Green Boot Camp Instructs Teachers In New Jersey

Posted on July 24, 2011 by quest

Union County and Honeywell last week hosted the third annual Green Boot Camp, an interactive workshop focused on best practice instruction methods for teaching energy, sustainability and environmental concepts. As part of the five-day event, 40 middle school teachers from across North America gathered to explore the roots of green technology, sustainable living and environmental awareness by using the Union County Vocational-Technical Schools (UCVTS) campus in Scotch Plains, N.J., as a living laboratory.

“Our objective is to equip teachers with the tools to get students excited about science and engineering, and enable them to understand sustainable practices that will positively affect their families, schools and communities,” said Paul Orzeske, president of Honeywell Building Solutions. “By teaming with a renowned institution like UCVTS, we are educating the next generation of green workers and building a foundation for environmental stewardship.”

Green Boot Camp participants covered a comprehensive set of topics ranging from green energy and greenhouse gas emissions to electric vehicles and the smart electrical grid. For example, attendees worked on course materials to clearly articulate the principles of renewable energy by designing a solar house, and constructing a wind turbine and bicycle generator. In addition to the on-site instructors, Honeywell and UCVTS also invited a host of special guest speakers who specialize in environmental and energy-related disciplines, such as rainwater conservation and building energy management.

Picking Up Money Recycling in Port Au Prince

Executives Without Borders (ExecWB), in partnership with CSS International Holdings, Inc. and Haiti Recycling, will officially launch Ramase Lajan, a “cash for recyclables” program

Solar To Power Leading Wind Power Maker

Posted on July 23, 2011 by quest

Portland Mayor Sam Adams has announced solar panels from SolarWorld, the largest U.S. manufacturer of solar technology for more than 35 years, have been selected to power the North American headquarters of Vestas, a leader in providing high-tech wind power systems. “As Portland seeks to become the capital of the global green economy, collaborations among our leading clean energy firms are key,” Mayor Sam Adams said on July 20. “I’m excited to announce this unique partnership. It’s an excellent example of how two companies can come together and make something great happen in Portland.” The move links two of the top U.S. producers of renewable energy systems and underscores the companies’ confidence in the vitality of American manufacturing and the value of sustainability.

The announcement came outside the 102-year-old Meier & Frank Depot building in downtown Portland, future home of Vestas’ continental head office. The building’s redevelopment will feature a 112-kilowatt photovoltaic system, the largest roof-mounted solar array in Portland’s central business district. The system will cap an impressive list of cutting-edge energy and environmental features that are expected to position the historical building on Northwest Everett Street to pursue LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum certification. The SolarWorld panels will supply about 12 percent of the building’s electricity needs.

Both SolarWorld and Vestas have their headquarters for the Americas in the Portland area. SolarWorld employs more than 1,000 workers at its main U.S. site in Hillsboro, Ore., and more than 250 in Camarillo, Calif., where it has operated a solar-panel manufacturing site since the late 1970s. Vestas employs about 400 people in Portland and 3,000 nationwide. The company, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary in Portland next year, has sold more than 11,000 wind turbines in North America. When complete in spring 2012, the building will measure 172,000 square feet, including an addition on the fifth floor featuring an eco-roof terrace and garden and tenant and retail space on the first floor.

Eicke Weber Envisions Worldwide Solar Power Network

BART To Create Fleet Of The Future With BMW

Posted on July 21, 2011 by quest

BART has worked for years to get folks out of their cars and onboard its trains. That’s why at first look, it might seem strange that BART is partnering with a subsidiary of one of the premier car companies in the world to create the Fleet of the Future, a new generation of train cars going into service starting in 2017. The new partner is DesignworksUSA, a subsidiary of BMW Group. DesignworksUSAis the design-consulting division of BMW Group. In collaboration with BART, it will conceptualize the next generation of BART trains from the inside out, conveying a style, shape and functionality that reflects the needs of customers and the future of transportation in the Bay Area.

