———————– ** Fresh Green Beans ** ———————– Grown in Kansas. Eaten Worldwide.

Photo: scotersen, flickr

Last fall, Bill Woods, head of the Environmental Studies program, told me about a class called Media and the Environment. The class was going to be taught by Simran Sethi, who had worked with TreeHugger.com, NBC and everyone else, and that it was going to be really interesting, but a lot of work. I told him I was already enrolled.

Bill was right about everything. To make time to blog every week was difficult, but the schedule was nice. It taught me regularity and timeliness. Plus, the chance to blog about green tech for class credit only happens every so often. I strengthened my writing with the great tips I received: be personal, lead readers on, fact check, get out in the field, don’t be afraid to use humor, and so on; all of which are fairly self-evident, but brought to light by the most insightful and influential group of guests I’ve ever had in a class.

I learned about the systems of bees and ants, I looked up close at my trash, reaffirmed my hatred of photo-degrading plastic bottles, and learned on multiple occasions the stark differences between scientists and journalists in their ability to communicate. I still get a headache thinking about those CReSIS graphs. I learned through photo, video, writing, audio, but not by paper. I took from Simran and our guests, but learned equally from my classmates.

That was awfully, awfully gushy and apologize for that. I hope I wasn’t the only one excited about this class from start to finish.

Thanks, everyone.

Bobby

The Santa Monica Civic Center parking garage is to become the first US Green Building Council LEED certified structure of its kind.

The green features are impressive. The structure features a water treatment system on site to capture runoff containing toxic liquids. Photovoltaic panels line the top of the structure providing shade and renewable energy. The structure uses recycled materials and low VOC paint. Public electrical outlets for electric automobiles are available in 14 of the 900 spots. Free bicycle parking is also available.

You may ask, if we’re going to build a parking garage, why not make it more sustainable? This is a valid question, but I hope you realize the contradiction of terms here; this is an earth saving structure dedicated to the machine that has arguably accelerated the destruction of the earth. At what point does the effect of the increased number of cars used due to this structure outweigh the sustainable value of a “green” parking garage? I’m going to guess that tipping point is less than 900 new cars.

Is this making a joke of LEED certification?

via: Inhabitat

Bobby Grace

New York City began a green initiative called GreeNYC in May 2007 to promote environmental awareness. Mayor Bloomberg launched the campaign with the goal of lowering the city’s carbon emissions by 30% by 2030. The logo, a green curvilinear apple, has shown up hybrid taxis, whole foods reusable bags, bus shelters, and other places around the city.

GreeNYC is attempting to trademark the logo which does not sit well with Apple Inc. Every trademark application goes through a 30 day opposition phase and Apple is disputing the logo claiming it will “seriously injure” their reputation.

I see why Apple has an interest in maintaining the uniqueness of their logo and brand image, it does have mystifying effects on the mind after all. But an apple is one of the most basic and universal shapes and Apple will be hard pressed to find legal grounds to counter the GreeNYC logo. Hopefully the two will come to some sort of an agreement. Defeating the GreeNYC logo will certainly put frowns on the faces of environmentalists and Apple fans alike. It may end up tarnishing Apple’s environmental image.

I’m surprised Washington Apples made it past Apple’s legal team.

via: Daily Tech

Bobby Grace

Clorox has an interesting new line of biodegradable cleaning solutions called Green Works and an even more interesting endorsement, the Sierra Club.

Unlike the organic food industry, Clorox is tying itself very closely to Green Works products by placing the Clorox logo plainly on the product. People trust Clorox as a brand that cleans well and is making it a point that Green Works works as well as all their other cleaners. If Clorox is able to convince people that biodegradable cleaners are just as good as any other, it will be an enormous step toward a more natural home cleaning future. Green Works is also pricing itself below other “green” cleaners on the market, making it more affordable and attractive.

If you are not familiar with the Sierra Club, they are an organization that has been promoting environmental awareness and combating the use of toxic substances since 1893. Endorsing a company who continues to sell products with toxic substances like bleach is bound to upset many environmentalists, especially with money involved.

