Carrot mob is a consumer organization that looks to help support buisnesses that agree to social beneficial choices.
The idea is simple to organize spending of many consumers and leverage it against the changes a company makes. The first example is shown in the video below.
http://www.carrotmob.org/
it is very interesting and a great concept...
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Fuel
Change your Fuel change the world... check out the trailer
http://www.apple.com/trailers/independent/fuel/
http://www.apple.com/trailers/independent/fuel/
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
amazon goes greener
Amazon launched a Green/easy to open packaging program. As the largest online retailer in the USA this is a big step to cut down on waste full and non recyclable packaging
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10081078-54.html
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-10081078-54.html
Get out and Vote
It is the big day so get out a VOTE...
Not sure who to vote for? Information source here:
http://www.votesmart.org/search.php?search=01752
After today continue to vote everyday with your wallet. Support local and green business
Not sure who to vote for? Information source here:
http://www.votesmart.org/search.php?search=01752
After today continue to vote everyday with your wallet. Support local and green business
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
pictures of my garden
as promised here is a link to the pictures of my garden.
The first set is the construction of the retaining walls
next is the starter seeds and plants I grew inside
finally the whole garen outside
http://photos.wpigrad.com/stefan/main.php?g2_itemId=2049
The first set is the construction of the retaining walls
next is the starter seeds and plants I grew inside
finally the whole garen outside
http://photos.wpigrad.com/stefan/main.php?g2_itemId=2049
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
My Garden this summer
So this summer my wife and I planted a vegetable garden in our backyard. We mapped out yard to find the area that received the most sun. This part happened to be a hilly area of our property. This then required me to terrace this area so I am including those costs in numbers below.
This garden yielded fresh organic vegetables all summer and allowed us to can the extras for the winter. All season the plants absorbed CO2 and provided me food. The biggest environmental savings is in the fact that I only have to walk outside to get the vegetables rather than has a truck ship them to my market from a farm. This is about as local as you can get. If every family had just a small garden think of how much that could help clean the air and reduce our carbon foot print.
What we planted:
2 cayanne pepper plants
1 habernero peppler plant
1 cherry pepper plant
2 jalapeno pepper plants
3 publano pepper plants
3 Serrano pepper plants
6 cherry tomato plants
8 sauce tomato plants (mix of heirloom and other large tomatoes)
6 head of lettuce
12 leeks
2 parsley plants
the cost of the seeds and starter plants was ~$85 and another $30 for starting trays, fertilizer, (organic worm poop), and other misc. supplies.
During the growing season I supplemented the watering from the hose with a 55 gallon rain water collection barrel. due to the great rain season we had this summer there was only a hand full of times I had to water the garden with the hose.
So what did I get out of the work and ~$115 investment....
what was canned:
6 pints of cherry tomato sauce (garlic and olive oil were bought)
8 quarts of regular tomato sauce (basil was grown indoors in my aerogarden)
8 pints salsa (onions added from store)
3 pints of various hotness chilli pastes
so not a bad year. Next year I plan to add more terracing and some netting around the bigger tomatoes because it seams that chipmunks love them.
I just recently got my data server for photos running again and will include a link to the garden pictures shortly.
This garden yielded fresh organic vegetables all summer and allowed us to can the extras for the winter. All season the plants absorbed CO2 and provided me food. The biggest environmental savings is in the fact that I only have to walk outside to get the vegetables rather than has a truck ship them to my market from a farm. This is about as local as you can get. If every family had just a small garden think of how much that could help clean the air and reduce our carbon foot print.
What we planted:
2 cayanne pepper plants
1 habernero peppler plant
1 cherry pepper plant
2 jalapeno pepper plants
3 publano pepper plants
3 Serrano pepper plants
6 cherry tomato plants
8 sauce tomato plants (mix of heirloom and other large tomatoes)
6 head of lettuce
12 leeks
2 parsley plants
the cost of the seeds and starter plants was ~$85 and another $30 for starting trays, fertilizer, (organic worm poop), and other misc. supplies.
During the growing season I supplemented the watering from the hose with a 55 gallon rain water collection barrel. due to the great rain season we had this summer there was only a hand full of times I had to water the garden with the hose.
