Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, is taking the green diploma to an even higher degree. University officials are betting a new Living Learning Center will meet the Living Building Challenge, the world’s most stringent green building rating system from the Cascadia Region Green Building Council, a chapter of the USGBC and its Canadian counterpart.

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Rather, it was considered a pilot program, serving about 3,200 of the city’s 147,000 households, to see if the economics could make a full, permanent effort viable. The answer is: apparently not. Or, at least, not right now.

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The Tower Grove Farmers’ Market and Bazaar in St. Louis is not only a community center piece, but a regional one. And the group is candidly joining a nation-wide line of community-minded organizations who are in economic straits and need support.

Understanding that there are many worthy groups asking for assistance these days, the one that organizes the Tower Grove market is asking, in particular, for those who already value what it creates in the St. Louis region — shoppers and friends who stop by, even just twice a season — to consider stepping forward. The support can be monetary or otherwise.

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Here in St. Louis, Backdoor Harvest seems to agree. And that’s fantastic news for me — and novice gardeners like me — because I’ve got almost no idea what I’m doing when I start digging into my yard.

Lucky me, my wife, who knows a little more than I do about plunging seeds and such into our tiny backyard plot, enjoys doing the research to figure these things out. Even luckier for us, Backdoor Harvest is hanging its open-for-business shingle in the coming days, just to help urban growers, even ones as inexperienced as in the Williams household.

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“The Eco Expo was created to inspire our community to better care for the environment -through education, entertainment and access to businesses who are committed to achieving sustainability. This is a fantastic opportunity for all ages to learn about simple changes that can make great impact.

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As a thoughtful follow-up, Debbie Johnson in the Public Information department for MSD left a comment for that initial posting, updating readers on the program’s status. Here is that information:

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As of the end-of-business on Thursday more than 1,000 barrels had been ordered, according to the office personnel handling the orders. A news story in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch laid out the general information this way:

The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is offering its customers the opportunity to help take the burden off those creeks — and its storm water system — by purchasing 55-gallon rain barrels to collect and store rainwater that would otherwise flow into a storm drain.

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/04/02/st-louis-sewer-district-sells-rain-barrels/feed/ http://sustainablog.org/2009/03/30/monsantos-started-a-blog-conversation-with-critics-or-the-same-old-pr/ http://sustainablog.org/2009/03/30/monsantos-started-a-blog-conversation-with-critics-or-the-same-old-pr/#comments Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:41:29 +0000 Jeff McIntire-Strasburg http://sustainablog.org/2009/03/30/monsantos-started-a-blog-conversation-with-critics-or-the-same-old-pr/ Yesterday’s Post-Dispatch had a story on the front page of the Business section that immediately caught my eye: St. Louis-based agribiz giant Monsanto has started blogging (and Twittering and YouTube-ing).

That’s right: Monsanto, the company many of us in the sustainability sphere love to hate, has entered the conversation.

That, on the surface, is a good thing.

Of course, the devil’s in the details.  As occasional contributor Max Gladwell pointed out in “10 Ways that Social Media and Sustainability Line Up,” social media can provide a high return on investment for a business… provided its efforts are grounded in transparency. I’d add that such efforts must also be based in a genuine desire to interact: social media is conversation, and all parties have to both talk and listen. Without these elements, a corporate blog will strike its intended audience as just another effort at message control.

Monsanto’s blog also seems to validate another of Max’s points: much of the content so far has consisted of responses to grassroots criticisms of the company ventures into biotechnology, particularly genetic engineering of crop seeds. As blogger and public affairs manager John Combest told the P-D, “”There was this big conversation going on (on the Internet), and we weren’t a part of it.”

So, how’s the company doing in its initial forray into the blogosphere?

At this point, I’d argue they still have a lot to learn.

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2009/03/30/monsantos-started-a-blog-conversation-with-critics-or-the-same-old-pr/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/03/03/centex-raises-bar-for-energy-efficient-homebuilding/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/03/03/centex-raises-bar-for-energy-efficient-homebuilding/#comments Tue, 03 Mar 2009 17:50:46 +0000 Adam Williams http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/03/03/centex-raises-bar-for-energy-efficient-homebuilding/

Dallas-based Centex Corporation has rolled-out a green line of home development in St. Louis, building new homes with its Centex Energy Advantage designs.

The homes the company has begun building in the St. Louis metro area are considered as much as 40 percent more efficient than the typical 10-year-old home.

In a region of the United States looked upon as flyover land, usually implying it’s behind the times, Centex is claiming to be the first national homebuilder to install energy monitors in every home it builds, going forward.

