This post follows my previous post pretty well, but I'll do my best to keep from repeating myself. I spoke with my dad about his use of social media and we discussed the differences and similarities between the way his generation uses it and the way my generation uses it. We agreed that each generation has their own motivations for making use of not only social media, but digital tools in general.
One of the biggest differences between generations is our reasons for connecting with people. Dad reaches out to old friends and acquaintances in attempts to reconnect and re-establish faded relationships. I, on the other hand, look for new professional connections and others with similar social interests to connect with. Don't get me wrong, I make connections with plenty of old friends, but my networks are much more extensive and diverse than Dad's. Dad's connections are pretty much family and close friends, and forget about connections with perfect strangers. I will at least give a stranger a chance to show me why we should connect, but Dad is having none of that.
One thing that surprises me a little is how many ways Dad is plugged in, digitally speaking. Dad has a facebook account, follows me on Twitter, we're in each other's circles on Google+, we're LinkedIn together, he blogs...at least he used to. He seems to have lost interest in blogging. How many of you or your parents can say they USED to blog? Still, though, while I'm looking for future employers and opportunities, he's content in his professional development and is settled into his city to the point where his face-to-face connections are the ones with the most potential to impact his career.
Finally, the thing that occurs to me after observing Dad for a while is how his extra-curricular activities have changed. When I lived at home, he was a member at the local country club, and we'd play golf and socialize for a while, sometimes several days a week. Now, he no longer belongs to a club, but keeps tabs with those guys through the various online interactions. He spends a lot more time working on hobby projects around the house, often utilizing Youtube for how-to videos to assist with his various projects. Meanwhile, I'm making connections and finding happy hours to attend or other social events and making new friends while actually losing touch with many of my older acquaintances.
Social media has had a profound impact on each of our lives for sure. It depends on who you ask whether the impact is good or bad. On one hand, I'd say Dad has lost the desire for face-to-face interaction with long-time friends. On the other hand, I'd say I've lost the ability to maintain relationships with my oldest friends. It's a trade each of us is apparently willing to make. We agree that at least we each had the chance to have real, personal relationships. Younger generations are already plugging in and spending more and more time online. At the rate they are consuming bandwidth, we both fear we may never really get to know our grandkids.
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Father Knows Best
Young or old, large or small, Wall Street or hipster, 1% or 99%, social media is for everyone. But it is increasingly obvious that older generations are most prepared to properly integrate social media into their lives.
Think about it - my dad grew up in the world before computers. He remembers the very first computers to be adopted on a wide scale. He has seen the evolution from DOS to Windows, to better Windows, to OSX to iOS to Android. He has used them all and has never been afraid to adopt new technology. He has been there every step of the way, and because of it, he is primed for the social media frenzy that has taken the world by storm. Younger generations may be the early adopters of everything coming down the tech pipeline, but Dad and his cronies still have a thing or two to teach us youngsters.
Generations X and Y have had the luxury of having their every desire literally at their fingertips. Much of the thinking that people used to have to do on their own has been eliminated by the omniscient world wide web and smartphones, and smart tvs, and smart everything else. Baby Boomers had no such luxuries. They had to write research papers in libraries with real books, had to wait for the evening news on tv to know what was going on in the world (they actually cared what was happening outside their personal space), had to go to a brick-and-mortar store to buy something, had to go to a store to rent a physical video, and if the movie they wanted to rent was out, they had to wait until somebody brought it back.
What did they learn from all of that? Patience. And it has paid off. They haven't wasted the countless hours/days/weeks (months?) on multiple network sites only to see facebook eliminate the competition completely. They've been able to sit quietly on the sidelines while we worked out all the kinks. Now they've gone all-in, and they're showing us how it's done. While we were busy trying to figure out how to get more friends or come up with more clever status updates, they were devising corporate strategies and finding ways to market their businesses to the younger crowds so eager to give so much of their time to the internet. What do we have to show for it? Advertisements and professional networking sites like Linked-In popping up left and right. They've infiltrated our digital playground and flipped it on its head.
They've also learned how to communicate and recognize that social media is a very valuable communication tool:
Younger users are becoming less civil, less PC, and less professional, hiding behind semi-anonymous profiles and usernames, paying no attention to the digital world around them. They're destroying the English language with acronyms and type-os that they don't even realize are type-os.
This guy agrees with me:
They're airing their dirty laundry, swearing at everyone and still trying to preach that facebook is for kids. Meanwhile, our parents are showing us how it's done, like they always have.
Think about it - my dad grew up in the world before computers. He remembers the very first computers to be adopted on a wide scale. He has seen the evolution from DOS to Windows, to better Windows, to OSX to iOS to Android. He has used them all and has never been afraid to adopt new technology. He has been there every step of the way, and because of it, he is primed for the social media frenzy that has taken the world by storm. Younger generations may be the early adopters of everything coming down the tech pipeline, but Dad and his cronies still have a thing or two to teach us youngsters.
Generations X and Y have had the luxury of having their every desire literally at their fingertips. Much of the thinking that people used to have to do on their own has been eliminated by the omniscient world wide web and smartphones, and smart tvs, and smart everything else. Baby Boomers had no such luxuries. They had to write research papers in libraries with real books, had to wait for the evening news on tv to know what was going on in the world (they actually cared what was happening outside their personal space), had to go to a brick-and-mortar store to buy something, had to go to a store to rent a physical video, and if the movie they wanted to rent was out, they had to wait until somebody brought it back.
What did they learn from all of that? Patience. And it has paid off. They haven't wasted the countless hours/days/weeks (months?) on multiple network sites only to see facebook eliminate the competition completely. They've been able to sit quietly on the sidelines while we worked out all the kinks. Now they've gone all-in, and they're showing us how it's done. While we were busy trying to figure out how to get more friends or come up with more clever status updates, they were devising corporate strategies and finding ways to market their businesses to the younger crowds so eager to give so much of their time to the internet. What do we have to show for it? Advertisements and professional networking sites like Linked-In popping up left and right. They've infiltrated our digital playground and flipped it on its head.
They've also learned how to communicate and recognize that social media is a very valuable communication tool:
Younger users are becoming less civil, less PC, and less professional, hiding behind semi-anonymous profiles and usernames, paying no attention to the digital world around them. They're destroying the English language with acronyms and type-os that they don't even realize are type-os.
This guy agrees with me:
They're airing their dirty laundry, swearing at everyone and still trying to preach that facebook is for kids. Meanwhile, our parents are showing us how it's done, like they always have.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Got Green?
Got Green Seattle is a non-profit organization concerned with promoting communities of color (and the lower-income communities of Southeast Seattle) and sees the movement for an equitable, green economy as the best way to fight poverty and global warming at the same time. The organization began with the realization that the sustainability movement/green economy is not being communicated in a way that everyone can understand, especially in lower-income neighborhoods. "It's hard to translate carbon footprint into Chinese". Their goal is to translate the green economy, its benefits and challenges, in a way that both interests and stimulates people within these communities. People of color have been left behind.
The organization decided training community members for green jobs was a good start to getting caught up. They applied for, and received, federal stimulus funding to train local workers for green jobs, but they realized after training that the workers they trained were not getting jobs. (Interestingly, they gave some stimulus money back as a result of their inability to place workers in green jobs.) Further, they realized women were still being left out. Women were surveyed and asked to prioritize between access to healthy food, green home (energy efficient/healthy living conditions), green jobs, and public transportation. Women chose access to healthy food as their top priority, so Got Green set out to improve access to (affordable) healthy foods.
