Published on May 15th, 2008
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As a recent transplant to the Bay Area, I have noticed that San Francisco and Los Angeles seem worlds away from each other both physically and culturally. Now that a plan to build a high-speed train linking the two cities is moving forward, that distance will become a whole lot smaller—physically, at least.
In case you aren’t familiar with the plan, here are the basics: The California High Speed Rail Authority is in the beginning stages of building an 800-mile long high-speed train system that will serve every major city in California. The trains will be capable of speeds up to 220 miles per hour, and the trip time from San Francisco to L.A. will be only 2 hours and 40 minutes. That’s comparable to the time it takes to travel between the two locations on a plane.
By providing a viable alternative to energy-intensive car and air travel, the rail system will reduce carbon emissions up to 17.6 billion pounds per year and reduce oil consumption up to 22 million barrels per year.
Pretty amazing, right? And now the California High-Speed Rail Authority is going to get a boost with new member Thomas Umberg. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 9th, 2008
Oakland, California-based architect Michelle Kaufmann has made a career of promoting green homes and green communities through her company, Michelle Kaufmann Designs. But if you’re not in the market for a new house, she still has some pretty cool tips for greening your home on the cheap.
On her blog, Kaufmann features do-it-yourself videos for a neat variety of eco-projects that let you reduce energy costs, recycle objects into useful items and add elements of clean, green living to your home.
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Published on May 8th, 2008
Every now and again, something really cool crosses my desk, and I think, “Wow, that’s really cool!” Just such an occasion happened this week, when a friend who works in PR sent over some information from The Reuse People of America, or TRP.
Based in Oakland, TRP is a nonprofit organization that works to reduce the amount of useable construction materials that go into landfills. Since its founding in 1993, TRP has salvaged over 200,000 tons of reusable building materials. The resulting resources are sold to the public, or are donated to a variety of worthy causes, including Habitat for Humanity and Goodwill Industries.
Though the materials can come from a variety of sources, over 90% come from TRP’s own demolition services. In demolition projects, TRP acts like any other contractor, except that they sell or donate the resulting “waste”. Homowners who use TRP for demolition get a bonus - tax deductions, based on the value of the materials salvaged. These deductions can be large, in some cases covering the cost of the demolition itself.
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Published on May 1st, 2008
Inspiring eco-entreprenuers and would-be B&B owners everywhere, the Venice Beach Eco Cottages are the new cool spot to stay on sizzling Venice Beach. Their tagline says it all: sustainable, environmentally friendly, gezellig - a chill-sounding Dutch word meaning a cozy, relaxing, and warmly enjoyable environment.
These one-time crack houses were renovated by Cynthia Foster and Karel Samson to become 450 square feet of sustainable, solar-powered beach heaven. Each bungalow has been rebuilt using green materials, like reused wood and recycled denim insulation. Inside, each of the three cottages sports organic linens and mattresses, repurposed furniture, and energy efficient appliances.
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Published on April 24th, 2008
Last year, I covered a press conference touting GE’s ecomagination initiative, which detailed the progress that the corporate giant had made in its new lines of business. It was exciting to see “green” applied across the board in so many varied areas, including entertainment division Universal Studios. And though the event had a Hollywood feel (even the Governator was there) I would never have expected Bart Simpson to get into the act.
Well, not Bart exactly, but his theme park counterpart, “The Simpsons Ride” at Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando Resort. The first of its kind, the new rides use a variety of technological innovations in their design and construction to reduce their environmental impact. Ay, carumba!
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Published on April 17th, 2008
AltBuild, the Alternative Building Expo sponsored by the City of Santa Monica, CA, returns for its 5th year on April 25-26, 2008.
Designed to promote green building, alternative energy, and sustainable technologies and practices, the Expo brings together all members of the building and construction community. This includes architects, contractors, designers, government representatives, as well as the interested public. And really, aren’t we all interested these days?
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Published on April 11th, 2008
Calling all EcoLocalizers: if you’ve been working to solve an environmental problem in your part of the U.S., The Sundance Channel wants to hear from you.
Starting on Earth Day (Tuesday, April 22), Sundance will present a new Web series called The Good Fight. Hosted by Indian-born activist, author and TV producer Simran Sethi, the online series is aimed at building awareness of the environmental justice movement and at highlighting local heroes in various environmental causes. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on April 11th, 2008
Taking a break from the daily San Francisco routine, we headed down to Los Angeles for a conference known as Canada Marketplace where we search for the anything significantly Green in the Great White North. We did discover some hotels, restaurants and other things making that movement in the green direction but that will have to wait for another post.
In this one, we focus on the marketplace itself. This year, they ventured into that Green netherworld to make the conference greener. They even hired a Green conference consultant but we could track down this consultant so we had do go it alone.
We thing we see when we check in is a giant sign from Travel Alberta about how they have purchased carbon credits. It’s no secret of what we think of carbon credits (low on the green totem pole). We’re more about actually doing something to make a change instead of just buying something.
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Published on April 10th, 2008
I’m excited to say that there are so many events coming up here in LA to celebrate Earth Day, I can’t come close to listing them all. I’ve picked out a few big ones in different parts of the city - you’re sure to find one near you. For a complete list, check out EarthDay LA.
Kicking things off is Santa Monica’s Earth Day on the Promenade. Santa Monica seems to be at the forefront of environmental issues and Earth Day is no exception - the city always holds its event early. On Saturday, April 12th, you can check out the booths and exhibits while enjoying live performances up and down the Third Street Promenade.
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Published on April 3rd, 2008
Some environmentalists feel strongly that companies should reduce their impact on the environment because it’s the right thing to do - going green because it benefits the bottom line somehow doesn’t count. Personally (and paraphrasing Oleta Adams) I don’t care how you get there, just get there if you can.
Business events like the AeA soponsored, “How Does Going Green Affect the Bottom Line?” further the cause. Held on March 20th at UCLA, technology companies discussed their successes along the journey to sustainability, and shared lessons learned related to different areas of greening.
A few key takeaways for companies interested in going green: Read the rest of this entry »