So what did I get out of the work and ~$115 investment....
The fabulous weather this year gave me cherry and whole tomatoes starting early July. We did get them into the ground a few weeks later than we liked so the peppers did not start yielding till august. With only the addition of store bought onions we had fresh salsa all august and September.
what was canned:
6 pints of cherry tomato sauce (garlic and olive oil were bought)
8 quarts of regular tomato sauce (basil was grown indoors in my aerogarden)
8 pints salsa (onions added from store)
3 pints of various hotness chilli pastes
so not a bad year. Next year I plan to add more terracing and some netting around the bigger tomatoes because it seams that chipmunks love them.
I just recently got my data server for photos running again and will include a link to the garden pictures shortly.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Green idealists fail to make grade, says study
Great article from the guardian in the UK. About flying the the enviroment and peoples
green life style.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/sep/24/ethicalliving.recycling
this is also followed up with a great BBC show whiched aired last night on BBC america
http://www.bbcamerica.com/content/331/index.jsp
4% of world greenhouse gases are due to aviation vs cars and light trucks (from countries with admission standards) account for around 1.7%.
green life style.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/sep/24/ethicalliving.recycling
this is also followed up with a great BBC show whiched aired last night on BBC america
http://www.bbcamerica.com/content/331/index.jsp
4% of world greenhouse gases are due to aviation vs cars and light trucks (from countries with admission standards) account for around 1.7%.
Friday, September 12, 2008
been a long time.
Have a crazy busy summer I have not posted any updates. Things have calmed down at work and I will be starting up regular postings.
This summer had a near perfect growing weather and my garden did wonderful this year.
This summer had a near perfect growing weather and my garden did wonderful this year.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Al Gore = No so Green
Lots of famous celebrities talk about how we need to be more green but very few really put forth an effort. Private plans, huge houses, big lawns, eating flown in exotic foods .. are just a few examples of how they don't even try to practice what they preach. So who won a undeserved noble prize last year??? Al Gore... and who's house uses enough electricity to power 232 normal homes.. for a month.... or 20 houses for a full year. You can read the whole report here
Al Gore not so Green
moral of the story is practice what our preach..
Al Gore not so Green
moral of the story is practice what our preach..
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Grow your own
Two weeks ago I finally got my garden in. We planed Tomatoes, 5 types of hot peppers, leaks, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and watermelon. I terraced the yard in the sunniest are of my land. We placed the plants that need the least water at the top (ie the peppers) and the tomatoes at the bottom. To help lower my watering costs I bought a rain barrel through the city's reduce price rain barrel program. The barrels simply hook up to a gutter down spout and collect the rain water during a down pour.
A second program the city offers is the reduced cost composters. During the Earthday Fair I purchased a "Earth Machine" composter for $25 from the city. This was a much needed upgrade from my normal compost pile. The composter is simple to work. Just snap together and dump leaves, grass, food waste (no meat or dairy) through the top. In 4-6 months you can start shoveling rich dirt out of the bottom.
A second program the city offers is the reduced cost composters. During the Earthday Fair I purchased a "Earth Machine" composter for $25 from the city. This was a much needed upgrade from my normal compost pile. The composter is simple to work. Just snap together and dump leaves, grass, food waste (no meat or dairy) through the top. In 4-6 months you can start shoveling rich dirt out of the bottom.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Planet Green starts today!!!!!!
The discovery network is launching a new cable channel today. In 8 hours the first channel 100% dedicated to Green living, working, playing, building, business....
Planet green by the discovery network
Planet green is available on the Comcast network in Marlborough:
Great news! Comcast offers Planet Green on channel 233. Tune in today, or call Comcast at 800-266-2278 for more details
If you have another network then use the channel finder to see if your provider is bringing this great new channel to you.
First impressions:
After spending around a hour on the Planet green website I am extremely excited. I see a lot of focus on lifestyle changes. Being a huge foodie I love all the eat local, teach your kids to cook, and growing your own garden. Not only are these great ideas for the planet but more likely you will eat better, spend more time with your family, and save money. Overall there is a great mix of programs and ideas.
Look through the site and comment on what you are more excited about.
