2nd Green Revolution

Update: The Chamber takes another blow as Nike gives up spot on board of directors “to protest the business lobby’s opposition to climate change legislation.”  – Story from Politico

In one of the starkest signs that businesses understand the necessity of going green, Excelon Energy (profile in our company index) has become the latest company to pull out of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce due to differences in climate change policy. The Chamber has taken a somewhat negative stance on environmental issues, and against cap-and-trade legislation specifically, that do not sit well with all of its members. Read the rest of this entry »

For those of you in the Washington, D.C. metro region, this weekend brings a good chance to visit solar homes and buildings in the area. The 19th Annual Solar Tour runs from 11a.m. to 5p.m. on October 3rd and 4th. The homes and buildings are scattered throughout Maryland, Virginia, and the District and will provide opportunities to see a “remarkable variety of solar design, technology and sustainable living concepts illustrated in over 70 homes.” For those of you thinking about installing solar systems or just interested in learning about the technology, it could be a nice way to spend a few hours on a pleasant fall day. According to the website: Read the rest of this entry »

Out of the top 500 big businesses in America, Newsweek has awarded computer maker and technology company Hewlett-Packard the title of “Greenest Big Business”. With Dell at number two, Johnson & Johnson at number three, Intel at number four and IBM ranked fifth, technology companies take four of the top five spots. While the complete list can be found here, the top ten rounds out as below:  Read the rest of this entry »

In a recent email sent out to its members, the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) announced that their new Building Performance Initiative “will be in full swing with the first of five summits planned to raise the level of discussion about how we can ensure that all green buildings perform the way they are intended.” In addition, the new initiative seeks to improve the performance of all buildings in the country by upgrading for “measurably better energy, water, human health and natural resources outcomes.”

The following cities will host the summits, Chicago, IL (September 29th), San Francisco, CA (October 6th), Los Angeles, CA (October 8th), New York City (October 15th), and Washington, D.C. (October 21st). “These summits will convene between 75 and 100 people each, and attendees will bring the experience and expertise of a diversity of sectors, including representatives from local, state and federal governments, USGBC chapters, [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] project teams, developers, architects, engineers and many others.” The final report from these summits will be delivered at the 2009 Greenbuild International Conference and Expo in Phoenix, Ariz., Nov. 11-13. Read the rest of this entry »

• 450ppm: Widely accepted as the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (parts per million) that would stimulate temperature rises to 2°C. The figure is 385ppm today.
• 50 per cent by 2050: Cut in global emissions, relative to a 1990 baseline, required to not breach the 450ppm level, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
• 25-40 per cent: Cut in developed country emissions by 2020, relative to 1990, needed to set world on path to meeting a 2050 target, according to IPCC.
• $100bn-$200bn: Estimate of amount of finance needed each year by developing countries to cut emissions and adapt to the effects of climate change.
• 2,000: Number of square brackets in the draft climate change treaty. They denote wording that must be settled before negotiations can be completed.

Source:  Financial Times

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/78e4a36c-a710-11de-bd14-00144feabdc0.html

Earlier this month we covered National Public Radio’s week-long series looking at high-speed rail prospects and its roadblocks in America. We are curious about your thoughts so please take a moment and vote in our poll.

- Eric Wilson

For years the Segway promised to be the answer to mobility and energy concerns for law enforcement and security personnel. T3 Motion Inc. is based in California and manufactures their vehicles in the United States. Their goal is to increase the transportation offerings to organizations in need of low speed vehicles. Their three main products, the CT micro car, T3 Series ESV (for law enforcement, government,  security, parcel delivery, and utilities), and the T3i Series ESV (for international customers) are all electric vehicles.

The CT Micro Car charges in approximately 8 hours with a range of 35, 45, or 75 miles, depending on the battery. As an alternative, the T3 and T3i Series both charge in roughly 3-4 hours, but come with a swappable battery that allows for near constant movement at a speed of 12-25 km/h (approximately 8-15 mph).

Features on the CT Micro Car include:

• Up to 35 mph
• Equivalent of 160 mpg*
• 12’ Turning Radius
• Maintenance Free AC Motor
• Regenerative Braking System
• Automatic Parking Brake
• Zero Gas Emissions
• All-Electric Vehicle

T3 Motion’s mission is to “produce personal mobility vehicles that meet the stringent performance standards and image of the professional.” The company believes “that our technology should be a benefit to both our professional end-users and the environment. Our zero gas emissions all-electric vehicle “the T3 Series” proves clean energy can also be cost-effective.” They base their argument on an average of 1 kilowatt usage per day at an average cost of 10 cents per kilowatt.

According to their website, “the T3 is an immediate response to the needs of the professional community.” In a “professional marketplace actively searching for environmentally-conscious and job-specific vehicles. . . . The T3 squarely hits the target for an environmentally-friendly, cost-effective professional vehicle that is designed to improve efficiency, reduce fatigue, and increase the ability to interface with others.”

- Eric Wilson

[image source: T3 Motion]

This week the world’s leaders will gather in the U.S. for two major international events. Tomorrow, September 22, the United Nations Summit on Climate Change will be hosted by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in New York. In his words, “the objective of the Summit on Climate Change… is to mobilize the political will and vision needed to reach an ambitious agreed outcome based on science at the UN climate talks in Copenhagen.” Indeed, as the countdown clock on the home page of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change shows, only 76 days remain until Copenhagen. At the UN Summit tomorrow, China is expected to release a new plan to tackle climate change. While the details of the plan are not yet known, the fact that China will be presenting a new plan shows how rapidly climate change and the environment have become priorities for the Chinese government. Read the rest of this entry »

The Sierra Club recently released their third annual “coolest” schools list. In order to determine the list, The Sierra Club “e-mailed a lengthy questionnaire to sustainability experts at hundreds of schools. The survey covered eight categories: efficiency, energy, food, academics, purchasing, transportation, waste management, and administration. Schools could earn up to ten points in each category, and up to five bonus points if they had additional green initiatives.”

The top 20 schools in order of ranking are: Read the rest of this entry »