“BART is excited to announce its partnership with BMW Group DesignworksUSA,” BART Board President BobFranklin said. “With 75% of our customers having the option of choosing another way to get to their destinations, we figured what better way to lure the drivers of the future onto BART than to hire the company who knows motorists best. That’s why we turned to DesignworksUSA, which has been instrumental in the design of many BMW vehicles presently on the road, to design a BART car that’s modern, elegant, comfortable yet practical, economical, and clean so that even more people will choose BART.”

Tangerine Dream Time Lapse…California

Most of BART’s original train cars remain in operation today, nearly 40 years after the September 1972 start of service. In fact, BART has the oldest fleet of train cars in the country – many of which are now carrying the grandchildren of the first customers who began riding in 1972. Despite an ever-growing ridership on the rapidly aging system, BART has been able to manage a customer on-time performance that exceeds 96 percent. To keep delivering this level of service BART cannot wait any longer to replace its aging fleet.

Brookings Quantifies the Clean Economy

Lufthansa Schedules Sustainable Biofuel Flights

Posted on July 21, 2011 by quest

Last week, Lufthansa launched a six-month biofuel trial on regular scheduled flights. Christoph Franz, Chairman and CEO of the Lufthansa Group, said: “Lufthansa is the first airline worldwide to use biofuel in scheduled daily flight operations. We are thus continuing to steadily implement our proven and successful strategy for sustainability.” A Lufthansa Airbus A321 with the registration D-AIDG will fly the Hamburg-Frankfurt-Hamburg route four times daily. One of its engines will run on a 50/50 mix of regular fuel and biosynthetic kerosene. The biofuel for jet engines has been approved by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). During the six months test run period, the use of biofuel will reduce CO2 emissions by up to 1,500 tonnes.

As air transport is the only mode of transport that will remain dependent upon liquid fuels for the foreseeable future, the aviation industry and the research community must develop and test alternatives. “Fossil raw materials are finite,” Franz cautioned. He added that next to reducing CO2 emissions the main aim of this long-term operational trial, was to examine the effects of biofuel on the maintenance and lifespan of aircraft engines. The biosynthetic kerosene used by Lufthansa is derived from pure biomass and consists of jatropha, camelina and animal fats. The fuel used by Lufthansa is produced by Neste Oil, a Finnish oil company. Neste has extensive experience in the production of biofuels and has been a successful partner of Lufthansa for many years. Suppliers must provide proof of the sustainability of their processes and meet the criteria stipulated by the European Parliament and the Council in the Renewable Energy Directive. Lufthansa guarantees that the production of its biofuel is not in direct competition with food production and that no rainforests are destroyed.

The use of biosynthetic kerosene is one element of the four-pillar climate protection strategy pursued by Lufthansa with a view to reducing overall CO2 emissions in the air transport sector. By combining a range of different measures – for example, ongoing fleet modernization, technology improvements to aircraft and engines, operational measures such as engine washing or the use of lighter materials and an improved infrastructure – Lufthansa aims to achieve the ambitious environmental goals set out in its strategy. The implementation of new technologies has seen Lufthansa improve its fuel efficiency by over 30 per cent since 1991. Source: Valere Tjolle , Sustainable Tourism Report

PRESIDIO GRADUATE SCHOOL ANNOUNCES NEW PRESIDENT

Kenyan Eco Entrepreneur Turns Trash Into Treasure

Posted on July 20, 2011 by quest

The 2011 Cartier Women’s Initiative Finalist have been announced. The aim of The Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards is to support meaningful business projects that combine innovation and audacity. Started in 2006 in partnership with the Woman’s Forum, the INSTEAD business school and Mckinsey, the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards are an international business plan competition for female entrepreneurs who lead creative, financially sustainable and socially responsible companies. The finalist are selected from around the globe. One of this year’s finalists is Kenyan EcoPost founder Lorna Rutto. EcoPost is a Kenyan firm that uses 100 % recycled plastics to manufacture aesthetic, durable and environmentally friendly fencing posts and custom lumber profiles. Plastic waste is a frequent blot on Kenya’s beautiful landscapes. In spite of a government ban on the use of plastic bags, which came into force in 2007 when Kenya was producing 48 million of them, plastic of all kinds and shapes litters the land or piles up in open tips.

