Last week, at the C40 Large Cities Climate Summit in Seoul, Autodesk, Inc., a world leader in 2D and 3D design and engineering software, announced that it will collaborate with the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) and the Microsoft Corporation, to provide visualization technology for Project Two Degrees. Project Two Degrees is an Internet-based application that provides cities with a set of tools to measure, compare, and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at a local level.
Autodesk joins forces with the Clinton Foundation to build sustainable cities
Autodesk will provide the technology, initially based on Autodesk MapGuide Enterprise, that will act as the model-based visualization environment used to view, evaluate and compare the results of analysis and monitoring in the C40 city. Autodesk MapGuide Enterprise software is a powerful mapping solution for delivering information more quickly, easily, and cost-effectively via the web.
Green Building Elements had a chance to speak with Brett Smith of Autodesk and Olivia Ross of the Clinton Foundation. Here is what they had to say.
GBE: How does the software track emissions?
Brett Smith (Autodesk): The Project 2° Emissions Tracker is designed to measure as many municipal and corporate activities as possible. Users enter data on emission producing activities such as fuel and electricity consumption, vehicle traffic, waste production, industrial processes and air and sea vessel fuel use. The software then converts the data into greenhouse gases, including tons of CO2 equivalent, taking into consideration the source and type of activity.
By Olga Orda •
May 14, 2009
A www.greenprinteronline.com dispatch
As we are gearing up for week full of interviews from Clearly Green Design and the Futuresonic Festival and Conference (a sneak peek photo of the Futuresonic interview above!), this week’s uber-short post is on some valuable and unique tools for business owners looking to refresh their green marketing efforts.
1. Widgetbox allows you to search for widgets and once you find a good match [...]
By Paul Smith •
April 29, 2009
In today’s rapidly changing sustainable business landscape, it’s becoming increasingly important to be aware of what’s happening, emerging, and yet to be created where you could fill a need. How best to do that?
By Lucille Chi •
January 2, 2009
In full bloom at the National Building Museum this year, is a Green Community exhibition. The interactive show shares detailed information on how the “health of our communities, our planet, and ourselves depend on how we plan, design, and construct the world between our buildings. Green Community explores the origins of our precarious ecological situation and introduces communities large and small where citizens, political leaders, planning and design professionals, developers, and government agencies are working together for a more sustainable future.”
The exhibit poses the question “What makes a community green?” and answers by stating “A green community conserves its land, offers multiple options for transportation, provides open space for recreation and cultivation, and uses its natural and cultural resources wisely.”
By Paul Smith •
October 30, 2008
Ah, the internet, what an amazing tool you are for helping businesses grow. Or even exist. You allow so much more to happen for so many more people than in the past. And yet, there’s only so much you can do online, if you deal in physical products. They need to be stored somewhere. Packed. Shipped. Returned. All necessary, and yet for most entrepreneurs, something they’d rather not deal with. You’ve come up with a product line that more and more people love, and it’s making you more and more hate what fulfilling on that demand has begun to entail.
You find yourself needing a warehouse, or needing a bigger one then you have. Maybe you don’t need a warehouse, but managing all the nittie gritties is extra hassle you’d rather not have. Or perhaps your customers aren’t just local anymore, and your carbon footprint is getting larger because of the shipping. What to do?
By Dawn Killough •
September 22, 2008
GreenandSave.com’s Green Project Return on Investment table offers realistic information to help building owners make decisions on the cost effectiveness of green building measures, remodeling, and tune-ups.
By Julie Sammons •
June 25, 2008
Looking to light a ‘green’ fire under your employees, partners, or potential funders? Need a little eco-inspiration of your own?
If a single picture is worth a thousand words, a compelling or amusing video presentation may be worth a turnaround in your small business culture, increased buy-in from partners, or the flow of funds from sponsors. Entrepreneurs must be well-versed in the art of persuasive presentations, yet finding appropriate images and video content to add to the mix can be challenging.
Enter the latest DVD release from Arnold Creek Productions entitled Naturally Successful: Entrepreneurship That Redefines the Bottom Line. Highlighting some of the sustainability movement’s most compelling speakers, this 78-minute video “features interviews with some of the country’s top business consultants, educators, authors and speakers who are inspiring entrepreneurs worldwide.” Consider emailing clips to your team to kick off a sustainability discussion or launching your next presentation with the words of leaders such as:
View a preview and purchase the full-length feature, browse the Sustainability Shorts clips, and explore the full sustainability video series on Arnold Creek’s website.
Martin Fisher is an enthusiastic rulebreaker. And he’s on his way to making millions. Millions of products that help people in third world countries live a better life. In 1991 he co-founded ApproTEC (now KickStart.org) to develop and market new, appropriate technologies in Africa. He and his group have created over 29,000 new jobs, generating $37 million a year in new profits and wages — transforming subsistence farms into highly [...]
Product Categories for our Topics (next post) follow:
- Essentials – air, water and food… products and processes for human survival.
- Clothing — what to wear!
- Shelter — spaces and places for living and working.
- Energy — a power-full life.
- Health — healing and feeling good.
- Conversion — waste not, want not, have more… from composting to upcycling.
- Materials — elemental building blocks: biological and technical.
- Tools — making things easier.
- Movement — getting there.
- Connection — we are not alone: direct and indirect communication; knowledge; governance.
- Play — having fun along the
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By Kelly Rand •
March 3, 2008
Another thing to consider when crafting with an environmental conscious are your tools and what they are made from. Tools made from recycled or sustainable materials are out there and available for use.
One of the first items on any crafter’s list is a good pair of scissors. Being able to splice thread and cut a mean line is of utmost importance. Scissors can make or break a project. Luckily there is nifty pair of craft scissors made with recycled plastic.
Kleen Earth’s Recycled Stainless Steel Scissors contain 70% post consumer content and come in several different lengths. Perfect for paper, yarn, thread and numerous other materials. They’re available off of Amazon or can be found at any office discount supply store.
If you sew, you know that a good pair of sharp shears is vital and if you already have a pair that you love, learn how to extend their life by sharpening them, reducing the need for a new pair.
By Paul Smith •
December 27, 2007
Does this sound familiar? You are a business, and have been obsessive about finding as many ways as possible to do right while doing well. Your paper goods are on recycled paper, your office uses renewable energy, and you bike to work. Or some such combination of the many possibilities you’ve been able to find. Great, you’re doing a fine job being a part of the solution, and are doing business in a way that’s beneficial (and profitable!) all around.
Now what about you payment processing? What about it, you ask? In most cases, it’s some company that you send your money to each month to facilitate credit card and check payments. End of story. Not much action there. Hold on, friend, there is something else to consider. How about a company that donates a portion of their proceeds to causes of your choice? One that uses renewable energy to host their site? One that facilitates their payment processing through a green business, community focused bank? Does such a company exist? Yes, in fact. They’re called Dharma Merchant Services. 
As a green business consultant, my radar is always out for tools to make the lives of my clients easier, their business greener, and save some money while they’re at it. So when, amongst all the hullabaloo at the recent Green Festival in November, I saw this company, I had to find out more.
