Hollywood Spotlights Green Sustainability

Posted on November 23, 2011 by quest

Kermit the Frog is slowly having to take his words back,”It ain’t easy to be green” More and more Hollywood production companies are taking front in measures to reduce costs and toxic wastes on big productions. The film and television industry traditionally consumes vast amounts of energy and unsustainable resources with productions around the world. With seed funding and support provided by Disney, Fox, NBC Universal, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Warner Bros., the Green Production Guide was created by the Producers Guild of America Foundation and PGAGreen.org with the aim of breaking that tradition by helping film and television professionals find the resources and partners necessary to make use of sustainable practices their productions.

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Peabody Award Winner and Co Founder of Green for All, Majora Carterreported on Mike Fantasia a Hollywood production and location manager in her series The Promised Land. Mike has been on the forefront of “greening up” big movie productions. In fact Hollywood now has the equivalent of a sustainability manager to cut wastes on the set. Solvie Karlstrom who writes for NRDC’s Smarter Living recently published,”The Planet Was Not Harmed During the Making of This Film“, covered the activities of Yazmin Watkins. Yazmin is the environmental steward at the shoot, she’s the person responsible for reducing the amount of waste produced on set and cutting down on the energy, water, and other natural resources that go into production — not an easy task on a project with a reported $40 million budget that involves months of shooting and thousands of cast and crew members.

On the renewable energy front; This year’s 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards used a 50-kilowatt solar panel system from Solarworld to power the official live pre-show “Countdown To the Emmys,” We know some big stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Natalie Portman, Robert Redford, Don Cheatle and Daryl Hannah have been advocates for green living for some time, but now Hollywood movie producers are making movies that are even greener…and being green is getting easier than it used to be.

Green Investing

New Flights Into Costa Rica’s Ecotourism Haven

Posted on November 22, 2011 by quest

Costa Rica is truly a magical place and apparently JetBlue Airways realizes this because they recently announced four new weekly non-stop flights to Liberia, in Costa Rica’s rich Guanacaste region; from its home base at New York’s JFK Airport. Liberia, on Costa Rica’s Pacific Coast, will be the airline’s second destination in the country. JetBlue has served Juan Santamaria International Airport in the capital, San Jose, with nonstop service from Orlando, since 2009. Named after the national tree of Costa Rica, Guanacaste is one of the country’s most popular vacation and ecotourism destinations thanks to nearly a dozen well-known biological reserves, national parks and wildlife refuges. Known as a haven for nature lovers and outdoor adventurers alike, stunning Pacific coastlines are plentiful in this northwestern province, as are the seemingly endless hours of summer sunlight.

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JetBlue five-hour flights between New York and Liberia will be operated with the airline’s fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft, featuring convenient, assigned seating; a first-checked bag free; complimentary and unlimited name brand snacks and drinks; comfy leather seats; more legroom than any other carrier in coach ; and its award-winning customer service.

Nestled between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, Costa Rica is located in Central America between Nicaragua and Panama. The country represents only .05 percent of the planet’s surface but shelters almost 5 percent of the world’s biodiversity and 3.5 percent of the world’s marine life. Costa Rica is home to three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, four types of forest, 12 microclimates and more than 500 species of flora and fauna, with more than 26 percent of its territory comprising national parks and other protected areas, making the country one of the most popular sustainable tourism destinations in the world. To celebrate, the airline is also offering an inaugural fare of only $119 if booked by December 1, 2011 for travel through February 15, 2012. We look forward to welcoming JetBlue passengers into our country, where they can experience first-hand our rich culture, commitment to sustainability and the happiness that is unique to our country,” commented Costa Rica Minister of Tourism Allan Flores.

Integrated Solar Energy Powering Homes And Cars

Posted on November 21, 2011 by quest

Its exciting to see home builders, solar panel makers and electric vehicle companies coming together to find cost effective and clean energy solutions that people can use right now. With the just completed “Plug Into History” press event featuring the Nissan LEAF with a City Ventures home pre-wired for electric cars, the dream is now realized. Integrated with each residence, City Ventures homes feature solar power and energy-efficient design, bringing energy bills to near net zero. The coupling of high-tech solar home with advanced electric car completes the circuit, allowing low-cost, low-carbon, gasoline-free living. The City Ventures earth-friendly neighborhoods, comprising over 190 homes, represent the largest collection of new, solar, no-gas homes in the United States. They are currently under construction in the California cities of Signal Hill, Santa Barbara and Brea. Prices for these homes start in the high $200,000s.