Is this a step toward the universal removal of toxic chemicals from home cleaning products or a degradation of the Sierra Club authority?

via: NYTimes, No Impact Man

Bobby Grace

Photo: MSU.org

You might have figured that Kraft makes Kraft Organic, but did you know they own Boca brands as well? Well did you know that Pepsi owns Naked Juice and that both Silk and Horizons Milk are owned by Dean?

As you might have guessed, big business and organics are not mutually exclusive. The big food processors have been scarfing down organic brands since 1997 when the organic certification was drafted. This is not a sloppy meal; you would never know Kashi was made by Kellogg or Cascadian Farm by General Mills. That’s because part of the organic image involves creating a distance from big business. But without big business, organics would never have gotten the wide distribution that allows them to grow. And the more they grow, the more the organic message is spread.

This is the fascinating work of Michigan State University professor Phil Howard. He studies the role of organic brands and markets in the ever-multifaceted food industry. There’s plenty more on his website, so check it out.

via: Good Magazine, NYT Well Blog

Bobby Grace

Photo: fladrifscorzapelle, flickr

I know you are probably in Cancun drinking margaritas on the beach or doing whatever you do on Spring Break, but if you happen to be in Lawrence and like to garden, the city is giving away free compost today and tomorrow.

Every Monday, the City of Lawrence collects yard waste from homes around town. It sits in huge piles for months until it turns into soil and is ready to be given away. That time is now. Compost projects like this are doing double duty: they reduce the waste going to landfills and create great soil. Better act quickly though, supply is limited.

Dates and times:
Friday, March 21, 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m
Saturday, March 22, 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. (unless supply is depleted sooner)

Location:
1420 E 11th St. (east of 11th and Haskell, then over the railroad tracks)

More info:
Lawrence Waste Reduction and Recycling

Bobby Grace

Photo: Max Knight, flickr

I don’t skateboard.

I’ve tried, but I never really got the hang of it. The last (and final) time I tried, I fell and cracked the screen of my phone. The proper way to describe the phone would be unusable, but I like to say it was totally thrashed.

The USPS knows there are people out there like me, people with electronics that are no longer usable. Knowing the toxicity of electronics, the USPS has set up a novel program to recycle electronics called Mail Back.

Instructions:

1. Go to the post office.
2. Pick up a pre-paid envelope.
3. Insert totally thrashed cell phone along with dreams of becoming a professional skateboarder.
4. Seal envelope and send it off.

Yes, people, it’s that easy with the Mail Back program. Your postage is care of Clover Technology Group, the company that won the USPS’s love and manages the electronic waste. Your PDAs, iPods, ink cartridges, digicams, and other small electronics are refurbished, reused, recycled, and never sent to the landfill. This program is a first for the USPS and as such it is only available in 10 areas across the country including Washington DC, Chicago, LA, and San Diego. If well received, the program will go national this fall.

via: Planet Green, USPS Press Release

Bobby Grace

Photo: Gerard Lemos, flickr

I work the computer store on campus, The Tech Shop. I can sell two or three computers in a day and a lot more during back-to-school times. For a long time, I was satisfied by simply providing useful technology to students at great prices.

Sales schtick aside, people want computers. That is, people need computers. E-mail is a valid form of communication at KU and papers are expected to be submitted electronically. Around finals time, it can be a pain to find a computer in one of our computer labs. People need computers.

Following Moore’s Law, a computer three years in age will be four times as slow as a new computer. This is theoretical of course, but as computers become more affordable, more people are replacing their old ones. The stack of out-of-use computers adds up.

I wrote a post on the death bed of electronics and wondered what The Tech Shop could do about this. We now have an e-waste recycling program up and running. We work with KU Recycling who manages an extensive program for campus buildings.