Mostly though, the group is active in the lower-income communities to bring jobs to the communities or have construction companies working nearby hire local workers from within the communities where they are building rather than bringing in their own crews.
The majority of our visit with Got Green centered around jobs to the point that it was difficult to identify how "green" plays a role in their organization. Instead, it seems to be a social equity group and seems more like an example of using green to get funding without actually being green. I think their intentions are pure, but I think the name is misleading. They are confusing "green" and "sustainable". Eventually, they don't mean the same thing. Got Green wants jobs for communities of color and wants to keep things local, which is certainly a component of a sustainable community, but it does appear as though they are playing on the "green" movement and the efforts of government to promote green initiatives to disguise and fund their ultimate goal of social equity for Southeast Seattle.
The organization decided training community members for green jobs was a good start to getting caught up. They applied for, and received, federal stimulus funding to train local workers for green jobs, but they realized after training that the workers they trained were not getting jobs. (Interestingly, they gave some stimulus money back as a result of their inability to place workers in green jobs.) Further, they realized women were still being left out. Women were surveyed and asked to prioritize between access to healthy food, green home (energy efficient/healthy living conditions), green jobs, and public transportation. Women chose access to healthy food as their top priority, so Got Green set out to improve access to (affordable) healthy foods.
Mostly though, the group is active in the lower-income communities to bring jobs to the communities or have construction companies working nearby hire local workers from within the communities where they are building rather than bringing in their own crews.
The majority of our visit with Got Green centered around jobs to the point that it was difficult to identify how "green" plays a role in their organization. Instead, it seems to be a social equity group and seems more like an example of using green to get funding without actually being green. I think their intentions are pure, but I think the name is misleading. They are confusing "green" and "sustainable". Eventually, they don't mean the same thing. Got Green wants jobs for communities of color and wants to keep things local, which is certainly a component of a sustainable community, but it does appear as though they are playing on the "green" movement and the efforts of government to promote green initiatives to disguise and fund their ultimate goal of social equity for Southeast Seattle.
City of Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment
The City of Seattle began conservation and environmental programs approximately 40 years ago, but the Office of Sustainability was only created in the year 2000. They have a lot of interesting programs and initiatives in the works, their main focus being energy and climate protection. Currently, they are updating their Climate Action Plan with a goal to be carbon neutral by 2050. They have also proposed energy districts throughout the city, in which districts will produce and consume their own energy rather than relying on city utilities (i.e., hospital district using steam to power their operations). Community Power Works is a federally-funded energy upgrade program designed to improve the energy efficiency of homes and businesses across the city. The Office of Sustainability coordinates with several other city departments to achieve some of their goals. For example, through the Urban Forest Management Plan, they are working with the Urban Forestry Department (which itself consists of approximately 9 smaller departments) to build the tree canopy back to 30% in 30 years from 23% now.
Other programs include electric vehicle infrastructure development, a food action plan, recycling and composting to redirect 70% of waste from landfill by 2022 (from 50% now), building programs, and even deconstruction programs, in which building permits are expedited in exchange for an agreement to deconstruct and reuse portions of existing buildings rather than demolishing and scrapping entire buildings. Portland and Seattle both push recycling and composting and make it easy for citizens to do their part by clearly labeling public waste receptacles for trash/landfill, recycle, and compost. Often "landfill" is actually printed on trash cans to help make the connection that trash isn't actually being thrown "away".
Interestingly, as was common throughout the region, Seattle doesn't focus so much on LEED standards for buildings as they do combinations of other green building standards. A very large number of buildings and tenant spaces are actually LEED certified (various levels), but it is not as noticeable as in Texas because it is not a point of pride so much as it is just the way they build in Seattle. I recall being surprised by several spaces as we exited and I saw an inconspicuous LEED plaque almost hidden from view, while in Texas, LEED plaques are prominently displayed and most often impossible to miss.
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| Actually located at McKinstry Innovation Center, but it illustrates the point |
A very ambitious project that was mentioned briefly is the Seattle 2030 District, which would create a high-performance central business district. According to the website:
"Through collaboration among diverse stakeholders, leverage of existing and development of new incentives and financing mechanisms, and development and communication of shared resources, the 2030 District seeks to prove the business case for sustainability. Property owners will not be required to achieve the goals of the District by legislative mandates, or as individuals. Rather, this type of goal achievement requires sharing of resources and ongoing collaboration to make high-performance buildings the most profitable building type in Seattle."It is ambitious to say the least, and I will certainly keep an interested eye on its progress.
Also interesting to note was that they actually appear to be a little behind the City of Austin in requiring reporting by building owners of energy performance to current and prospective commercial tenants. Through the Energy Benchmarking Program, they do require benchmarking and monitoring of energy and water usage through the EPA/Energy Star Portfolio Manager by large commercial owners as well as requiring reporting to the city. Austin currently requires commercial owners to report that information to prospective tenants and is working toward making it mandatory for multi-family owners as well. Uncertain is whether Seattle is behind the curve, or if Austin is forced to "shame" building owners who are not as efficient due to greater reluctance to cooperate in energy-efficiency programs, while Seattle enjoys greater cooperation and does not feel the need to require that kind of reporting.
Futurewise
Futurewise is an environmental non-profit originally created in response to the rapid growth and development across Washington state and the resulting change in landscape. People were afraid they would lose everything they really liked about Washington. The Growth Management Act was enacted to protect the natural legacy of the state while still enabling growth in the right places. The Act acknowledges that growth is happening, while also acknowledging the necessity to control it. Other than citizen appeals, there is no legal enforcement of the law, so 1,000 Friends of Washington was created, eventually spawning Futurewise as protectors/enforcers of the Growth Management Act. Their focus evolved from enforcement of law to protecting the natural landscape while building great cities through public education, technical assistance/policy development, advocacy, and litigation.
One of their greatest current efforts is the Livable Communities Initiative in which they have formed partnerships with other cities in the Puget Sound area to establish a path forward to implement sustainable policies in those cities (i.e., Green Streets in Spokane).
An interesting part of Futurwise's efforts is the time spent lobbying for their causes. According to April Putney, more time is spent lobbying against bad/threatening legislation than in favor of good legislation. An underlying theme of the discussion was the importance of relationships, more so, in fact, than a specific education in many respects, since so much of the job is persuading others to see things your way.
The most interesting thing I took away from the discussion was the way April came to work with Futurewise. Originally, she didn't see how their focus on land use and transportation impacted climate change, but she came to realize that transportation is the best place to start in Washington, where transportation is responsible for nearly 50% of emissions. It illustrates how easy it is to be so focused on a bigger picture that we miss what is literally right in front of our faces.
One of their greatest current efforts is the Livable Communities Initiative in which they have formed partnerships with other cities in the Puget Sound area to establish a path forward to implement sustainable policies in those cities (i.e., Green Streets in Spokane).
An interesting part of Futurwise's efforts is the time spent lobbying for their causes. According to April Putney, more time is spent lobbying against bad/threatening legislation than in favor of good legislation. An underlying theme of the discussion was the importance of relationships, more so, in fact, than a specific education in many respects, since so much of the job is persuading others to see things your way.