Lorna has been troubled by this plastic litter ever since she was a schoolgirl. At the time she used to collect bits left lying around and turn them into earrings, ‘though it wasn’t really the earrings I was interested in—I just wanted to find a way to get rid of all that plastic!’ After graduating in commerce and accounting five years ago, she started a career in banking to play safe in a tough employment market, but ‘something felt wrong; I was working on systems and structures and not with people and science, which had been my other passion at school. I wasn’t comfortable about it.’ Two years ago, she took the entrepreneurial plunge. Her love of the environment found an echo with a young biochemical engineer she met at her first job, now her business partner, who brings his technical expertise to her financial and managerial know-how. After researching potential avenues for their cause they found that plastic was the best place to start, much to Lorna’s delight!

Kenya has barely 2% of forest cover, yet high demand for posts to make fencing around the country’s houses, plantations and huge game reserves. For years these were made from red cedar trees, which are now an endangered species; a presidential directive has made it illegal to chop them down since 2007. Those looking for an alternative can bank on EcoPost, which recycles waste and helps the environment. Utilising dirty plastic to make a product that saves wood is not just an environmental plus, it boosts employment: alongside its 15 permanent staff, to source its raw material EcoPost hires the services of hundreds of women working as casual labor to collect the plastic and sell it to them by the kilo. In its first eight month of operations, EcoPost manufactured 5,000 posts, removing 300 tonnes of plastic waste from the environment. ‘That’s 500 trees that won’t be chopped down,’ Lorna states. And who knows, some might even end up fencing the forests they have helped to save.

Solar Decathlon To Showcase Benefits of Solar Technology

Charlize Theron & Ryan Reynolds Going Green Hollywood Style

Posted on July 18, 2011 by quest

If you can believe the latest word out of Hollywood, Green Lantern star Ryan Reynolds and Academy Award winner, film producer and former fashion model Charlize Theron have been dating for months. Both have some pretty strong ” green” activist street creds. Theron also is a supporter of animal rights and active member of PETA. She appeared in a PETA ad for their anti-fur campaign.

In July 2009 it was announced that Theron’s Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP) would form a coalition with LAFC Soccer Club to give soccer fields to rural areas in South Africa. LAFC Chelsea, one of the United States’s most successful and prominent youth soccer clubs, made a three-year commitment to help build a community-wide soccer program for the schools in the Umkhanyakude District. This help includes uniforms, cleats, balls and equipment, along with professional training for local coaches, referees and administrators. “Our goal is to help truly create a safer, healthier and better life for young people in South Africa, especially those living in remote areas, and to ensure that the resources we bring are self sustaining. The three year commitment is so incredible and key to being sure that the program will be around for many years to come”, says Charlize Theron.

Canadian born actor Ryan Reynolds known for his roles in National Lampoon’s Van Wilder, Waiting…, Definitely, Maybe, The Proposal and X-Men Origins: Wolverine wrote in the Huffington Post after the BP oil rig explosion; “What we’re doing is literally the same thing cave men did: we set things on fire to produce energy. There are so many viable alternatives. Wind farms and solar plants, for instance, don’t explode, destroying thousands of miles of marshlands and oceans. That’s something worth focusing on. I started out feeling angry about the spill, and I think a lot of other people did too. Slowly but surely, I’ve been trying to redirect that anger into something positive. And you start to think, “How can we change this? How can we turn this into an opportunity? I see this whole thing as a wakeup call: a chance to shift to cleaner energy and build a greener economy.  It’s easy to vilify Big Oil after a tragedy like this, but there are still hard working people in that industry who need to put a roof over their heads. I firmly believe we can pass clean energy and climate legislation and by doing so, put millions of Americans to work.”