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Daily Loaf

Your daily source for the best in blog.

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Obama visits the solar harvesting “farms” in Desoto County

Posted by Lisa Montelione on Nov. 4, 2009, at 2:43 pm

AP Photo/Gerald Herbert

It wasn’t easy for me to resist the temptation to gush happily in print over our President’s visit to DeSoto county last week; but what struck me as I watched the event on TV were the paradoxical images –

Consider this: a utility company executive delivers accolades to the President for his leadership on sustainable energy production. Is this an anomaly? Maybe, but FPL Group’s CEO Lewis Hay, belongs to an exclusive club. Its members are forward thinking business executives readying their companies for a new green economy.

Granted, Mr. Hay’s exuberance may be due to the $200 million of stimulus funding FP & L is about to receive. But you have to admit, it does take chutzpah for him and his activist executive buddies to visit Washington in support of climate change legislation. They gathered as the Waxman/Markey bill was coming up for a key house vote back in June, even taking out a full page ad in DC newspapers. Acknowledging the paradigm shift to sustainable, clean power production so many others deny, they see the legislation as good for business. Whoa, did you hear that, Chamber of Commerce? Jokingly, Obama noted that people get nervous about change, relating Hay’s comment “especially utility executives” to which the crowd, largely made up of utility contractors and employees, laughed heartily.

Or this image: Juxtaposed against gleaming hi-tech solar panels, straw cowboy hats perched atop the heads of men in the first row bobbed up and down nodding in agreement with the President’s words. Thirty years ago this would be a scene in a sci-fi flick, and for some in the Deep South it would have been a horror flick. An African American President telling a rural Florida farming community: Boys, we’re gonna be installin’ some special equipment out here in these pastures, we’re gonna start harvesting sun rays. Yeah, sure ya are, and I just got done putting a trailer hitch on my spaceship to Mars. Oh by golly, farming sure has changed. No horses corralling cattle; no tractors in the fields, no worry of drought damaged crops.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: arcadia, desoto county, economic stimulus package, FL, green farming, president obama, race, solar power
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy, News, Politics |



Green Visions Series: Water conservation and the revival of local economies

Posted by Eric Stewart on Oct. 26, 2009, at 9:15 am

f1ec9776-bcf3-11de-a7ec-00144feab49aLet us assume for one moment that water was a precious commodity, as rare as gold itself. How would we treat it? Would we bathe our infertile landscape with it? Expend perfectly clean water to dispose of our waste? Throw it away after scantly using it in the sink while doing dishes?

Now let us live in reality. Realize that already this resource is such a thing. For we live way above our means at almost 500 gallons a day for the average American. Most human beings on this planet use less than 100 gallons, and by 2025 water will be a scarce resource for nearly three-quarters of the population due to exponential growth of use and depleting glaciers.

In my previous post about South Central Asia, I spoke also about the resource war that could erupt over water. With recent fires in California as well as sandstorms in Australia, more than ever resilience in a water supply will be crucial for our success in the future. We must adapt to a goal of using less water and utilizing it more efficiently.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: ecological, eric stewart, Florida, Green living, natural resources, water, water waste
Posted in Activism, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



The Green Community week in review: Green Halloween, organic food labels, sustainable living and more

Posted by Katie M. on Oct. 25, 2009, at 3:30 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Tampa joins International Day of Climate Action to take a stand for a safe climate future- On October 24, people from Tampa Bay joined Greenpeace to hear the importance of acting now for the climate and gather together to take a stand for the climate and a clean energy future as part of the largest global day of climate action ever.

Which big name food company is behind your organic food? – Did you know that some of your favorite organic food brands are owned by some of the biggest names in the food production business?

October 24 is the International Day of Climate Action (videos) – The biggest day of grassroots action on global warming ever.

The Age of Stupid showing at USF St. Pete campus (video) – The Student Environmental Awareness Society is starting their Environmental Film Series with the question, “Why didn’t we stop climate change when we had a chance?”
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 350.org, eco films, food companies, green films, green halloween, International Day of Climate Action, organic food, sustainable living, the age of stupid, usf
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



Something is wrong in America

Posted by Eric Stewart on Oct. 23, 2009, at 3:30 pm

Will you stand? Comment what you’re standing for here locally in Tampa bay.

Posted in Activism, Florida Politics, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy, Politics, Recessionomics |



The Green Community week in review: USF Green Expo, ‘No Impact Week’, green your Halloween, and more

Posted by Katie M. on Oct. 18, 2009, at 12:51 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Connecting of tribes at the Campus and Community Sustainability Conference at USF- Contributor Eric Stewart gives an overview of the seminars at the event and what Florida students are doing to make others aware of sustainablity issues.

USF Green Expo panel discusses high-speed rail- A speaker at the USF Going Green Expo, Nazih Haddad, Manager of the High-Speed Rail Program at the Florida Department of Transportation, said that demographics, geography, and growth management needs to create a perfect niche for high speed rail technology.

Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful receives $10,000 grant award as part of nationwide competition to “think green”- KHCB received a $10,000 cash grant for being one of 15 winners nationwide in a competition to present proposals for ambitious projects representing a wide array of stewardship, community outreach and educational projects.

Participate in ‘No Impact Week’ to lighten your carbon footprint-  Starting Sunday, October 18, use the No Impact Project guide and learn to gradually reduce your carbon footprint, step-by-step.
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Tags: clearwater beach cleanup, eco-friendly pet, eric stewart, green halloween, Green Jobs, high speed rail, keep hillsborough county beautiful, no impact week, repower america, Science Center of Pinellas County, Sustainable Science Fair, upcycled home decor, usf green expo
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



The Green Community week in review: Interview with Ed Begley Jr., toxic beauty, Sweetwater Farm’s Planter’s Ball, and more

Posted by Katie M. on Oct. 11, 2009, at 11:53 am

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Eco Chic: Bracelets and cuffs from recycled vinyl records- These bracelets are a great way to enhance your favorite outfit while showing your love for music and the environment all at the same time.

700 people pose nude in a French vineyard for Greenpeace- Stripping down for a good cause.

Stylish, eco-friendly yoga mat totes- Check out these new eco-friendly yoga bags made from recycled items such as recycled juice boxes and feed sacks.