The most interesting thing I took away from the discussion was the way April came to work with Futurewise. Originally, she didn't see how their focus on land use and transportation impacted climate change, but she came to realize that transportation is the best place to start in Washington, where transportation is responsible for nearly 50% of emissions. It illustrates how easy it is to be so focused on a bigger picture that we miss what is literally right in front of our faces.
NBIS
NBIS - Network for Business Innovation and Sustainability - is, as the name suggests, a networking portal (nbis.org), connecting businesses and professionals serious about "profitable sustainability" with resources to help them succeed in the green economy. The focus of the portal is to remain business friendly, making a business case for everything they do. Through the portal, members have access to ideas, educational programs, additional networking activities, and other resources to link them with their peers. Members used to participate in greendrinks, events aimed at gathering sustainability-minded businesses and individuals in a social setting to facilitate the kind of connections that NBIS members seek, but that particular forum attracted many young environmentalists, "hundreds in fact", and business people were not comfortable there because the environmentalists sought to change business rather than support them in making changes. So, "eco hour" was born, which successfully filtered the less business-oriented from the events, but also had the unfortunate side-effect of filtering much of the youth from the group.
One regional program that has resulted from the connections made through NBIS is the Byproduct Synergy Network - companies try to turn one another's waste into resources for other companies. Interesting note: similar programs are running in Houston and Arlington among what Carl refers to as "large and dirty companies" (Carl actually asked not to be quoted on that, so pretend you didn't read that!).
A big challenge facing NBIS is funding, since most of their efforts are what is referred to as "systems change", and most grants are granted to specific environmental projects rather than systems oriented efforts. As a result, NBIS is working to build its consultation service for revenue, partnering with software companies that are developing and/or distributing sustainability-oriented software programs to help companies track their triple-bottom-line metrics (i.e., SBP360). Through consulting, they help companies do GRI reports and develop sustainability planning, etc. By staying small, they are able to subcontract most services (virtual consultancy).
Though small, NBIS provides a largely important group of services to businesses and professionals who seek to expand their networks and connect with like-minded businesses and professionals to promote and improve sustainable efforts across the Seattle metro area.
One regional program that has resulted from the connections made through NBIS is the Byproduct Synergy Network - companies try to turn one another's waste into resources for other companies. Interesting note: similar programs are running in Houston and Arlington among what Carl refers to as "large and dirty companies" (Carl actually asked not to be quoted on that, so pretend you didn't read that!).
A big challenge facing NBIS is funding, since most of their efforts are what is referred to as "systems change", and most grants are granted to specific environmental projects rather than systems oriented efforts. As a result, NBIS is working to build its consultation service for revenue, partnering with software companies that are developing and/or distributing sustainability-oriented software programs to help companies track their triple-bottom-line metrics (i.e., SBP360). Through consulting, they help companies do GRI reports and develop sustainability planning, etc. By staying small, they are able to subcontract most services (virtual consultancy).
Though small, NBIS provides a largely important group of services to businesses and professionals who seek to expand their networks and connect with like-minded businesses and professionals to promote and improve sustainable efforts across the Seattle metro area.
Washington Green Schools
Washington Green Schools is a nonprofit dedicated to certification of schools that meet specific criteria for resource conservation and waste reduction in the state of Washington. The program is organized into five levels and five environmental categories: energy, healthy school buildings, transportation, waste and recycling, and water. Schools choose which category they want to target and follow a certification rubric to guide them toward certification for that category over the course of approximately one school year.
The program is open to public and private schools and involves students of all ages working on "Green Teams". Teams typically consist of students and at least one faculty member and often other members of the community. Parents are allowed to participate on teams, but they are not preferred since parents are not likely to continue in the program once their children are out of school. Schools may have more than one team working toward certification in multiple categories, though faculty support is not always so readily available. Upon certification, schools are awarded a flag for their efforts. After certification, schools may advance to the next level, or renew at their current level. To certify at the next level, a school chooses a new category, completes the corresponding assessment, implements a Lasting Change and verifies its impact, and takes action in the four other categories. That is where additional teams are useful.
It was interesting to note that as early as 6th grade some students begin to take active roles on teams and suggest ideas or projects rather than simply being told what to do. The key to the program is involving kids at an early age and rewarding them for their achievements. As they grow, they will remember their excitement at being rewarded and apply the lessons learned from the program to their lives even outside of school. Children are the future of sustainability, and teaching them at such a young age will move sustainability out of the "fad" category, as most people see it today, and simply make it the way things are done. It will be almost instinctual rather than a conscious effort.
The program is open to public and private schools and involves students of all ages working on "Green Teams". Teams typically consist of students and at least one faculty member and often other members of the community. Parents are allowed to participate on teams, but they are not preferred since parents are not likely to continue in the program once their children are out of school. Schools may have more than one team working toward certification in multiple categories, though faculty support is not always so readily available. Upon certification, schools are awarded a flag for their efforts. After certification, schools may advance to the next level, or renew at their current level. To certify at the next level, a school chooses a new category, completes the corresponding assessment, implements a Lasting Change and verifies its impact, and takes action in the four other categories. That is where additional teams are useful.
It was interesting to note that as early as 6th grade some students begin to take active roles on teams and suggest ideas or projects rather than simply being told what to do. The key to the program is involving kids at an early age and rewarding them for their achievements. As they grow, they will remember their excitement at being rewarded and apply the lessons learned from the program to their lives even outside of school. Children are the future of sustainability, and teaching them at such a young age will move sustainability out of the "fad" category, as most people see it today, and simply make it the way things are done. It will be almost instinctual rather than a conscious effort.
McKinstry Innovation Center
McKinstry is a full-service design, build, operate, and maintain (DBOM) firm that advocates sustainable solutions for its clients to ultimately optimize client profitability for the life of their buildings. At their core, they are committed to innovation and forming relationships, and that commitment led them to develop the McKinstry Innovation Center.
McKinstry Innovation Center supports innovative entrepreneurs/start-ups by providing space conducive to idea creation and enrichment and resources to see ideas through to fruition. By housing the entrepreneurs, McKinstry is not necessarily investing directly in the start-ups, but are essentially giving them a vote of confidence, though investment opportunities sometimes result from the relationships built during the short-term lease periods. The vetting process is thorough; they don't lease space to just anyone. McKinstry wants to be sure potential tenants are working toward their goals and have sufficient funding to support development of their product as well as make rent each month. They also want to be sure tenants have a comprehensive business plan and an plan to exit the center within a reasonable period of time. Tenants include a mix of cleantech, high-tech, life sciences, and educational companies. Tenants can lease space as small as 100 sf or lease expandable suites to grow as their ideas begin to take shape, but every tenant has full access to all of the amenities offered, including conference rooms, mail room, on-site personal trainer, fitness center with basketball court, campus deli, even a small driving range.
The spaces are clean, simple, modern and offer basic comforts, but everything a company needs to get going, even customized computers if needed. Customization of the spaces though, according to Tony Stewart, is saved for when the companies move away and have their own space. A tenant isn't going to get a red wall just because he wants one. This space is for thinking and getting off the ground, not living; though Tony repeatedly referred to the spaces as "home" and the tenants as "family". Indeed, the spaces encourage interaction between tenants, but McKinstry does not waste time with people who just want another place to hang out besides their garage or basement.
