Be Heard at the Earth Day Climate Rally

Sunday, April 25th there will be a chance to have your voice heard at Washington, DC to tell politicians that we need to take a more aggressive stance on climate change. As a nation, the United States continues to be dependent on fossil fuels, without putting enough time and money into developing alternative energy sources. Whether you believe that climate change exists or not, the fact remains that fossil fuels are not an unlimited resource. They are running out, and we are increasing our reliance on foreign fossil fuels, and are having to develop new ways to extract remaining local fossil fuels using methods that are often both more dangerous to the workers harvesting them, or have significantly more environmental impact.

It is time for us to stop seeing ourselves as separate from the environment in which we live. If we pollute the air, we are the ones that have to breath it. If we pollute the water, we are the ones who have to drink it, and deal with reduced harvest from fisheries. And if we rely on just fossil fuels to provide jobs, we are the ones who will become unemployed when they run out. If we start the transition now to jobs in the green energy sector, we will not face a sudden economic crisis in the future, when the fossil fuels become exhausted.

I hope to see you at the climate change rally on April 25th. Come to make a difference, stay for the inspirational speakers and live music!

When:  11:15am - 11:15pm, Sunday, April 25th
Where: National Mall, Washington, DC
Why:    Because we want a better future!

Earthday.org

Darkness Falls for Earth Hour

Saturday, March 27 from 8:30 - 9:30 p.m. is Earth Hour, when hundreds of millions of people from around the world will turn out their lights and unplug appliances. In 2009, over 4000 cities in 88 countries officially switched off during Earth Hour to pledge their support for the planet, making Earth Hour 2009 the world’s largest global climate change initiative (EarthHour.org). This event gives people the chance to reflect on their personal energy usage and the large impact we can make on the environment with conserving energy for just one hour. Toronto, Canada managed to save 900 megawatt-hours of electricity, which is a 8.7% decrease if measured against a typical March Saturday night (Wikipedia).

Just remember, small changes can make a big difference! You can follow these tips every day to be sustainable every day:

• Replace incandescent light bulbs with fluorescent ones.
• Recycle paper and plastic, instead of using the trash.
• Read news online, instead of buying paper copies.
• Grow vegetables during the summer.
• Bicycle or walk to work or to run errands instead of driving.
• Take the bus or train, instead of driving long distances.
• Unplug appliances when they are not in use.
• Lower the thermostat to cut back on heating during the winter.
• Insulate and eliminate drafts to get the most out of your heating and cooling.
• Plant a tree to help filter your air and to provide shade.

Badda Bing, Badda Bloom Box

"It's about seeing the world as what it can be and not what it is" K.R. Sridhar, inventor of the Bloom Box says. Any company who starts with that kind of philosophy has my backing. Originally designed for NASA, the Bloom Box was re-engineered to be a stand-alone power plant in a box. The goal is for consumers to be able to purchase a single Bloom Box for about $3000 for their backyard or basement, which could then power an average American home. Bloom Energy, the manufacturers, estimate that customers could make up the initial purchase cost in 3-5 years with money saved in energy production by the Bloom Box.

The Bloom Box takes in oxygen, and combines it with a fuel of your choice to produce electricity. Fuels can be fossil, like natural gas, or renewable, like gas produced from landfills, or solar power. I'm still a fan of the Bloom Box even when using fossil fuels, as they use half as much fuel to provide the same amount of energy as conventional methods. See the full story on 60 minutes here.

Energy Vampires

Unlike large appliances that have become more energy efficient in recent years, many small appliances have not. Your TV, DVD player, and coffee maker, for example, are costing you money even when you aren't using them! According to the California Energy Commission, nearly 20% of energy used by small appliances is used when these appliances are plugged in, but not in use. Check out their website for the low-down on these energy vampires:
http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/home/appliances/small_appl.html

Here are 3 different kinds of stakes to put in the heart of these energy vampires...

Green Power Turns Me On

I had just moved from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and was living in Richmond, Virginia for 6 months before I discovered that my electricity was being generating by coal. And here I thought coal power was reserved for 3rd world countries! I guess I just took it for granted that people in North America don't burn fossil fuels anymore. My bad. So I was pleased to see that Virginia Dominion Power offers a program to purchase sustainable energy.

Warm Up to Savings

If you live in an older house or apartment, you know the pain of Winter heating bills. It's either freeze or starve. Until now. You could try wearing of a ridiculous amount of winter layers...Or you could try a space heater!

Space Heaters
By turning your thermostat down and only heating the room you're in, you can conserve mega mula this Winter.

Fluorescent Potpourri

In the past few years, the variety of fluorescent bulbs has skyrocketed. Chances are, if you use it, you can find it in fluorescent. Best of all, fluorescent equivalents can be much brighter than incandescents. Many also come in natural daylight varieties.

Check some of these out...

Fluorescent Bulb Mythology

Ever notice how hot incandescent bulbs can get? You would have if you ever tried to change a bulb without letting it cool first. Well, that heat is costing you money! The energy that should just go into producing light in incandescents is actually being wasted a good deal as heat...But most of us know that fluorescent bulbs are cheaper to light our homes with. The cost of buying the bulbs seems to be what's stopping most of us from switching.

What many don't realize is that besides being cheaper to run, fluorescent also last for about 5 years with standard use - about 2-3 times longer than incandescent!!! How can you get around footing the big bill to switch?

1) Consider buying fluorescent as your incandescents burn out, so that you only have to buy a few at a time.

2) Try switching all your bulbs to fluorscents after you get your income tax refund

3) Participate in bulb swaps, where local organizations or businesses will sometimes trade a fluorescent bulb for each incandescent you bring in

4) Put fluorescent bulbs on your birthday/wedding/baby shower registry

5) Look for good old-fashioned coupons in your local newspaper