This is the first post in a series wherein I solicit thoughts from some of my favorite creative thinkers about what they think 2008 (and beyond) might look like.

I’m kicking things off myself. Stay tuned for more throughout the month of January.

2007 was the year of Green. Environmental issues went fully mainstream, starting with Oscar’s love for An Inconvenient Truth and culminating with Al Gore’s Nobel Prize win. Being Green is no longer considered an option. It’s expected that you’re at least making an honest effort.

In a way, it has become Kramer’s Ribbon.

All of which tells me that in 2008 we’ll see the beginnings of what I’m calling a “greenlash”.

The more acceptance Green initiatives gain, and the more assumptions we start to place on what people and businesses “should” be doing and thinking, the more it becomes inevitable that the pendulum will swing back. I think this is the year where we start to see it. Expect to see more studies and/or books questioning the underlying foundations of Green practices (actual benefits, benefits vs. costs, practicality, etc.) and expect to see more commentators start to question them.

Ultimately, this is a good thing. We need skeptics to help weed out the help from the hype. Ideally, we’ll whittle it down to that which works best while continuing to focus on progress and innovation.