Planet green by the discovery network
Planet green is available on the Comcast network in Marlborough:
Great news! Comcast offers Planet Green on channel 233. Tune in today, or call Comcast at 800-266-2278 for more details
If you have another network then use the channel finder to see if your provider is bringing this great new channel to you.
First impressions:
After spending around a hour on the Planet green website I am extremely excited. I see a lot of focus on lifestyle changes. Being a huge foodie I love all the eat local, teach your kids to cook, and growing your own garden. Not only are these great ideas for the planet but more likely you will eat better, spend more time with your family, and save money. Overall there is a great mix of programs and ideas.
Look through the site and comment on what you are more excited about.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Find a local Farmers market
The US gov. has a new online search to find local farmers markets. Search Here:
http://apps.ams.usda.gov/FarmersMarkets/
You can go by state, zip, payment type...
http://apps.ams.usda.gov/FarmersMarkets/
You can go by state, zip, payment type...
Monday, May 19, 2008
Marlborough 2010
At the M.E.E.T (Marlborough Energy Environmental Taskforce) meeting a large focus of the time was dedicated to talking about the 2010 vision. A long list was generated of where we would like to see Marlborough in 2010. Some example highlights where:
Green jobs,
Mass transit including regional and local rail and bus systems
Mixed spaces provided business and residential zoning
More incentive programs to build green, clean, and renewable
Bike lanes and walking paths linking
Affordable renewable energy sources for home and businesses
Do you have any ideas or comments of what you want Marlborough to look like? If you do post a comment.
In line with this vision Rohm and Haas electronic materials has gone solar. They installed a grid of panels from Evergreen solar, a local marlborough solar company.
Green jobs,
Mass transit including regional and local rail and bus systems
Mixed spaces provided business and residential zoning
More incentive programs to build green, clean, and renewable
Bike lanes and walking paths linking
Affordable renewable energy sources for home and businesses
Do you have any ideas or comments of what you want Marlborough to look like? If you do post a comment.
In line with this vision Rohm and Haas electronic materials has gone solar. They installed a grid of panels from Evergreen solar, a local marlborough solar company.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Pack light this summer
Spring is here which means that summer vacations are around the corner. With the growing cost of fuel everyone is looking to get better gas mileage. Packing light will help you save. The less weight your car or an airplane has to carry the more fuel efficient it will be. To get ready for your summer trips I would suggest the following fuel saving tips:
For Road Trips:
Keep your tires properly inflated
Keep your air and fuel filters clean
Clean out your car. Extra weight reduces your cars efficency
On the highway drive 65mph (every 5mph over is ~ 7% loss in fuel efficiency)
Remove your roof rakes if not in use to reduce drag on the car
When Flying:
Travel light
Help the airlines use less fuel by bringing less stuff on the trip. For packing advice I would recomend reading the one bag project. They highlight a lot of great tips for packing light.
For Road Trips:
Keep your tires properly inflated
Keep your air and fuel filters clean
Clean out your car. Extra weight reduces your cars efficency
On the highway drive 65mph (every 5mph over is ~ 7% loss in fuel efficiency)
Remove your roof rakes if not in use to reduce drag on the car
When Flying:
Travel light
Help the airlines use less fuel by bringing less stuff on the trip. For packing advice I would recomend reading the one bag project. They highlight a lot of great tips for packing light.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Edible Estates
Edible Estates is a project by Fritz Haeg with an enviromental and social purpose. The project proposed to replace a standard grass lawn with a productive and interactive edible landscape. 6 prototype yards have been built. Each is a different climate zone.
#1 - Salina, Kansas, 2005 / commissioned by the Salina Art Center
#2 - Lakewood California, 2006 / exhibited at Machine Project, produced for Fair Exchange at Millard Sheets
#3 - Maplewood, New Jersey, 2007 / sponsored by Garden Supply
#4 - London, England, 2007 / commissioned by Tate Modern and exhibited in the Turbine Hall for Global Cities
#5 - Austin, Texas, 2008 / commissioned by Arthouse for the exhibit Fritz Haeg: Attack on the Front Lawn
#6 - Baltimore, Maryland, 2008 / commissioned by Contemporary Museum Baltimore for Cottage Industry
Along with the environmental issues addressed by the project many social issues of community, family, and urban and suburban neighborhoods. So check out her site and learn more.
