Are most homebuyers interested in purchasing a home that saves 90% over a traditional home on heating and cooling costs and requires only a small active heating system the size of a hairdryer? The Passivhaus movement is an exciting building design concept that offers tremendous energy savings due to reliance on passive heating systems. Europe is embracing the concept with between ten and fifteen thousand houses already built and governmental support of mandating the standard. The Passivhaus Institut in Darmstadt was formed in 1996 to promote and control passive house design and the group only recently formed the Passive House Institute US (PHIUS) to reach out directly to the US building market. It is slow to gain momentum, but holds promise for the US market in the future.
The Solar Decathlon is a competition in which teams of college and university students compete to design, build, and operate the most attractive, effective, and energy-efficient solar powered house. The winners of the 2009 competition – the fourth to be held – were announced on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. by U.S. Department of Energy Deputy Secretary Daniel Poneman. The contest is organized by DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and supported by event and team sponsors from the private sector.
New figures released recently show that the number of companies and other organizations publicly disclosing their performance against a range of key sustainability indicators has risen markedly over the last year. The Global Reporting Initiative is now tracking of over 1000 organizations worldwide who issued sustainability reports based on the GRI G3 Guidelines in 2008 – the highest number ever recorded. The figure represents an increase of 46 per cent on the 2007 figure of 685.
You would have to have had your head stuck in the sand to not be aware of the intense interest that the environment holds in today’s political and social debates. While candidates of all generations have begun evaluating potential employers based on their “greenness,” few in recruiting have leveraged this hot topic in recruitment communications and activities. For some unaccountable reason, recruiting managers and leaders almost universally fail to implement a process that regularly discovers “job switch” decision criteria used by the best and brightest, and this latest oversight is nothing more than history repeating itself once again.
Many green buildings also seek to promote a green aesthetic and ambiance in their design and in how they are sited within the urban fabric they will exist within. Often these other additional design considerations flow from and are achieved in a synergistic manner by the structure’s other central design goals of reducing energy impact, water impact and providing a healthy inner space for its occupants. Sustainable buildings often promote a more livable environment and ambiance within and around them; enriching both the inner and the outer spaces.
By now, everybody has heard about the Studyt out of Spain that supposedly proves that Obama’s green jobs program is a loss cause that will hurt our economy. I think there are numerous flaws with that study. In this update, we have Spain’s response to his claims, proof that his data was falsified, an explanation of how the renewable energy investment did not have the major negative impact on business, in Spain, that his analysis was too simplistic to be applied in any real world model, and what most economists believe is the major cause of Spain’s high unemployment rate. I will also bring to light extremely relevant facts, that the study fails to mention or factor in to the study, and review the US’s history and results from past renewable energy investments. That’s right we have been investing in renewable energy for years.
This, the fourth and final installment of our four part article series on the report on the Smart Grid put out by the U.S. Department of Energy, titled “The Smart Grid: An Introduction”, covers the DOE reports section that deals with how the various constituencies are working to realign themselves so that they participate in and are positioned to thrive in the emerging Smart Grid future that is beginning to be built out. It summarizes the five fundamental technologies that will drive the Smart Grid. It illustrates concrete examples of current Smart Grid projects ranging from West Virginia to California to Hawaii, that illustrate how a smarter grid is already taking shape. Finally it asks: What’s Your Stake in All This?
This, is the third installment of our four part article series on the report on the Smart Grid put out by the U.S. Department of Energy. The report is titled “The Smart Grid: An Introduction”. The current installment covers the DOE report’s section that defines what is meant by Smart Grid; what it is and conversely what it is not. It covers the various critical aspects that working together will form the Smart Grid. It continues with a summary of the DOE Smart Grid report’s “Compare and Contrast: A Grid Where Everything Is Possible” section that outlines the many benefits of creating a smarter grid.
This is the second installment of our four part article series on the excellent report on the Smart Grid put out by the U.S. Department of Energy that delves into this complex subject matter in considerable detail. The report is titled “The Smart Grid: An Introduction” and is dedicated to the education of all interested members of the public to the nature, challenges and opportunities surrounding the Smart Grid and its implementation.
This installment of our article series covers the DOE reports section that deals with where our current electric grid currently stands and what are the risks that it faces.
