Re: GLOBE Alliance Will Advocate for Sustainability

GLOBE Alliance Will Advocate for Sustainability Worldwide

The Global Leadership in Our Built Environment Alliance has issued a call for partners to help fight climate change by advancing sustainable design.

By:Stephani L. Miller

 

The U.S. Green Building Council and the World Green Building Council (WGBC) announced during Greenbuild 2010 a call for partners to join a new international alliance that will advocate sustainable design and building as a critical strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and fighting climate change.

The newly formed Global Leadership in Our Built Environment (GLOBE) Alliance will work globally to raise awareness among policymakers, financial institutions, and United Nations bodies of the benefits of reducing greenhouse gas emissions through sustainable design, construction, and energy-efficient building operations and to increase support for cost-effective investment in sustainable building practices. According to GLOBE, the building sector represents the greatest and most cost-effective potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions out of all the other industrial or manufacturing sectors in the world.

"There's tremendous growth in the developing world and in those countries' building sectors," says Jason Hartke, vice president of national policy for the USGBC, who was deeply involved in the development of GLOBE. "What we don't want is for these developing countries—who will represent 97 percent of the projected increase in greenhouse gas emissions between now and 2030—to lock in the current inefficiencies in their building sectors."

GLOBE will seek to influence national and international policies to increase green building activity; to promote strategies for overcoming the technical, regulatory, and financial barriers to advancing green building; and to educate policymakers and thought leaders so they can advance the cause within their realms.

"Forty-six green building councils, representing over half of our membership, are in developing nations," says WGBC CEO Jane Henley. "We believe the inclusion of the built environment in financial tools geared toward lowering emissions, like carbon trading, will support local economic development in these countries while helping solve this important global issue."

While to date 40 organizations and companies from diverse industries around the world have joined GLOBE as partners, the alliance is calling for additional supporters. All GLOBE members are equal partners in achieving the organization's goals, according to Hartke. "Everybody is coming together to help shape, refine, and strengthen our message and its delivery to global policymakers and international financial institutions," he says.

Partner organizations currently include the American Institute of Architects, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Urban Land Institute, Johnson Controls, Ingersoll Rand, Romania Green Building Council, Center for American Progress, China Urban Realty Association Green Building Committee, National Institute of Building Sciences, and the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-Conditioning Engineers, among many others.

To learn more about the GLOBE Alliance, visit www.globealliance.org.

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Re: Analysts say ignoring global warming will cost the nation

