Then there's the E-word. Bill Ford is an avid environmentalist. "He's not a protest in the streets and lobby Congress environmentalist," said Daniel Becker, head of the Sierra Club's Global Warming and Energy program. "He's more of a hike in the woods and fishing environmentalist. But he gets it." Ford has been active in Earth Day projects and volunteered for water and land cleanup projects. Such green credentials, of course, are not always valued in the auto industry. "Within the company, there's always been some opposition to all his green talk," said David L. Lewis, a professor of business history at the University of Michigan Business School.