Going for Zero

Making biking safer for all

2007-05-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

var addthis_pub = 'faheydesign'; How can you make everyone from old people to kids, feel safe biking on streets? Seperate bikes from traffic. This video from Transportation Alternatives shows how taking solutions from around the world can make fo safer biking. I wish Seattle had this included in their Bike Master

Solar getting closer to going mainstream

2007-03-12T04:32:00.000-07:00

In the Seattle Pi there's a mention of Boeing's subsidary Spectrolab developing solar cells for the public market. With an improved of efficiency of 40% compared to the 16% in most solar products. This could bring solar cells in range of being cost competitive with gas. Read more in the Pisolar, renewable, alternative energy, solar power

Lithium batteries in next Prius hybrid

2007-03-11T05:46:00.000-07:00

Toyota's Ceo confirmed it: lithium batteries in the the next version of the Prius. With the goal of reducing the cost of the hybrid drive train, Toyota is changing the batteries to longer lasting lithium batteries. Will this give us the the breakthrough on gas mileage? No mention about if it will be the plug-in version I keep hearing about.Check out the full story and more pictures on Autoblog

Stop global warming and save on your utility bills

2007-03-04T05:04:00.000-08:00

Today we had a energy audit by our utility company. No we're not in trouble with our utility company, they have a conservation program to help customers save energy and money.Even though our house is new they showed us ways we can save:Using compact flourescent bulbsLow flow shower heads and faucet aeratorsA programmable thermostatInstall timers on bath fansOlder houses can save in many more

Global warming march - Save the Date!

2007-03-03T03:50:00.000-08:00

Power to the people! "Step it up" is an organized march to be held on April 14th across the United States to demand congress take action on climate change. So grab your friends and family and take it to the streets!Find the march near you, go to stepitup2007.orgglobal warming, climatechange, environment, march, rally, protest

Improving Washington's Climate Change Action Plan

2007-03-02T07:59:00.000-08:00

Sierra Club’s Cool State Campaign goal is to bring Washington state's climate change goals to a higher level. If you are a Washington State resident, email or write a letter to Governor Gregoire asking her to lead WA to 80% reductions of greenhouse gases by 2050.The governor has made some progress but we can do more:A legally binding commitment to reduce global warming pollution 60-80% of current

The low carbon diet - Top five tips to taking off the carbons

2007-02-25T05:13:00.000-08:00

Ok so you've put on a few extra carbons after the past year. Took one too many flights there, took one too many trips to the store and left the lights on too much. Global warming is keeping you up at night. What to do?As with any diet we all want easy fast and big impact items to get those carbons off fast.Here is my top 5 list:Fly less - If you travel for work ask if there is a way to do a video

And the Winners are...

2007-02-23T13:41:00.000-08:00

Environmental Defense has announced the winners (and looser) of it's Globies: 2007 Global Warming Globie Awards. A surprise winner of local mover and a shaker on the climate change front was our own hometown hero: Mayor Greg Nickels. No surprise was the two winners of best villian was Senator James Inhofe and ExxonMobil. Check out all the winners on their site.Technocrati tags: global warming,

Urge your Representative to Support Renewable Energy

2007-02-12T08:15:00.000-08:00

A new bill has been introduced in the congress calling for 20% of energy from utililities to come from renewable sources. By using Solar, wind, geothermal and energy from crops we could reduce our use of fossil fuels and reduce our carbon emissions that cause global warming.The Union of Concerned Scientists have a easy to fill out form to ask your congressman or woman to vote for it. So what are

Global warming heats up in Washington

2007-02-09T07:40:00.000-08:00

Washington state politicians tackled climate change with increased gusto today.From the state to the local level, calls were made for various solutions including conservation, emission caps and plugin-hybrids.They have some catch up to do with their sister states, California and Oregon. There is talk of a Carbon trading system that between Oregon and Washington . The governor, Gregoire called for

Battle of the hybrids

2007-02-08T08:18:00.000-08:00

In this corner, the sleek new Civic Hybrid. In the other corner, the iconicToyota Prius. Which one is for you? Check out the Seattle Times comparison review of these two heavy weights on nwautos.comAlso take a look at their new fuel economy guide. Which lists the top fuel efficient cars and trucks.Full disclosure: I work for nwautos.com so of course I want to give themprops for moving in a green

David Attenbourough - The Truth about Global Warming

2007-02-06T22:08:00.000-08:00

Alright, you don't want to watch a whole movie to get the 411 on how we are effecting climate change. Here watch this:See earlier post for the full videoTechnorati tags: climate change, global warming