Savvy home buyers are now seeking homes with solar panels and electric vehicle charging capability. So it comes as no surprise that KB Home, one of the nation’s premier home builders, has also just announced that it is significantly expanding its popular solar initiative by making solar power systems a standard feature of homes in nearly all of its communities across Southern California. Including the high-efficiency SunPower solar power systems – now available at 28 communities – with a new KB home can help KB homeowners reduce their monthly energy bills by as much as 80% and lower their cost of homeownership for years to come. Consumers who buy a Built to Order KB home get the value of a custom home-like experience plus the tremendous energy efficiency of our latest advanced building techniques.

Jeffrey Mezger, president and chief executive officer of KB Homes said, “The response to our solar initiative has been overwhelmingly positive and we are excited to expand our program so that many more homebuyers in Southern California can take advantage of this unique opportunity.”To illustrate the potential benefit of solar power systems and the many other energy-efficient features of its homes, KB Home provides consumers with its Energy Performance Guide, which shows an estimate of monthly energy costs for each home as designed. A new KB home is could to save a homeowner about $2,000 annually on energy costs. Even if you don’t buy a house that has been built “green” from the ground up and process of greening up an existing home can be very rewarding.

US Could Save $80 Billion With Renewable Energy

China on U.S. Solar Panels Complaint

Green Jobs Future Here Now

Posted on November 20, 2011 by quest

The green jobs of the future are actually already here. Jobs for the Future a national organization that identifies, develops, and promotes new education and workforce strategies and the National Wildlife Foundation are introducing NASA‘s cutting-edge contributions in climate change science to community college green sector curricula as part of a new project launched this month called Building a Diverse, Green Workforce. The project builds on The Greenforce Initiative, a partnership between JFF and NWF to improve green career pathways for underrepresented students and connect campus sustainability to hands-on training opportunities. The National Center for Science Education (NCSE) is also a partner in the new project. Edgecombe Community College in North Carolina, Wayne County Community College in Detroit, and Wilbur Wright Community College in Chicago are all piloting the new curriculum in at least nine courses, engaging up to 180 students over two years.

IRobot

In science fiction technology is suspect. Take for example the movies Terminator and iRobot where the machine are out to takeover humans. But then comes Disney’s hardest working droid in show business, Wall – E; and Optimus Prime from Transformers who were meant to save civilization. So I guess it depends how we use it. According to Maria Flynn, vice president at JFF, “Despite the slow growth economy, employment opportunities continue to increase in many clean economy sectors and sustainability skills are becoming more important for economic competitiveness. Through this project, we will strengthen the skill sets that adults attain in their green career training programs while also supporting the development of workers who are knowledgeable about and prepared for well-paying STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) careers.”

“Climate change, and the challenges it brings, will touch every corner of the American economy, and we must address it in kind at the career training level,” said Kevin Coyle, vice president of Education Programs, National Wildlife Federation. “We are excited to help that process along by adapting our teaching tools using more technically advanced NASA learning opportunities and resources more appropriate for community college faculty and students.” To promote greater access and success for students at different skill levels, Building a Diverse, Green Workforce focuses on credit coursework that leads to green job-related certificates and degrees; workforce training programs endorsed by green sector employers; and basic skills programs for students not yet ready for college credit-level work. The curriculum will be adapted from the National Wildlife Federation’s Eco-Schools USA Climate Change Connections, which incorporates NASA mission satellite data with ground-based observations for use with high school students and teachers. This national project was made possible in part by the Bank of America Charitable Foundation.