	Nov 19, 2010	Portsmouth Herald
	Deborah McDermott Nov. 19, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- Editor's note: This is Part 1 of a three-part look at the conference, "Sustainable Future: How Can our Nation Turn the Corner on the Economy and the Environment, and can N.H. Lead the Way?" MANCHESTER -- Economists and political strategists attending an economic summit Thursday said it is critical for New Hampshire, New England and the country to understand that climate change has to be part of the equation in forging a solution to the current fiscal and monetary crisis. The speakers were among a number of national and state analysts attending a conference on the economy at the University of New Hampshire-Manchester and sponsored by the Concord Coalition and the UNH Whittemore School of Business. "This intersection of environment and the economy in the state and the country is of critical importance," said UNH economics professor Ross Gittell. "They are a package for both environmental and fiscal sustainability." Speaking with Gittell were Charles Colgan, economics professor from the University of Southern Maine; Ken Colburn, environmental policy director at Stonyfield Farms; and Richard Ober, president of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation. All said climate change is a reality, and if Granite-Staters and Americans continue to deny that, the problem will get much more expensive to address, and quickly. "If you think reducing emissions is expensive, try adapting to a world in which climate change" is the norm, Colburn said. A good way to deal with the problem is by carbon taxing, said Colgan and Colburn. "If you want less of something, tax it," Colburn said. "Taxes are a disincentive. Let's tax things we don't want rather than desirable activities." Colburn conducted a study analyzing the amount of revenue the state of New Hampshire could generate if it instituted a carbon tax. According to his calculations, if the state priced carbon at $10 per ton, paid for through a gas tax hike of 9 cents, the state could raise between $300,000 and $500,000 a year. He said the money could be used to reduce the state's budget shortfall or to invest in businesses. He admitted that, over time, as carbon dioxide was reduced, the revenue stream would shrink, but that's the whole idea. Colburn said a number of countries have adopted carbon taxes, and China, which he just visited, is considering them. He said of his visit, "We here in America pride ourselves on our 'can-do attitude,' but I see a lot more of it there. They're playing a really good game of chess, and we're, at best, checkers players." Colgan said he believes it's important to come at the current fiscal challeges with more of a scalpel approach. "Reductions in public spending can't be about just dealing with less," he said. "We're faced with some things we have to do more of, even as we do less with others. If we don't, our chances of getting through the next couple of decades is greatly diminished. The basic idea is how do we set up incentives between fiscal capital and natural capital?" He said northern New England and the country as a whole need to deal with sprawl -- "low density, single family residences, reliance on automobiles, allowing the private housing market to provide affordable housing. We have created a very expensive way to live, and it's distributed among local, state and federal governments. How much more of this are we going to continue to do?" Another important factor for New England, he said, is "this huge problem that is going to be imposed upon us by nature." Colgan said, even if global warming were to stop tomorrow, the sea level is still expected to rise five to eight inches in the next 30 years. This is going to translate into costs for storm damage, road deterioration and stormwater problems. "Whether we're borrowing money to repair storm damage or roads, we're going to have to deal with these things," he said. Ober said New Hampshire, in particular, has to put its efforts into "tightening up" the estimated 500,000 buildings in the state, to put people to work and to reduce dependence on foreign oil. He said the effort should start with public buildings, which would save taxpayer money over the long run. "If we can't get it right with public buildings, can we have a chance of getting it right in the broader free market?" Gittell asked why more people in the state and nation haven't been convinced of the reality of climate change. "The stresses of the last couple of years has gone a great distance in undermining confidence in authoritative comments by anyone," Colgan said. "That makes it very difficult to get to the discussions we need to have." "Another piece of this is, 'Will we allow this to happen to us?' If oil continues to climb and heating oil is $4, $4.50 a gallon and stays there, what will that do to us and are we really going to allow that to happen?" Ober said. "There's a pretty concerted effort to keep climate change from raising its head in Washington," said Colburn. "We wonder why businesses don't go to Washington and say, 'It's OK to do this (a carbon tax).' But it's not their job. Winners go to market. Losers go to Washington." Newstex ID: KRTB-1543-50922891

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Re: Win Green Home Makeover Worth $20,000-12/31 Deadline

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Re: Video-How Wind Turbines Generate Electricity-

Wind Power Animation Video

This animation discusses the advantages of wind power, the workings of a wind turbine, and wind resources in the United States. It also describes how wind power is used in small- and large-scale applications.

http://www.energysavers.gov/your_home/electricity/index.cfm/mytopic=10501

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California After Election Poll- Voters Don't Trust Legislators !!!!