The other standard features of the Energy Advantage package, as listed by Centex, are:

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/03/03/centex-raises-bar-for-energy-efficient-homebuilding/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/02/07/green-minded-coffee-wine-house-opening-in-st-louis/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/02/07/green-minded-coffee-wine-house-opening-in-st-louis/#comments Sat, 07 Feb 2009 13:21:14 +0000 Adam Williams http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/02/07/green-minded-coffee-wine-house-opening-in-st-louis/ The Map Room in the historic Benton Park neighborhood in St. Louis, Mo., is about to open. There are 7 days, 0 hours, 11 minutes, 24 — no, wait: 23…13…8… Well, the seconds keep ticking us closer to the grand opening, as the countdown clock on The Map Room’s Web site proudly — and funly — indicates.

The grand day begins at 7 a.m. on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day. The address is: 1901 Withnell (at Lemp).

The countdown clock tells me there’s an I-can’t-wait atmosphere over there. That tells me to expect a smile when I walk in the door. And everything I’ve read so far on the Map Room’s site — and via email exchange with one of the inspirations energizing the place, Michele Floyd — tells me I can probably believe a number of the thoughts already put out on the coffee & wine house’s site:

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2009/02/07/green-minded-coffee-wine-house-opening-in-st-louis/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/12/24/st-louis-ranks-among-most-polluted-cities-in-america/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/12/24/st-louis-ranks-among-most-polluted-cities-in-america/#comments Wed, 24 Dec 2008 00:21:59 +0000 Adam Williams http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/12/24/st-louis-ranks-among-most-polluted-cities-in-america/ St. Louis, Mo., rates as one of the dirtiest cities — in the bottom 10 percent — in the United States “in terms of air releases of recognized carcinogens,” according to scorecard.org.

It pains me to have to put more horrifying news about St. Louis out to the world. If anyone not from St. Louis, my home city, thinks anything of this historic, blues-music thrumming, Gateway Arch-boasting, Stan Musial-loving, Mississippi River-guarding city, it’s likely about the city’s position in the annual “most dangerous city” rankings.

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/12/24/st-louis-ranks-among-most-polluted-cities-in-america/feed/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/12/02/dont-want-to-wait-for-a-volt-build-your-own-electric-vehicle/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/12/02/dont-want-to-wait-for-a-volt-build-your-own-electric-vehicle/#comments Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:41:36 +0000 Jeff McIntire-Strasburg http://sustainablog.org/2008/12/02/dont-want-to-wait-for-a-volt-build-your-own-electric-vehicle/ No doubt about it: the Chevy Volt looks like it will be one sweet ride (even the not-so-sporty production vehicle). But a group of electric vehicle enthusiasts here in the St. Louis area isn’t willing to wait for the hybrid Volt’s 2010 roll-out… so they’ve built their own fully electric vehicles.

Today’s Post-Dispatch features the Gateway Electric Vehicle Club, and a few of the EVs that members have built themselves. Retired college professor Charlton Jones (pictured above) bought a ‘74 Porsche 914 on Ebay, and with a little elbow grease and money (OK, a lot of money — $19,000) converted into a fully electric vehicle. On the Illinois side of the river, Ron Erb converted a ‘96 Ford Ranger to an EV (for a mere $7,500). Erb was able to offset some of his costs with a $4000 state tax rebate (unfortunately, we don’t have that in Missouri…).

Granted, neither of these vehicles are muscle cars: Jones’ Porsche takes a minute to get up to 60 mph, and Erb claims his Ranger can “go 80… but not very far.” And each requires significant charging time: 7 hours for the Ranger so it can go 35 miles. The cost for that recharge is hard to beat, though: 98 cents.

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2008/12/02/dont-want-to-wait-for-a-volt-build-your-own-electric-vehicle/feed/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/10/15/blog-action-day-st-louis-urban-farm-provides-fresh-food-and-economic-empowerment/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/10/15/blog-action-day-st-louis-urban-farm-provides-fresh-food-and-economic-empowerment/#comments Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:33:42 +0000 Jeff McIntire-Strasburg http://sustainablog.org/2008/10/15/blog-action-day-st-louis-urban-farm-provides-fresh-food-and-economic-empowerment/ Ever tried to buy fresh produce in an inner city grocery or convenience store? Good luck. Urban farming is one approach to addressing the “food deserts” so common in poor urban neighborhoods. St. Louis’ City Seeds Urban Farm goes a step further, though, and creates opportunities for “addicted and chronically mentally ill homeless” to build life skills and self-sufficiency, and to increase food security in the city.

Located downtown near Union Station, City Seeds employs clients of the St. Patrick Center, a non-profit that “provides opportunities for self-sufficiency and dignity to persons who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.” Combining hands-on farming with horticultural classes, the farm attempts to empower these people with skills they can use to build independence.

