If the second green revolution is to succeed, companies will need to use materials and resources wisely and create innovate merchandise (seen in the video below). Currently, there are numerous companies that make useful products out of reclaimed and recycled goods, some of which replace existing ones and others that fill a void. Terracycle – maker of consumer products from waste – began 8 years ago as a freshman project at Princeton University. Founder Tom Szaky started the company by generating organic fertilizer from food scraps by feeding food waste to red wiggler worms, Szaky then collected the excrement, referred to as worm castings. According to their website, “Tom’s dream was to find way a new, more responsible way of doing doing business that would be good for the planet, good for people and good for the bottom line!”
Are Cities Really More Sustainable?
In the most recent Five Friday Facts, Justin provided information on the growth in cities outside the developed world. He points out that increasing populations pose challenges for sustainability. How ...
Growing Up in LA
A few weeks ago I was talking with another transplant from Los Angeles who also became interested in environmental sustainability. She asked what it was that got me interested in ...
Happy Birthday, 2nd Green Revolution
It has been three years to the day since our first post at 2nd Green Revolution. From that beginning, the number of visits to the site has tripled each year, ...
Terracycle: Turning Waste into Merchandise
Is There Any Point to the Debate About Climate Change?
The debate over whether global warming/climate change is happening is really kind of moot. Some say it’s happening. Some say it isn’t. Regardless of who is eventually found to be right, the larger international community has decided to use climate change as a rallying point to get consensus, institute agreements, and take action to change the way we produce, distribute, and consume energy.
Here at home, irrespective of the U.S. federal government, there are numerous organizations – including powerful ones like the Clinton Foundation and USCAP – that are influencing policy, legislation, and business. They will use climate change to their advantage even if they don’t necessarily believe in it or even if it really isn’t happening. It’s really beside the point. Local and state governments, the military, homeowners, schools, consumers and businesses are taking action to shift to a new energy paradigm, regardless. Money, both saving and making it, is an awesome motivator; so is increased security and more self-reliance by using a variety of renewable local energy sources. And a clean environment is not bad, either.
“Globalization” is forcing businesses to create, innovate, compete, and save like never before:
Five Friday Facts
- The United States is likely to install just one-eighth as much new solar power this year as Germany.
- China is expected to surpass the United States this year as the leader in adding new wind energy capacity.
- General Electric, which has 10,000 wind turbines in the United States, says that to encourage growth in the wind industry, the nation should adopt a target of obtaining 12 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2012.
- Some note that even with the administration’s recent moves, it has spent less than one-fourth of the $80 billion clean energy component of the stimulus package. Administration officials boast that the $80 billion figure is by far the largest amount ever committed to renewable energy.
- Solyndra, a company that makes solar photovoltaic panels in Fremont Calif., received a $535 million loan guarantee to finance a manufacturing plant, creating 3,000 construction jobs and 1,000 permanent jobs.
Source: New York Times
- 2nd Green Revolution
[image credit: Metropolitan Museum of Art]
Cash for Clunkers Redux: Appliances
Click to Enlarge
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has been put back to work replacing inefficient devices with more conservation minded ones. Instead of cars being brought to dealer lots, large household appliances (namely refrigerators, washing machines, and dishwashers) can be turned in for rebates. According to government’s Energy Star website, the “Amounts commonly offered [on the rebates] range from $50 to $250, depending upon the product being purchased, purchase price, and other market factors.”
Interface Inc: Using Lifecycle Assessments to Measure Product Impacts
Last Saturday’s post, the second written about Interface Inc.’s steps toward becoming a sustainable company, highlighted InterfaceRAISE. This is the third post detailing Interface’s sustainability measures focuses on lifecycle assessments and further details the path that Interface has blazed.
One of Interface’s main goals is to become a regenerative business. In order to do so, they derive inspiration from sustainable design found in nature. “Nature has some fundamental operating principles: it runs on sunlight and other renewable energy sources, it fits form to function, it recycles everything and it is extremely efficient — never creating excess or wasting — and, finally, it rewards cooperation.” As Interface transitioned into a company that behaves more like nature, the first step was to run their company on renewable energy, eliminating waste, and recycling and reusing materials.
Thanks for Reading
We wanted to take a minute to say thank you. 2nd Green Revolution has changed a lot since its founding only nine months ago and will continue to evolve (we hope to do a major website redesign sometime soon). As we’ve grown, it has been exciting to see so many people interested in sustainability, green technology, and clean energy.
Last month our very young website was visited by people in 76 countries. We find this amazing and encouraging, for the site as well as for the prospect of an economically vibrant and sustainable society. The second green revolution is under way around the world and we are proud to be a part of it. While there are tremendous challenges still ahead, economic stability, a cleaner environment, and healthier people are not mutually exclusive goals. They can all be part of a triple bottom line in which success in one sector translates into success in the others. Businesses can use the triple bottom line to measure success and so can society.
As always, we’ll be on the lookout for relevant, interesting, and useful news, products, and perspectives. Feel free to contact us if there is something you think we should know about. There are currently several way in which to interact with the site:
Follow us on Twitter.
Join our Facebook Fan Page.
Read us on the Kindle.
Leave a comment at the end of any post.
Email us at info@2ndgreenrevolution.com
Thanks for reading,
- 2nd Green Revolution
December Clean Energy and Sustainability Events
On or around the first of every month, 2nd Green Revolution updates the upcoming green events calendar for the coming month. Last month we began including a post highlighting some of the intriguing events for that month.
This month there are several international conferences posted on Conference Alerts. Here are a few domestic and a couple of international conferences of interest, including the United Nations’ long anticipated meeting in Copenhagen.
Solar Decathlon Results: Germany Repeats as Champions
Team Germany's Winning Solar House
I am remiss to post this so late but still wanted to wish a quick and belated congratulations to Team Germany for winning the 2009 Solar Decathlon that was held last month on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The annual contest challenged 20 student teams to design, build, and operate the most attractive and energy-efficient solar-powered house. Full results and details are here, or click on the image below. The following synopses of the three top houses are from the Solar Decathlon website.
Overall Winners
First Place: Team Germany (Technische Universität Darmstadt)
The 2007 champions did it again! Team Germany focused on producing surplus energy by using the maximum overall building dimensions allowed, applying photovoltaics to every available surface, and pushing the envelope with new technologies. The team walked away with the Net Metering contest and performed well in several others, including Architecture, Lighting Design, Comfort Zone, and Hot Water. Demonstrating that they are true champions, members of Team Germany were extremely gracious in their victory and recognized the work of their peers.
