Guest post by LED Mavens

Businesses of all sizes are facing a new imperative to reduce their eco footprints. On the one hand is a growing market of environmentally conscious consumers. Purchases, which once revolved around simply getting the best product or service for the lowest price, are increasingly being made based on the new calculus of sustainability. Consumers have shown a willingness to spend a little more for products and services that include carbon offsets, organic and chemical-free labeling, and affiliation with trusted alliances like the FAIR trade movement.

On the other hand, businesses have their own calculus to consider. Energy prices continue increasing, and the economy has yet to recover anything approximating a steady rate of growth to match inflation. The good news is that most businesses have plenty of room to make affordable changes that will increase efficiency and save money, providing a buffer against the possibility of hard times ahead.

Go Paperless

Though it may be impossible to cut out all the paper, it is worth it to move in this direction. Those reams of paper add up, after all. Since the office is already equipped with computers, it makes sense to put them to good use by keeping the files on a central server. With the right software, which is widely available, clients will be able to view invoices and estimates, set up appointments, and pay their bills. Workers will be able to receive work orders, fill out service orders, and make changes to the schedule in real time with any internet connection. This also allows the possibility of allowing some workers to telecommute, which can be a win for everyone.

If the virtual office seems to risky for your business, the server can be partially offline, which will still allow invoices to be emailed and office tasks to be shared efficiently among the staff. As a bonus, many programs are now designed for compatibility with popular tax preparation software, which will reduce paper and headaches.

Changing the Office Environment

It is a fact that natural lighting increases worker efficiency, especially in the office where eye strain is a common complaint. Since sunlight is free, why not make use of it? Open the curtains and blinds and ask employees in the best solar positions to reduce the use of artificial lighting. While east and west facing windows will need tinting, to prevent the sun from putting extra strain on the cooling bill, leaving those southern windows clear will save on heating costs in the winter.

Another change for the better is to purchase a few plants. Some, like hostas and ferns, require little light and are great at cleaning the air of chemical toxins. They can also do wonders for improving the mood of your workers.

Capital Improvements

Sooner or later it will be necessary to buy company vehicles, replace the HVAC unit, and upgrade electronics. When you do, make sure to factor in the extra costs of your options. Light autos use less gasoline. Heat pumps can save substantially on electricity during winter. Energy Star electronics will start your savings immediately.

Consider some of these affordable ways to reduce the eco footprint of your business. Not only will they save you money in the long run, they can become selling points that make the difference for environmentally conscious customers.

This is a guest post by LED Mavens. A company specializing in Commercial LED Lighting.

Guest post by Barbara O’Brien

Green or “sustainable” building is the practice of keeping the protection of the environment above all other building considerations. This ideal of environmental concern in building new structures and improving older ones is more pervasive now, and often guides companies and homeowners alike to make eco-friendly construction decisions.

For new structures, the point of being sustainable is not to only use sustainable products, such as bamboo, and recycled and re-purposed building materials. From lights to flooring and from the bones of the new building down to the plumbing and electrical, the top construction leaders are embracing this sustainable movement.

Isn’t Green Building Expensive?

This is one of the most widely held misperceptions in the construction industry. Building green isn’t expensive. Not only in the short-term financial output, say for materials, but for the long-term benefit by saving overall utilities costs.

Habitat for Humanity International (HHI) is one of the first and leading organizations that embraced the green building movement before it became a regular and expected practice. Since the organization provides low-cost homes for those disenfranchised, it recognized the cost-benefit of building green and using sustainable products.

From radiant heat flooring to using recycled glass counter tops, Habitat for Humanity International embraced the green movement because of the cost effectiveness for not only their own building costs, but to provide a house that kept the homeowners’ costs to a minimum.

Building green, sustainable homes and buildings is more cost effective now than any other form of building.

Further, the United States government, specifically the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “rewards” sustainable building by offering tax incentives and grants.

Not only does the EPA recognize the importance and long term impact of sustainable building, so does the United States Green Building Council (USBGC). From city redevelopment, new builds and residential home improvements, the USBGC also provides financial incentive to build sustainable.

Numerous government agencies, private organizations and foundations supplement the cost of building green. Nationwide – even worldwide – these agencies and organizations understand the imperative to provide a clean environment for future generations.

