Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category
Monday, February 22nd, 2010
No doubt the current Olympics has and continue to dazzle people with the drama (some outside of the venues) but somehow lost amongst the sports accomplishments remains the face that Vancouver touted this Olympics as the Greenest ever. It seems that China also made that claim a couple years ago. Instead of getting into a comparison of this green aspect versus that sustainable item, we took a look at the Vancouver Convention Center West, which marks the World’s First Convention Center to Achieve LEED Platinum Rating.
Yes, we’ve discussed our feeling about the LEED label and how we would like seeing more money going toward sustainable aspects versus a LEED plaque but nonetheless they built an impressive structure, which currently hosts the international media for the Olympic games. When the Olympics pack-up Vancouver will still have the dazzling sustainable structure.
What we like most is the six-acre living roof (Canada’s largest) which contains 400,000 native plants and grasses, and the green roof acts as an insulator to mediate the exterior air temperature, as well as reduces the building’s storm water runoff and integrates with the waterfront landscape ecosystem. With Vancouver being such a water friendly city, we also applaud the on-site black water treatment and desalinization systems that are projected to reduce potable water use 60 to 70 percent over typical convention centers. On the energy side, the center includes a heat pump system that takes advantage of the constant temperature of the adjacent seawater to produce heating and cooling. Very cool.
The people of Sochi have their work cut out for them if they hope to continue the Green trend of Olympics venues and buildings.
Tags: blackwater, Convention Center, heat pump system, LEED Platinum, living roof, Olympics, Sochi, Vancouver
Posted in Energy Efficiency, Events, Green Building, Programs and Standards, Resources, Technology, Water | No Comments »
Friday, October 23rd, 2009
No matter who attends the BSR conference, we always seem to find a balance between the people who legitimately wish to improve sustainability, not just for their company but the planet, and those who set out to further their profits by subtle or blatant greenwashing.
During the Thursday morning breakfast, Zhang Yue, chairman and CEO of China-based Broad Air Conditioning woke the crowd up as he spoke through an interpreter. A few minutes before that, I found myself asking a colleague “Who is this guy?” After 10 minutes, I changed my mind. More people should listen to this guy. True, I haven’t done due diligence on his company but if his company does half the things that he says they do then I’m on board. Yue created China’s first “non-electric chiller” and insists on showing consumers how triple paned windows will reduce their need to use air conditioners. Consider that their business revolves around making air conditioners. 
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Tags: Broad Air Conditioning, BSR, Calvert Social Investment Foundation, china, Michael de Soyza Dialog Telekom, PPP, Sayjay Raman Howcast Media, USAid, Zhang Yue
Posted in Business, Eco-Entreprenuers, Events, San Francisco, Technology | No Comments »
Thursday, October 22nd, 2009
Ah, it feels good to have the BSR conference back in San Francisco. Even though the economy has gone to hell, it is good see that probably close to 1000 attendees hit the conference so the sour economy has not killed the whole notion of notion of sustainability and companies.
Good start — as we walked in and registered the staff handed me a recyclable, biodegradable, compostable lanyard.
The theme for this year’s conference – Sustainability in a Reset World
After admiring our lanyards and breakfast we jumped into packed conversation with Pamela Passman of Microsoft. Of course we considered today’s launch of Windows 7.
The discussion centered on the sustainability of Microsoft. Now, most people will admit that the technology business isn’t the least sustainable or “dirtiest” business. But that doesn’t mean that they don’t press a heavy carbon footprint. Passman discussed that companies need software to track their own carbon footprint.Microsoft may have many ideas for other comanies but they need to look in the mirror as well.
She admitted the two most pressing issues that Microsoft needs to improve in so far as reducing their carbon footprint that includes:
1- Traveling (lots of it)
2 – Data centers — The data centers continue to be electric and water intensive.
Microsoft claims to be attempting reduce the footprint of these data centers. (more…)
Tags: BSR, china, data centers, human rights, Microsoft, Pamela Passman, San Francisco, sustainability
Posted in Business, Events, San Francisco, Technology | No Comments »
Friday, August 7th, 2009
It’s kind of exciting to be around some of the top bloggers, social media giants, and computer media gurus at the 2009 Inman Connect. It would be silly to search for significant Green aspects within this conference, but the as they say it’s about people, planet, profit. Of course, the real estate industry here remains about profit but much of the new innovation deals with people.
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Posted in Business, Eco-Entreprenuers, Products, San Francisco, Technology | No Comments »
Monday, May 18th, 2009
In the continued effort for San Francisco to stay ahead of the green curve as well as the technology curve, the San Francisco EcoMap comes to a computer near you. Although still in “preview” stage the real deal launches in a couple days.