Ed Begley Jr. to talk about sustainable living in Tampa- The actor, also the host of the cable channel Green Planet’s Living With Ed, said that one of the things he’ll be talking about at USF is GreenSwitch, a new concept developed by Magnum Energy Solutions. GreenSwitch uses wireless technology to turn off electrical outlets and light switches, helping home owners to reduce energy consumption by as much as 25 percent.
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Tags: a chemical reaction, Bright House, cosmetics, eco chic, eco-documentary, ed begley jr., Green Community, greenpeace, planter's ball, recycled innovations contest, sustainable living, Sweetwater Organic Community Farm, The 15 Most Toxic Places to Live, toxic beauty, yoga bag
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



A more sustainable alternative to the BayWalk bailout

Posted by Scott Milinder on Sep. 30, 2009, at 8:30 am

The Failing BayWalk Mall in St. Ptersburg

The City Council of St. Petersburg will make a decision this Thursday that will signal what path the city is taking for the future. The council will vote on spending nearly $700,000 in taxpayer money for more police and special projects for the owners of BayWalk, including privatization of the sidewalk outside the mall entrance.  BayWalk’s ownership, whose controlling interest is held by Wells Fargo Bank, said without the subsidy and the sidewalk, they cannot possibly turn around the failing entertainment complex.

From the standpoint of public policy that promotes sustainable economics, the council’s choice is clear, I think. Will it continue a worn-out policy of subsidies to out-of-town corporations and mainly profit the wealthy few? Or will it adopt an enlightened, sustainable public policy that promotes economic development of all local residents, in every community, not just the privileged ones?
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Baywalk, downtown st. petersburg, economy, local businesses, locally owned, ponzi scheme, real estate, recession, shopping mall, St. Petersburg, uhuru, Uhurus, wells fargo
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Policy, Tampa Bay Politics |



Builder goes green with their eco-friendly homes in Terrace Park, Tampa

Posted by Lisa Montelione on Sep. 28, 2009, at 10:42 am

risingforce_homeThe City of Tampa has a limited supply of affordable housing that is also environmentally friendly. City Council, led by Councilman John Dingfelder, passed an ordinance last year that would promote green building practices for new construction. That ordinance while still a long way from achieving its goal of prompting mainstream builders to incorporate green building practices into their projects. Although several buildings have been LEED certified in the area, they have considerably higher price tags than non-green projects.

One company, Rising Force Construction, has undertaken the task of creating affordable, energy efficient homes that promote sustainable living in Terrace Park, an established neighborhood just south of the University of South Florida. Residents have the opportunity to reduce their carbon footprint on several levels: They can live, shop, work and enjoy recreational activities; and they can live in a home that reduces utility consumption by 30 to 40 percent over an existing home of the same size. For those that are tired of seeing their budgets eaten up by ever rising gas prices, they can walk, bike or take public transportation.
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Tags: carbon footprint, eco friendly, energy efficient, energy star, green home, Hillsborough County, John Dingfelder, LEED, lisa montelione, mark clement, rising force construction, Tampa, terrace park, water conservation
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, News |



The Green Community week in review: Van Jones, blueprint for Florida’s green economy, The Age of Stupid, and more

Posted by Katie M. on Sep. 13, 2009, at 12:19 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Eco-adventurer takes ‘Plastiki’ expedition to the Pacific Garbage Patch- Eco-adventurer David de Rothschild plans to sail 11,000 miles from San Francisco to Sydney by way of the Eastern Pacific Garbage Patch on his 60-foot catamaran called the Plastiki.

The truth about Van Jones: Communist? Nope. Revolutionary? Hope so. – From what I’ve known about Jones as a person and his work the past four years, I would say it’s pushing it to call him a communist. As for being a revolutionary, he is indeed a leader in the Green Revolution.

What we need to form Florida’s green economy- A green economy, based upon ethics, entrepreneurship and decentralization, would be the way to move forward for this state and our country.
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Tags: cleaning products, climate change, David de Rothschild, earth, extreme ice survey, fair trade, film screening, florida's economy, green economy, greenland, greenworks, harmful cleaning products, inspiration, jason green, joy, Plastiki, Seminole Heights Community Gardens, st petersburg college, the age of stupid, the great pacific garbage patch, van jones
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



What we need to form Florida’s green economy

Posted by Eric Stewart on Sep. 8, 2009, at 8:30 am

ltgscenario1Last October, an economy that had been running its course for the past three decades was laid to rest. Our country has been on a nearly 30-year credit bubble where we have binged on cheap credit to buy up homes at ever increasing values. This 30-year ascent made us think it could be forever. But this bubble was based upon unsustainable principles and ecological destruction. We destroyed as much land as we could to produce quickly and consume as much food, building supplies, minerals as we could get from the land as fast as possible. We utilize an extremely dense energy source — fossil fuels — to live lifestyles that are historically similar to those that kings lived before. In order to accomplish all this, we have put ourselves in debt for decades to come. We have borrowed from the future to live in the present for far too long.

Here in Florida the Ponzi scheme of real estate flipping ended as well. As my carpenter friend remarked: “We worked ourselves out of a job.” The University of Florida released a demographic report showing that 58,000 people left the state of Florida this year, ending our over 60-year growth pattern. This is a turnaround for a state that based its economic model on perpetual growth. An economy strictly based upon tourism and building is falling apart. We are already witnessing the vast decline in state resources and even our own governor is leaving for Washington D.C. But I’m here, and I’m a native of Florida and I’m not leaving my state any time soon. I’ve been researching a green economy for the past year and a half and I believe it’s the way to move forward for this state and our country. It’s based upon ethics, entrepreneurship and decentralization — a return to a local living economy.
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Tags: david korten, ecological, ecology, economy, Education, goverment, green economy, Green Jobs, local goverment, local living economies, new goverment, new green economy, partnership goverment, peak oil, permaculture, retrofit suburbia, sustainable communities, sustainable living, the earth charter, van jones
Posted in Activism, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living |



CL’s green office makeover, part 3: Sales, marketing, and classifieds departments get organized (video)

Posted by Lisa Assetta on Sep. 1, 2009, at 10:56 am

Classified Department - BEFORE

Things are really starting to get organized at the CL office as we’ll continue to show you with part 3 of their green office makeover. The Sales, Marketing, and Classifieds departments get into the action next! I had the pleasure of working hands-on with James (Ad Director), Joran (Marketing + Promotions Director), and Terri (Classifieds Manager) in their workspaces. My plan for each department was to follow the 4 Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle) to create more space and better organization in their areas.