Why Are Green Structure Improvements Critical?

Many homeowners of older, aging and often beautiful homes tend to be do-it-yourselfers (DIYers). Not only are these homeowners looking to save money and time, they understand the importance of maintaining the character of their home but also to make modern improvements.

For homeowners, similarly to new builds, there is a financial incentive to go green, including tax breaks.

As these intrepid DIYers tackle projects in their older homes, they often run across deadly and extremely toxic materials: from asbestos to lead paint, these homeowners run the risk of being exposed while doing home improvements.

Many of these well-intentioned DIYers do not recognize the underlying risk of these toxins, often putting themselves in harm’s way unknowingly. Especially in older homes dating from the turn-of-the-century through the mid-century, deadly building materials were used in construction. From plumbing to sealant and insulation, by simply doing green improvements, these homeowners run the risk of asbestos exposure among other toxins.

Though current cases of mesothelioma are traced back to the heyday of asbestos production, it isn’t known yet exactly what risks these homeowners and builders are exposed to as they repair older structures. Currently, there are mesothelioma treatments; but precautions must be taken in any improvement project.

Education is paramount to keep those keen eco-supportive homeowners safe from deadly toxins like asbestos and lead paint. Many agencies are offering tips for protection during any improvement process.

The bottom line is that green or sustainable building is considered a best building practice: from major developers to homeowners, by using eco-friendly building tactics and materials is not only cost effective but extremely necessary.

Image credit: 2ndgreenrevolution.com

Guest post by Kate Snack

Fair trade is not the easiest concept to grasp. It has it’s layers, and often the term gets used to describe things that aren’t actually fair trade at all, so you have to be careful. Defined by the official fair trade stamp of approval when a product meets FLO-cert criteria and the fair trade guidelines that are set by international certification programs, adapting to meet these standards in the fashion industry can be both challenging, costly and time consuming. But consumer ethics are stronger than ever and forcing designers, fashion houses and retailers to put sustainability and fair trade at the top of their list of priorities.

Fair trade fashion is a niche market. Garments that are handmade in Africa, Asia, and South America for instance, don’t arrive on your doorstep made for sale to the masses. Pieces are unique, often one-of-a-kind, and above all else, a redefining characteristic of the fashion statement.

Marissa Saints from Dsenyo (an African textile and accessories company based in Boulder, CO.) admits, “it’s hard to resist those big sales at department stores in the mall, but if we all keep buying items without knowing where or how they were made, we aren’t going to see much change.”

Today, fair trade means a lot more than just fair wages and labor practices.  Communities in developing countries are becoming increasingly aware of their contribution potential they have in the global marketplace. With sustainability continuing to drive western commerce, it’s impossible for fair trade and fashion not to mesh well. In America, Marissa has experienced producers reinvesting in the growth of local businesses abroad. And by paying school fees for their children, buying clothing, fertilizer and other household goods, they’re able to do things they otherwise could never afford.

Mainstream pick-up of ethical shopping or “pop-consumerism,” encourages people to think about what they’re buying and the long-term costs associated with their spending habits. According to Marissa, “by choosing to only wear a wardrobe that’s been made under fair labor conditions, labels producing in sweatshops will have to start listening.”

“The fashion industry won’t be able to go fully fair trade until consumers as a whole start demanding with their actions.  You can vote with your dollars every day to make this kind of change,” encourages Marissa.

With brands like Yves Saint Laurent and H&M already incorporating environmentally friendly initiatives into their portfolios, it’s no longer just about organic cotton, and other alternative fabrics. The fashion industry is ready for the next step in the right direction.

It may take years before fair trade is a household name in the industry, but the more consumers demand transparent trade and social responsibility from the brands they know and love, the closer fair trade comes to being the only thing on the rack.

3 Things to consider when updating your summer wardrobe:

1. Is it Fair Trade?  Was it produced under fair labor conditions?
2. Is it at least partially made of sustainable fibers? (i.e., hemp, organic cotton, tencel, bamboo, recycled polyester, etc)
3. Is it recycled, upcycled or used?  (Consignment shops and thrift stores are a great place to get items of clothing that you can’t find fair trade or in a sustainable fiber)

Words: Kate Snack
Ethical Ocean is an online social marketplace for eco-friendly products and brings together the ideas, people and companies needed to drive a new era in ethical consumerism.