Fox news sees the light on climate change

2007-02-06T21:46:00.000-08:00

What!!! I must be dreaming. Fox news just released a poll: Most Americans Believe in Global Warming."When those who believe in global warming are asked what they think is the main cause of the situation, there is widespread belief that human behavior — such as driving and burning too much fossil fuel like coal and oil — is a contributor to the problem. Four in ten Americans say people are to

Recap of the week

2007-02-06T21:29:00.000-08:00

Worldchanging.com has a great overview of the Climate Change 2007 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Now that 90% of two thousand world scientists agree we can get on with implementing solutions to this problem.But wait, think tank American Enterprise Institute (AEI) is offering a $10,000 bribe reward to any scientist that disagrees. They are financed by ExxonMobil.On the

Calls for the auto industry to cut CO2 by 18%

2007-02-06T21:19:00.000-08:00

The European Commission is proposing forcing auto makers to cut emissions by 18%. The goal is 25% but the rest will come from the use of biofuels and better tires (low rolling resistance tires, I assume). via the BBC

Making presidential candidates take a stand on climate change

2007-01-29T20:48:00.000-08:00

The League of Conservation Voters is launching a campaign to gather 100,000 petitions to raise presidential hopefuls awareness of global warming. They hope to make it a major issue in the upcoming election. Let's hope canidates recognize the seriousness of the issue. You can sign the petition here

Alternatives to An Inconvient Truth

2007-01-26T07:50:00.000-08:00

With the controversy of showing An Inconvenient Truth spreading to other schools. Also with the knowledge that there are some that will be turned off by Al Gore for political reasons. I thought I would highlight some alternative sources for learning about global warming*:Global Warming: The Signs and the Science by PBSOn this DVD by talking to a variety of people - farmers, doctors,

Bush finally addresses climate change

2007-01-24T07:25:00.000-08:00

Last night in his state of the union address, Bush publicly admitted we need to address climate change. In the past, Bush has said there was debate whether global warming was caused by human activity. The solution he previously proposed was using technology to solve this problem but did not define how or what technology would be used. In the state of the union, Bush connected it to our dependence

Better than Inconvient Truth?

2007-01-23T06:16:00.000-08:00

Al Gore might have some competition for the hollywood spotlight . David Attenborough has his own compelling video on climate change. Using a mix of archival and new footage he explores how carbon dioxide is changing our environment. What I like in particular is how he talks to the scientists and shows their finding. Takes me back to those great public television nature shows.If you have some

Ten Major Companies call for action on global warming

2007-01-22T07:06:00.000-08:00

Ten companies have issued a statement urging the US government to implement a cap on greenhouse gases that cause climate change. The companies are: Alcoa, BP America, Caterpillar, Duke Energy, DuPont, Florida Power & Light, General Electric, Lehman Brothers, Pacific Gas & Electric, and PNM Resources. They have joined Environmental Defense, the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, Natural

Living the dream

2007-01-22T03:51:00.000-08:00

Imagine a place where windmills cover the landscape, your fuel is grown in your backyard and your house is cover with solar panels. In Denmark there such a place. Also in this issue: fashion clothing made from corn and soda bottles and a survey of the current political environment in regards to the environment. Read about it in the latest issue of Outside Magazine on newstands now.

Beyond the bottom line

2007-01-20T21:44:00.000-08:00

The latest issue of Newsweek talks about how companies are looking at sustainability as a smart business decision. By keeping the big picture in mind these companies are posed for long term growth. There is also a podcast. Business Week - Beyond the Green Corporation

globalwarming awareness2007 SEO contest

2007-01-20T16:18:00.000-08:00

In an effort to increase global warming awareness. A Swiss company, Getupdate has launched a SEO (Search Engine Optimization) contest - The SEO World Championship. The challenge is to show up in the top results for the following search engines: Google, Yahoo and MSN.I applaud the idea but unfortunately so far most the top entries are lacking in content that address the problem of global warming.

Kicking into full gear - 2007, the year we get serious about global warming

2007-01-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

I predict that 2007 will be remembered as the year Global Warming became a central issue in the United States. True, 2006 was a turning point in awareness. Hurricanes in the States reached an all time high. Films like Inconvenient Truthand Too Hot to Handle were released. Religious evangelists called for action. American Companies such as Walmart and Google invested in and promoted "green"