The video starts off with London (Operations Manager) painting the stage in CL’s new event space – that’s just for fun! As the camera pans through the lobby, I’d like you to note that the very special “something” we created for the community is finally revealed. It’s CL’s Community Center! It’s a very cool place for members of the community to bring their business and event flyers and place them on the table or bulletin board to share with others. This center also contains CDs and other items that CL wants to share with you – for FREE! So stop by and take a few! This is one way CL is recycling items and giving back to the community at the same time. A pan to the main hallway of CL’s offices shows that items previously blocking a clear passageway through the offices have been strategically moved to other more appropriate areas to allow for an easier, safer, and more visually appealing walk through CL.

Video after the jump
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Tags: cl, classifieds, community center, create more space, Creative-Loafing, declutter, desktop, efficient, functional, get organized, green office makeover, Lisa Assetta, marketing, Office, office assistance plus, organize, productive, recycle, reduce, repurpose, reuse, sales, workspaces
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living |



The Green Community week in review: Clean energy rally, legalizing marijuana, BOTB Readers’ Poll, and more

Posted by Katie M. on Aug. 30, 2009, at 12:24 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Finding an emotional connection with our planet- Doing so allows us to look at what our needs are in life and what is of the highest and greatest importance to us and our environment.

Best of the Bay Readers’ Poll 2009: The race for Greenest Politician has Linda Saul-Sena in the lead- Who do you think should take the title of this year’s Greenest Politician in the Bay?

Clean energy and anti-offshore drilling rally in Ybor this Thursday- Thursday, August 27th, join Sierra Club, 1Sky Florida, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and other environmental groups for a real grassroots rally outside Big Oil’s staged gathering.
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Tags: 1Sky, alternative energy, alternative energy source, Best of the Bay 2009, Best of the Bay Readers' Poll 2009, big energy, big oil, bill johnson, BOTB, bricault design, brooks avenue, CFLs, cl, clean energy, conservation, creative loafing green community, digital signature, doe, earth, eco friendly, economic crisis, email, email signature, email tag, emotional connections, energy, energy consumption, energy use, energy waste, environmentalism, Florida, going paperless, goodwill, governor charlie crist, green, Green Community, greenest politician, greywater, health care reform, Hemp, home addition, home renovation, House, ibm, illegal immigrants, informative email signature, informative email tag, jason green, karl nurse, Linda Saul-Sena, low voc, marijuana, Mary Mulhern, Mayor Pam Iorio, mexican drug cartels, microsoft outlook, Milton Friedman, mother earth, natural resource, natural resource consumption, natural resource waste, Nature, nature's food patch, offshore drilling, organic food, organic food store, paper, paper waste, paper waste facts, paper waste statistics, phil compton, plants and animals, please consider the environment before printing this message, please print only if necessary, Politics, power plants, Progress Energy, publix greenwise, rally, Rick Kriseman, rollin oats, Sierra Club, sincerely sustainable, smart grid, solar, south carolina north carolina, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, spc, st petersburg college, St. Pete College, stimulus, Tampa-Bay, telvent, The Ritz Ybor, turbine, unemployment rate, us department of energy, venice CA, war on drugs, Whole Foods Market, wind energy, Ybor
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



Legalizing marijuana could lead to new economic highs

Posted by Tom Bortnyk on Aug. 26, 2009, at 7:23 am

Although we are finally seeing signs of improvement, the economic downturn here in the US is far from over. We are still dealing with massive unemployment, failing banks, and soon, rampant inflation from the trillion-dollar “stimulus” forced upon us by the federal government.

There’s also a Mexican drug war brewing on our borders, and the instability caused by the drug cartels could cause a greater influx of illegal immigrants into the United States. That’s a problem if we’re talking about universal health care. It’s also a problem if we’re talking about violent crime, and for that matter, national security.

The remedy for all these problems could literally grow out of the ground. It has always been said that marijuana has medicinal properties; perhaps it is time to let pot nurse our economy back to health.

This is a frightening subject for soccer moms and politicians everywhere, but facts are stubborn things. In an open letter to the President, Congress, and all state governments, more than 500 notable economists, including Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman, argue that legalization of marijuana could not only save the government money, but generate revenue in the billions.

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Tags: economic crisis, Green Community, health care reform, Hemp, illegal immigrants, marijuana, mexican drug cartels, Milton Friedman, stimulus, unemployment rate, war on drugs
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Politics |



Progress Energy seeks to add Smart Grid in Florida: Customers will see their real-time energy use

Posted by Jason Green on Aug. 25, 2009, at 4:51 pm

Progress Energy announced that it applied for $200 million in U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) federal infrastructure funds for the development of an electric Smart Grid in the Carolinas and Florida.  The DOE grant would be shared equally between the two states.

A “Smart Grid” is a modernized digital electric transmission and distribution system that delivers detailed, real-time energy use information to customers. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: alternative energy, alternative energy source, bill johnson, cl, clean energy, creative loafing green community, doe, energy, energy use, Florida, ibm, jason green, power plants, Progress Energy, smart grid, solar, south carolina north carolina, spc, st petersburg college, St. Pete College, telvent, turbine, us department of energy, wind energy
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



Clean energy and anti-offshore drilling rally in Ybor this Thursday

Posted by Katie M. on Aug. 25, 2009, at 1:47 pm

Would you like to stand up against the Big Oil and Big Energy companies and oppose offshore drilling of the Gulf Coast? Would you like to support Clean Energy and green jobs in the Bay area? Then help make a difference and make your voice heard by attending this Clean Energy rally on Thursday in Ybor:

The American Petroleum Institute, a lobbying front group for Big Oil and other energy industries, is orchestrating staged “grassroots rallies” to try and stop the Clean Energy and Climate Bill from passing the U.S. Senate. The press calls these rallies “astroturf”: manufactured grassroots. This Thursday, August 27th, join Sierra Club, 1Sky Florida, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and other environmental groups for a real grassroots rally outside Big Oil’s staged gathering.

