The Zero Carbon House is a low energy demonstration project to show how renewable energy can create a unique living experience on a remote island in a severe climate. A holistic approach has been taken to eliminating household carbon emissions that would normally result from heating and powering the home, running the family car and growing and transporting food.Source: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/04/zero_carbon_hou.php
IPCC released its third of four reports Friday May 4th. This one recommends how the world can fight climate change. This can happen, they say, but the following measures must be adopted, among others:
Source: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20070501/ipcc_part3_070501/20070502/
See more at YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/v/8UrOV_gi7vI
EcoSchools is a (Toronto District School Board) school greening program with a very broad scope. It addresses what is taught, how we run our schools and how we design and use our schools grounds. Its central focus is supporting students and staff in caring for and protecting the environment where they spend so many hours every week. EcoSchools asks us to examine the decisions we make in our schools, inside and out — from modifying practices in our classrooms, offices, and boiler rooms to designing the school ground as a place for healthy, enriched learning.Source: Toronto Renewable Energy Co-operative http://www.trec.on.ca/
by Russell BonifaceSidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C., recently opened its new sustainable middle school and is seeking to earn LEED® Platinum certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. The three-level, U-shaped, 70,000-square-foot school renovates an existing middle school and merges it with a new wing, forming one green-designed structure. Sustainable materials are implemented throughout the exterior and interior. An open courtyard defines the building structure by integrating the campus with the local landscape. Philadelphia-based KieranTimberlake Associates worked with Sidwell to incorporate the school’s Quaker philosophy—to be stewards of the Earth—into the green design. The new school and its campus will also serve as a sustainable education tool for students.
Source: http://www.aia.org/aiarchitect/thisweek06/1027/1027d_pw_sidwell.cfm
Sustainable Design
Thoughtful and intelligent design is essential for sustainability. Our furniture is designed with longevity and reusability as an essential criterion. We offer adjustable seating that grows with your child, table tops that are reusable and also are adjustable, cribs that convert to toddler beds, space saving trundle beds, and storage solutions that are multifunctional and adaptable to a myriad of styles and conditions. We create designs that are crafted to be timeless and can easily be passed from one child to the next.
In “Degrees That Matter: Climate Change and the University,” (MIT Press) Ann Rappaport and Sarah Hammond Creighton, both leaders of Tufts University’s Climate Initiative. The co-authors responded to questions from Inside Higher Ed about their latest project.Source: http://insidehighered.com/news/2007/05/01/climateQ: How can you best tell if a college’s environmental promise has teeth or is just empty rhetoric?
A: We are concerned that individual high-visibility projects can be confused with a comprehensive climate action effort. We suggest a set of activities that are the basis for a credible effort. These include:
- The campus master plan includes sustainability.
- Energy management systems are in place.
- Funding for energy efficiency is provided.
- Standards are in place for new construction.
- No old lighting technology is on campus (no incandescent or T-12 lamps).
- A recycling program is in place.
- The curriculum includes robust discussion of climate change and energy.
- A program to address single-occupancy vehicle use is in place and automobile alternatives are developed and implemented.
- A baseline inventory of the institution’s greenhouse gas emissions is conducted and published. The inventory needs to be updated periodically to show progress toward an established goal. A program that’s transparent and effective will provide the numbers that document progress, not just the anecdotes.
"Our vision is a world in which there are many opportunities to learn about sustainable development. A world where a skilled population makes informed decisions in their home, community and working lives and in their leisure activities. A world where people understand and take responsibility for the impact they have on the quality of life of other people, locally and globally."
66-story office tower nicknamed ‘The Lighthouse.’ Conceptualized by Atkins Middle East, The Lighthouse strives to make low carbon commercial towers a reality in Dubai by reducing the total energy consumption up to 65% and water consumption up to 40%. The height and shape of The Lighthouse play pivotal roles in its goals for low energy consumption, allowing for the instillation of three enormous 225 KV wind turbines (29 meters in diameters), and 4,000 photovoltaic panels on the south facing façade.
