage here.

Also this week: The latest monthly results of our Green Confidence Index, showing a mild, surprising boost in Americans' views of green shopping and the faith they put in various institutions, as well as some interesting views of the environmental responsibility of midsized companies. The special introductory rate expires at midnight on New Year's Eve, so if your 2010 resolutions include getting smarter on consumers' green attitudes, this is your moment to act!

This report from Next 10 tracks the growth of green jobs in the Golden State over the last 14 years, and finds big growth and regional hotspots for different types of environmentally oriented careers.

The latest in our series of GreenBiz Reports explores and outlines the 10 best practices for bringing all your employees on board with your company's sustainability projects.

Mark your calendars for two 2010 State of Green Business Forums, in San Francisco and Chicago. These one-day information-packed events coincide with the release of GreenBiz.com’s “State of Green Business 2010,” the acclaimed annual status report on corporate environmental trends and progress.