On behalf of TRP, I recently attended a function sponsored by our Chicago retail-warehouse partner, The Delta Institute. The main speaker was green business guru Joel Makower, author of  the new book, Strategies for the Green Economy. He spoke on the emerging green economy, where nearly every business and product claims to be green, greener, or the greenest, and asked the question, “How green is green enough?” I was reminded of this story: A guy wanted to open a dry-cleaning store on a certain block in Chicago. There were already two other dry cleaners on the block, both claiming to be the best. The cleaners on one corner advertised itself as the best dry cleaner in the City of Chicago, The cleaners on the other corner claimed to be the best in the entire Midwest. So the new entrepreneur, situated between the two, advertised himself as “the best dry cleaner on the block.” 

It was mid 2007 and I had just started working on a very part-time basis at this really cool environmental nonprofit -- just a couple of hours a week to help out. I was feeling pretty good about the gig and myself for actually doing it instead of just talking about it.