The Abrams Clean Tech Report

 

Earth Day Notes

Thursday, April 22nd, 2010

A lot has been on my mind with Earth Day this week. I’m taking this opportunity to highlight a few things that popped into my inbox and caught my eye.

-The Ecotech Institute, a unique college entirely focused on preparing graduates for careers in renewable energy, sustainable design, and energy efficiency. I suspect we’ll see more of these pop up…

-An email I received from the PR rep for IEEE, articulating some of the amazing things IEEE members are doing in honor of Earth Day. It was really the first time a PR representative took the time to highlight what members of such an organization are individually doing, and how they’re contributing to efforts – whether clean tech, ‘eco’, or ‘green’.

-Connectivity Week is upcoming. I’m excited this Earth Day about what the future holds for us consumers, in the way of all things smart grid.

-The article in Huff Post regarding the nine companies that won the bid to build a hydroelectric dam in the Amazon. When will people learn…

-The launch of NASA’s Climate Change Supercomputer. It’ll be amazing to see what we can learn from, and do with, the data we get from this thing.

-PBS KIDS GO!’s Design Squad’s nationwide 2010 Trash to Treasure competition, which is challenging kids across the country to recycle, reuse and re-engineer everyday materials into new inventions. Three young innovators will win a trip to Boston to see their designs built and have the process chronicled for an upcoming episode of the engineering TV series. Awesome. Get your kids involved.

-25 communities are going to get some major cash from the government for energy efficiency retrofits. All good news.

-Gridwise signed an MOU earlier this month with the Japan Smart Community Alliance. I will be interested to see how the international smart grid continues to develop. It’s a fascinating area of development.

-The article in the NYT yesterday about rare earth mining and China’s role in it…makes you think, no?

-And, courtesy of Earth Advantage Institute, 8 predictions for American homes and the home industry over the next decade…
1.Newly built homes will use one third the energy that they do today.
2.Buying decisions will be based on better information about the “life cycle” impact of products.
3.The rising cost of clean water will drive most people to stop using it to water lawns and flush toilets. Many homes will use graywater (domestic wastewater from any source except toilet and garbage) and rainwater for these purposes.
4.Lenders will demand energy efficient buildings because they are more stable investments.
5.Communities will become denser, making better use of pedestrian walkways, bicycle paths and mass transit.
6.In the future, not just buildings will be certified, but neighborhoods and entire cities will be certified. This verification work will not only cover eco-friendly structures and materials, but will ensure that unique bio-regional conditions, water conservation, green space preservation, access to public transportation, and ongoing resident sustainability education are addressed.
7.All buildings will have baseline energy scores based on home design and the physical properties of the house. Home owners will have a better idea of where they stand with regard to energy efficiency and will understand how to upgrade their homes cost-effectively. Buyers will know more about energy performance when they shop for a home. The U.S. Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency will create a voluntary national energy scoring system for homes by October of this year.
8.All homeowners will know significantly more about their energy and water use and their energy habits. The use of stand-alone or online home energy displays will enable them to monitor consumption in real time. Consumers will know how many times they opened their refrigerator door, when the hairdryer was used, how many gallons of water their teenager used during their shower, and the approximate dollar cost of each activity.

As always, with great hope for the future on this Earth Day and those to come.

Make it a great day –

– Lara

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