WHEN & WHERE: Meet beforehand at 9:30 am at La Tropicana Café, 1822 East 7th Ave. for some for great cuban coffee! The “Energy Citizens’” event begins at 11:00 am at The RITZ YBOR theatre, and we will counter rally out front at 1503 East 7th Avenue, Tampa, FL 33605 (there is a shady area where we’ll be).
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Tags: 1Sky, big energy, big oil, clean energy, offshore drilling, phil compton, rally, Sierra Club, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Tampa-Bay, The Ritz Ybor, Ybor
Posted in Activism, Events, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Policy, Tampa Bay Politics |



The Green Community week in review: World’s first solar-powered city, redesigning suburbia, green pledges and more

Posted by Katie M. on Aug. 23, 2009, at 12:51 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Fixing sprawl and redesigning suburbia- Grant Rimbey CNU explores a possible strategy towards improving existing sprawl. Fixing the sprawl that we have, along with sprawl demolition and recycling, are strategies that could be employed in the future as a new green industry.

Nation’s largest solar facility to be in DeSoto County by next year- Florida Power and Light is currently building the nation’s largest photovoltaic plant in DeSoto County, a $173.5 million, 25 megawatt solar generating facility.

Fresh: New Thinking About What We’re Eating screening – What’s wrong with the mega-industrial food industry- Struggling small farms, problems with food safety rules and the mega-industrial food industry, and a film about all of the above.
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Tags: 2009 school year, acre city, alan snitow, amp light, arcadia, audubon, babcock ranch, back to school, back to school clothes, bike to school, biking, cafeteria, car chargers, car pool, carpool, china, city of tomorrow, clean energy, climate change, climate change as a threat to national security, clothesline, cna study, composting, consumerism, deborah kaufman, design competition, desoto county, DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center, dog toys, drought, dwell magazine, E. O. Wilson, E.O. Wilson, eco-friendly pet, electrical car, electricity, elementary school, energy, energy efficient, energy waste at school, environmentally friendly, EPA, family, farmers, farming, floods, Florida, florida power and light, foreign oil, fpl, free inquiry, Fresh, ft myers fl, Galina Tahchieva, garage sale, garden, global warming, goals, green architecture, green back to school, Green building, green business, Green Community, Green Jobs, green networking, Green planning, green pledges, green roofs, green school, greenhouse gas, greenhouse gas emissions, greenhouse gases, healthy school lunch, high school, india, inhabitat.com, IPCC, jason green, kids, kitson, locally grown, lunch box, mead recycled notebooks, megawatt, michael fox, middle school, national security, natural conservation, new leaf paper, New York Times, oil, organic, organic farming, overpopulation, paper margins, parrish, pbs documentary, peak oil, pesticides, photovoltaic panels, photovoltaic power plant, photovoltaic solar, plastic bag, plastic water bottles, pledges, power amp, real estate investment, reburbia, recycle, recycled paper, recycled pencils, refillable pens, right to dry, Saturday Morning Market, school bus, school garden, school recycling, school waste, Sierra Club, social networking, solar, solar collectors, solar energy, solar energy facility, solar energy panels, solar facility, solar generating facility, solar panels, solar power, solar power in florida, solar thermal facility, southwest florida, soylent green, spc, st petersburg college, St. Pete College, state economy, street lamps, Student, Studio@620, sustainability, sustainabilty, sustainable back to school, sustainable farming, sustainable water management, tampa bay green drinks, Tampa-Bay, the creation: an appeal to save life on earth, the roosevelt, thrift store, U.S. Census Bureau, united states environmental protection agency, us epa, vegetarian, volunteer work, walk to school, water bottles, Ybor
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



First solar-powered city in the world will be in Southwest Florida

Posted by Michelle Schenck on Aug. 20, 2009, at 1:00 pm

It has been recently announced that the first city in the world to be powered by the sun will be constructed right here in Florida. Babcock Ranch has made an agreement with electric utility company, Florida Power & Light to build the world’s largest photovoltaic power plant. This stepping stone for the green community which is located near Ft. Myers, FL. will also produce thousands of temporary jobs and roughly 20,000 permanent jobs for the state economy.

According to the Sierra Club website, the 17,000 acre city will consume less power than the FPL on-site solar facilities will produce, allowing it to become the first city on earth to be powered by by zero emission solar energy. All of the commercial buildings and homes in Babcock Ranch will be certified as energy efficient by the Florida Green Building Council.
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Tags: acre city, amp light, babcock ranch, car chargers, city of tomorrow, electrical car, fpl, ft myers fl, green roofs, kitson, natural conservation, photovoltaic power plant, power amp, real estate investment, Sierra Club, solar facility, southwest florida, state economy, street lamps, sustainable water management
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy, News |



Tampa Bay Green Drinks event for green business networking: Wednesday, August 19

Posted by Katie M. on Aug. 18, 2009, at 4:00 pm

Tampa Bay Green Drinks is relaunching and their first networking event is being held Wednesday, August 19 in Ybor at 6 pm.

Tampa Bay Green Drinks is relaunching! Join us on August 19, 2009 at 6:00pm at the Roosevelt, a green building in Ybor City located at 1812 N. 15th St.

The Roosevelt showcases a multitude of environmentally sustainable and preferable construction techniques and systems. Meet other professionals in various “green” businesses for networking and discussion. We encourage you to bring anyone interested in green building to check out the progress being made at the Roosevelt to see just what is possible. Wine and beer will be provided.

What is Green Drinks?

Green Drinks is a social networking group that brings together corporate, government, ngo, non-profit and interested people who want to learn about environmentally responsible practices and other related topics. Our goal at Tampa Bay Green Drinks is to bring together the Tampa Bay community to keep “green” moving forward in our community.
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Tags: green business, green networking, social networking, tampa bay green drinks, Tampa-Bay, the roosevelt, Ybor
Posted in Events, Green Community, Green Jobs |



Nation’s largest solar facility to be in DeSoto County by next year

Posted by Jason Green on Aug. 18, 2009, at 9:51 am

The town of Arcadia in DeSoto County is currently building the nation’s largest photovoltaic plant.