Related articles

• Fair Trade Is The Way To Go! (juliesepiphany.wordpress.com)
• Gladstone: Saturday was World Fair Trade Day, help a coffee grower by ignoring “fair trade marketing” and buying quality coffee instead (knowledgeproblem.com)

Image via Wikipedia

Going green is not just about new construction and technology, it’s about retrofitting and reusing existing foundations.  The tallest skyscraper in America, the Willis Tower (formerly known as the Sears Tower), is getting a green retrofit.

Converting just the south side of the 56th floor will generate 2 MW of electricity.  The windows will be replaced with high power density photovoltaic windows.  They produce as much electricity as a standard photovoltaic panel, while still allowing daylight in and reducing heat loss.

The resulting ambiance is calmer and cool, much like a tinted car window.  Only this window generates more electricity than is used within the room.

Imagine the application of this technology on the desert skyscrapers of the middle east, that are baked with direct sun 12 hours each day.  Then again, it’s hard to justify clean energy when you’re floating on a lake of oil.

Source:
inhabitat.com

Related articles

• Willis Tower goes solar (physorg.com)
• Willis Tower to get greener windows (ubergizmo.com)

This coming Saturday, March 26 at 8:30PM marks the fifth annual Earth Hour event where people and organization across the globe are encouraged to turn off their lights for one symbolic hour of unity and awareness about climate change and creating a sustainable future.

Earth Hour began in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million people and more than 2000 businesses took a unified stand against climate change by turning off their lights for one hour.

Does simply turning off your lights for an hour once a year really make a difference in combating climate change and creating a sustainable future? In and of itself, no, of course it doesn’t. But “just turning off your lights” isn’t the point. It about creating a sense of unity, that we are all in this together, and in that unity one person can make a difference.

Sure, that one individual act may seem infinitesimal in the face of the problem, but when combined with your neighbors it grows into a significant act. Just as Earth Hour has grown into a worldwide movement, the individual acts of millions – even billions – of people can and do make a difference.

Beyond the hour

This year Earth Hour organizers and participants are working hard to move their efforts “beyond the hour” to help grow and sustain the momentum gained in the symbolism of one hour and transform it into action throughout the year.

“Everyone has the power to make change: a CEO can change an organization, a 7-year-old can change a classroom, and a president can change a country. What we are announcing today is just the beginning,” said Earth Hour Co-Founder and Executive Director Andy Ridley. “It is through the collective action of individuals and organizations that we will be able to truly make a difference, which is why we are urging people across the planet to share how they will go beyond the hour this Earth Hour.”

Here are some examples from across the globe of individuals, organizations, and governments coming together in a sustained effort to go beyond the hour:

Girls Scouts USA

Thousand of Girl Scouts from nearly 20 Girls Scout Councils from across the U.S. will participate in a variety of programs including: 

• The Girl Scout Council of the Florida Panhandle is encouraging people to lower energy use by replacing regular light bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). More than 400 girls have distributed 3,500 CFLs at cookie booths across 19 counties as part of the campaign.
• The Girl Scouts of Colorado is planning an event at the Colorado State Capitol in Denver to go dark for Earth Hour and have girls with rechargeable flashlights form the letters “GS” on the west steps. Girls are encouraging communities to install energy-saving light bulbs and are handing out bulbs to communities across the state.

And that’s just a small sampling. Programs like Girl Scouts Forever Green will help sustain the effort and teach young people about ways to live sustainably – after all, they are inheriting the world we leave them.

“Our girls care deeply about the environment, and this partnership gives them a simple way to share this passion with their friends, families and communities,” said Kathy Cloninger, chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of the USA. “It’s important that we all do our part to protect the environment.”

