Archive for the ‘ENVIRONMENT’ Category
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Eco blogs have been abuzz the last week or so with news that furniture giant IKEA announced a $77 million investment into its GreenTech fund with the goal of eventually producing solar panels, and other energy-efficient products to sell in their stores. The GreenTech fund was only established 8 months ago, but IKEA hopes to begin rolling out its first wave of green tech products in the next 3-4 years.
-JH
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Monday, June 30th, 2008
True story. Today I was working on a project outside a friend’s office, when out of nowhere, a guy appeared and, without a word, handed me two enormous phone books then hopped into a van and drove away. Like most of you I had no idea what to do with them.
Every year over 500 million of these now obselete phone books are produced and delivered in the United States, wasting over 1.6 billion pounds of paper, as well as huge amounts of trees, energy, oil, and landfill space. An organization called Yellow Pages Goes Green is trying to change all that. YPGG is leading the campaign to reduce production and stop unwanted delivery of these directories. The goal is not to put the publishers out of business, but just to decrease the waste by encouraging them to only deliver to those who request them.
You can help too, by signing up to have your name removed from the delivery list; or if you still use your Yellow Pages, find a location in your area where you can recycle them when you are finished.
-JH
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Wednesday, June 25th, 2008
If you’re driving down the highway, this summer and, out of nowhere, start to smell french fries, you’ve probably encountered The Big Green Bus. The BGB is an initiative put together by 12 Dartmouth students who want to raise awareness about alternative fuels. They are tourning their way around the country in a veggie-powered bus making pit stops at music festivals, political rallies, and various corporations to provide a hands-on example of how alternative fuels work.
You can follow their blog to see how the journey is going, or even better check their calendar to see when their coming to your town and show them some love.
-JH
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Wednesday, June 11th, 2008
Just a little over a year ago nearly all the homes and businesses in the small town of Greensburg, Kansas were destroyed by a major tornado. The devistation left many with nothing, but rather than just pack up and leave, they decided to rebuild. This wasn’t going to be a normal rebuild though, the townspeople decided to live up to their name and actually build a “green” city.
Today, the process is already well underway and many corporations and nonprofits have joined in to help by educating the citizens, designing city plans, and even donating green building materials, appliances, and much more. Last month the City Council approved the Sustainability Plan which included the provision that all city buildings will meet LEED Platinum level standards making them the first city in the country to do so.
If you want to know more about Greensburg, you can check out the Discovery Channel/Planet Green series about it which begins airing on June 15th. To find out how you can help click here.
-JH
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Thursday, June 5th, 2008
By now most of us have probably heard how much better CFL bulbs are than the old incandescent ones. They cost less, last longer, and use less energy, and as a result are much more environmentally friendly. The question is, what have you done with that information? Sixteen year-old Avery Hairston used it as the basis for creating an organization dedicated to fight global warming.
RelightNY, the org Avery set up, uses donations from corporate and private sponsors to purchase CFL bulbs for low-income housing units in New York. Through a partnership with HELP USA, they will deliver and install the bulbs for the families and help educate them about the benefits of using CFL’s and other ways they can contribute to decreasing carbon emissions and conserving energy.
So far RelightNY has handed out nearly 25,000 new bulbs. They plan on continuing to focus on New York while inspiring other young people to take up the cause in their own cities as well. Click here to see how you can help with this “bright” idea.
-JH
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Tuesday, May 6th, 2008
They are called the Zabaleen, meaning trash collectors. They live in one of Egypt’s poorest regions, not far from Cairo. For generations their families have made a living by recycling trash from the nearby capital, but the young people these days see solar power as their hope for a better future, environmentally and financially.
Their current project is installing solar powered water heaters on the rooftops of businesses and homes in their region and surrounding areas. Through training they received from Solar Cities, a global environmental advocacy group, the Spirit of Youth team has learned to construct these systems out of recycled materials so the costs and environmental impact are extemely low. The systems are mutually beneficial because they allow citizens to reduce their dependence on the high-priced and dangerous kerosene fueled burners that are generally used to heat water; and they create revenue for the young people who build and install them.
As word of their work begins to spread, Spirit of Youth hopes to be able to continue training and adding new workers as they move toward their goal of “a million solar roofs by and for the urban poor”. At that rate they may not be “poor” very long.
-JH
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Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008
Right now more than half a billion people of all ages, backgrounds, faiths, and nationalities are simultaneously joining together around the world to promote a healthy sustainable planet. We have all been blessed with such a wonderful place to live, so its great to see everyone coming together in recognition of that fact; united by the common goal of keeping it beautiful for generations to come.
To find out more about Earth Day, events in your area, or what you can do personally to be a responsible citizen, log on to EarthDay Network.
-JH
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