Source: http://www.inhabitat.com/2007/05/01/the-lighthouse-dubais-1st-low-carbon-commercial-tower/
The study, "Arctic Sea Ice Decline: Faster Than Forecast?" will appear Tuesday in the online edition of "Geophysical Research Letters." It was led by Julienne Stroeve of the National Snow and Ice Data Center and funded by the National Science Foundation and by NASA.
September marks the yearly minimum of sea ice in the Arctic. Newly available data sets, blending early aircraft and ship reports with more recent satellite measurements that are considered more reliable than the earlier records, show that the September ice actually declined at a rate of about 7.8 % per decade during the 1953-2006 period. The fastest rate of September retreat in any individual model was 5.4 % per decade.
The events are free but registration is required. Please note the complementary activities, which also require an indication of your interest in participating.
In addition, there will be a dinner/discussion the evening of May 18 supported by the Canadian Design Research Network (CDRN). The CRDN will sponsor this workshop on the research agenda for sustainable design in architecture, building and other design professions.
by Alexandra Bandon"The architecture may be old at This Old House's new project in Austin, Texas, but the thinking is thoroughly modern. For the first time, the show is going totally "green"—using as many environmentally friendly building products and methods as possible—and creating a functional home for a contemporary blended family.
The Austin Green Building Program, one of the oldest in the country, will rate the project for its use of eco-friendly materials. Photovoltaic cells on the roof, rainwater collection for irrigation, spray-foam insulation, recycled-glass tile and countertops, and formaldehyde-free wood composites are just some of the resource-saving strategies and eco-friendly materials planned for the project."
More information: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16840020/site/newsweek/
"How big are the savings? Richard Morgan of Austin Energy's Green Building Program estimates that an average family of four would generate $1,300 in electricity bills a year in the old house—versus $1,000 in the larger, green one. "Factor in the solar panels they've added," he says, "and the total comes down to $577."
THE Vatican has added its voice to warnings from churches around the world that climate change and abuse of the environment is against God's will.
At a Vatican conference on climate change, Pope Benedict XVI urged bishops, scientists and politicians to "respect Creation" while "focusing on the needs of sustainable development".
Everdale Farm
Date/Time: July 13-15
Straw Bale Construction: Hands-On Weekend
With Ben Polley of Harvest HomesStraw bales can be used to build homes and other types of buildings that are extremely durable, beautiful, energy efficient, low cost and well suited to our four-season climate. Lots of theory and practical experience building a small straw bale cabin. (This will not include cement lime or earthen plastering. We recommend you take the plastering and finishing workshops set in August.)
Products for a Better Planet
GreenerChoices.org, launched on Earth Day 2005 by Consumers Union, the non-profit publisher of Consumer Reports, is a Web-based initiative to inform, engage, and empower consumers about environmentally-friendly products and practices. GreenerChoices.org offers an accessible, reliable, and practical source of information on buying “greener” products that have minimal environmental impact and meet personal needs.
We created GreenerChoices.org to address the lack of credible, in-depth information on green products, services, and lifestyles, especially on the Web. Environmentally conscious consumers are faced with a huge amount of “green washing” by companies that want to capitalize on and exploit the growing interest in environmentally-friendly products, health, pollution and toxics.
In presenting the Top 10 Green Awards, the American Institute of Architects celebrated the best examples of sustainable architecture and environmental design.
"What few people realize is that buildings have the greatest impact on climate change -- more than transportation and industry -- because they consume so much electricity and natural gas, and they're all powered by power plants that themselves produce carbon emissions," Scott Frank, the group's spokesman
San Francisco's Civic Center is the proposed home of a government tower that city officials say will be more energy-efficient than any large office building in the United States.
Wind turbines stacked behind glass panels would generate energy for the 12-story PUC building.
