Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Launches First Interactive, Online Lighting Design Resource for Homes

Read the full story from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI).

The Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has launched the first interactive website to help homeowners, contractors and builders choose the right light bulbs, fixtures and controls to maximize energy savings, calculate lighting costs and achieve lighting effects to meet a wide range of needs in their homes. It also shows how to design safe, healthy lighting for aging adults.

The site, Lighting Patterns for Homes, helps homeowners and others navigate the increasing number of lighting options in today’s marketplace and allows them to see how various options will actually look by viewing photo-realistic illustrations created by 3-D modeling software.

 

Endocrine disrupters: What can I do?

This story at Great Lakes Echo offers specific tips for consumers who are concerned about endocrine disrupting chemicals.

 

Too tired to cook? Choose and buy your neighbor’s leftovers

Read the full story at SmartPlanet.

As a way to combat waste and give you some extra pocket money, Shareyourmeal.net lets you try your neighbor’s cooking. The online food-sharing network is a step beyond on food-based services offered online, and allows you to meet cooks rather than simply exchange a recipe.

 

Beyond the pale ale: A guide to sustainable beer

Read the full story at Grist.

After weeks of painstakingly thorough research and dedicating my body to the noble profession of journalism by acting as my own guinea pig, I have come to the following conclusion: Beer is awesome.

From its humble beginning as a brewmaster’s hazy notion until that sweet moment when it hits your lips, your brewski may be part of a master plan to bring you an environmentally friendly, carefully sourced, community minded, local-economy-driving, happiness-inducing good time. (That is, unless you’re drinking Coors. They want your money but they don’t really care if you have a good time.)

But not all beers are created equal, so in the name of fearless truth-telling, I spoke to brewers and beer experts from across the country, traveled to a distant land known as Soho, and of course, drank plenty of beer. I did all of this in hopes that you, the public, might be better equipped in evaluating the virtuousness of your brew.

 

New crowdfunding site for carbon offsets forges unique path

Read the full story at GreenBiz.

Based on the belief that storytelling is the most effective way to capture hearts and minds, a new crowdfunding site for carbon offsets aims to use its platform to go beyond engaging concerned individuals.

CarbonStory wants to get companies on board to launch employee engagement programs — and perhaps even the customers of company brands — through offsetting projects of their choice within a gamification framework.

 

U.S. DOE Building Technologies Office Launches the Better Buildings Residential Network

On April 30, 2013, U.S. Department of Energy’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Kathleen Hogan, announced the launch of the Better Buildings Residential Network at the ACI National Home Performance Conference and Leadership Summit in Denver, Colorado. The Better Buildings Residential Network connects energy efficiency programs and partners to share best practices and learn from each other to dramatically increase the number of American homes that are energy efficient.

Since 2010, the Building Technologies Office’s Better Buildings Neighborhood Program, its partners, and Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Sponsors and their partners have leveraged over $1 billion in federal funding and local resources to build more energy efficient communities. These programs have saved Americans money, created jobs and lowered greenhouse gas emissions.

The Building Technologies Office is now expanding this network of residential energy efficiency programs and partners to new members. The new Better Buildings Residential Network is engaging energy efficiency programs, state and local governments, financial institutions, nonprofits, universities, utilities, and other organizations to accelerate the pace of upgrades in American homes.

Inaugural members of the Better Buildings Residential Network include: AFC First, Austin Energy, Boulder County, Clean Energy Durham, Clean Energy Works, CNT Energy, City & County of Denver, GTECH Strategies, LEAP (Local Energy Alliance Program), Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Michigan Saves, Mountain Association for Community Economic Development (MACED), and the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA).

Members benefit immediately by receiving access to monthly topical phone calls with their peers about residential energy efficiency strategies. Recent calls have discussed business partners and workforce development, driving demand, evaluation & data collection, financing, moderate- and low-income markets, program sustainability and revenue streams, along with other topics based on member requests. Additional member benefits include tools, templates, resources, and proven solutions shared by members, newsletter and other updates on residential energy efficiency trends, opportunities to be featured in U.S. Department of Energy materials and optional program benchmarking.

The Better Buildings Residential Network members provide the Building Technologies Office with an annual update of the number of residential energy efficiency upgrades completed in their sphere of influence, and share information about the benefits associated with completed upgrades. The data will be used by the Building Technologies Office and Better Buildings Residential Network members to run more effective programs, understand the impact of member efforts, and to promote the benefits of residential energy efficiency upgrades.

For more information, visit the Better Buildings Residential Network or email bbresidentialnetwork@ee.doe.gov.

 

The Best Excuse Ever for Getting Your Groceries Delivered: It’s Greener

Read the full story at Atlantic Cities.

Delivery trucks are typically heavy, diesel-burning beasts that churn out clouds of exhaust – not the greatest thing for the environment. But if grocery-store owners and consumers were to use them smartly, these boxy vehicles might in fact reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, according to new research.

The climate-changing qualities of services like FreshDirect, Peapod and Google’s trial project in San Francisco are the subject of a recent study by Anne Goodchild and Erica Wygonik, engineers at the University of Washington. They found that the traditional method of grocery shopping in America – driving to and from a store – is much less friendly to the overheated atmosphere than simply ordering the supplies online. The difference they detected is stark: Going the delivery truck-route reduced CO2 emissions by at least half in their model, compared to car trips.

 

Becoming an Earth Ambassador

In this month’s This Green Life, Sheryl Eisenberg gives some tips for persuading people to take action to protect the environment without causing them to tune you out.

 

How to be a recycled bride

Read the full post at Mother Nature Network.

While the cost of the average American wedding continues to boom (we’re up to about $28,000 per happy couple at this point), plenty of brides are still thinking of smart and simple ways to keep the budget reasonable, whether that’s so they can take an awesome honeymoon, put a down payment on a home, or just plain like to economize. Saving on big-ticket items like the wedding dress and accessories is one way you can slash thousands from your costs, and the simplest way to do that is to be a “recycled bride” and find your ensemble at one of the several useful websites set up for just that purpose.

 

Energy Efficiency Tax Credits Available

ENERGY STAR products meet strict guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and are independently certified to save energy without sacrificing features or functionality. Saving energy helps prevent climate change, but it will also help you save money, especially around tax time. Upgrade your equipment to ENERGY STAR models anytime this year and get credit on next year’s tax return.

The ENERGY STAR label can be found on more than 65 different product categories, including appliances, electronics, lighting and heating and cooling equipment. Although some may cost more to purchase than standard models, they pay you back in lower energy bills, even without a tax credit. Federal tax credits available for some products make these savings even more significant.

What is Eligible?

ENERGY STAR products in the following categories are eligible for 10% of the product’s cost up to $500, or a specific amount from $50–$300. Products must be purchased for an existing home that is your primary residence. These tax credits expire December 31, 2013.

• Air source heat pumps
• Central air conditioners
• Boilers
• Furnaces
• Insulation
• Roofs
• Non-solar water heaters
• Windows and doors

ENERGY STAR certified geothermal heat pumps are eligible for 30% of the product’s cost with no upper limit. Products can be purchased for new or existing homes, and both primary residences and second homes may apply. This tax credit expires December 31, 2016.

For more detailed information, see the tax credits section of the ENERGY STAR website.