How would you design your ultimate green home? My green home is one that incorporates Earth, Wind, and Fire!

Think of what technology might make possible in the next few decades and how we can use it to build homes that have a positive impact on the environment.

The growing awareness of the fact that buildings are responsible for 39% of our energy consumption, helps explain why green building and energy efficiency at home is one of the most pervasive trends in the construction industry — even as the economy struggles and home-building is at its lowest level in a generation.

Lets take a journey through our imagination and envision the green homes of tomorrow.

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Every year, more schools across the country are doing their part to protect Mother Earth by practicing green initiatives that conserve energy, cut their carbon dioxide footprints and promote environmental awareness.

Public and private schools across Miami-Dade County are following suit.

Environmental studies are also being worked into the curriculum of several schools, including three new ones opening in the fall: a K-8 center in Homestead, a high school in North Miami and another high school in Kendall, which will be the first LEED-certified school in Miami-Dade, meaning the school meets the national standards for green construction.

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New York city’s most iconic image, the Empire State Building, is about to undergo a ‘green’ makeover. Soon, one of the nation’s oldest buildings will be in the top 10 percent of the greenest buildings in America.

Who says only new buildings can be green?

Leading the way in this green revolution is former US President Bill Clinton. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Tony Malkin of the Empire State Building Company, and the energy and construction partners joined Mr. Clinton to bring this retrofitting project together.

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As responsible citizens of Earth, we are obligated to nurture and sustain this planet. Eco-living in green, healthy homes is taking precedence these days over traditional building materials.

With a growing amount of education and technology in Eco-sustainable resources, many countries are leading the way towards a paradigm of green building and construction. In the world of home remodeling and landscaping, there are many things that should be taken into consideration.

There are many green, Eco-friendly materials that replace the need for asbestos and can reduce energy costs annually. The implementation of Eco-construction,  energy efficient solutions and energy reduction solutions has continued to play an important role in the transformation to a healthier and sustainable world.

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At the 11th annual Greenprints Conference and Trade show in Atlanta, Georgia this past Wednesday and Thursday, the overall message was loud and clear; building and retrofitting green is and will be the only way forward for commercial real estate and home owners.

As I made my way into a crowded conference room at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Atlanta, you could feel that finally, people are taking green seriously. This wasn’t a room full of tree hugging hippies and global warming activists preaching to save the planet, but a room full of professionals who are bringing a smarter way of living to a world that has up til now, quite frankly, lived vicariously through excess consumption.

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Saving energy at home is on every one’s minds these days. The kitchen is a major energy hog until induction cooking came along.

So, how can we “go greener” in our kitchen?

Induction cooking uses 90% of the energy produced, compared to only 55% for a gas burner and 65% for traditional electric ranges.

Traditionally, when we cook, we produce heat on a stove top which then heats a pot or pan, which in turn heats (cooks) our food. So, what’s the problem? The problem is, more of heat energy is going to the cooking vessel than to the actual food itself.

Induction cooking is a method, completely different from all other cooking technologies–it does not involve generating heat which is then transferred to the cooking vessel, it makes the cooking vessel itself the original generator of the cooking heat.

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Pullen’s church expansion had to uphold the church’s tradition of cherishing the earth, so what better way to do so than by incorporating a green design? The desire to be “as green as can be” and still be affordable, is always a challenge faced by any homeowner or organization wanting to make ‘green’ renovations to their home. Pullen chose green design elements that allowed it to meet its goals within a healthy and comfortable structure that offers reduced maintenance and operation costs.

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In the class of unusual home building elements, is straw really a far fetched concept for insulation? Don’t worry, the big bad wolf is not going to blow this energy efficient home over. Straw bale homes are ultra sturdy, surprisingly fire resistant, and excellent at controlling the temperature in your home.

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In the race for being certified as a ‘green’ building, LEED has been the certification of choice thus far, but some are not feeling so eager to obtain certification any more.

While the majority of builders and building owners support building green, the popularity of LEED certification has slipped a bit according to a recent survey conducted by Allen Matkins/CTG/Green Building Insider. The consensus from 900 design professionals, contractors, constructions planners and building owners was that 93.4% agreed that it is worth the time and effort to build green, but only 66.2% believe that obtaining LEED certification is worth the effort.

Has LEED lost the lead in the green building certification race?

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Stimulus Bill Increases Rewards for Energy-efficient Remodeling

Energy-efficient remodeling replaces painting your bedroom walls as the most significant home improvement project of 2009.

We all know that green is the talk of the town these days, but we’re not talking about paint color any more when it comes to home remodeling. The word ‘green’ now holds it’s weight in eco-friendly, money saving home improvements.

To add to the wave, the government has now stepped in and made stimulating your home a great way to stimulate the ecomomy by giving back a 30 percent tax credit for homeowners who install energy-efficient windows, insulation or heating systems in 2009 and 2010.

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According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the air inside your home can be as much as five times more polluted than outdoor air!

Ever wonder why you sneeze so much in certain homes? The reason is the air. A lot of families suffer from respiratory problems, allergies, and other health problems due to the qualify of their indoor air at home. Organisms such as dust mites and mold are the main culprits. Other pollutants include natural gases such as radon, which is radioactive, colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas which is formed as natural deposits of uranium throughout the earth’s crust decay.

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With all the talk of renewable energy and energy efficiency in the news these days it seems to me that having an energy efficient home is the way to go.

So why is there a need to improve your home’s energy efficiency?

A lot of homes these days are beyond energy efficient. In fact, if your home is over 10 years old, it was more than likely built with NO energy conserving features.

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