15 stories of environmental hope

TED Scribe Jane Wulf is an endless source of fantastic online resources.  Here are 15 fresh links she compiled of sustainability initiatives. Is there a zeitgeist shift afoot? 

Building a Solar Company in a Recession Economy
This is not a reset, where we simply reboot the economy with the same code. This is a rewrite of the code. Our social, emotional, and economic underpinnings are all going through a massive change as we come to grips with a world-wide economic recession AND the background ills that have been festering for over 20 years: healthcare, climate change, real security, peak oil, and unrepentant greed.

Sustainable San Mateo County is preparing the ground for changing society.  We can't simply arrive at a sustainable world...we have to co-create and live our way into it together. The Sustainability Hub is SSMC's newest community resource for promoting a healthy economy, environment, and society in San Mateo County. This first-of-its-kind webtool provides the community with an easy way to share and gather trusted solutions and local resources, as well as the first and only Bay Area Green Jobs Board.

Compostable packaging
Frito Lay, the maker of Sun Chips, (one of the Sun Chip manufacturing plants is solar powered) has taken sustainability another step further.  They have created packaging made from plant based materials, that under the right conditions, could decompose completely in fourteen days.  It is expected that by April 2010 all North American Sun Chip bags will be compostable. 

Win $20,000 to Put Your Green Idea Into Action
SunChips and National Geographic have joined forces to create the Green Effect, an initiative to inspire individuals to spark a green movement in their communities.

Smart Charger Controller
Electric vehicle owners can plug in their cars and forget about them, knowing they'll get the cheapest electricity available and won't crash the grid.

Aging Seattle buildings now environmentally sound 

China To Focus on Renewable Energy 
China is battling air pollution and high costs for imported energy with an aggressive focus on renewable energy. The Chinese government says it will have 100 gigawatts of wind-power capacity by 2020 — enough to power more than 60 million homes. That figure is more than three times the target the government laid out just 18 months ago. 

DOE To Invest US $93M in Recovery Act Funds in Wind Power 
DOE announced last week that it plans to provide US $93 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to support the further development of wind energy in the United States. The funding will support projects that draw on the innovations of DOE's national laboratories, universities, and the private sector to help improve reliability and overcome key technical challenges for the wind industry. These projects will create green jobs, promote economic recovery, and provide the investments needed to increase renewable energy generation. 

Bioelectricity Promises More "Miles Per Acre" than Ethanol 
Researchers writing in the online edition of the May 7 Science magazine say the best bet is to convert the biomass to electricity, rather than ethanol.

All There is To Know About the Smart Grid and Renewables
In this article, we highlight a four-part audio podcast series about what smart grid theories, technologies and applications mean for renewable energy. 

Naknek Electric Utility Heats Up Geothermal Plans 

US Government Furthers Its Commitment To Invest in Renewable Energy R&D 

Marine Energy: How Much Development Potential Is There? 

"Starting a Career in Clean Tech" 

Take your food to go without guilt - Eco Clamshell

9 responses
The 2nd story - the "Sustainability Hub" is designed to be expanded for multiple portals in multiple communities. If you'd like a Sustainability Hub webtool in your community, let us know.

650-638-2323

Ecofasa turns waste to biodiesel using bacteria

A group of Spanish developers working for a company called Ecofasa just announced a new biofuel made up from trash. This isn't a biodiesel made from used frying oil; instead, it's made from general urban waste which is treated by bacteria. The result of that bacteria? Fatty acids that can be used to produce standard biodiesel. According to the company's CEO, the process is fully biologic, competes with no feedstock and is really sustainable. However, the process doesn't yield that much actual fuel: just one liter of biodiesel from 10 kg of trash. The project is now in a development phase, but Ecofasa said that a commercially viable model could be ready in three to four years.

http://www.biodieselmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=3225

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Jh4c24qeX4

goooooooooooooooooooood
These are great. I also really enjoyed the TED talks by Bill Gates
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