There is more we are doing. All packing material, from cardboard to bubble-wrap, gets reused by our catalog department or compacted and recycled. We now carry the Grove line of computer bags from Targus. These bags are PVC-free, nickel-free and totally recyclable. Apple has steadily been updating their computers to make them more eco-conscious by using LED-backlit, mercury-free displays, PVC-free internal cables, and recyclable aluminum casings. As an Apple Campus Store, we are happy to offer these products.

I would like to see PVC-free bags and cabling, mercury-free displays, and less packaging in products throughout the electronics industry, but it’s not a perfect world. We’re just doing our part to make a difference.

I had to say that, sorry.

Bobby Grace

Photo Credit: Doranan

Using compact fluorescents is an easy way to save money and reduce energy use. Turning off your lights when out of the room is a simple action that makes a big difference. Bringing canvas bags to the grocery store is gratifying on a personal level. Biking around town reduces carbon emissions and is a great workout. Eating organic food is a tasty, pesticide free alternative. Buying clothes made from organic cotton is fashionable and smart.

Using a composting toilet?

Protecting the environment can be smart, cool, fashionable, gratifying, and so on. But there are some efforts that are just downright gross. Lets look at a few.

You know the phrase: if it’s yellow, let it mellow; if it’s brown, flush it down. Water usage is a grave problem. In Kansas here, the fossil water in the Ogallala aquifer is draining at alarmingly high rates and not being replaced quickly enough to match consumption. One thing you can do to reduce water consumption is to not flushing your toilet after you… uh, urinate and instead saving that flush for more, uh, solid waste. There are not a lot of people on the fence on this; you either swear by it or hate it.

Composting should be relatively easy, but nobody wants to go outside to dump their organic waste, especially when it’s cold. People who compost tend to have another bin indoors for organic waste that is regularly dumped. Where I live, we seal the compost bin because it smells so bad. Everyone cowers when it is opened. And then there is the worms…

Of course, composting is a good way to ease waste flow, reduce the need for landfills, and make great soils. Did you know landfills are so airtight that organic matter will not break down inside? Check out the Radiolab act “The Greatest Hits of Airtight Garbage” for some fun examples.

Ever try hanging your clothes out to dry? There is legal prevention on a local level to prevent individuals from doing “unsightly things” like hanging wet clothes out to dry. However unsightly, this is great way to reduce energy and water usage.

The list goes on from here and I encourage you to include more examples in the comments. On a whole though, I think there is a greater number of attractive ways to help the environment than disgusting ones. Disregarding the environment usually means more trash, contaminated food, and pollution. Caring for the environment means less of these things. Getting dirty in your garden is much different than dirtying up your water supply.

Bobby Grace

Photo Credit: Lincoln Koga

I have problems with the alarm on my phone. And it’s not just that I don’t like to hear it in the morning.

See, sometimes I forget to set it to AM. I wake up, roll over, wonder what time it is, check my phone, see that the alarm is set to 7:00PM, roll my eyes, pull the covers over my head for a minute, and then get up, angry with myself. This has happened more times than I would like to admit. And it’s bad because I will not able to make myself a lunch for work. If I am not able to make myself a lunch, I will buy food at work. Food at work is expensive and I question its origins.

Worst of all, I will produce more trash than normal. Producing a greater amount of trash is bad in all cases, but when you were planning to write a post about the amount of trash you produce in a day, it’s even worse.

This is what I did today, if you haven’t caught on.

Okay, now the numbers. I’m going to bite my lip and nervously dart my eyes around the room while you read this:
1 old toothpaste tube
1 new toothpaste box
1 Styrofoam container and 1 plastic wrapping for pork chops
1 Plastic container for veggie sandwich
1 Paper Cup for water
1 Orange peel
1 Plastic wrap for muffin

And just to let you know, the toothpaste box was recycled…

A more important note: the sandwich container, the paper cup, the orange peel, and the plastic wrap were all items I bought at lunch because of my neglect. Normally, I would bring my reusable water bottle, a sandwich bag I have been using over and over, and a glass jar with a side. But there is no need to dignify myself, just let this be an example. Convenience breeds more trash.

Can somebody give me a wake up call?

Bobby Grace