2nd Green Revolution

Here is a quick announcement regarding the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). In an email to members earlier today, the USGBC introduced a new Web site called GreenHomeGuide.com. Designed to help companies in home construction and remodeling, the site is also available to the public. The new site contains

• A searchable services directory helps green-minded consumers connect with local green building professionals
• Editorial content, written by green building pros like you, helps homeowners find answers to green home questions that are relevant to their location and project

Read the rest of this entry »

Whether you love him, hate him, or are indifferent, Steve Jobs has major street cred. His company makes products that are elegant, well-designed, easy to use, and revolutionary. The hype and excitement that accompanies the lead up to and release of a major Apple product is second to none. Not only that, but the products go on to be wildly successful, while turning entire industries upside down. Think the Macintosh in the computer industry, the iPod in the music industry, the iPhone in the mobile device/phone industry, and now perhaps the iPad in the publishing industry. The presence of Apple has done wonders not only for Apple but for the entire electronics sector. People are excited about seeing the next useful technology and how it is integrated into a computer, phone, or GPS system. All this begs the question: Is there someone who can lead a company to develop breakthrough technologies and integrate them in products in the clean energy sector that consumers will get excited about? Is it even possible to have that in regards to green technology? Who would be a candidate for the role? Read the rest of this entry »

Bloom Energy had the official public unveiling of their solid oxide fuel cell technology today in Silicon Valley. After years of flying under the radar as a stealth start-up, the company made it’s debut on the world stage with a bang. California governor Arnold Swarzenegger was on hand as was former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Google co-founder Larry Page, venture capitalist John Doerr, and executives from eBay, Walmart, Coca-Cola, and FedEx. These companies have been generating energy from Bloom Boxes (units that contain stacks of these fuel cells) on a trial basis. According to TechCrunch, “Five Bloom energy boxes about the size of a parking space each now provide 15 percent of the power at eBay’s campus. Walmart is testing the boxes in two locations where [they are] carrying 60 to 80 percent of the energy load of an entire store.” A video describing the technology can be found here. Below is Bloom Energy’s explanation of how their technology is more flexible and better than “hydrogen” fuel cells. Read the rest of this entry »

For those interested in learning more about the burgeoning field of carbon management, on March 2nd from 9am-10am PST(Noon EST), Fluid Market Strategies is hosting a webinar on the topic. Specifically, the event will “look at future regulations and why organizations must assess the carbon emissions in their operations, products, services and supply chain to improve operational efficiency, reduce costs, increase sales and gain a competitive edge.” This could be informative for entrepreneurs, small business owners, and any organization that is interested in reducing costs. Fluid is a “privately held for-profit S-Corporation…founded in 2005 as a marketing and program management firm.” The company focuses on projects with an environmental or social benefit, specializing in energy efficiency and conservation.

We’ve been in contact with the event’s host and will provide more details next week.

- Justin Manger

Late last year Thomas Friedman was interviewed by Anne Strainchamps on Wisconsin Public Radio’s To The Best of Our Knowledge. The focus of the interview was the current green revolution, what we have taken to calling the second green revolution. He argues that everyone must participate if this is to be considered a true revolution.

In the interview, which can be heard here, Friedman claims that today’s measures fail to qualify as a revolution. He cites the general greenwashing of goods and services and argues that the day when every product achieves the highest energy efficiency will mark the next green revolution. What Friedman fails to acknowledge is that a revolution starts with a small force. However, his observation that “people actually have to change” is an important one. Behavioral changes represent the most daunting hurdle. Read the rest of this entry »

The world's largest lithium reserves are under the salt flats in Uyuni, Bolivia.

There’s no shortage of discussion about what the United States should do to wean itself off of oil. Such heavy dependence on one main fuel source to power our transportation systems (and thus keeping our economy humming) means the U.S. is vulnerable to the unpredictable gyrations of oil and gas prices. Aside from those concerns, security risks and political considerations from having to deal with OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)  and many less than democratic countries are often the cause of much strife. Last but not least are the environmental concerns from relying on a petroleum based economy. Electrification of the transportation sector has been hailed as one of the solutions to our current oil dependence. By switching to electric vehicles, it is argued, we can avoid many of the problems mentioned above. The need for a reliable and renewable electricity source other than coal to charge those cars is one major concern. The batteries needed to power our electric vehicles is another. Those batteries need lithium, and lithium is not so equitably dispersed around the world.  Is there a chance that there will one day be protests against “Big Lithium” or some other mineral instead of big oil? Here are a few facts about lithium today, taken from work by the Electrification Coaltion: Read the rest of this entry »

In his holiday letter to members, Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO and Founding Chair of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) mentioned some statistics that speak to the boom in green building:

• 27,373 people joined Greenbuild 2009 in Phoenix
• 14 million people are employed by a USGBC member company
• Of the 4,328 LEED-certified projects in existence, some 2,090 – more than 48%! – achieved certification in 2009
• Nearly half of all certifications in LEED’s eight-year history occurred during one of the toughest economic years in memory
• Some 33% of LEED-certified homes are affordable homes, and USGBC has worked to bring LEED Platinum affordable homes to the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans
• With the financial support of USGBC’s individual and organizational donors, five recipients of the USGBC Young Leader Awards and 39 other deserving students and professionals attended Greenbuild 2009 on full-conference scholarships.

- Rick Fedrizzi
President, CEO and Founding Chair
U.S. Green Building Council

If you live in Washington D.C., you may want to do some light shopping on New Year’s Day. This Friday, all seven Giant Food stores in D.C. will be bag your groceries in reusable totes. This is Giant’s way of using the introduction of a 5 cent bag tax in Washington D.C. as a clever marketing ploy to get people into its stores. Those totes could come in handy. Starting January 1st, shoppers at all grocery, drug, and liquor stores in the District will have to pay a 5 cent tax on paper and plastic bags they use for their purchased goods unless they bring their own bags. The bag tax, along with having to pay to park on the city’s streets on Saturday (currently free) and extending parking meter times until 10pm (currently 6:30pm in many places), is seen as one way to help close the city’s $104 million expected deficit next year.

In yet another symbol of China’s rapid development and increasing technological prowess, a high-speed train called the Harmony express shortened a previously 11 hour trip across China to a mere 3 hours. The Harmony express raced along the 1,100km (684 mile) route from Guangzhou to the central city of Wuhan at an average speed of 350km per hour (218mph), reaching a top speed of 394km per hour (245mph). Japan’s “Shinkansen” bullet trains and France’s TGV service, two pioneers and models when it comes to high-speed rail, have maximum services speeds of 300km per hour (186mph). The U.S. has the so-called “Express” Acela service from Amtrak which takes 3.5 hours to trundle between New York and Boston, a distance of only 300km (186miles) or roughly 30% of the distance that the new Chinese route can cover in the same time. Here is a summary of the new rail line and China’s rail ambitions by the numbers: Read the rest of this entry »