Arctic Melt Unnerves the Experts

California’s Ninety Nine Percent Buying Solar Energy

California’s Ninety Nine Percent Buying Solar Energy

Posted on November 15, 2011 by quest

PV Solar Report, an authority on California solar market data and SunRun, a leading home solar company, today announced that families in median income zip codes make up the majority of California’s home solar market. Two thirds of California home solar installations in 2009, 2010, and 2011 year-to-date have been in zip codes with median annual household incomes of less than $85,000 and not in the wealthiest areas of the state. In addition, the number of residential projects in lower income zip codes continues to increase as solar prices decrease. The top cities on the list are not California’s wealthiest and are home to more mainstream families. For example, Bakersfield and Fresno are among the state’s top five solar cities with annual household incomes averaging between $40,000 and $50,000. By comparison, Malibu, which was not even in the top 25, has a median annual household income of $160,000. The percent of total installations in California’s highest income zip codes is only 2-3 percent.

SunRun Director of Government Affairs Ethan Sprague said, “The data from PV solar report shows this model is working, and that it’s not just the wealthy driving and benefitting from solar adoption. We are working to educate consumers that solar is finally affordable.” “This is exactly the market transformation that the California Solar Initiative (CSI) was designed to achieve when it started in 2007. SunRun owns, insures and maintains solar panels and installs them on a homeowner’s roof. Families pay a low monthly rate for clean energy, fixing their energy costs for 20 years. The service makes solar accessible to more Californians because families who could not afford cash purchase can now go solar. One of every four SunRun customers reporting income makes less $50,000 per year.

“It’s exciting to analyze how the industry is growing right now, especially when trends indicate that solar is becoming more mainstream and not just reserved for the wealthiest individuals,” said Stephen Torres, founder and managing director of PV Solar Report. “Solar prices are coming down, it’s great for job growth from installing, financing, and servicing solar in local communities, and models like SunRun are helping drive growth because they eliminate large upfront investments.”

Solar Power Wars

Los Angeles The New Mecca For Electric Vehicles

Posted on November 13, 2011 by quest

It seems LA is to electric vehicle companies as San Francisco is to solar companies. “We are proud to welcome CODA to Los Angeles — the city that creates and innovates,” said Mayor Villaraigosa. “We see CODA’s move as a boost to our growing clean technology industry in LA and we are thrilled they chose to locate in our City.”CODA Holdings, a leading developer of all-electric vehicles and advanced battery systems, just recently held the grand opening celebration of its 100,000 square foot global headquarters, R&D Division and Processing Center in the heart of Los Angeles. In addition, the City has named the road adjoining joining CODA’s headquarters “Electric Drive” to honor of CODA’s core technology. “We chose to place the global headquarters in Los Angeles not only because it is one of the most significant early markets for the deployment of electric vehicles, but because elected officials and business leaders have demonstrated their commitment to fostering a successful local cleantech industry,” said Phil Murtaugh, CEO, CODA Holdings. “We are excited about the many jobs we’ve already created for the area and look forward to many more as we expand and bring to market our all-electric sedan and energy storage products.” Just recently Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa welcomed BYD who opened their North American headquarters in downtown Los Angeles.

You Got A Fast Car – Tracy Chapman

CODA’s Executive Chairman, Mac Heller and CEO, Phil Murtaugh, Governor Jerry Brown, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa,Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-47), Los Angeles City Council President Eric Garcetti, Councilman Herb Wesson and California Air Resources Board Chairman Mary Nichols were on hand to mark the occasion. Assemblywoman Betsy Butler (D-50), and representatives for Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and State Senator Curren Price (D-26) were in attendance. “Dynamic innovation is a key building block of California’s 21st century economy,” said California Governor Jerry Brown. “Car companies like CODA are investing in California because our laws encourage electric cars and recognize the paramount importance of reducing oil dependency.”

CODA is currently the fastest-growing company in Los Angeles, with a 275% job increase year to date and an expected 300% growth by the end of this year. With 220 engineers, technicians and corporate staff at its global headquarters, CODA is located on South Fairfax Avenue, adjacent to Interstate 10. Over the next year, CODA anticipates adding an additional 100 employees at the location, growing to 650 in the following years. The company supports further jobs at a facility in Benicia, CA where its vehicles undergo final assembly.