According to Florida Power & Light (FPL) the $173.5 million, 25 megawatt solar generating facility should be operating by the second quarter of 2010.

In February, FPL broke ground on its DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center: Florida’s first commercial solar energy facility.  The facility is projected to produce an average of 42,000 MWh of electricity annually.  This enough to meet the needs of over 3,000 homes or over 7,000 people; nearly 20% of DeSoto County.
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Tags: arcadia, clean energy, desoto county, DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center, electricity, energy, EPA, Florida, florida power and light, foreign oil, fpl, global warming, greenhouse gas, jason green, megawatt, oil, parrish, peak oil, photovoltaic panels, photovoltaic solar, solar, solar collectors, solar energy, solar energy facility, solar energy panels, solar generating facility, solar panels, solar power, solar power in florida, solar thermal facility, spc, st petersburg college, St. Pete College, united states environmental protection agency, us epa
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



Fixing sprawl and redesigning suburbia

Posted by Grant Rimbey CNU on Aug. 17, 2009, at 8:30 am

In a previous Green Community post I’ve discussed sprawl: developer-driven poor planning and bad growth polices facilitated by developer-friendly elected officials, and why we need to cease building this way.

In this post I present one possible strategy towards improving existing sprawl. Fixing the sprawl that we have, along with sprawl demolition and recycling, are strategies that could be employed in the future as a new green industry.

Ultra cool Dwell Magazine and Inhabitat.com recently held a competition titled “The Reburbia Design Competition”, that had the goal of re-envisioning the suburbs.
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Tags: design competition, dwell magazine, Galina Tahchieva, green architecture, Green building, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green planning, inhabitat.com, reburbia, sustainabilty
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



The Green Community week in review: Greenwashed bamboo textile claims, best green trend in the Bay, and more

Posted by Katie M. on Aug. 16, 2009, at 12:24 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Sustainable beer 101: A guide to growlers- Benefits of refillable beer jugs far exceed the lure of fresh tap beer.

Refresh your mind, body and spirit by reconnecting with nature- Living in such a busy world these days overloaded with technology leaves little time to get back to the basics and connect with the planet we live on. Take some time out of your busy schedule and reconnect with nature, which will balance you physically, mentally and spiritually.

Ronald McDonald gets a pie in the face from PETA protester- Ronald McDonald takes one in the kisser from a PETA protester who is against McDonald’s “controlled-atmosphere killing” of chickens.

St. Petersburg College and Tampa Bay green building chapter announce partnership- St Petersburg College’s Corporate Training Office announced a partnership with the Florida Gulf Coast Chapter (FGCC) of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to provide a comprehensive sustainable building operations training course based on the LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance rating system.
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Tags: activities, aerated showerheads, agriculture, animal cruelty, animal rights activist, as, associates in science, bachelor of applied science, Bamboo Clothing, bas, beer bottles, beer jug, Best of the Bay 2009, BOTB, brown glass, byproducts, calcium, carbon, carbon dioxide, cement, Cigar City Brewing, cl green, cl green community, clothes washing, clutter sorting, co2, cold showers, concrete, corn, corporate e-training, Corporate training, Creative-Loafing, crops, David Warner, dirty clothes, dirty dishes, dishwasher, dunedin house of beer, dunedin-brewery, eco friendly beer, emissions, energy star, energy waste, energystar, Environment, environmental science technology, environmentally friendly, existing building, Federal Trade Commission, fgcc florida gulf coast chapter, food, food Inc., fossil fuel emossions, gas, genetically modified food, global CO2 emissions, green, Green Community, green office makeover, green trend, growler, hot water waste, independent film, independent filmmakers, industrial agriculture, instahot, instant hot, jason green, josh bomstein, king corn, LEED, leed ap, leed ap exam training, leed ap om eb, leed ap om eb training, leed ap training, LEED certification, leed exam training, leed training, limestone, Linda Taylor, low flow showerheads, low flow water heads, magnesium, mcdonalds, midlothian, mining, mother earth, mother nature, natural gas, Nature, office assistance plus, office organizing, operations and maintenance, outdoors, outside, PETA, peta protestors, protest, rain barrel, Rayon, ronald mcdonald, seawater, silicates, solar hot water, solar rebates, solar source, spc, spc sustainability coordinator, st petersburg college, St. Pete College, susan reiter, sustainability management, sustainable architecture, sustainable beer, sustainable design, tampa bay area, Tampa-Bay, USGBC, USGBC Florida Gulf Coast Chapter, USGBC Gulf Coast Chapter, utilities, washing machines, waste, water, water conservation, water heater, water heater temperature, water heater timers, water leaks, water restrictions, water waste
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Creative Loafing’s green office makeover by Office Assistance Plus, part 2: Helping editor David Warner get organized

Posted by Lisa Assetta on Aug. 13, 2009, at 3:42 pm

David Warner's (New) Desktop Filing System

I’m back to tell you that some serious clutter sorting, purging, and space-clearing began at the CL offices as we continue their green office makeover. Everything in the mail center, sales counter, and reception desk was evaluated and paper, supplies, and items that didn’t get used or add functionality were either recycled, donated, or discarded. Storage units, filing cabinets, and bins that didn’t serve a purpose in their current space were moved to a “staging area” we set up in the back of the office to be “repurposed” somewhere else later.

Next, we began to clear space in the lobby to make room for the ”very special something” for the community that I referred to in my first CL green makeover post . The half-empty wire bins in the lobby were disassembled and a simple, two-level rack to hold issues of CL was placed in a corner of the lobby next to the sofa, making the current issue easy to find and read! A table and bulletin board were also added to the space. You’ll want to know what this area is going to be used for, so stay tuned!

Video after the break:
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Tags: clutter sorting, Creative-Loafing, David Warner, green office makeover, office assistance plus, office organizing
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Uncategorized |



St. Petersburg College and Tampa Bay green building chapter announce partnership

Posted by Jason Green on Aug. 11, 2009, at 10:08 am

St Petersburg College’s Corporate Training Office announced a partnership with the Florida Gulf Coast Chapter (FGCC) of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to provide a comprehensive sustainable building operations training course based on the LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance rating system.

