Houston Goes Green
Cities across the country are going green. Businesses that value the triple bottom line are leading the charge. Green Business Challenges, like the Westchester Green Business Challenge in Westchester County, New York are becoming widespread and mainstream. Stamford Connecticut and Houston, Texas, as well as Charleston, South Carolina are also great examples of communities that value people, planet, profit and the benefits of going green.
Check out the Green Business Challenge Initiative on GreenTowns and join with other Green Business Challenge communities that are moving towards sustainability. If your community does not currently have a Green Business Challenge in the works and you would like to help get one started, please contact our GreenTowns Advisors and they will guide you!
Together, we will make a difference.
Daphne
Director, GreenTowns
Courtesy: http://www.njcleanenergy.com
One of the best ways to protect our natural resources is to conserve energy by living and working in energy-efficient buildings.
Home Energy Audits, also known as Home Energy Assessments, can be performed on any building and point out opportunities to save energy. Audits come in a variey of forms, including both “do-it-yourself” and professional audits.
Home Energy Audits typically include the following:
- A blower-door test which pinpoints critical drafts and air leaks. If leaks are found, measures must be taken to seal them.
- A duct test to assess air leaks within the ductwork system. Significant leaks must be sealed.
- Hot water-saving measures including low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators can be installed.
- Installation of energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs is suggested, where the use makes sense.
- Checking insulation in attics and providing additiona insulation where needed.
Check out this video and the GreenTowns Home Energy Audit Initiative.
HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW:
Check out the ENERGY STAR Home Energy Yardstick
Check out the U.S. Department of Energy, Do-It-Yourself Home Energy Assessments
Check out the Do-It-Yourself Home Energy Audit e-book
Check out the ENERGY STAR for Homes Partner Locator
Do you have a question about energy? Ask a GreenTowns Energy Advisor.
Dr. Kerry Kriger, Save The Frogs
Dr. Kerry Kriger, Founder & Executive Director, SAVE THE FROGS!
Frog lovers and environmentalists of all ages are gearing up for the 4th Annual Save The Frogs Day, set for Saturday, April 28th. The annual celebration of amphibians will be the largest day of amphibian education and conservation action in the planet’s history. At least 150 Save The Frogs Day events are happening in 25 countries. The events are being coordinated by SAVE THE FROGS!, a California-based nonprofit dedicated to amphibian conservation.
Amphibian populations worldwide have been declining at unprecedented
rates, and nearly one-third of the world’s amphibian species are threatened with extinction. Amphibians are faced with an onslaught of environmental problems. The goal of Save The Frogs Day is to get people worldwide educating their fellow citizens about the plight of amphibians and ways they can help. Frogs eat mosquitoes, provide us with medical advances, serve as food for birds, fish and monkeys, and their tadpoles filter our drinking water. There are lots of reasons to save them.
Dr. Kriger will be leading a Save The Frogs Day 5K race in downtown Seattle on April 28th. Other Save The Frogs Day events include presentations on frog conservation at the University of Connecticut, Fairfield’s Earth Day Celebration, and a frog legs protest at the Coney Island, NY location of Nathan’s Famous, a nationwide chain restaurant that sells frog legs.
You can learn more about Save The Frogs Day and events in your area, at:
www.savethefrogs.com/day
Check out the Save The Frogs Initiative!
Learn more about Seattle’s Save The Frog event!
Share your Save The Frogs event with the GreenTowns community!
Together, we will make a difference.
Daphne
Director, GreenTowns
All eyes are on Connecticut as the fight for GMO labeling gains strength. Analiese Paik, founder of Fairfield Green Food Guide, GreenTowns advisor, and a founder and leader of Right to Know CT provided the following information:
On March 12, in a historic bipartisan vote of 23-6, HB 5117 was voted out of the CT General Assembly’s Environment Committee and now awaits House Speaker Donovan to call it for a debate and vote. The bill that would mandate the labeling of Genetically Engineered (GE) foods faces opposition from the CT Farm Bureau and CT Dept. of Agriculture but support from consumers who want to know what’s in their food. At least one GE ingredients is found in 70% of all processed foods yet they are not labeled, nor are they tested for safety in humans, animals or the environment. Over 50 other countries in the world require such labeling, yet our FDA won’t change their policy. We think it’s time for states to demand what’s right for their citizens. Visit RighttoKnowCT.org to send our state legislators a message of support for the bill and contact Speaker Donovan to encourage him to call the bill before this session ends on May 9.
Click here to get learn more on how you can help!
“Like” the Right to Know CT Facebook page to stay informed.
Together, we will make a difference.
Daphne
Director, GreenTowns
Courtesy: http://www.credoaction.com
The EPA has just proposed a new rule regarding limits on carbon pollution. This historic carbon pollution rule, or Carbon Pollution Standard is weak and ignores many guilty sources.
The EPA does consider public opinion when making polcy decisions. Make your voice heard and submit your comments regarding carbon pollution on the CREDO action website.
Together, we will make a difference.
Daphne
Director, GreenTowns
Courtesy: http://ilovemountains.org/
Mountaintop removal annihilates ecosystems and transforms some of the most biologically diverse, temperate forests in the world into biologically barren moonscapes.
Learn how you can get involved:
Stop Mountaintop Removal
Breathe Project, Pittsburgh, PA
Pittsburgh is taking a hard look at their city and taking steps to become more sustainable. It’s worth taking a look at their Sustainable Pittsburgh Website. Pittsburgh is also home to the Breathe Project.
Do you want your community to become more sustainable, but don’t know where to start? Contact us and we can help show you the way!
Together, we can make a difference.
Daphne
Director, GreenTowns
