maxmsf's blog

Here's a great article on some outlandish but intriguing geo-engineering ideas that are starting to get more attention.

 The ideas are shrouded in controversy -- "Why are we speculating about whether we can construct concrete trees that may or may not effectively capture carbon from the atmosphere when we've got people's homes which aren't properly insulated? That's absurd," -- but still quite fascinating and fun food for thought leading into the Global Summit in Denmark next month:

 If there were some kind of panic button to stop global warming, what would it look like? How about billions of tiny mirrors, launched into orbit to deflect solar rays away from Earth? Or big, fluffy clouds, artificially whitened so they reflect more sunlight back into space? Or maybe mechanical trees, ugly but effective at sucking carbon dioxide from the air along busy highways.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/11/26/MN2H1AKSHS.DTL#ixzz0YIpCiVP2

I don't usually pimp tradeshows or conferences, but this is one of my favorites. I missed it last year in San Jose, but now it's back in San Francisco, at Fort Mason which should be a great venue for it. There's an allstar line-up of speakers, so it'll be work the price of admission. See the abstract from their email below announcing the soon-to-expire deals on registration!

We've got a slew of coverage of previous years if you want to get a taste of what it's all about: http://www.buildinggreentv.com/keywords/west-coast-green

Only 2 days left!

We just wanted to let you know that there are only 2 days left before the West Coast Green registration prices go up! So now is the time to pull out your credit card! (preferably the one that also gives you airline miles) ?

Early registration deadline is midnight July 31st (that’s this Friday!) Click here to see our registration options!

 ( no green building content )

 Just a real quick nod to the post production studio who worked on our show, EyeStorm Productions, who "won not just 1, but 2 Golden Trailer statuettes - sweeping the video game categories! Star Wars: The Force Unleashed took home the trophy for "Best Video Game Trailer" and Tom Clancy's EndWar was awarded "Best Video Game TV Spot."

See what all the fuss is about here:

http://www.eyestormproductions.com/blog/

This crew has worked on many aspects of Star Wars, not just the video game but the real movie series as well.

And of course you can check out their work in Building Green where they apply "the force" to helping spread awareness about green building techniques and awareness: http://www.buildinggreentv.com/keywords/dvd/3825

I'm proud to be representing BGTV on a panel at this year's Green Build expo in Boston. The topic? Green Blogging of course. Who's doing it, and what's blogging's role in the green media landscape? I'm really looking forward to it, as the panel also includes some of my own favorite bloggers and influencers, including Preston Koerner form Jetson Green, Lloyd Alter from Treehugger, and Stephen Del Percio from gbNYC.

For some discussion fodder and research, we'd really like your help with a BRIEF SURVEY -- please spend just the minute that it takes to complete it. There's even a prize for one lucky survey-taker. Thanks, and I hope to see you in Boston in November!

 My friend Matt turned me on to a pretty neat service -- it's Green Tips -- Text GREENTIPS to 44636 and you will get a daily SMS sent to your phone with a green, (usually household) pointer. I don't read them everyday but usually they're pretty good. The messages are sent by USA Today and 4Info (for disclosure, I have a professional relationship with USA Today). I haven't tried to unsubscribe, but I imagine it's possible if you get sick of the messages or master them all :) There are ads in the messages, though usually for something local, relevant, or at least interesting. 

And when you are finished reading Green Modern Kits' new casa ti blog , peruse over to Myspace and check out the Green Building Modern Design group that Copeland has also set up there - -you may recognize a few people.

Also, we (well, only me really so far) are finally starting to get our Myspace page going-- we are buildinggreentv -- so come say hi! I promise to change the color sometime soon....

From mkd's newsletter:

Time to break out those gumdrops and some icing glue because ‘tis the season for gingerbread houses! This year, however, why not put a green twist on this great holiday tradition? We’ve created a recipe for creating your very own gingerbread Lotus or, as we like to call it, gingerLotus. Aside from being a fun and delicious holiday activity, we think this project is an excellent way to start acquainting children with the ideas of sustainability and green living. It’s never too early to begin teaching your kids to be concerned for our environment and training them how to respect and protect it through everyday actions. This time of year is such a fun and exciting one for children; what better way to engage them in greening then by integrating it into your family’s holiday traditions. We hope you’ll find the results yummy in every way!

I received this from a friend and it originated at Andropogon Associates, a landscape architecture firm in Philly. It is only a concept house for now but could have huge implications if embraced by bakers in scale.

Water Harvesting: Roof leaders and cisterns are employed to collect and store water for non-potable water needs such as frosting and gingerbread hydration

Reduced Resource Consumption and Waste: Locally made gummy trees and shrubs reduce negative environmental impacts caused by shipping

Sustainable Materials: Baked in hybrid solar oven, all gingerbread is made of organic ingredients. Contains no artificial flavorings, preservatives, or hydrogenated oils

Recycled Materials: Walkway paved with salvaged frosting from roof

Stormwater Management: A bioretention pond collects excess water and recycles wastewater by filtering out all artificial flavorings, preservatives, and transfats

A bit overdue, but I want to take the opportunity to thank everyone who has contributed to our show, our website and shared their thoughts, comments, and encouragement. They are not always favorable (yes we know- Kevin's house is too big!), but most of them are very encouraging and are a big part of what has kept us going here. Seeing a new post or even some new sign-ups in the Share section of our site is the highlight of my day, and hearing that someone has watched our show, wants to learn more about sustainability, and is thinking about changing their businesses or homes as a result is music to our ears and confirms the potential that media can have in changing the way we live our lives and build our communities-- which is why we all got into this in the first place.

We've made some great friends along the way, have seen some amazing innovation and desire to change the world, and have realized just how small this planet is. And for this, I am very thankful.