My first business was based on an invention of mine that looked amazing—an optical device that animated still images to people in motion. For the business, we installed them on subway tunnel walls to show ads to riders between stations, sharing revenue with the subway system, before everyone had animation devices in their pockets. Outside the business, I also explored the medium as an art with properties unlike any other,[…] Keep reading →

Many New Yorkers know Robert Moses from Robert Caro’s book The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York, which won every award it could. At over 1,000 oversized pages, I thought I’d browse it at first, but couldn’t put it down. Robert Moses may have shaped New York City more than any other person, holding multiple offices from the 1920s to the 80s. Residents loved him early[…] Keep reading →

Thanksgiving means eating, often to excess, even if not with family during the pandemic. How about a post on food? I stumbled on a site with the Average Household Cost of Food, categorizing purchases, citing the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2013. Out of 30 categories, I buy from only 4! Here’s the average American budget. I put mine below. Before looking at mine, can you tell which 4[…] Keep reading →

Longtime podcast listeners have heard my struggle that began with seeing leadership as the main missing element on sustainability nobody is acting on, distinguishing leadership from management. In short, I saw no Mandela of the Environment and felt my best option would be to fill in the role—not to act like Mandela exactly, since the situations differ, but to take on a comparable role. Adopting the mantle seemed a no-win[…] Keep reading →

I never noticed how many of my major possessions I bought used versus new. Side note: I met Craig Newmark—the Craig of Craig’s List—when he spoke at Columbia nearly 20 years ago, then again last winter at a nearby cafe, now closed for the pandemic. Used I bought or acquire used Refrigerator—bought on Craig’s List, I think for $50 about ten years ago when my old one broke. Both sofas—neighbors[…] Keep reading →

Context An attendee at my webinar on Initiative to Booth, the University of Chicago Business School, Eric Zoerb, followed up that he wanted to start a business on sustainability. Like many, he was looking for efficiency. Most of my life I considered efficiency the top strategy. It felt right. Nature doesn’t react to feelings, though, so no amount of feeling it will work will make something work. If you make[…] Keep reading →

In spring 2006, back when universities existed, I earned an MBA. Tomorrow I finish paying the last payment on my loan to pay for it. Its rate was something like one percent, so I didn’t see a reason to pay early, but I still like the idea of paying off the last of my long-term debt. It takes a weight off my shoulders. By contrast, I paid off my higher-interest[…] Keep reading →