Tony stressed that McKinstry didn't do this as a real estate play. They do it because it needs to be done; though he readily admits it's "about the money". While McKinstry may not make a lot of money off of leases, the relationships they build and investments they occasionally make and referrals they receive down the road are the pay-off.
It is refreshing to see a company with the presence and influence that McKinstry has focus beyond its own success and put its effort into encouraging and making others successful. Their core business obviously serves the environmental and economic aspects of sustainability through development of efficient buildings, but through the Innovation Center, they link the social aspect as well.
McKinstry Innovation Center supports innovative entrepreneurs/start-ups by providing space conducive to idea creation and enrichment and resources to see ideas through to fruition. By housing the entrepreneurs, McKinstry is not necessarily investing directly in the start-ups, but are essentially giving them a vote of confidence, though investment opportunities sometimes result from the relationships built during the short-term lease periods. The vetting process is thorough; they don't lease space to just anyone. McKinstry wants to be sure potential tenants are working toward their goals and have sufficient funding to support development of their product as well as make rent each month. They also want to be sure tenants have a comprehensive business plan and an plan to exit the center within a reasonable period of time. Tenants include a mix of cleantech, high-tech, life sciences, and educational companies. Tenants can lease space as small as 100 sf or lease expandable suites to grow as their ideas begin to take shape, but every tenant has full access to all of the amenities offered, including conference rooms, mail room, on-site personal trainer, fitness center with basketball court, campus deli, even a small driving range.
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| Inside the Innovation Center |
Tony stressed that McKinstry didn't do this as a real estate play. They do it because it needs to be done; though he readily admits it's "about the money". While McKinstry may not make a lot of money off of leases, the relationships they build and investments they occasionally make and referrals they receive down the road are the pay-off.
It is refreshing to see a company with the presence and influence that McKinstry has focus beyond its own success and put its effort into encouraging and making others successful. Their core business obviously serves the environmental and economic aspects of sustainability through development of efficient buildings, but through the Innovation Center, they link the social aspect as well.
Islandwood & Bainbridge Graduate Institute
The Bainbridge Graduate Institute provides a selection of MBA programs that incorporate sustainability into every course. They offer a Metro and Hybrid version, each designed to be completed in two to three years.
The BGI is located on the Islandwood campus on Bainbridge Island, an educational retreat located on approximately 1,100 acres of forestland near a former timber mill.
At Islandwood "sustainability is an attitude", which is evident across the campus, from the sustainable building materials to composting toilets, to solar panels on roofs of buildings, to the Living Machine and the large demonstration garden.
Islandwood offers its own graduate program, separate from the BGI and in partnership with the University of Washington, in which students live, learn, and teach on site, taking advantage of the natural landscape to teach local elementary students the ins and outs of sustainability and instilling an appreciation for nature at an early age. Every part of the campus provides a teaching opportunity. The chef in the cafeteria holds workshops where he uses vegetables grown on site to demonstrate the multitude of meals that can be prepared with a few local ingredients. Each dorm is themed to teach kids about fossils or animals or plants. Each building highlights the sustainable elements in each room. For instance, bathrooms boast everything from waterless urinals, to recycled glass tiles, to composting toilets, to stall walls made of recycled milk cartons, etc.
The BGI is located on the Islandwood campus on Bainbridge Island, an educational retreat located on approximately 1,100 acres of forestland near a former timber mill.
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| Beam across the ceiling was harvested locally for use in a mine that was never constructed |
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| Passive learning opportunities abound |
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| Salmon in the sink remind users where the water goes |
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| Composting toilets - top-side |
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| Composting toilets - what you don't see |
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| Their campus garden was intense |
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| One day, Stella |
Sustainable Seattle
In previous visits we had heard a little about bioswales and green streets, but raingardens had yet to be mentioned, until we visited with Sustainable Seattle. Sustainable Seattle is a non-profit working with community, government and business organizations to promote sustainability across Seattle. One of their proudest projects is the Sustainable Rain program, in which raingardens are installed in the various neighborhoods of the city and help to control roof runoff. They are constructed with rich soils and native plants that can handle changing water levels and help to slow and clean runoff before it reaches Puget Sound.
Another of their projects is the Happiness Initiative. Sustainable Seattle was the first organization in the US to develop local indicators of well-being as an alternative to GDP. Now they are developing a set of happiness indicators for any city in America to use as a catalyst for citizen dialogue and action in pursuit of happiness.
An interesting project mentioned was the Tool Library, an initiative that provides tools to neighborhoods through a system similar to checking out library books. Citizens can check out tools for a time free of charge and return them by a due date.
Another of their projects is the Happiness Initiative. Sustainable Seattle was the first organization in the US to develop local indicators of well-being as an alternative to GDP. Now they are developing a set of happiness indicators for any city in America to use as a catalyst for citizen dialogue and action in pursuit of happiness.
An interesting project mentioned was the Tool Library, an initiative that provides tools to neighborhoods through a system similar to checking out library books. Citizens can check out tools for a time free of charge and return them by a due date.
Earth Share of Washington
work with businesses mostly on employee engagement, but sometimes sustainability
fundraise for charities and corporations and match them with philanthropic partners
vet charities and recommend to businesses
"the United Way for environmental groups", an umbrella organization representing many other charities
try to get employees excited about what their company is doing and what they can do in their communities and educate them about environmental groups in their area
national organization - 26 states
what they do looks different at each establishment
for instance with some companies with which they are heavily involved, planning speakers and educational opportunities, provide workbooks, internet software that connects to opportunities in their area...like an app on their homepage
heavily vet all organizations, including auditing finances,
funded with foundation grants, individual donors, etc., take percentage of fees from workplace giving programs
at one time challenging to get through the door, but now more businesses adopting sustainability as a core value, so less resistance and more cooperation
To break barriers, engage employees, since they are the ones who will benefit from sustainability...they are the ones with families spending time outdoors, etc.
3 largest non-profits: People for Puget Sound
fundraise for charities and corporations and match them with philanthropic partners
vet charities and recommend to businesses
"the United Way for environmental groups", an umbrella organization representing many other charities
try to get employees excited about what their company is doing and what they can do in their communities and educate them about environmental groups in their area
national organization - 26 states
what they do looks different at each establishment
for instance with some companies with which they are heavily involved, planning speakers and educational opportunities, provide workbooks, internet software that connects to opportunities in their area...like an app on their homepage
heavily vet all organizations, including auditing finances,
funded with foundation grants, individual donors, etc., take percentage of fees from workplace giving programs
at one time challenging to get through the door, but now more businesses adopting sustainability as a core value, so less resistance and more cooperation
To break barriers, engage employees, since they are the ones who will benefit from sustainability...they are the ones with families spending time outdoors, etc.
