Green Options » Milwaukee

Hotel Metro in Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Green, Hip and Central

John Ivanko — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 20:47:01 +0000

I’m coming to the conclusion pretty fast that just about every hotel will eventually be walking the talk when it comes to going green – though some are walking slowly while others are galloping as if there isn’t a minute to waste. While ecotourism continues to grow internationally, more American companies are grasping that going green can save some green too, which is also a point I make in ECOpreneuring.

A recent trip to Milwaukee, Wisconsin (to enter a few food items in our Wisconsin State Fair) found my family and I bedding down at the Hotel Metro, a boutique, high-rise luxury 63 room hotel that features numerous green aspects, from energy efficient lighting to a rooftop hot tub spa kept clean by using a salt-water system, rather than chlorine. Metro Hotel is the first Milwaukee hotel to be certified by Travel Green Wisconsin, racking up 67 points in total.

Read more of this story »

Rooftop Farming in Milwaukee

Becky Striepe — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 07:00:37 +0000

A farmer in Milwaukee is taking the green roof to the next level. Community Growers’ founder Erik Lindberg’s rooftop garden is yeilding enough organic produce to launch a CSA.

[Photo via Community Growers CSA wiki]

It’s really more than a rooftop garden, it’s a rooftop farm! Check out this interview with the farmer, including a little tour of the garden!

Read more of this story »

Urban Farmer in Milwaukee — Founder of Nonprofit — Receives MacArthur Genius Grant

Adam Williams — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:18:11 +0000

Will Allen, an urban farmer in Milwaukee, Wisc., was one of 25 people to receive a $500,000 no-strings-attached MacArthur Fellowship this year. Allen is the founder and CEO of Growing Power, a nonprofit organization and land trust to provide people with good health via affordable, quality food.

To me, the fact that an urban farmer leading a nonprofit for the benefit of teaching communities to grow, in a slew of meaningful ways, can receive such a prestigious fellowship — and the associated financial boon — is remarkable.

Along with Allen, there was a saxophonist genius, a lighting designer genius, a neuroscientist genius, an astronomer genius, a fiber artist genius, a geriatrician genius and on and on.

Read more of this story »

Successful Urban Farmer? A Half-Million Bucks for You

Shirley Siluk Gregory — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:07:50 +0000

Congratulations to Will Allen, whose work with the urban farming organization Growing Power has just won him a no-strings-attached $500,000 award from the MacArthur Foundation.

One of 25 MacArthur Fellows for 2008, Allen will receive the $500,000 over the next five years. The financial award is designed to give Fellows a level of financial independence so they can “accelerate their current activities or take their work in new directions,” according to the MacArthur Foundation.

Read more of this story »