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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Tensions Develop as Environmental Concerns BuildAccording to this note in the Writer’s Almanac, yesterday was the 101st anniversary of the opening of Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring,” a ballet so new in its day that it caused a literal riot in the theater in which it was performed.  Per the article:

Paris of 1913 was caught between tradition and modernity. The opening of the Eiffel Tower had drawn scorn in 1889; telephones and elevators were beginning to creep into everyday life. In the arts, Picasso and Gertrude Stein were testing the limits of representation and narrative. On the evening of May 29, 1913, two types of people had gathered for the debut of this ballet: the wealthy, who expected beautiful music and choreography; and the Bohemians, who were eager for something bold and new….. Forty people were ejected, but not before the audience had turned on the orchestra. The musicians patiently played on, even as they were pelted with vegetables. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

California Energy Summit, Fabulous As Always, Speaks to Challenges in Demand ResponseI had the pleasure of attending Infocast’s annual California Energy Summit this week, and I wish to enter a few posts for readers who may be interested in the subject.  Here’s the first of several:

As always, there were a few presenters who made remarks so asinine that some people rolled their eyes, wondering how it was possible that they had heard something so ridiculous.  (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Efficiency

Summer

Summertime is fast approaching. In order to keep a cool environment in the wake of the summer heat, majority of people turn their air conditioning units and fans on without thinking twice. This way, they rack up huge energy bills although much of this could be avoided. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

Deploying Renewable Energy in the U.S. – Patience RequiredA recent graduate from James Madison University in the central part of Virginia (the gorgeous Shenandoah Valley, pictured here) wanted my advice on U.S.-based career paths available to a young man in renewable energy.  I was happy to spend about 15 minutes with him on the phone this morning, during which I provided a few ideas that I hope prove helpful.

Outside of a few specific suggestions, my more general advice was this: be patient.  Keep in mind that the U.S. generally spends far more time and effort bickering about clean energy than it does in deploying it.  There was an hour recently in which 74% of Germany’s energy consumption came from renewable energy; we here in the States are a very long way from anything remotely resembling that.

 

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

Is Renewable Energy Finally About to Boom?After what seems like decades of scientific evidence and expert advice all pointing us in the direction of sustainable fuel, the past few months and years have really shown a turnaround in the ways that we in the UK source our power. Renewable energy initiatives are finally starting to gather momentum both commercially and privately, as companies and home owners discover that the rocketing cost of fossil fuels is harming electricity price sand driving up costs. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Lots of “Oomph” Behind Environmental and Social JusticeYesterday was the 211th birthday of Ralph Waldo Emerson, the man who reminded us, “”Every mind must make its choice between truth and repose. It cannot have both.”  That’s certainly the case for those of us trying to get to the truth as it applies to environmental justice.  The realities of what humankind is doing daily to degrade virtually every aspect of this planet are frightening, to say the very least, and the sheer inertia that needs to be overcome if we are to turn this around is staggeringly enormous.

But offsetting that absence of repose is the satisfaction of being a part of a huge and growing grass-roots effort to turn this around.  Consider for a moment that you and I are part of the 2GreenEnergy community, and that this is only one of over 200,000 groups around the world whose mission is environmentalism and social justice; that’s a lot of horsepower.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

Fossil Fuels Are Going Away, And Most of the World Knows ItDuring the seven-mile hike I took yesterday with a friend to the top of Gaviota Peak (pictured) and back, we talked a great deal about the stock market, as my companion is very worried that we could be facing a long period of negative growth.  Here’s my perspective, for what it may be worth:

I’m bearish on the U.S. economy, since I doubt our young people’s fitness to compete in the global marketplace, and I’m extremely disappointed that we don’t seem to understand that renewable energy (and cleantech more generally) is going to play a defining role in the 21st Century.  That being said, (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Biomass

Biomass Briquette Press Used For Satisfying Emerging Energy Needs

Biomass is a significant source of energy in the world, particularly in rural areas. However, most current use of firewood and fossil fuels for heating and cooking brings with it harmful effects of indoor air pollution and associated adverse health impacts. So to replace the adverse emissions of wood and fossil fuels, biomass briquette press is manufactured by Indian researchers. Word’s emerging energy needs can be fulfill by this Eco friendly project. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Earth-friendly Living

Living in harmony with our surroundings was once the only way of surviving on this planet for the human race. We had to know our environment in order to defend from numerous predators and tame the nature around us in order to make it hospitable to the best of our ability. Unfortunately, we’ve got a bit carried away a couple of centuries ago, as it seems. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Six Easy To Follow Green Printing Tips To Save Money -- and The PlanetWhat is green printing?

Simply put, green printing is the collection of practices that will reduce the harm to the environment caused by usual printing practices. If you work in an office environment where printing documents is part of the day-to-day work ritual, you could have already done considerable amount of damage to the environment. However, it is quite easy to reduce the environmental impacts of printing by following green printing techniques and could be implemented instantly. We have listed some easy to implement green printing techniques for offices and homes. (more…)

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