3 largest non-profits: People for Puget Sound
Zipcar
Zipcar is an innovative car sharing service in which members may rent a vehicle on an hourly basis, now only in select urban centers, by simply signing in to their account and reserving a vehicle, then locating the vehicle at their reserved time and simply opening the door and driving away. The vehicle is returned to the same parking spot at the end of the reservation period for the next member to use. Zipcar reserves parking for their vehicles in various spots around the cities where they operate (currently for Texans, only available in Austin). Gas and insurance are included in membership fees and rental rates, so there are no surprises - a gas card is available in each car to fuel the vehicle if needed during a reservation. There is no paperwork to fill out - everything can be done online, from registration for membership to vehicle reservation. And once the vehicle is returned to its assigned parking space, the member simply leaves the key in the car and walks away. Zipcar is a convenient supplement to public transportation and makes it easy to live vehicle free in the city. Coincidentally, we actually had an opportunity to experience Zipcar first-hand.
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| Jeff reporting the condition of his Zipcar before we drive |
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| Parking for Zipcars only |
Climate Solutions
Climate Solutions seeks to impact global warming by affecting regional attitudes and policy, with input on proposed energy plans, building standards, and other efforts such as Power Past Coal, which seeks to prevent the transport of coal by train through the Northwest for eventual export to Asia. Naturally, as was mentioned by several others, they sometimes face steep opposition, from a bipartisan political climate. They often work with utility companies as well to influence their policies and operations, like stopping the use of coal to generate power for the Northwest. On their website, they spotlight "Solutions Stories", tales of successes achieved through efforts of others impacting climate change that might not otherwise get publicity.
Daybreak Cohousing
Daybreak Cohousing Community is an interesting housing concept that unites a unique mix of residents who desire to live an urban lifestyle without necessarily living directly downtown. It is a 30-unit condo development that encourages interaction among residents by focusing each unit around common spaces and opening each unit to shared porches and balconies. Residents share a community garden, a rooftop hot tub with a panoramic view, a tool room and workshop, laundry facility,bicycle garage, guest suites, and a large kitchen and dining center, though units have their own kitchens and dining areas as well. Decisions affecting residents are made with input from the entire community.
Cohousing tends to be characteristically counter-culture, and the facility is built with sustainability in mind with easy access to public transit, water retention system (no rainwater leaves the site), no vehicle parking but ample bicycle storage; however, not all of the sustainable features were in place from the start. Some were afterthoughts, like water efficient toilets and the like. Dual-flush toilets were installed in response to high water bills.
Among the 30 units are people of all ages, from a couple of years old to retirement age, so it is truly for anyone who wants the urban lifestyle with a community feel. The diverse mix means everyone has unique skills or services to offer each other, such as young men to change lightbulbs or childless families who can offer babysitting services, among others.
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| Part of the community garden |
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| Inviting porches/balconies |
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| Rooftop hot tub |
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| Tool-sharing |
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| Water collection garden. Cistern below. |
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| Ample bicycle storage with direct street access |
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| Community kitchen |
Dull Olson Weekes Architects
DOWA is a design firm that incorporates sustainability into its designs. They focus on design of learning spaces, but also work on workspaces and recreational facilities. As was common among visits in the Northwest, they put a lot of emphasis on the social pillar of sustainability. In their offices, they incorporate sustainability in everything they do, from recycling to energy efficient computers and other electronics and appliances. Basically, anything they would advise their clients to do, they do in their offices. One intriguing project they highlighted was a school in Japan they designed around the outdoor space in which the playground was in the center of the building and occupied space on the roof as well.
Ecotrust
Ecotrust is a non-profit organization that promotes mixing natural preservation with development and consideration of the impact that development has on the natural surroundings. They are concerned with the intersection of the environment with the economy. They were created when their founder realized that rather than volunteering his time saving tropical rainforests, he could focus his efforts at home, as the same deforestation was taking place there.
Ecotrust is a non-profit holding company for approximately 18 spin-off non-profits. While the conservation work they do is interesting enough, the space from which they operate is equally interesting. Rather than constantly beg for money, they decided to become landlords and fund their operations with rents collected from tenants within their space. They remodeled an old warehouse in the Pearl District and earned LEED Gold certification for the project, incorporating salvaged and recycled materials, locally sourced and sustainably harvested materials, daylighting, rainwater harvesting and run-off control, green roof, solar power generation, and other design elements, shown in photos below. Enjoy the tour.
Ecotrust is a non-profit holding company for approximately 18 spin-off non-profits. While the conservation work they do is interesting enough, the space from which they operate is equally interesting. Rather than constantly beg for money, they decided to become landlords and fund their operations with rents collected from tenants within their space. They remodeled an old warehouse in the Pearl District and earned LEED Gold certification for the project, incorporating salvaged and recycled materials, locally sourced and sustainably harvested materials, daylighting, rainwater harvesting and run-off control, green roof, solar power generation, and other design elements, shown in photos below. Enjoy the tour.
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| Rainwater control includes bioswales and permeable paving |
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| Daylighting is a prominent feature |
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| Green roof |
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| Solar |
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| Outdoor meeting space |
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| LEED Gold |
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| Salmon Nation is an interesting concept and revolves around the realization that "eventually, we all live downstream", and that one man's run-off becomes another man's drinking water |
Cascadia Green Building Council
The CGBC is the regional arm of the USGBC in the Northwest, covering Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska, making it the only international chapter of the USGBC in North America. Through the efforts of the CGBC, the City of Portland adopted a green building policy and funded a Green Building Initiative, designed to expand market demand and provide support for the building industry. Through the chapter, they offer several educational programs, including LEED workshops, various seminars, and technical training for persons interested in learning more about building sustainable buildings.
In an effort to combine resources, CGBC has partnered with several other sustainability organizations to form the International Living Future Institute, an evolution of the International Living Building Institute, to encourage a global transformation toward sustainability. Their Living Building Challenge is the most advanced and most stringent measure of sustainability in the built environment possible today. It seeks to achieve a level of development in which every single act of design and construction makes the world a better place. The analogy made was treating a building like a flower, in which every piece serves a purpose toward the flower's survival, from the roots to absorb water and nutrients all the way up to the petals and leaves absorbing sunlight, and eventually to the point that the flower dies and becomes food for the next flower. Essentially, the building provides everything it needs for operation, from electricity generation to water collection and recycling. In order to be certified as a living building, the building must be monitored and sustain itself for a year, with no public utility connections. The Living Building Challenge is a fascinating project, but I fear it may never be adopted in many places facing water challenges like North Texas, at least not to the point where buildings are actually certified as living buildings. It would be exciting to see building codes incorporate a similarly stringent set of guidelines, but maybe with concessions for emergency utility connections.
In an effort to combine resources, CGBC has partnered with several other sustainability organizations to form the International Living Future Institute, an evolution of the International Living Building Institute, to encourage a global transformation toward sustainability. Their Living Building Challenge is the most advanced and most stringent measure of sustainability in the built environment possible today. It seeks to achieve a level of development in which every single act of design and construction makes the world a better place. The analogy made was treating a building like a flower, in which every piece serves a purpose toward the flower's survival, from the roots to absorb water and nutrients all the way up to the petals and leaves absorbing sunlight, and eventually to the point that the flower dies and becomes food for the next flower. Essentially, the building provides everything it needs for operation, from electricity generation to water collection and recycling. In order to be certified as a living building, the building must be monitored and sustain itself for a year, with no public utility connections. The Living Building Challenge is a fascinating project, but I fear it may never be adopted in many places facing water challenges like North Texas, at least not to the point where buildings are actually certified as living buildings. It would be exciting to see building codes incorporate a similarly stringent set of guidelines, but maybe with concessions for emergency utility connections.