As for the plans for my yard... I am still working on them. I want to add some fruit trees, and Terrace one area for a full garden. I will update with plans, pictures, and comments in the weeks to come. Its spring and time to get outside.
#1 - Salina, Kansas, 2005 / commissioned by the Salina Art Center
#2 - Lakewood California, 2006 / exhibited at Machine Project, produced for Fair Exchange at Millard Sheets
#3 - Maplewood, New Jersey, 2007 / sponsored by Garden Supply
#4 - London, England, 2007 / commissioned by Tate Modern and exhibited in the Turbine Hall for Global Cities
#5 - Austin, Texas, 2008 / commissioned by Arthouse for the exhibit Fritz Haeg: Attack on the Front Lawn
#6 - Baltimore, Maryland, 2008 / commissioned by Contemporary Museum Baltimore for Cottage Industry
Along with the environmental issues addressed by the project many social issues of community, family, and urban and suburban neighborhoods. So check out her site and learn more.
As for the plans for my yard... I am still working on them. I want to add some fruit trees, and Terrace one area for a full garden. I will update with plans, pictures, and comments in the weeks to come. Its spring and time to get outside.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Eco - Lawn--
Good for the planet and good for your wallet. Last year I did not keep up with watering and fertilizing my yard and in turn I have several large spots of dead grass. Over the winter I did research to figure out what to do about this. I came up with two great green solutions Eco Lawn and Edible estates. This post will update on Eco-lawn and the next will be edible estates. Both of which I plan on incorporating into my yard
Eco - Lawn
Eco Lawn is a grass strain developed by Wildflower Farm founders Miriam Goldberger and Paul Jenkins. It is fast germinating, deep rooted, and slow growing. The deep roots allow the grass to thrive with being watered. The slow growing means you do not have to mow as much. This allows for easy care and cuts down on your green house gas emissions from your mower. The seed does cost more than regular grass seed 29.99/5lb bag vs 21.99/5lb bag(home depots price). But when you take into account the savings on fertilizer, gas or electric to run your mower, water, and your time, you quickly make up the money. I stopped by a dealer in Tolland, CT this weekend to by the seed. They where charging 44.95 for a 5lb bag so I have ordered it off the website and will update everyone with the instillation and growing progress in future posts.
Note: Shipping for 1 bag of eco lawn is $14.95 but 2 bags is $15.70 so ordering more is economical.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Prime time for the Planet
The sundance channel has starting to bring us THE GREEN. This is a series of shows, blogs, interviews, movies, shorts... you name the media they have it.. All dedication to being green. I spent my lunch break today going through a large amount of their content and would recommend you check out the documentary section and I love the series "its not easy being green".
Link to some promos for this show on Youtube(I'll try and get some full videos to download) :
Its not easy being green
If you where a fan of the British show "Junk Yard Wars" you will recognize the father as the team caption of the team "Brother at Arms". He is a master with a welding torch and got plenty of experience there converting trash into useful machines.
Please check out all their content and let us know what you liked.
Link to some promos for this show on Youtube(I'll try and get some full videos to download) :
Its not easy being green
If you where a fan of the British show "Junk Yard Wars" you will recognize the father as the team caption of the team "Brother at Arms". He is a master with a welding torch and got plenty of experience there converting trash into useful machines.
Please check out all their content and let us know what you liked.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Reuse vs Recycle
Recycling is great for the environment, keeping materials out of land fills and supplying manufacturers with a high grade of starting material. It costs most companies less energy to make a product out of recycled material then having to start with standard raw materials. This is good but if you reuse an item that keeps the material out of the landfill and costs zero energy. So think Reuse then Recycle. There are several online communities dedicated to this concept. They allow people to trade or give away stuff that they would normally throw away or just have cluttering up their house:
freecycle
Craigs List(post or search under the for Free category)
This concept can not only be applied at home but also in the office. At work we started a program of saving all the packing material that gets shipped to us. Packing peanuts, Bubble wrap, Air bags.... We then use these materials to pack and ship our own products. Shortly after this program was put into place we where able to stop ordering packing supplies. Not only did this program greatly reduce our trash it also saved us money. That'sGreen and Cash Green.