The farm’s workers aren’t the only economically disadvantaged people that benefit from its harvest, though. Vegetable seedlings grown in the farm’s hoop houses are distributed to community and backyard gardeners. And, the farm also serves as a distribution point for a pilot food distribution program that provides rural farmers with access to inner city markets: a low-cost CSA-type program provides weekly boxes of fresh produce to residents in some of the city’s poorest neighborhoods for $7 a week.

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2008/10/15/blog-action-day-st-louis-urban-farm-provides-fresh-food-and-economic-empowerment/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/24/st-louis-green-homes-renewable-energy-festival-this-weekend/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/24/st-louis-green-homes-renewable-energy-festival-this-weekend/#comments Wed, 24 Sep 2008 19:40:26 +0000 Jeff McIntire-Strasburg http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/24/st-louis-green-homes-renewable-energy-festival-this-weekend/ For a number of years, St. Louis’ Earthways Center has held a celebration of energy efficiency and renewable energy on the last weekend of September.  Vendors showed their wares, non-profit groups passed out information, and the local electric company sold CFLs for a really low price. This year, that event has morphed into the Green Homes Renewable Energy Festival, which is co-sponsored by the Missouri Coalition for the Environment. In addition to the usual displays and tours of the Center itself (a Victorian-era home in St. Louis’ Midtown which has been rehabbed into a green showpiece), visitors to this free event can enjoy:

Workshops and Presentations: Throughout the day on Saturday, Sept. 27, the festival will offer a range of workshops and presentations next door at Cardinal Ritter High School. According to the Festival’s website, “Workshops will cover a range of topics like solar and wind energy, home and vehicle efficiency, urban farming, composting, recycling, and more. Participants can attend multiple workshops for only $5.”

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/24/st-louis-green-homes-renewable-energy-festival-this-weekend/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/22/missouri-state-law-for-motorists-interacting-with-bicyclists/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/22/missouri-state-law-for-motorists-interacting-with-bicyclists/#comments Mon, 22 Sep 2008 22:23:55 +0000 Adam Williams http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/22/missouri-state-law-for-motorists-interacting-with-bicyclists/ With cycling perhaps getting an uptick in popularity of late due to increasing gas prices and fuel economy concerns (and overall greater consciousness of the environment?), it seems worth noting the laws of the road — for safety and for clarification between motorists and cyclists.

Do cyclists belong on the road or the sidewalk? Should cyclists defer at all times to motorists? Who has right of way in any given situation? How can bikes and cars peacefully coexist?

Various municipal and state laws address these questions, among others. To identify what statutes apply to your home area, view the Mass Bike list, which links to various state’s laws online.

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/09/22/missouri-state-law-for-motorists-interacting-with-bicyclists/feed/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/08/05/world-naked-bike-ride-protesting-oil-dependency-in-the-buff/ http://sustainablog.org/2008/08/05/world-naked-bike-ride-protesting-oil-dependency-in-the-buff/#comments Tue, 05 Aug 2008 13:17:26 +0000 Adam Williams http://sustainablog.org/2008/08/05/world-naked-bike-ride-protesting-oil-dependency-in-the-buff/ The latest edition of the World Naked Bike Ride (WNBR) rolled through St. Louis, Mo., Aug. 2.

It was the first year for the Gateway City to join the fun that’s been happening around the world since the summer of 2004. There wasn’t a whole lot of nudity, though, at least not by comparison to many of the WNBR rides which have taken place in several dozen cities in 20 countries on six continents.

But such is the evolution of a protest movement. St. Louisans were testing the water – and law enforcement – with the ride. Next year? I’m guessing it will grow, assuming the event coordinators make it a recurring ride.

In other places, hundreds of full-on nekkid riders rail against the machine. They paint their bodies with artistic musings and general messages of protest, not unlike one St. Louisan who’s back was painted in vivid green lettering, saying: My clothing $ went for fuel.

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2008/08/05/world-naked-bike-ride-protesting-oil-dependency-in-the-buff/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/05/28/the-little-epa-winnebago-that-could-thanks-to-wind/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/05/28/the-little-epa-winnebago-that-could-thanks-to-wind/#comments Wed, 28 May 2008 14:26:01 +0000 Shirley Siluk Gregory http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/05/28/the-little-epa-winnebago-that-could-thanks-to-wind/ The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has taken its share of lumps (and rightfully so) over the past seven Bush years, so it’s nice to see true acts of environmentalism occasionally coming from the organization.

Writing in Greenversations, the EPA’s blog, Jeffery Robichaud writes about his travels through the Midwest in a Winnebago to audit regional air-quality monitors in areas around Kansas City and St. Louis. The typically breezy nature of the region inspired one of the EPA audit team members to supplement the Winnebago’s gas-powered generator with wind energy.