Green Hammer and Passive House
Green Hammer is a design/build firm dedicated to designing and building high-performance living spaces, reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions and conserving and even regenerating natural resources. Gene Wixson, certified passive house (Passivehaus) consultant, gave us a little bit of an overview of Green Hammer Homes, and then we got to see one being built. The home also happened to be a passive house.
According to the Green Hammer website (and to keep a long story short):
According to the Green Hammer website (and to keep a long story short):
"The Passive House standard is an advanced energy-efficiency standard which methodically produces buildings with superior indoor air quality and thermal comfort while reducing heating energy-use by a factor of ten. For example, a Passive House residence can often be heated with the equivalent of a hair dryer. The Passive House standard applies to all building types including single and multi-family residences, mixed-use buildings, as well as commercial and office buildings."Having built a few houses myself, I was interested to hear how they solve many of the problems that we faced on many of our projects, particularly relating to insulating hard to reach cavities and keeping blown-in insulation from settling and the infrared testing that they do on the homes to find areas where insulation has settled or was not properly installed. Unfortunately, the home we saw was near completion and much of the behind-the-scenes work was hidden from view, but we were able to see more of it on a similar project across town that is incorporating passive house construction on a commercial space above a ground-level restaurant, earning it the distinction of the first certified passive house commercial retro-fit in the US. Photos from the tours are included below.
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| Passive House - Green Hammer Project |
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| The focus here was not the liquor license, rather the way the windows were sealed with a sort of rubber cement that allows the window to leak and water to drain without growing mildew |
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| Example of how blow-in insulation is installed and settling is prevented |
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| Tight seals everywhere. Nowhere for air to escape. |
Earth Advantage Institute
Earth Advantage Institute is a non-profit offering sustainable building and climate solutions. They got their start as part of Portland General Electric as an energy conservation program. When they broke from Portland General they broadened their focus to sustainability in general. They offer a wide range of educational programs and development standards as their main goal is to reduce carbon in the built environment, commercial and residential. They have their own residential certification program based on Energy Star guidelines for energy efficiency as well as being a LEED for Homes provider (surprisingly, she mentioned the largest number of LEED for Homes certifications is in Texas). They have also developed standards for developers interested in developing whole communities (Earth Advantage Community Standards). Earth Advantage Zero is a program they will begin later this year that will allow builders to become certified as net-zero home builders. Additionally, they hope to release an existing building/remodeling certification program in the next 12 months. They also provide education to architects, brokers, appraisers, and others involved in the real estate industry to ensure buildings meeting certain standards are marketed properly to recognize their advantages over other buildings in the same market. The Energy Performance Score is their proprietary "mpg for homes" that measures the energy efficiency of buildings and is a valuable tool for building owners to see the difference in energy consumption, carbon emissions, and utility costs when energy efficiency measures are put in place, recommending upgrades. The tool also allows them to compare their own consumption with energy use on a regional and national scale. EAS also staffs passive consultants who offer consulting to homeowners, builders, and architects to get homes certified as passive houses. They have also become a licensed training provider for passive house consulting.
During the discussion I was surprised to hear that brokers are not buying into many of the projects and standards proposed by EAS, such as a home rating system to report on real estate listings, because they do not see that green homes are specifically in demand any more than other homes, so they don't want to put any more effort into recognizing homes that don't sell any more frequently than others, though surveys suggest that homeowners are demanding energy efficiency in growing numbers.
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| Interesting that brokers aren't pushing to market this |
Greater Portland, Inc.
Greater Portland, Inc. focuses on driving quality economic expansion and job creation in the Greater Portland area, with a focus on sustainable industries. Examples include wind farm development and energy creation and related jobs, green building/development industry, solar manufacturing, computer software, and other environmental services. They work to highlight the benefits of the Greater Portland region, including diversity of the population, education levels and opportunities, labor force, innovation, restaurants, recreation, and pedestrian/bicycle-friendly transportation infrastructure, among others to attract businesses and employment to the region. With a higher percentage of citizens willing to pay a little more for "green" products and services, relative to many other regions in the country, they recognize and market their uniqueness to businesses. They realize they are not necessarily a market for companies to locate and conduct business only locally, rather they are an "export economy", meaning, companies establish themselves/headquarters locally, but conduct business (for example, green developers) across the country and even around the world. Their goal is to improve the economy of Portland without sacrificing, and in fact improving, the quality of life Portland residents have come to expect and enjoy.
Heathman Hotel
Our tour of the Heathman Hotel began with an anecdote about a colleague of the hotel manager's wife, visiting from Dallas, who placed her laptop in a blue bin beneath his wife's desk for safekeeping, not realizing that in Portland, those blue bins under desks are recycle bins. Her laptop was recycled and she learned a valuable lesson, one she hopefully shared with her coworkers in Dallas.
The Heathman Hotel is a family-owned business and is not subject to the limitations that some of the larger chains face. Decisions are made quickly and there is no brand hovering over them telling them what to do, so they are able to implement new programs and experiment with new ideas as they wish, and they have fun doing it. Seven years ago, they hired an energy consultant for a few small projects and have kept an energy consultant on staff since. Through analyzing utility bills, they realized that the way to save money and keep operations from suffering was to reduce utility consumption and improve resource efficiency rather than managing labor (layoffs), even during the recent recession. That realization carried them forward and resulted in a cultural change at the hotel. Sustainability became their focus and set them apart in Portland as leaders in the industry, giving them a competitive advantage over many of the larger brands that were slower to catch on to changing consumer demands and the emerging trends toward resource conservation and efficiency. Unit remodels took on a "hyper-local" approach, in which every item (doors, faucets, sinks, shower handles, etc.) removed from the hotel was repurposed, recycled, or resold by local companies for profit (supporting local economy). The resulting remodels were 99% landfill-free. The biggest challenge during the process was that mirrors could not be recycled, so it was important to remove the mirrors carefully and keep them in tact so that they could be reused. New materials brought in for the remodels were also purchased locally and included sustainable lumber, which was more expensive, but worth it to them. The hotel has been in operation for 90 years, and they want to be around for another 90 years. "This is not a tear-down building."
Another anecdote about Portland's sewer system upgrade illustrated the buy-in among Portland businesses and residents. A six-year overhaul of the city's over-century-old sewer system was completed recently and resulted in large increases to water rates. Even though the hotel consumption has decreased through the use of more efficient toilets and plumbing fixtures, water bills continue to increase, but they are ok with that because the sewer upgrade was necessary and will result in a cleaner river, which will benefit everyone. That seems to be a common point of view in the Northwest.
The tour continued with peeks inside a few of the suites, highlighting the use of local materials and artists to decorate spaces, including a mural painted on the side of an adjacent building to enhance the view from one side of the hotel. Also of note was the minimal use of lighting and heating/cooling when spaces are empty, further reducing wasteful energy consumption.
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| Bookcase in lounge showcasing autographed works of authors who have stayed at the hotel |
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| Bathroom after remodel |
Portland Development Commission and Bureau of Planning and Sustainability
Our visits with the PDC and Bureau of Planning and Sustainability provided a lot of overlapping information, so please bear with me as I attempt to organize it into coherent narrative.