Actions big and small from around the world

It isn’t just the Girl Scouts, of course, that are getting involved. Last year’s Earth Hour saw hundreds of millions of people from 128 countries and territories come together to stand for a better world. This year’s Earth Hour will reach even further. Here are just some of the commitments and actions:

• The Government of Nepal has made a commitment to put a complete stop to tree-felling in the Churiya Range, a vital ecological and sociological forest area spanning around 6,500 sq km
• Pocoyo, an animated TV series, will reach out to its millions of preschool-aged fans across the globe over the next year, fostering “Learning through Laughter,” utilizing humor and learning to inform children about environmental issues.
• Nathi Mzileni, a 15-year-old boy from Swaziland, was inspired to take action in 2010 when he realized his town did not participate in Earth Hour. He started a group at his High School called Green Enviro to educate people about climate change, and this year will single-handedly make Earth Hour a reality in his town of Shimunye, Swaziland.
• Mengniu Dairy (Inner Mongolia Mengniu Dairy (Group) Co., Ltd.): the Chinese dairy company is doubling the number of milk cartons it recycles and increasing its use of FSC-certified packaging.
• Li Bingbing, the Chinese acting/singing sensation, has committed to being vegetarian for 100 days this year, in order to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions caused in the cycle of meat production and consumption.
• Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore MP, has committed to: another six separated cycleways, installing LED lights in parks and streets, and endorsing a tri-generation plant to provide low carbon energy.
• Chloe Nicol, a 7-year-old girl from Australia, is guiding her school to increase recycling and reduce energy waste. The school now also shuts their blinds instead of using air-conditioning to cool the rooms.
• Parrys Raines, a 15-year-old Australian girl, has convinced her school to install water filling stations and provide each student and teacher with a reusable stainless steel drinking bottle to reduce plastic bottle waste.
• CB Richard Ellis is going beyond the hour in 2011 by aiming to exceed their previous year’s record of more than 254 million square feet of real estate participating in Earth Hour, as well as making available events and activities for employee participation each month (Earth Hour, Earth Day, Green Building Day, Climate Week etc.)
• Credit Suisse AG became carbon neutral in 2010 through its global ‘Credit Suisse Cares for Climate’ initiative. This year, as well as sponsoring Earth Hour Singapore, Credit Suisse will continue to go ‘Beyond the Hour’ by sending staff to a Brazilian forest reserve to support field research into the effects of climate change.
• Power98FM will ensure all lights, computers and equipment will be switched off in studios when not in use, and continue to actively support WWF initiatives.
• Singaporean pop duo Jack and Rai: Jack has switched to a more efficient air-conditioning system, and committed to setting the temperature at 24 degrees Celsius. Rai will watch less TV, play less video games, and play more acoustic guitar to reduce his energy usage.
• Holiday Inn Atrium Singapore has committed to replacing the light bulbs in all of its 504 guest rooms to energy-efficient LED bulbs.

Beyond the Hour

With Beyond the Hour, Earth Hour begins a new phase in its global movement. Recognizing the turning off the lights is only the beginning, the aim this year is to get people, organizations, and businesses to commit to action – be it large or small – that they will sustain throughout the year. To help with that effort, Earth Hour has launched an online social media platform to allow anyone to share with the world their own commitment and action.

WWF Director General Jim Leape summed up the mission of Earth Hour – Beyond the Hour:

“The challenges that face our planet are immense, but never underestimate the possibility for change when we face these challenges with true common purpose. Hundreds of millions of people around the globe have given us a glimpse of what is possible. It is now time to go beyond the hour and show what can be done – by the people for the planet.”

Earth Hour 2011 will take place at 8.30pm, Saturday, 26 March, 2011.

Related articles

• Earth Hour 2011 (jepoygreen.wordpress.com)
• Earth Hour hit in cyber space – Hindustan Times (news.google.com)
• CSL to participate in Earth Hour 2011 (gjnashen.wordpress.com)

But realizing a sustainable future depends just as much, if not more, by old, stodgy big-footed industries like, say, car rental companies.

This is all by way of saying that Enterprise Rent-A-Car has recently announced availability of the Chevy Volt EV for rent. People wouldn’t expect a car rental company to be particularly focused on offering alternative-type vehicles. But Enterprise has consistently shown a commitment to sustainability and alternative vehicle market leadership.

Not the kind of corporate-speak you’d expect from a Hippie, but I’ve had the opportunity to chat on several occasions with members of a team devoted to – dare I say it – corporate responsibility. In particular Lee Broughton, director of corporate sustainability for Enterprise.