The course will be available August 17th.

According to the USGBC, LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M is the tool for the operation and maintenance of commercial and institutional buildings.  The certification system identifies and rewards best practices and describes ways for using less energy, water and natural resources; for improving indoor environment; and for uncovering operating inefficiencies. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: as, associates in science, bachelor of applied science, bas, corporate e-training, Corporate training, environmental science technology, existing building, fgcc florida gulf coast chapter, jason green, josh bomstein, LEED, leed ap, leed ap exam training, leed ap om eb, leed ap om eb training, leed ap training, LEED certification, leed exam training, leed training, operations and maintenance, spc, spc sustainability coordinator, st petersburg college, St. Pete College, susan reiter, sustainability management, sustainable architecture, sustainable design, Tampa-Bay, USGBC, USGBC Florida Gulf Coast Chapter, USGBC Gulf Coast Chapter
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



The Green Community week in review: CL office gets green makeover, Living sustainably in Tampa Bay, best organic smoothie, and more

Posted by Katie M. on Aug. 9, 2009, at 12:52 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

St. Petersburg College’s new Natural Science, Mathematics and College of Education building is certified LEED® Gold- St. Petersburg College recently announced that for the second time in as many months, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has awarded LEED Gold certification for one of its new campus buildings.

Best of the Bay of the Day: Best organic smoothie- Believe it or not, algae and bee pollen add up to a delicious drink called the Spirulina Power Buzz. Read this to find out where to get one.

Tips to improve gas mileage (and save some green)- Do you have a lead foot or drive an inefficient automobile?  Here are a few simple tips to improve gas mileage and save a bunch of green!

Living Sustainably in Tampa Bay: Darren Brinkley, owner of REAL Building- Brinkley is the owner of REAL Building and home that he built for his family in St. Petersburg is the first home in Florida to achieve the LEED for Homes Gold Rating.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 4 Rs, acquifer, air filter, air pollution, alternative energy, August, battery recycling, beach, bee pollen, Best of the Bay, Best of the Bay of the Day, bicycle, Bike, blue august, book swaps, calendars, carpool, cash for clunkers, charm callahan, cl green community, cleanup, Clearwater, clothes, consciousness, conservation, cousteau, creative loafing contributor, Creative Loafing Green, creative loafing green community, creative loafing office, crude oil, cuisine, curiosity, darren brinkley, Diana Wright, drought, eco, eco friendly, Energy Coordinator, energy star, energy waste, Environment, environmental activicism, Feel the Heat: Climate Change, Flad, florida blood services, Florida Friendly lawn, florida native plants, ford escape, foreign fossil fuels, foreign oil, fossil fuel, fossil fuel emissions, fossil fuels, FSC, fuel economy, fun festival, gas mileage, gas mileage tips, gasoline, geothermal technology, gift, Going Green, green, green architecture, Green building, green cleaning products, Green Community, green fun, Green living, green office, green office philosophy, green office specialist, greenpeace, greywater, Gulfport, hart line, heat island effect, honda insight, hybrid vehicle, inefficient automobiles, inefficient cars, jason green, Katie Machol, landfill, LEED, LEED certification, Linda Taylor, Lisa Assetta, litter, Local Music, low voc, marine life, mazda tribute, mens, mercury mariner, miles per gallon, momentum, mpg, natural gas, new cars, ocean, office assistance plus, office for sustainability, oil, oil spills, organic, petroleum, pinellas county utilities, planet green, plastic, prius, PSTA, REAL building, recycle, recycled building materials, recycling, reduce, regional materials, repurpose, reuse, rollin oats, Rollin' Oats Market & Cafe, rubber, save money, save the environment, save time, Scott Milinder, solar water heater, speakers, speeding and effeciency, spirulina, st petersburg college, St Petersburg/Gibbs, St. Petersburg, sustainability, sustainable, sustainable architecture, sustainable design, tampa bay area, Tampa-Bay, toilet paper roll, toilet tissue, toyota prius, trash, treehugger, trees, unisex, united states green building council, USGBC, USGBC Florida Gulf Coast Chapter, voc, W. G. Mills, walking, wallet, waste, water, water conservation, water rates, wildlife, Yankees
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Creative Loafing gets a green office makeover from Office Assistance Plus: Part 1

Posted by Lisa Assetta on Aug. 6, 2009, at 1:00 pm

CLs Lobby on the Day of the Consultation - yikes!

I’m a green office specialist and I’ve been privileged to be a contributor with the Creative Loafing Green Community since its launch this April. Sharing my green office tips through my posts recently led to an unexpected proposition from CL’s online producer, Stephen Hammill. The proposition: to come to CL’s office and consult with them on their office cleanup and reorganization project. Happy to assist my green partners in any way I could, I agreed.

I arrived at CL’s office at 810 North Howard Avenue in Tampa on July 1st for the consultation, workplace and workspace needs assessment, and walk through. I was met by their smiling and enthusiastic operations manager, London. We were joined shortly by Joran, their marketing director, who began to immediately follow us around with a camera (that was kind of creepy at first, but I eventually got used to it).

At the conclusion of the needs assessment, the scope of work became clear.

Video after the jump
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Tags: 4 Rs, creative loafing contributor, creative loafing green community, creative loafing office, green office, green office philosophy, green office specialist, Lisa Assetta, office assistance plus, recycle, reduce, repurpose, reuse, save money, save the environment, save time
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Health & Wellness, Lifestyle |



Living Sustainably in Tampa Bay: Darren Brinkley, owner of REAL Building

Posted by Jack B. on Aug. 5, 2009, at 11:00 am

This column is the second in a series of profiles of people who do their part to live more sustainably in Tampa Bay.

Darren Brinkley doesn’t pretend to be the most environmentally responsible person in the world or the Tampa Bay area. He just feels that he is trying to do his part to preserve the world around him.

Brinkley is the owner of REAL Building, which stands for ‘Responsible, Efficient, Attainable, and Livable Building’. REAL Building only builds green homes, unlike many other companies that will build green only if the client dictates it. 