The PDC has served as Portland's urban renewal and economic development agency for 50+ years. The commission began as strictly urban renewal-focused and is now more concerned with economic development. Recently, they have altered their focus to work toward a city that is healthy, prosperous, and equitable. PDC provides funding for private projects that work toward urban renewal, requiring projects to meet LEED Silver certification standards; though many projects are exceeding those standards voluntarily. The Green Features Grant Program provides need based funding to applicants looking to cover the incremental costs associated with sustainable building or adopting sustainable practices.Portland Development Commission (PDC) works closely with the mayor and the public to develop and implement long-range plans for the city. Formerly two separate entities, the Bureau of Planning and Bureau of Sustainability, they decided to combine services upon recognition of importance of sustainability as component of planning. Some of their major initiatives discussed include:
One example of a public-private collaboration was STOP - Sensible Transportation Options for People, in which PDC and citizens worked with the mayor, who worked with the governor to avoid a freeway through southeast Portland and to instead focus on improving public transit.
A statewide planning bill in 1969 created Urban Growth Boundaries, limiting sprawl and preserving the natural landscape. The idea of growth boundaries encourages building up rather than out, resulting in improved densities. Adequate (20 year) employment and population supply must be evident to justify expansion of growth boundaries. The Metro 2040 plan defines density targets within centers and corridors across the city for consideration when determining growth boundaries for city. The PDC has seen a reversal of the trend in recent years from losing housing to suburbs to keeping housing local and seeing more infill...attributes some of it to lifestyle change
Sustainability at Work (SAW) - Provides free assistance to businesses to be green. The foundation for SAW was the Climate Action Plan, originally a 1990s program that thought about environment and climate change as separate issues. The plan transformed to integrating environment with the economy and proved that the city can reduce emissions and increase jobs/economic growth at the same time, resulting in cost savings to businesses and the realization that they could export knowledge gained from building green. Green/sustainability became part of the language as the city decided to take it a step further and make it not just about the environment or economy, but also people. As we quickly realized, Portland has made it to the social stage.
As with any sustainability program, initially there was an adoption curve for businesses. In the early 90s, the focus of the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability was on recognition of early adopters; now it's about bringing the late adopters up to speed, "no longer pulling up the ceiling, now pushing up the floor", connecting them with free resources, incentives, and support. There has been no shortage of resources for businesses interested in greening their operations/buildings, but businesses weren't aware until now. Still, most of them don't know how to do it, but a sustainability adviser within the bureau visits with businesses and can make recommendations and connect them to resources to make improvements, with a focus on low-cost/no-cost improvements
The recently adopted Portland Plan takes a strategic look at the city to translate into a comprehensive plan, a goal of which is to incorporate the climate action plan into long-range planning for the city - i.e., how does transportation impact climate, etc (how does "this" affect "that" all the way through planning process).
Part of the city's strategic plan includes the Bike Plan. Portland boasts and aggressive bike program, which has evolved over time from simple bike lanes to a complete cycle track. The ultimate goal is for a safer, separate facility for cyclists. The cycle track, mentioned frequently is a demonstration project near Portland State University.
Portland actually has a bicycle master plan, adopted 2-3 years ago to increase market share for cyclists. The market is segmented 4 ways:
In order to increase interested/concerned riders, Portland is working on what they refer to as bike boulevards, a process through which they convert a local street into a bike street, still allowing all traffic, but structured primarily for cycling and/or pedestrians.
A key strategy of making Portland pedestrian and bicycle friendly was to go after low-hanging fruit first -heavily cycled streets are converted first. Overall support from the Chamber of Commerce and city council has been strong, but there is concern about lost parking for businesses. Once people get over the hump and start cycling, they get into it and adjust lifestyles and become cyclists first and transition from two cars to one car to no cars.
The PDC has served as Portland's urban renewal and economic development agency for 50+ years. The commission began as strictly urban renewal-focused and is now more concerned with economic development. Recently, they have altered their focus to work toward a city that is healthy, prosperous, and equitable. PDC provides funding for private projects that work toward urban renewal, requiring projects to meet LEED Silver certification standards; though many projects are exceeding those standards voluntarily. The Green Features Grant Program provides need based funding to applicants looking to cover the incremental costs associated with sustainable building or adopting sustainable practices.Portland Development Commission (PDC) works closely with the mayor and the public to develop and implement long-range plans for the city. Formerly two separate entities, the Bureau of Planning and Bureau of Sustainability, they decided to combine services upon recognition of importance of sustainability as component of planning. Some of their major initiatives discussed include:
- Action Plan - agenda for reducing greenhouse gases through land use planning, transportation, building design, etc.;
- Eco Districts - energy efficient systems/districts through heating/cooling strategy where heating/cooling are shared between buildings;
- Oregon Sustainability Center - demonstration project, totally sustainable building, generate own heating/cooling, retain/recycle water, etc...financial issues, hoped for state funding but last legislative sessions didn't provide any funding so project in jeopardy, typical class A leases around $30-35/sf, this building double...Split house makes new policy implementation/funding difficult
One example of a public-private collaboration was STOP - Sensible Transportation Options for People, in which PDC and citizens worked with the mayor, who worked with the governor to avoid a freeway through southeast Portland and to instead focus on improving public transit.
A statewide planning bill in 1969 created Urban Growth Boundaries, limiting sprawl and preserving the natural landscape. The idea of growth boundaries encourages building up rather than out, resulting in improved densities. Adequate (20 year) employment and population supply must be evident to justify expansion of growth boundaries. The Metro 2040 plan defines density targets within centers and corridors across the city for consideration when determining growth boundaries for city. The PDC has seen a reversal of the trend in recent years from losing housing to suburbs to keeping housing local and seeing more infill...attributes some of it to lifestyle change
Sustainability at Work (SAW) - Provides free assistance to businesses to be green. The foundation for SAW was the Climate Action Plan, originally a 1990s program that thought about environment and climate change as separate issues. The plan transformed to integrating environment with the economy and proved that the city can reduce emissions and increase jobs/economic growth at the same time, resulting in cost savings to businesses and the realization that they could export knowledge gained from building green. Green/sustainability became part of the language as the city decided to take it a step further and make it not just about the environment or economy, but also people. As we quickly realized, Portland has made it to the social stage.
As with any sustainability program, initially there was an adoption curve for businesses. In the early 90s, the focus of the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability was on recognition of early adopters; now it's about bringing the late adopters up to speed, "no longer pulling up the ceiling, now pushing up the floor", connecting them with free resources, incentives, and support. There has been no shortage of resources for businesses interested in greening their operations/buildings, but businesses weren't aware until now. Still, most of them don't know how to do it, but a sustainability adviser within the bureau visits with businesses and can make recommendations and connect them to resources to make improvements, with a focus on low-cost/no-cost improvements
The recently adopted Portland Plan takes a strategic look at the city to translate into a comprehensive plan, a goal of which is to incorporate the climate action plan into long-range planning for the city - i.e., how does transportation impact climate, etc (how does "this" affect "that" all the way through planning process).
Part of the city's strategic plan includes the Bike Plan. Portland boasts and aggressive bike program, which has evolved over time from simple bike lanes to a complete cycle track. The ultimate goal is for a safer, separate facility for cyclists. The cycle track, mentioned frequently is a demonstration project near Portland State University.
