A century in the makingThe Second Avenue subway project has been on the drawing board since before the Great Depression. Now, as progress finally is being made on the massive project, Keith Regan learns how the agency overseeing construction is managing the challenges. For decades starting in 1881, the East Side of Manhattan was served by north-south public transit lines that ran on elevated tracks.

Climbing the rankingsG&D Integrated began as a trucking company, but it has found most of its growth from offering supply chain and manufacturing logistics support to its customers, Keith Regan reports.┬á Although it has a long history that stretches to its roots as a freight hauler in the horse-and-wagon days of the 1880s, Morton, IllinoisÔÇôbased G&D Integrated has rapidly become a top-tier provider of inbound supply chain logistics.

Performing assetsStephen R. Brunner shares with Martin Ashcroft his strategy for turning Constellation Energy Partners into a top performing oil and gas production company. Stephen Brunner was appointed chief operating officer of publicly held Constellation Energy Partners LLC in February this year. Before the end of March, the roles of president and CEO were added to his responsibilities.

Serious about sustainabilityBill Yarwood and Pat Nahan tell Keith Regan how Central Washington University has dramatically reduced energy consumption, even as its campus has grown. If anyone doubts that focusing on sustainability can help an organizationÔÇÖs bottom line, the story of Central Washington University should change their minds.

I am hugely impressed with the involvement of the current generation of college students in sustainability and environmental initiatives.

Living with turmoil is the new status quo, says Anand Sharma. A lean culture is the best way to survive.┬á No one ever said running a business would be easy, but the convergence of unrest in the global social and economic landscape is today creating a tsunami of concern about how to keep an enterprise above water. The prices of commodities are going up; oil is through the roof. There seem to be more hurricanes, floods, drought, tornadoes, and other natural disasters. We have war, energy gouging, and currency acrobatics. And itÔÇÖs all happening at once.

Care with characterColchester East Hants Health Authority CEO Peter MacKinnon shares his healthy philosophy with Jenn Monroe. When designing plans for meeting the future healthcare needs of its community, the Colchester East Hants Health Authority (CEHHA) had among its considerations not only its demographics but also its geology and its geography. The organization was created by the Nova Scotia Department of Health in January 2001 and today provides healthcare for the 73,000 residents of Colchester County and the Municipality of East Hants.

McMaster UniversityMcMaster University looks forward to a sustainable future right on its campus, Jenn Monroe reports. As it is preparing its students for the future in the classroom, McMaster University is also teaching them how to be good global citizensÔÇöone building project at a time. McMaster University is not your typical downtown university.

Crystal ballSenior vice president George Read tells Gary Toushek what he sees in the future for Shore GoldÔÇÖs diamond explorations. "On the Star Diamond project we have defined our resource and can now enter a pre-feasibility study, ultimately with the definition of a reserve calculation, then we move on to bankable feasibility by the end of 2008.ÔÇØ  George Read, senior vice president of exploration & development of Saskatoon, SaskatchewanÔÇôbased Shore Gold Inc., is commenting on the National Instrument 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate p

Chrysler has followed rivals Ford and General Motors by announcing plans to cut back on the production of minivans in the US, as rising fuel prices drive consumers to opt for smaller vehicles.  ┬á Two factories in Missouri are affected, with one minivan plant in St Louis shutting down completely and another cutting back from two shifts to one. The reductions will lead to a cut of 2,400 hourly jobs.┬á┬á "The market is fairly slow and consumer confidence has been down," said Chrysler president Jim Press.