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/05/28/the-little-epa-winnebago-that-could-thanks-to-wind/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/04/22/enterprise-rent-a-car-opens-green-branches-in-atlanta/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/04/22/enterprise-rent-a-car-opens-green-branches-in-atlanta/#comments Tue, 22 Apr 2008 14:04:40 +0000 Jeff McIntire-Strasburg http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/04/22/enterprise-rent-a-car-opens-green-branches-in-atlanta/ When I sat down with Enterprise Rent-a-Car’s VP of Corporate Responsibility and Communications Pat Farrell, and Christine Conrad, VP of Public Relations, in January, both spent a fair amount of time talking about the company’s large fleet of greener vehicles: hybrids, flex-fuel vehicles, and higher-mileage cars. As a couple of commenters noted on those posts, though, finding the greener car you want may be a challenge. Enterprise’s Dan Miller, general manager for Atlanta, also heard these concerns from their customers (particularly corporate accounts), so he decided to do something about it. Now, Atlanta residents wanting to rent either a hybrid or higher-mileage (28 mpg or higher) vehicle from the company know where to go: one of the area’s four “green” branches.

Each of these branches carries stocks about 100 cars, and about 60% of the vehicles at each branch consist of greener vehicles. In a short call last week, Pat (and colleague Lisa Martini) told me that these branches are not focusing on flex-fuel vehicles, as the fueling infrastructure in Atlanta doesn’t support their widespread use. He also noted that Miller’s decision was based on “the need for green in Atlanta” because of the high amounts of traffic congestion, as well as customer demand for the vehicles. He stressed throughout the call, though, that this was a “grassroots” decision: Enterprise sees itself as a “confederation of local operations (owner Andy Taylor’s phrase), and Miller’s decision reflects any local managers ability to manage his/her fleet to meet local needs. He expects that other regional managers will be watching developments in Atlanta closely.

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]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/04/22/enterprise-rent-a-car-opens-green-branches-in-atlanta/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/03/31/st-louis-blues-promote-green-at-tuesday-night-game/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/03/31/st-louis-blues-promote-green-at-tuesday-night-game/#comments Mon, 31 Mar 2008 02:15:59 +0000 Jeff McIntire-Strasburg http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/03/31/st-louis-blues-promote-green-at-tuesday-night-game/ Nope, not an April Fool’s joke… the St. Louis Blues hockey team will host a “Go Green” event on its Tuesday night game against the Nashville Predators. While the information is bit sketchy on their website, sales rep Scott Witte let me know that this first environmentally-themed event for the team will mainly involve raising funds for one of the city’s most cherished green spaces, Tower Grove Park. There may be some green vendors displaying their wares and services, also. It looks like this is a part of a broader “Blues in the Community” event.

Definitely not as ambitious as some other efforts we’ve seen from major leagues sports franchises, but it’s a start… and Scott told me this was something the team wanted to continue and expand. Since the Lou’ is such a sports town, I’m encouraged… and hope our other teams get on board (hello… Cardinals?). This is great way to promote green ideas.

St. Louisans… if you’d like to go, I’ve attached a coupon for ticket discounts for the event… make sure to connect with Scott. Let us know how it goes.

Discount coupon for Blues vs. Nashville Predators

Image source: St. Louis Blues

]]> http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/03/31/st-louis-blues-promote-green-at-tuesday-night-game/feed/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/02/14/car-sharing-comes-to-st-louis/ http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/02/14/car-sharing-comes-to-st-louis/#comments Thu, 14 Feb 2008 15:56:50 +0000 Jeff McIntire-Strasburg http://ecolocalizer.com/2008/02/14/car-sharing-comes-to-st-louis/ While it is possible to go carless in St. Louis (especially if you live in the city), most residents would claim that it’s challenging. In many cases, this perception represents an unwillingness to give up the convenience of a personal vehicle, but there is merit to the argument: our public transportation system is good, but not great, and the concept of a walkable neighborhood is still very much in its formative stages. In the last month, though, St. Louis-based Enterprise Rent-a-Car (a company I’ve blogged about recently) has started an experiment that may help residents rethink the idea of car ownership: it’s WeCar car-sharing program has launched (rather quietly) at Washington University and in the downtown loft district.

As local blogger Steve Patterson noted when WeCar rolled out at Wash, the program appears to be all-hybrid: six Priuses at Wash, one at their medical campus, and nine downtown. Mayor Francis Slay is already singing WeCar’s praises: “It will help the environment,” Slay said. “It will also give people more options as far as commuting. Some people would like to take light rail or the bus to work but they need the flexibility during the day. They can use the WeCar.”

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