Portland actually has a bicycle master plan, adopted 2-3 years ago to increase market share for cyclists. The market is segmented 4 ways:
- bold/aggressive rider - no matter what
- slightly aggressive
- interested but concerned (key segment)
- never gonna ride
In order to increase interested/concerned riders, Portland is working on what they refer to as bike boulevards, a process through which they convert a local street into a bike street, still allowing all traffic, but structured primarily for cycling and/or pedestrians.
A key strategy of making Portland pedestrian and bicycle friendly was to go after low-hanging fruit first -heavily cycled streets are converted first. Overall support from the Chamber of Commerce and city council has been strong, but there is concern about lost parking for businesses. Once people get over the hump and start cycling, they get into it and adjust lifestyles and become cyclists first and transition from two cars to one car to no cars.
Portland State University Real Estate Center
What I found most interesting in our discussion with the PSU REC was the Oregon land-use planning system and the fact that there is no unzoned land in Oregon. Land-use planning is a top-down system, so each level of zoning (local up to state-wide) has to jive with what was intended by the larger proposed land use. The goal was to keep rural areas separate from cities. Each urbanized area has a growth boundary controlled by the state that must accommodate 20 years of employment growth and is re-evaluated every five years. Established in the late 70s, original guidelines were very lenient - likened to a man being given a size 50 belt (many people can fit easily into a belt that large), but those have evolved over time to ensure cohesive development across the state and to protect the existing landscape while allowing cities to grow efficiently. This becomes a popular topic in many of our site visits.
Bella Organic Farm
A challenge that faces many organic farms is contamination from surrounding farms when wind blows seeds from one farm to another; however, their location on Sauvie Island limits their exposure to those threats. The farm is inspected annually to ensure proper organic processes are followed and that plants are not contaminated from nearby non-organic practices.
Each year, the farm hosts a Twilight Maze where customers can visit the farm and wind over two miles through corn fields, including a haunted maze in October. This July, they will host a Blueberry Blues and Rock Festival that will bring visitors to the island for a two day harvest festival. Unfortunately, none of that was ready for us to tour.
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| Strawberries are one of Bella's most plentiful crops |
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| Tomatoes are more challenging to grow in the northwest, so Bella grows them inside using drip irrigation |
Sunday, January 15, 2012
DFW
Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT)
The new BRIT facility in Fort Worth is a LEED Platinum site, completed in 2011. It features a living roof, solar array, and geothermal heating/cooling system, as well as passive lighting and water efficient features, and natural, sustainable building materials, including wool carpet and sustainably harvested wood products, among other features. An interactive guide to their site is available on their website: http://www.brit.org/visit/sustainable.
Recycle Revolution
Recycle Revolution is a non-landfill recycling company in Dallas that offers single-stream collection, meaning all recycled material is collected at once and sorted at their facility. Items are not actually recycled at their facility. Rather, they are sorted and shipped to various companies in the area that do the actual recycling. They accept almost anything, as long as there is a facility within range to which they can cost-effectively deliver the material for recycling. It is a small company operating on a fairly large scale, run by people who have a true passion to change their environment for the better. They offer contract pick-up services as well as drop-off services. Their passion for their work is obvious and starts at the top, as Eddie Loft demonstrated through the tour. Audio provided below. I apologize, but my recording was interrupted a couple of times.
Recycle Revolution Audio
The new BRIT facility in Fort Worth is a LEED Platinum site, completed in 2011. It features a living roof, solar array, and geothermal heating/cooling system, as well as passive lighting and water efficient features, and natural, sustainable building materials, including wool carpet and sustainably harvested wood products, among other features. An interactive guide to their site is available on their website: http://www.brit.org/visit/sustainable.
Recycle Revolution
Recycle Revolution is a non-landfill recycling company in Dallas that offers single-stream collection, meaning all recycled material is collected at once and sorted at their facility. Items are not actually recycled at their facility. Rather, they are sorted and shipped to various companies in the area that do the actual recycling. They accept almost anything, as long as there is a facility within range to which they can cost-effectively deliver the material for recycling. It is a small company operating on a fairly large scale, run by people who have a true passion to change their environment for the better. They offer contract pick-up services as well as drop-off services. Their passion for their work is obvious and starts at the top, as Eddie Loft demonstrated through the tour. Audio provided below. I apologize, but my recording was interrupted a couple of times.
Recycle Revolution Audio
Houston
New Hope Housing – 2424 Sakowitz
New Hope Housing is a non-profit that provides affordable housing to eligible recipients, and 2424 Sakowitz is one of their properties. The site managers were very careful to explain that they are not a half-way house, since their clientele is more varied, but for practical purposes, that is more or less how they come across. A detailed description, and more, can be heard in the audio recording provided below.
2424 Sakowitz is a LEED Platinum site, though they only sought base certification. They did not realize they would achieve Platinum status. Their site came about in similar fashion to the Ronald McDonald House in Austin, meaning they found it easier to raise more funding all at once for construction of an efficient building rather than to continue to raise funding for operations for the life of the project.
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| The site incorporated a lot of green space and recreation areas |
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| Rain water is harvested for irrigation |
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| Community areas for residents are an important feature of the property |
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| Informative signs like this are displayed throughout the property to keep residents focused on maintaining the property |
Audio: New Hope Housing
An underlying theme of Mark’s discussion with us was that in business, as in most things, “pay attention to the people…healthy, healthy, healthy”. He was referring to the idea that healthy people are happier people, and more productive people, and that is one more benefit to “greening” the work environment. Momentum Bay
Bayou Preservation Association
The goal of the Bayou Preservation Alliance is to preserve and protect the bayous of the Houston Houston
A few of the projects they discussed included involvement in educating the public about Low Impact Development (LID), erosion control using the Roskin (?) Technique to reinforce river banks, and trying to get inmates to work on the bayous.
Audio provided: BPA
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| Told you, an outdoor ice rink in Texas |
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| Art installations like this are prevalent throughout the park |
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| Dog runs |
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| Listening Vessels (I'm in the other one) |
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| Putting green! |
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| This guy and his buddy behind the camera apparently thought we all wanted to see his "magic trick". I'm pretty sure there was going to be nothing magical about it. |
The park forms an excellent connection between the City of
Audio: Discovery Green Park
The Green Building Resource Center is a redesign of an existing building and includes the City of Houston Permitting Office
The Resource Center Resource Center
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| Roof ready for solar and wind |
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| Living Roof |
Georgia's Texas Grassfed Beef
Georgia's Texas Grassfed Beef Ranch at Hibiscus Hill is much more than just beef, housing chickens (for eggs and meat), turkeys, pigs, and various plant species. Everything grown on the farm is grown organically. Rick Bost explained to us the difference between the organic label (according to the FDA) and truly organic, as well as the true meanings of grassfed, free-range, and some other commonly misunderstood/misused labels. Rick was full of information and could probably literally scare some people into never eating anything else that they didn't produce themselves, if even that.
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| Turkeys |
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| Plants/Produce |
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| Pigs |
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| Egg Hens - They dig holes in the ground for protection. I didn't know that |
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| Social egg hen |
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| Meat chickens |
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| Beef |
The full audio is here: Georgia's Texas Grassfed Beef
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