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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Green Future

Close your eyes and imagine a world where money and politics, greed and wealth, power and domination aren’t the driving forces for many people. Imagine if we were able to put our differences aside, forget about trying to be the best or to have the most, and just work together to protect this world we live in. What you’re imaging is a greener future… A world where everyone understands the significance of Mother Nature and the many gifts she has to bestow upon us. As a whole, we’ve got to realize how fragile our ecosystem is on this planet, and how countries have been playing a game of chicken that’s been going on for far too long.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Five Reasons To Switch To a Sustainable "Natural Room"

Kids are sensitive, emotionally and physically. They need to be taken care of and watched over. Since they are growing, it becomes important for parents to provide them with the right nutrition and proper surroundings.

A number of toddlers are in a habit of chewing their pillows and licking the wall. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Apparently, Renewable Energy Is Viewed as ControversialAt the risk of stating the obvious, there is a real debate going on as to the legitimacy of renewable energy, smart grid, distributed generation, energy storage, efficiency, etc.  Do we, as a society, have the right to implement these things—just because our scientists are telling us that our current approach is rapidly ruining our planet?  Not according to FirstEnergy Corp. President and CEO Anthony Alexander, who attacks all this as a “social agenda.”

Yes, I suppose that’s exactly what it is: an agenda by which society can remain healthy.  Somehow, that doesn’t sound too bad to me.

 

 

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Science

What Science Can Tell Us – And What It Can’tI’ve always enjoyed helping my kids with their homework, and, as they’ve gotten older, I’ve been learning a great deal myself from what I’m helping them study. Last night, I spent a few happy hours helping my son Jake study for a botany test, during which I came across something rather surprising: many of the uses that plants have for their essential micronutrients – elements like chlorine, iron, manganese, copper, cobalt, zinc, molybdenum and boron are “not well understood.” I.e., we know they’re important, albeit in concentrations of a few parts per million, but we’re not sure exactly why, and neither do we understand the transport mechanisms for these nutrients that are active within the organism. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

Will the Nissan BladeGlider Go Into Production Soon?Nissan has been committed to the development of electric vehicle technology in efforts to contribute to reducing the negative impact that motor vehicle emissions have on the environment, and respond to the increasing interest in eco-friendly vehicles among consumers. The Japanese car maker is one of the leaders in the electric car market, with its Leaf hatchback as one of world’s best-selling fully-electric vehicles, a fact that has encouraged the company to try and develop commercial vehicles and sports cars that are exclusively powered by electricity. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Efficiency

Deep Energy Retrofits--A Necessity for Old Buildings

The winter, and its accompanying polar vortices, appears to finally be loosening its grip after months of drastic weather throughout the United States. States across the country experienced some of the coldest weather their homes had seen in years; cities like Chicago, in fact, had its coldest winter in recorded history. In an effort to find a positive side to the months of increased energy usage, we can only hope that some of the highest heating bills customers have seen yet will be enough to encourage a re-evaluation of their home and business’s energy usage and efficiency -especially there is no guarantee that this following winter will be any less cold. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

Shortage of Platinum Might Be an Insurmountable Hurdle for Hydrogen CarsOver the last couple of months, there has been a lot of hype around hydrogen-powered cars, with Toyota, Honda and Hyundai planning to roll out hydrogen fuel cell vehicles by 2015, claiming that they have many advantages over electric and hybrid vehicles. They have the potential to be the best alternative to conventional cars and a mainstream public transport option in the long run. But, as with other alternative fuel cars, there are many challenges that hydrogen cars have to overcome before they can become mainstream. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Wind Energy

Offshore Wind in the North Sea - By 2GreenEnergy Intern Olivier GoavecHere’s another article by our terrific French intern, Olivier Goavec, pictured here with his vélo.

In its goal to meet its objectives in terms of gas emission and to become less dependent on energy importations (coal, gas, oil), Europe needs to develop green energy as these sources are massively present and free for the taking. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

University of California at Santa Barbara Provides A Home for Numerous Cleantech Projects Sunday’s hike took a friend and me to the top of the Santa Ynez Mountains, from which I took this photo of the Pacific Ocean and the Channel Islands about 15 miles off the coast. That little strip at the left is one of the runways of the Santa Barbara airport, behind which is the UCSB, home to an amazing number of cleantech projects. In fact, I’ll be down there on April 24th for their annual “Venture Fair” where students and faculty present their cleantech business concepts.

Btw, this hike is 9.5 miles roundtrip, featuring a little over 2000 feet change in elevation. Going up wasn’t a problem; we took our time and made it in about two hours. Coming down, however, was very hard on my soon-to-be 59-year-old knees.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Solar Thermal

Wind Energy and Concentrated Solar Power (CSP)A reader asks for my viewpoint on wind energy and concentrated solar power (CSP). She writes: Hello! I have been doing a lot of research on CSP and wind power. I want to know your opinion on which is better and why. Thank you.

It’s hard to answer this question definitively in either direction, so let me present some pros and cons. (more…)

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