“We don’t build anything that isn’t green,” Brinkley proclaimed. “We have now mandated some form of rainwater and/or greywater and solar water heaters on all our residential projects.”

“We are constantly searching for new and innovative ideas and going the extra mile to bring them to our market, even if it means rocking the boat with a few building officials along the way,” added Brinkley. 
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Tags: darren brinkley, energy star, florida native plants, geothermal technology, green architecture, Green building, greywater, LEED, REAL building, recycling, solar water heater, Tampa-Bay, USGBC, voc
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living |



The Green Community week in review: Tampa green biz program, cypress mulch protest, harmful water bottles and more

Posted by Katie M. on Aug. 2, 2009, at 12:13 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

The Earth Charter: How ethics can change the world (video) – The Earth charter was created by thousands of people representing hundreds of countries aiming at a universal ethical code of conduct for human beings. How do we treat each other? How do we treat the world? These questions were raised and answered.

City of Tampa Green Business Designation Program- As of this week, the City of Tampa became one of just a handful of cities nationwide to start a green business designation program.  Outside of the West Coast (California and Washington state), Tampa will join major metropolitan areas like Philadelphia and Knoxville in rewarding private businesses that have become or want to become more environmentally-friendly.

Why buying recycled, repurposed products is so important- Preserving the Earth’s natural resources is vital to the future of the planet and all of its inhabitants. Buying recycled and repurposed products is a great way to make a positive impact on the environment by cutting back on waste and the resources needed to make new items.
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Tags: Activism, Adidas, alice walker, Alternative, alternative materials, alternative transportation, amazon, announcement, architecture, art, aspiring filmmaker, author, bad water bottles, bertin, campaigner, carbon footprint, cattle industry, city of tampa, cl green, cl green community, clothing, creative loafing green community, crude oil, cypress, deforested areas, destructive practices, dollar lawsuit, dollar loan, don vincente de ybor, Dustin Hoffman, Earth Day, earth summit, eatonville, eco friendly, eco tips, electric bike, electric scooter, energy, Environment, environmental activism, environmentalism, EPA, eric stewart, ethics, events, expansion, festival dates, festival organizers, film festival, film festivals, film production, film submission, Florida, Florida wildlife, flu, fossil fuels, gas, genre, Going Green, grand prize winner, green, green businesses, Green Community, green ideas, Green living, green tips, greenhouse, greenpeace, grocery store chains, gulf restoration network, happenings, herbal immune boosters, home depot, homeopathic remedies, how to live green, hybrid vehicle, illegal deforestation, immune boosters, International, international finance corporation, jason green, June, landfill, living green, mai, Marfrig, Mayor Pam Iorio, Monsanto, moratorium, MS, mulch, National Do Not Mail List, natural gas, natural resources, Nature, necessary steps, paper submissions, Peace, Pecha Kucha, petroleum, phonebooks, plastic, presentations, Pressure, private lending, products, protest, public prosecution, public transportation, recycled, Reebok, repurposed, reuse, rio accessories, runner ups, save our cypress, save the earth, severn suzuki, slaughterhouse, Slaughtering, sneaker giant, st petersburg college, stainless steel water bottles, state prosecutor, stop catalogs, stop mail, submission fees, sustainability, sustainaiblity, sustany foundation, suwanee river, swine flu, the color purple, the earth charter, the graduate, their eyes were watching god, third world, Timberland, universal code of conduct, wal-mart, war, war is over, warming, water bottles, welcome news, wildlife, yellow pages, zora neale hurston
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



City of Tampa Green Business Designation Program

Posted by Jack B. on Jul. 27, 2009, at 1:00 pm

As of this week, the City of Tampa became one of just a handful of cities nationwide to start a green business designation program.  Outside of the West Coast (California and Washington state), Tampa will join major metropolitan areas like Philadelphia and Knoxville in rewarding private businesses that have become or want to become more environmentally-friendly.

What seems to be unique about the City of Tampa program, compared to other municipalities’ programs, is that the city will not be the adminstrator of the program.  Because of the expense related to hiring someone to administer the program, the City of Tampa decided to partner with a non-profit local sustainability group, The Sustany Foundation.
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Tags: city of tampa, green businesses, Mayor Pam Iorio, sustainability, sustany foundation
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy, Uncategorized |



The Green Community: Week in Review

Posted by Katie M. on Jul. 26, 2009, at 12:19 pm

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Living with the land: Florida’s first Earthship (video) – Eric Stewart gives a firsthand look at Florida’s first Earthship in Manatee County, and gets his hands dirty while helping out.

Not getting a million-dollar bonus this year? Think local stimulus- Scott Milinder shows us a real stimulus package that will work for us: we all commit to “Buying Local First.” According to recent economic studies, shifting your buying habits to locally owned businesses creates more circulation of money, more economic activity and more jobs in the local economy.

Eco-friendly summertime fashion accessories- Are you searching for a unique and beautiful purse to enhance your summer wardrobe? Then why not consider one of these recycled handbags that are made from recycled items that help to promote a cleaner and healthier world, reports Jen Meier.
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Tags: beaches, bedroom wall, beef, Bill Nelson, bioremediation, bonus, breast cancer, brochures, buy local first, cancer, carbon dioxide, carbon emissions, carbon footprint, cattle, chamber of commerce, charlie crist, chips, clean energy, climate change, college move, colorant, Congress, construction, Cows, Design, diet, dining room, dominator society, earthship, eco friendly, eco friendly paint, economy, energy and utilities policy committee, energy efficiency, energy efficient, fao, Fashion, Florida, florida house, food Inc., freshair, global warming, go green items, goldman sachs, greenhouse, greywater, growth hormones, handbag, headache, health, heart disease, herbicides, home depot, home depot stores, in defense of food, independent business alliance, jennifer meier, Linda Taylor, local food, manatee county, meat free monday, meatless, meatless monday, Mel Martinez, methane, michael pollan, movie review, new apartment, nrc, oil, organic, organic food, paint base, paint cans, partnership society, paul mccartney, permaculture, pesticides, PETA, pew center on global climate change, pinellas county, public service commission, purse, raw food, recycled, recycled material, renewable energy, renewable portfolio standard, saturated fat, senate, shades, solar energy, St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg's Exciting Community of Independents And Locals, stimulus-package, stroke, summer, sustainable, Tampa Theatre, the omnivore's dilemma, tourism, united nations, vegetarian, volatile organic compounds, water footprint, wind power
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



Oil drilling in Florida means goodbye to our beaches and tourism

Posted by Phil Compton on Jul. 24, 2009, at 8:30 am

I just participated in a panel discussion on offshore drilling of our Florida beaches, sponsored by the Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce. Also joining me were Pinellas County Commissioner Ken Welch, Senator Nelson’s staff Shahra Anderson, and the Ocean Conservancy’s TJ Marshall, as well as two other panelists acting essentially as lobbyists for the oil industry from the Southern Strategies Group – the firm that came close last spring to getting our state legislature to okay oil drilling within three miles of our beaches.

