With my first visit to San Francisco this past weekend, my former New Yorker friend from high school recommended we go to Cafe Gratitude–a place that was “so San Francisco.” With at least three-fourths of our table New Yorkers, it was understandable we would squeeze out a few giggles as we ordered California-grown raw and vegan cuisine, chiming menu item phrases we imagined Rhonda Byrnes might concoct.

Though we had fun mocking the menu and our tabletop game (one card asked us to imagine receiving a parking ticket and then being thankful for said ticket), I was truly impressed with the restaurant. I enjoyed my appetizer, entree and dessert; knowing the ingredients were primarily locally-sourced and entirely organic left an even better taste in my mouth. The wait staff seemed genuinely happy to be working there and were exceptionally knowledgeable. Finally, as if the food served wasn’t already enough to reduce the establishment’s carbon footprint, Cafe Gratitude takes green eating a step further with compostable to-go containers (right down to the cornstarch labels!) and with deliveries by bio-diesel trucks.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get any food porn while I was there. The beautiful shot here I snagged from the New York Times review, which is also a fun read on the restaurant. It was really quite the experience.

And actually, I do believe gratitude can be a powerful force and an important human expression, so I was fascinated by its dining incarnation. During our visit, we were also asked the question of the day, “What is good in your life?” Admittedly, I did do some reflection and was happy to (internally) report I had a big list.

After recent discussions with a few of my colleagues and a supply chain consultant about greening our agency, I thought it would be the perfect time to revisit Grey’s site. Nearly four months since its launch, Green-It-Forward only lists one non-Grey agency on-board with its efforts. This doesn’t necessarily trouble me considering the time it could take for other agencies to internally approve being involved with such a project, if they choose to be involved with a rival’s efforts at all. What does disturb me is Grey’s apparent lack of involvement, and overall heart, with its own public project.

On Green-It-Forward’s very flashy (and Flash-y) intro page, Grey boldly proclaims its goal to share ideas the firm has on reducing its environmental impact, inspiring employees and clients to do the same. Further, it aims to provide this digital forum for sharing ideas with other advertising agencies. The problem is neither the “Discussion” nor the “Blog” buttons on the site directs a user to either of those areas. In fact, I had to do a Google search to find the lazily designed and overall shoddy blog which has about eight entries in total, three-fourths of which were posted in September, and none beyond November. The few substantive posts are actually decent at discussing such issues as corn-based ethanol, but NONE of them actually chronicle Grey’s supposed green transformations.

Grey says it’s “anything but”; I certainly don’t think it means Grey is green. If its efforts are authentically green intentioned, Grey’s execution fails to convey anything beyond industry-specific greenwashing. Personally, I remain committed to making my agency more sustainable–it’s just a shame I can’t rely on Green-It-Forward to help get us there.

P.S. I’ve included the only Green-It-Forward YouTube video I could find in under Good Fun. I love the simple focus on U.S. paper waste with an equally simple tip to use both sides of a paper when printing. I just wish Grey would do more with Green-It-Forward.

If one of your goals for 2008 is to better your finances, you should consider engaging in socially responsible investing and enjoying competitive financial returns (as matched against non-SRI products and investments). Social Investment Forum publishes a handy, easy-to-read Mutual Fund Performance Chart to help you sort through some of your options. It compares competing SRI fund profiles, financial performance, screening details, and voting records.

I will revisit the topic of SRI to discuss its benefits and drawbacks, but thought I would share this guide in the meantime.

BP was among the top five best “Greenwashers of the Year” and the “Five Worst CEOs of 2007″ by the liberal leaning Treehugger and conservative slanted Free Enterpriser (via Townhall.com), respectively. Who says liberals and conservatives can’t agree on anything?

BP’s criticism, from both green and business blogs, proves that embracing corporate social responsibility and going green cannot rely on glossy PR and slick ad campaigns. Stakeholders do not easily forget a recent record of human rights abuse and environmental and safety disasters. And stockholders will only support CSR initiatives that do not lose sight of profit. Corporations can receive acclaim from both sides–if they incorporate triple bottom line objectives into their operations first and let the good press follow.