From the largest fleet of hybrid and alternative fuel cars to a well-received voluntary carbon offset program, corporate fleet management and ride sharing services,  now to the Chevy Volt EV. Enterprise continues its market leadership.

For now you’ll need to go to Ontario, California to rent a Volt, which you may not want to do, but Enterprise has plans to install charging stations and offer the Volt and other EV vehicles at branch outlets across the country. Being first-movers in the EV market continues in Broughton’s goal of making Enterprise a leader in adoption of new, cleaner technology. EV cars can travel up to 379 for extended capacity version, or 100 miles more typically, making the EV particularly well-suited to urban, commuter driver.

The next locations for EV charging stations is Washington, Oregon, Tennessee and Arizona.

“We will continue to integrate new, clean fuel and engine technologies into our fleet to promote new alternatives like the Volt and help them become commercially viable,” says Broughton. “Making EVs available through our network of Enterprise locations provides an opportunity for customers to try them out for consideration through an extended test drive.”

Visit Enterprise Holdings Driving Futures to find out more.

Disposable plastic packaging, bags and food service containers are just some of petroleum’s many uses. Making the move away from fossil fuel dependency will require substituting renewable materials for oil-based sources we currently rely on in numerous industries. One company working to achieve this move is Michigan-based Fabri-Kal, which produces high quality food service containers called Greenware® and other consumer packaging made from a biopolymer derived entirely from plants.

Fabri-Kal’s Greenware® is made in America from source material that is annually renewable. It is derived from domestically grown plants which can be replanted yearly and are not part of the food supply. Currently the feedstock is made mostly from corn, but many other plants can be used. The containers and packaging are 100% compostable in an actively managed facility and offer “significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions,” according to the developer of Ingeo™ biopolymer, IngeoNature Works LLC. Greenware® is also recyclable, but the common availability of such facilities has yet to materialize. Fabri-Kal stands behind their products and claims with a No Greenwashing Pledge.

Although only “about 4 percent of the world’s annual oil production of some 84.5 million barrels per day is used as feedstock for plastic,” according to Grist Magazine, “and another 4 percent or so provides the energy to transform the feedstock into handy plastic,” moving toward renewable resources is a step in the right direction. Fabri-Kal continues to push into the frontier of environmentally conscious packaging helping to wean our culture of convenience and consumption off other oil-based products.

“It is estimated that harnessing just 2 one-thousandths of the oceans’ untapped energy could provide power equal to current worldwide demand.”
-Annette von Jouanne founder of the Wave Energy program at Oregon State University (OSU)

With 70 percent of the world’s surface covered by ocean a remarkable opportunity exists to produce clean energy. The sea remains the greatest pool of untapped renewable power on the planet. The wave energy off American coasts alone can provide as much electricity as the nation’s hydroelectric plants.

“Full scale of the wave resource is about the same as the hydro resource, which is approximately six percent,” Dr. Ted Brekken told me by phone. He is the co-director of the Wallace Energy Systems and Renewables Facility at Oregon State University, “the highest-power university energy systems lab in the U.S.”

“The resource will be fully developed when there are five to seven wave parks with each of those generating over 100 megawatts,” he said. The amount of electricity from one park could power several hundred thousand homes.

In September 2008 OSU and Columbia Power Technologies (CPT) tested a type of wave energy conversion machine called a point absorber buoy, which CPT describes as “the first ocean energy device to produce kilowatt scale electrical energy off the Oregon coast.”

Dr. Brekken explained the prototype in simple terms. “A point absorber design basically means it’s just a buoy that bobs up and down,” he said.

Inside the buoy contains a vertical metal spar coiled in copper. Surrounding this spar a float with magnets rises and falls with each passing swell.

“It works pretty much exactly the same way as those shake flashlights; it’s identically the same principal,” he said. “You have a magnet moving past a copper coil generating electricity.” The electricity would then be carried to shore through transmission lines along the seafloor.

In March OSU and CPT passed another milestone in the quest for clean energy when it concluded lab tests of their latest design of point absorber buoy. Researchers took the data gathered from the 2008 test launch and developed an improved, more productive device. The new generation of buoy generates electricity from not only the rise and fall heave of passing swells, but also the side to side surge. Production of a full scale size prototype for ocean testing can now begin.

