"I want to get 'green' products out there. I'm tired of hearingabout people who are sick. I'm tired of going to funerals. I'mtired of the way we do things. I want to make a difference, if it'sa gallon at a time, or a ceiling tile at a time." The speaker isKaren Halo, a partner, with Audra Frank, of Frankly Green,Plainfield-based consultants who work with builders, developers,architects, contractors and designers to incorporate "green"standards into their projects.

"What we do is help them get the price points so they can put'green' into their buildings," Halo says. "For instance, I canpoint at that paint and ask, 'what are you paying per gallon?' AndI can say, 'what if I switch that to a paint that has no VOCs, nooff-gassing and is better for indoor air quality. I will help themspec the job, shop it out and guarantee that it's drop-shipped tothe site, because we've heard of situations where there's abait-and-switch."

How did it get started? "My partner and I both lost significantpeople in our lives to cancer," explains Halo, a 20-year marketingvet in real estate. "Our thought was, 'what are we doing toaggravate it? What are we doing in our buildings to make thingsworse'?"