Green Options

I used to work for a renewable energy contractor. We would get calls from people all the time who wanted to install solar panels, solar thermal panels, wind turbines, and even geothermal systems. The very first questions we asked were "What is your current lighting system?" "Your current heating system?" "The amount of insulation in the home?" It was around this point that they would interrupt us and ask what any of

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As an extension of last weeks post, Vote on Sustainable Design for the Future, there are simply too many design competitions out there: we must alert you to more. Many of these design competitions are open to people of all disciplines with good ideas. So maybe you should take a pen and paper and enter a keen green idea of your own if you want to see the world change.

Here is

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Editor’s note: Household paint can be a toxic substance that keeps on giving off VOCs long after it’s dried. This week, Lighter Footstep editor Chris Baskind points us to a healthier, greener alternative to common paints: milk paint. This post was originally published on July 17, 2007.

By now, a lot of people have heard about the hazards of VOCs — Volatile Organic Compounds. In this case, “organic” doesn’t

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An article on the ABC News website with the provocative title "Going Green: Fad or the Future?" suggests that while right now "green is the new black," the long term-prospects for the green movement are less certain to remain as strong and as much a part of public awareness as they currently are.

But are Americans experiencing "green fatigue"? The ratings for Live Earth, which was billed as a must-see event,

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In the design world, often times young architecture/design firms and even individual designers will apply to competitions during the young part of their career to get public recognition, build credentials, and experience the social circuits around design.

As a young aspiring designer myself, I have made a keen observation of the design industry this year. Many of the call-for-entries and competitions this year have been for solutions related to sustainable development, energy,

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There are a number of options available when it comes to selecting material for counters and tops. There are options from the all-natural to the all-synthetic, and ranges in between. Some countertop materials are more impervious to stains or heat than others are. Colors range throughout the pallette, and if one manufacturer’s product doesn’t offer a particular color, another option likely may.

The most common materials are plastic laminate

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Refurbish fits in nicely with the three 'R's (reduce, reuse, recycle) and can bring new life to an otherwise useless item. Before buying new, see if you can revamp something you already have. Or turn someone else's trash into your treasure.

Want some inspiration?

Refurbish fits in nicely with the three 'R's (reduce, reuse, recycle) and can bring new life to an otherwise useless item. Before buying new, see if you can revamp something you already have. Or turn someone else's trash into your treasure.

Want some inspiration?

When buying or selling your home, you have the chance to give big to the cause of your choice.

I’ll admit it: I am one of those Californians that everyone loves to hate. I left the “Golden State” and am considering buying a house in another state because, as radio host Garrison Keillor might say, outside of California, “all the women are strong, the mountains are good-looking, and all the Real

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San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, Councilmember Sam Liccardo, FST CTO Chris BeekhuisEditor's note: Sonia Aggarwal lives in San Francisco, and channels her passion for breakthrough renewable energy technologies into the Bay Area's lively world of cleanteach PR.

This Fourth of July, Fat Spaniel Technologies and the mayor of San Jose celebrate green as the new red, white and blue.

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How much water does a leaky faucet waste? A lot, especially when you add up all the tiny droplets.

According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) a small drip has a volume of about 0.33 ml: that's about 3,000 drips in one liter of water. (Do the math conversions and that equals 11,350 drips per gallon.) So even if you're averaging a really slow drip - about 2 drips per minute

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