In related news, New Jersey based Ocean Power Technologies recently won a $1.5 million grant from the Department of Energy and announced it will move forward with early commercial development of its own version of point absorber buoy. The company plans to install a wave park off the Oregon coast.

The wave energy industry remains in an emergent state, but renewed worldwide interest is advancing the technology with vigor. It’s possible to make electricity from waves. It now remains to create devices capable of supplying large population centers and weave through the obstacle course of competing interests to get them installed. Environmental concerns exist and currently are under study. It will take broad based cooperation, but within sight is an opportunity to help wean ourselves from other pollution ridden sources of electricity.

Read more about wave energy technology here: Alternative Energy News: Wave Power

By Sarah Laskow, Media Consortium Blogger
(reposted with permission)

Some people live off the grid, eat local food, and have an energy footprint so minuscule that even the canniest hunter couldn’t track them down. But the rest of us buy from supermarkets, get our energy from at least in part from traditional sources like coal, and occasionally forget to turn off the lights when we leave the house. For those of us who are still living with one foot in the old energy world, here are a few helpful hints about what you should buy and what the consequences of shifting to “clean energy” sources like natural gas and nuclear energy are.

Green consumption

Mother Jones’ Julia Whitty points out a useful tool for correcting any misconceptions about how green a company actually is. It’s an assessment that graphs public perception of a company’s environmentalism against its practices. Besides making sure you’ve got the right idea about Starbucks or Nike, Whitty writes, “You can also get a pretty good sense of how sectors perform in relation to other sectors: food and beverage, bad overall; technology, better overall.”

One of the biggest energy expenditures that many of us indulge in is airplane travel. Just one flight can enlarge your carbon footprint dramatically. Although flying may never be truly green, Beth Buczynski reports at Care2 that one airline is moving in the right direction. British Airways is planning the first “sustainable jet fuel” plant.

The plant will make a biofuel, which generally has plenty of drawbacks, but this one sounds pretty good. The company says it will source its raw materials from local waste management facilities and produce relatively harmless waste products.

Hot air from natural gas companies

But the hazards of many “clean energy” sources make going off the grid sound better and better. More and more information is coming out about the environmental hazards that accompany the mining of natural gas, one of Washington’s new energy fascinations. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released a report on natural gas late last week, and Kate Sheppard reports at Mother Jones that Halliburton, a major player in this industry, admitted to using 807,000 gallons of diesel-based chemicals in the extraction process, which involves pumping large amounts of water deep into the ground.

“Even though the natural gas industry is exempt from the Safe Drinking Water Act, it’s still required to limit the amount of diesel used in fracturing, under a December 2003 agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency,” Sheppard writes. “Halliburton and BJ Services appear to have violated the agreement, according to yesterday’s disclosure.”

That doesn’t inspire confidence in these companies’ assurances that their techniques will not contaminate water sources.

Another meltdown

Nuclear power sounds better than ever to the government, investors, and even some environmentalists. If you need a rundown of the issues involved in nuclear energy production, Grist’s Umbra Fisk has answers to questions like “is nuclear really better than coal?”

One of the strongest objections to nuclear power, however, is the financial risk of investing in nuclear infrastructure. “Nuclear power offers all the fiscal risks of a “too big to fail” bank, with the added risk of being too dangerous to fail as well,” writes Sam McPheeters for The American Prospect.

“And although current nuclear defenders love to crow about the free market…the industry operates with an exponential financial handicap over all other energy technologies, gas and coal included,” McPheeters explains. “Factor in overruns, plant cancellations, and chronic mismanagement, and the only genuine advantage nuclear holds over renewable energy sources is that its infrastructure currently exists.”

Maybe it’s time to invest in solar panels after all.

—————-

This post features links to the best independent, progressive reporting about the environment by members of The Media Consortium. It is free to reprint. Visit the Mulch for a complete list of articles on environmental issues, or follow us on Twitter. And for the best progressive reporting on critical economy, health care and immigration issues, check out The Audit, The Pulse, and The Diaspora. This is a project of The Media Consortium, a network of leading independent media outlets.