Poll finds California voters trust themselves more than legislators
	Dec 2, 2010	Los Angeles Times
	By Maeve Reston LOS ANGELES, Dec. 2, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune News Service delivered by Newstex) -- After an election year shaped by anxiety about the economy and frustration with gridlock in Sacramento, a new survey by the Public Policy Institute of California has found that most state voters have little confidence in the ability of their elected leaders to work together.In a sobering set of findings in the institute's post-election survey, voters expressed more faith in their peers to decide public policy matters than in their representatives. Only 33 percent of California voters said they had "a great deal" or "a fair amount" of trust and confidence in the ability of the state's elected officials to craft public policy. By contrast even though they described the ballot initiatives as confusing- 44 percent said they trusted fellow voters to make policy decisions at the polls. "The job that the voters have in making public policy at the ballot box is a very complicated one, and one that's become quite burdensome, but they value doing that because they hold the elected officials in such low esteem," said the institute's president, Mark Baldassare. He noted that the number of voters who don't approve of the way the governor and Legislature are working together has jumped by 43 points in the last four years: from 36 percent in a 2006 post-election survey to 79 percent this year." It just tells you the extent to which voters have lost confidence in the governor and Legislature's ability to work together to solve complex problems (they feel like this is why the burden has come to them,)" Baldassare said. This year, that burden for voters amounted to nine state ballot measures, and the poll looked at voters' responses to four of them. I llustrating the state's deep partisan divide, Democrats and Republicans ended up on opposite sides of three of the four initiatives, with nonpartisan independents often leaning in the same direction as Democrats. Despite their shared frustration with Sacramento, there was a marked difference between Democrats and Republicans on the successful Proposition 25, which will allow lawmakers to pass the state budget with a majority vote rather than two-thirds. Two-thirds of Republicans voted against the measure, but 57 percent of independents and 71 percent of Democrats voted for it -with half of the "yes" voters expressing a desire to break up the legislative gridlock over budget matters. There was more agreement on Proposition 24, the failed measure that would have rolled back corporate tax breaks that were set to begin taking effect this year. A majority of Democrats, Republicans and independents opposed the measure, but it clearly generated confusion. More than one-fifth of those who voted against it could not say why they did. Drawing the most interest by far was Proposition 19, which would have allowed the sale and cultivation of recreational marijuana under certain circumstances. Republican opposition was a driving force in the measure's defeat, with nearly three in four of those voters opposing the initiative. Fifty-six percent of Democrats and 55 percent of independents supported the measure. As expected, age was also a major factor for Proposition 19, which failed by 7 percentage points at the polls. Six in 10 voters age 18 to 34 voted in favor of legalizing marijuana, while 58 percent of voters 35 years and older opposed the initiative. Women were more likely to oppose the measure than men, who were evenly divided.Californians offered a wide array of reasons for opposing Proposition 19. A third of those who voted against it said they did so because they believe drugs should be illegal. Another 12 percent said they didn't think the measure would be good for the state. Others cited concerns about child safety and the view that the initiative was poorly written and would conflict with federal law. Opinion was split on a separate poll question about whether marijuana should be legalized. Of voters who favored the legalization of marijuana, 88 percent said they voted for Proposition 19 and 12 percent said they voted against it -suggesting at least some dissatisfaction with the way the measure was written. On the ballot measure that would have rolled back the state's global warming law until unemployment fell to 5.5 percent for a year, Californians stayed true to their tradition of environmental protection, defeating the measure by a 23-point margin. Although proponents of Proposition 23 had argued that implementation of the global warming law could cost the state jobs, the survey showed that voters didn't buy it: Forty-one percent said the state's effort on climate change would create more jobs, and more than a quarter said it wouldn't affect the number of jobs overall. Voters who wanted to keep the global warming law in place cited concerns about air pollution (18 percent) and a fear that the law might never be restored if it were suspended (10 percent). The ad campaign vilifying the two Texas-based oil companies backing Proposition 23 also clearly got some attention _ 12 percent said they voted against the measure because the oil companies were behind it. Overall, 72 percent of Democrats and 64 percent of independents voted against suspending the state's global warming law and only 54 percent of Republicans voted for it.--Newstex ID: KRTN-1429-51296507

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Charge Your Electric Vehicles at Cracker Barrel at Tennessee Locations