The EcoMap gives San Franciscans the ability to see the collective results of their individual footprint but also offers up nifty comparison of other zip codes so we can all spy on how Pac Heights compares to Potrero Hill. How many of the Marina crowd pours CO2 into the air from transportation, energy and waste versus their Russian Hill neighbors? With this map it’s easy to check out the various carbon footprints of the various ‘hoods. (more…)
Tags: cisco, city_and_county_of_san_francisco, collective_results, ecomap, gavin_newsom, ghg_reduction, greenhouse_gas_emissions, mayor_gavin_newsom, pilot_project, preview_stage, reduction_goals, san_franciscans, sf_mayor, technology_curve
Posted in San Francisco, Technology | No Comments »
Monday, May 11th, 2009
Even in a Greencentric city like Berkeley, locals and Bay Area visitors would be Green with envy when they see the just opened David Brower Center. It feels healthy just to walk through the Green down-to-the-bones building which combines advanced technology along with simple recycled materials.
When entering for their housewarming party we had a difficult time not noticing the soaring concrete walls which made us think more dot com than gallery. The fact that in creating a building with an oh- so-feathery carbon footprint (when compared to most structures) Principal Architect, Daniel Solomon included up to 70 percent slag in those walls.
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Tags: broward_center, carbon_footprint, community_alliance, daniel_solomon, david_brower, day_lighting, earth_island_institute, family_farmers, green_with_envy, icestone_countertops, photovoltaic_panels, waterless_urinals, water_catchment_system
Posted in Materials, Programs and Standards, Technology, Water | No Comments »
Friday, March 6th, 2009
Perhaps bloggers need to be more visual and less wordy. Those were some of the first thoughts that crept into my head when I got wind of this new CCS (CO2 capture and storage) Web and interactive map from the Bellona Foundation.
Before even going further I had to check out Bellona, which we discovered is an Oslo, Norway based NGO that primarily functions as a nuclear watchdog focusing on developments in Russia. More recently they have moved into other sectors including technology and the environment. That’s where the colorful and helpful new CCS Web comes into play.
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Tags: bellona_foundation, ccs_projects, ccs_web, collective_heads, exxon_mobil, first_thoughts, including_technology, interactive_map, Maps, Norway, philanthropic_organizations, pretty_colors, splotch, storage_web, weyburn
Posted in Business, Technology | No Comments »
Friday, February 6th, 2009
With the economy in turmoil, a real estate prices dropping, green communities and green building will become more important. It’s easy to see how broken our current community model is in terms of the urban sprawl; the average American commute continues to grow longer. Between 1969 and 2001, the number of vehicle miles traveled for commuting jumped from 4,180 to 5,720.
The Sierra Club notes that today’s average American driver spends what amounts to 55 eight hour workdays behind the wheel every year. Gas won’t stay at the current level so we need to look at developing more sustainable communities.
San Francisco area architect Michelle Kaufmann & Kelly Melia-Teevan came up with a top 10 (sorry Letterman) EcoPrinciples for Communities.
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Tags: american_driver, burbs, current_community, economy, green_communities, michelle_kaufmann, real_estate_prices, sierra_club, sustainable_communities, urban_sprawl, vehicle_miles
Posted in Technology, Transportation, health | No Comments »
Thursday, September 21st, 2006
With the Arterra, San Francisco’s first LEED certified San Francisco condos, just about ready to go into pre-sales it’s no surprise that some visitors in the sales office appear from curious to confused.
Some prospective buyers who drifted around the sales office came for the Green factor but others don’t know green from pink. The salesroom doesn’t exactly push the green aspect. Those who don’t have an attention to detail could easily miss the bamboo kitchen floors, and the dual flush toilets. Even so, one green product continually baffles potential buyers – the Trespa rainscreen system. It more than baffles, it disturbs some.
We’re not exactly fans of bedding down in high-end coffins, except maybe during Halloween, so people here should get over their fears of something new. The rainscreen system isn’t exactly the new green kid on the block. Builders have been using this overcladding technology since the 1940’s in Scandinavia. (more…)
Tags: Arterra, Bamboo, Eco Homes, Environment, Gore-tex, Green Building, Green Condos, Green Real Estate, health, LEED-NC, Mold, Mother Nature, Overcladding, Rainscreen, Real Estate, San Francisco, Scandinavia, Trespa
Posted in Green Building, Materials, Products, San Francisco, Technology, Water | No Comments »