Simple Reusing Ideas:
With the great success of this program at work I applied it to my person life. My wife and I shop online a fair amount. Both for connivance and price. The down side to this is it generates a large amount of cardboard box and packing material waste. I started saving the boxes and packing material in my attic. Now when we need to ship something or box up a present we go upstairs to our own little shipping center. This takes almost no effort to do and saves you money.
Putting in a little more effort:
We put new counter tops in our kitchen last year. The old ones where warn out but still provided a nice flat surface. I kept the in the garage figuring I could come up with some project for them. Recently I started to convert one of the pieces into a new desk for my home office. I even got some left over paint off of "free Craigs list" to paint it.
Do you have a story or idea about reusing something? Leave a note in the comments and share your ideas!!
freecycle
Craigs List(post or search under the for Free category)
This concept can not only be applied at home but also in the office. At work we started a program of saving all the packing material that gets shipped to us. Packing peanuts, Bubble wrap, Air bags.... We then use these materials to pack and ship our own products. Shortly after this program was put into place we where able to stop ordering packing supplies. Not only did this program greatly reduce our trash it also saved us money. That's
Simple Reusing Ideas:
With the great success of this program at work I applied it to my person life. My wife and I shop online a fair amount. Both for connivance and price. The down side to this is it generates a large amount of cardboard box and packing material waste. I started saving the boxes and packing material in my attic. Now when we need to ship something or box up a present we go upstairs to our own little shipping center. This takes almost no effort to do and saves you money.
Putting in a little more effort:
We put new counter tops in our kitchen last year. The old ones where warn out but still provided a nice flat surface. I kept the in the garage figuring I could come up with some project for them. Recently I started to convert one of the pieces into a new desk for my home office. I even got some left over paint off of "free Craigs list" to paint it.
Do you have a story or idea about reusing something? Leave a note in the comments and share your ideas!!
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Earthday fair over but more to come
The Earthday fair has come and gone with great success. Even with the wet weather there was a good turnout and an overall positive response from the community. My wife and I purchased a composting Earth Machine which I setup in our backyard on Sunday. I will follow up a full review post later this week.
What is next for the Green Marlborough group? Keep this paged bookmarked for local updates and articles. I will also be posting information of some green projects I am working on, local environmental news, and upcoming events. So keep reading and keep Marlborough Green
What is next for the Green Marlborough group? Keep this paged bookmarked for local updates and articles. I will also be posting information of some green projects I am working on, local environmental news, and upcoming events. So keep reading and keep Marlborough Green
Monday, May 5, 2008
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Earth Day Fair this weekend
Marlborough
Earth Day Fair
Free, Fun and Educational !
11am-3pm, Saturday, May 3
at Ghiloni Park
239 Concord Road, Marlborough
=See a Veggie Oil car and Evergreen's solar panel display
=Eat solar-oven-baked cookies
=Walk with Wayside
=Learn from Energy Experts!
=Exhibits on local green efforts by business, city departments, and organizations
=Energy experts
=Free food
=Activities: solar oven-baked cookies, wild animal puppets, walking with pedometers, face painting, toss-the-trash game
=Music, art/posters
=Education on energy, water, waste, food & transportation.
The Fair follows Clean Sweep, a city clean up which is 9am to noon at Memorial Beach parking lot on Hosmer Street.
Earth Day Fair
Free, Fun and Educational !
11am-3pm, Saturday, May 3
at Ghiloni Park
239 Concord Road, Marlborough
=See a Veggie Oil car and Evergreen's solar panel display
=Eat solar-oven-baked cookies
=Walk with Wayside
=Learn from Energy Experts!
=Exhibits on local green efforts by business, city departments, and organizations
=Energy experts
=Free food
=Activities: solar oven-baked cookies, wild animal puppets, walking with pedometers, face painting, toss-the-trash game
=Music, art/posters
=Education on energy, water, waste, food & transportation.
The Fair follows Clean Sweep, a city clean up which is 9am to noon at Memorial Beach parking lot on Hosmer Street.
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