Chargers to rock at eatery
	Dec 1, 2010	Chattanooga Times/Free Press
	Ellis Smith Dec. 1, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- Several Chattanooga-area Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores will participate in a pilot project to install electric vehicle chargers at locations across Tennessee, building on a Chattanooga trend of moving toward greener transportation, company officials said. Installation should begin in the spring and will take "a few months," the company said. The plan could charge up business at the chain known for rocking chairs and comfort food, said Michael Woodhouse, Cracker Barrel chairman and CEO. "In the early days, Cracker Barrel provided food for our guests and fuel for their cars," Woodhouse said. As part of the $230 million Department of Energy EV Project, Cracker Barrel will receive 12 DC Fast Chargers from Arizona-based Ecotality, the company tasked with supplying the taxpayer-subsidized equipment. Ecotality also will supply 12 of the slower Level 2 chargers, for a total of 24 that will dot the highways connecting Chattanooga, Nashville and Knoxville. "A guest could, if desired, drive the entire 425 miles of the Tennessee Triangle, recharging at Cracker Barrel locations along the way," Cracker Barrel said in a news release. Only 12 locations have been identified so far out of the total 24, including Athens, Cleveland, East Ridge, and Murfreesboro, the chain said. The other 12 sites will be announced as the project progresses, spokeswoman Julie Davis said. The lack of charging stations, along with the high cost of vehicles, are major hurdles to the spread of electric vehicle technology, according to The Associated Press. Ecotality said most Cracker Barrel eateries' proximity to highway interchanges makes them an ideal fit for the charging stations. About 40 percent of Cracker Barrel customers are travelers, Davis said. This latest step marks a "return to the company's roots," Davis said. "Back in 1969, [founder] Danny Evins was a oil jobber, looking for a way to sell more gasoline," she said. While driving his family to the zoo, it occurred to him that if he opened up a restaurant along the way, people would stop on their way, she said. Electric car owners will be able to get a full charge in less than 30 minutes at the 12 DC fast-charging stations. Chargers at the other 12 locations will take two to three hours, depending on the vehicle's charge level, according to Ecotality. The company plans to charge by the minute for the service, but price is still being calculated, Davis said Tuesday. Through its EV project, Ecotality has said it will oversee the installation of 15,000 charging stations in 16 cities and major metropolitan areas in six states and the District of Columbia. The project will provide infrastructure to support the deployment of 8,300 electric vehicles, some of which will become available in December. Cracker Barrel, based in Lebanon, Tenn., also is shelling out an undisclosed amount of money to help with installation of its chargers and to upgrade transformers, according to The AP. Its shares fell $1.42, or 2.63 percent, to $52.66 at the end of trading on Tuesday. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Contact Ellis Smith at esmith@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6315. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ellisthered. Newstex ID: KRTB-0202-51281361

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Green Building Efficiency Loan Program-Alabama-

Loan program helps businesses be more engergy efficient
	Dec 1, 2010	Montgomery Advertiser
	Markeshia Ricks Dec. 1, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- Starting today Alabama businesses wanting to become more energy efficient will have an easier time finding the money to make those changes. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs has started a $60 million revolving loan program called AlabamaSAVES (Sustainable and Verifiable Energy Savings). And beginning today, Alabama industrial and commercial business owners will be able to apply for 2 percent interest loans of between $250,000 and $4 million to finance energy-saving improvements to their facilities. The loans can be used to upgrade heating and air-conditioning systems, windows and doors, electrical systems, water heating systems, energy management systems, lighting and insulation. Businesses also can use the loans to install renewable energy systems such as those powered by biomass or solar energy. Loans can be used to cover up to 90 percent of a project's total cost. Doni Ingram, director of ADECA, said businesses would have up to 10 years to pay the loans back. "As the loans are repaid, the fund will be replenished," she said. Ingram said the goal of the program is to help Alabama businesses become not only more energy efficient, but more competitive. Linda Swann, director of the Alabama Development Office, said the program would also help Alabama businesses save money. Swann said that if businesses simply went to the bank for the loan they might pay as much as three times the interest rate of the AlabamaSAVES program. "We will see a huge difference for Alabama's businesses," she said. Ingram said to ensure that the money would be used effectively, each loan applicant must conduct an energy audit. The projects will be evaluated on their potential for creating and retaining jobs, cost and sustainable energy savings, renewable energy generation capacity and emissions reductions. ADECA established the program using $25 million in federal funding from the American Recover and Reinvestment Act. The department worked with private lenders and used $12.5 million of the money to establish a loan-loss reserve. Additional private-lender financing was used to increase the loan pool to $60 million. Randy McRae Jr., International Paper's (OOTC:INPAP) (NYSE:IP) senior regional manager for government relations, said that retrofitting existing equipment would go a long way in helping a company save on energy costs. Newstex ID: KRTB-0128-51271213

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