Over and over, their message came across: “Trust us. The oil companies would never do anything to harm your beaches. Honest, we can drill and you’ll never see a spill, nary a drop nor a tar ball. Never mind that Texas beaches, naturally as nice as Florida’s, have almost zero tourism revenue because of the muck and tar balls that ruin a nice walk on the beach there. If we had anything to do with that, we’re sorry, but that would never happen here. We’re much more careful now. Trust us.”

Two problems with this argument:
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Tags: beaches, Bill Nelson, chamber of commerce, climate change, Congress, economy, energy efficiency, Florida, global warming, Mel Martinez, oil, pinellas county, renewable energy, senate, tourism
Posted in Activism, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy, News, Politics |



Renewable portfolio standard is needed for renewable energy in Florida

Posted by Rick Kriseman on Jul. 23, 2009, at 4:16 pm


Florida, in light orange-yellow on the Dept of Energy map, above, joins some other states without renewable portfolio standards to require renewable energy production.

We are long overdue for a renewable portfolio standard (RPS) in this state (a regulation that requires the increased production of energy from renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal). According to the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, we are not only the most populated state without one, but we are joined by the likes of Alabama,

Mississippi, and several other states not known for their progressive agendas.

In 2008, Governor Charlie Crist signed legislation which required the Public Service Commission (PSC) to develop a renewable portfolio standard by February 1, 2009, which then had to be adopted by the legislature before being implemented.
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Tags: charlie crist, climate change, energy and utilities policy committee, Florida, florida house, pew center on global climate change, public service commission, renewable energy, renewable portfolio standard
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Policy |



Everything you ever wanted to know about Earthships (video)

Posted by Katie M. on Jul. 22, 2009, at 4:24 pm

As you’ve seen from a post earlier this week in the Green Community, Florida is getting its first Earthship. But what exactly goes into making an Earthship and what makes it so energy efficient and eco-friendly?

Not only do Earthships utilize solar and wind energy (for heating, cooling, and electricity), they are made completely of natural and recycled items and are built to harvest their own water, have contained sewage treatment, and their own built-in gardens so inhabitants can harvest their own food.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: clean energy, construction, Design, earthship, eco friendly, energy efficient, manatee county, solar energy, sustainable, wind power
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living |



Not getting a million-dollar bonus this year? Think local stimulus

Posted by Scott Milinder on Jul. 20, 2009, at 1:00 pm

With a helping handout from taxpayers, multinational bankers like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan have given themselves record bonuses – billions of dollars – in 2009. What? You didn’t get your record, subsidized bonus in 2009?

Despite those giddy Wall Street windfalls and federal stimulus package, the Florida employed rate topped 10.6% in June – 970,000 Floridians “officially” jobless. How many of your family, friends, and neighbors have yet to be lifted out of the economic black hole that seems to be consuming more and more of us?

In the Tampa-St. Petersburg region, we need our own stimulus package – for us. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: bonus, buy local first, goldman sachs, independent business alliance, St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg's Exciting Community of Independents And Locals, stimulus-package
Posted in Activism, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



Living with the land: Florida’s first Earthship (video)

Posted by Eric Stewart on Jul. 20, 2009, at 8:00 am

In previous posts, I declared the problems that our country faces. The point was not to be pessimistic but to maturely point out the weak points so we can find solutions. We face mounting debt, a dependence on a finite power source stored beneath the Earth that may have peaked production, the baby boomer generation about to enter retirement, a lack of savings, and a consumer culture built upon a dominator society that depends entirely from receiving it’s inputs of materials and things from far away. This society is unsustainable and will need to transition to something different by choice or by collapse.

This society arose when we began valuing things, more than people. It is not a recent event, but an event that has playing itself out for thousands of years. I spoke of a permaculture path. A path to improve our economy to be environmentally friendly and get us off our addiction to fossil fuels. As a by-product of utilizing these permaculture design principles we will have healthier food, cheaper costs of living, meaningful work repairing the Earth all as we return to the community way of thinking and away from individualism. We must create a partnership society, partnering with the Earth and one another to repair the damage.

What does this look like though? It’s easy to state abstract ideas on digital paper, but how about an example locally?
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Tags: bioremediation, dominator society, earthship, greywater, partnership society, permaculture
Posted in Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy |



Living sustainably in Tampa Bay: Dave Starman’s biodiesel fueled car and green lifestyle

Posted by Jack B. on Jul. 13, 2009, at 3:55 pm

This column is the first in a series of profiles of people who do their part to live more sustainably in Tampa Bay.

Dave Starman lives a simple life. He resides on a sailboat in the harbor off Davis Island. He is just finishing his Master’s Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of South Florida, and drives to school everyday from South Tampa in his 1985 Mercedes Benz 300D diesel that he has converted to straight vegetable oil that he collects from restaurant waste fryers and filters.

The car is modified to heat the oil to a temperature which brings its viscocity similar to that of petroluem diesel fuel and the diesel engine just burns it.

On his sailboat, Dave limits his daily living power consumption to what can be collected from one 130 Watt solar panel.  He lives on a 12V DC system primarily with lights, stereo, water pump, and other marine navigational equipment.
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Tags: environmentalist, solar energy, sustainability, united states green building council, university of south florida, vegetable oil conversion
Posted in Activism, Green Community, Green Jobs, Green Living, Green Policy, Health & Wellness |

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