Let's Go Green

Top 8 ways to find Green Jobs

2009-03-10T07:36:00.001-07:00

The top 8 ways to find Green Jobs helps you with a few simple resources and steps to find your green dream jobs. The first thing you must decide is what category of jobs you’re looking for depending on your skills. The largest green job growth is found in advanced materials, transportation, air / environment, green building and manufacturing. Regardless of what you’re looking for these simple steps will help to some degree.

1. Pick up a phone book highlight and contact all the companies that are focused on environmentally friendly jobs.
2. Follow the projects currently being funded by the Obama Stimulus Package at http://www.recovery.gov/
3. Check http://www.greencollarhiring.com/ for job postings
4. Step out of you comfort zone and consider changing perfections
5. Keep up to date with Next10.org a nonprofit organization focused on the economy and environment.
6. Consider night school for retraining to gain any skills you might need.
7. Network through online forms and circulate your resume.
8. Create your own free Blog at Blogger.com and get your voice heard.

There are defiantly other steps you can take to find your green dream jobs but the above resources will defiantly help you in your search.

Finding ways to make you home more energy efficient

2009-03-08T13:04:00.001-07:00

So you want to go green part one / part two.

From energy efficient light bulbs to heaters almost anything you have in your house can be made to save more electricity. Depending on your personal budget and goals there are various options that might work for your going green needs.

Your kitchen is the largest energy resource of your house. If your goal is to remodel than one of the best tips to offer is when shopping for new kitchen appliances make sure you pick energy star rated appliances. This will really help cut down that big black hole of wasted energy you call your kitchen.

Other products you might look at would be solar tubs to bring in the natural light for outside. The newer solar tubs can replace conventional light fixtures and still have a light bulb inside for night hours. This can be a do-it-yourself project that can be done over the weekend if you have a few similar tools. If your budget is smaller and little changes are what you're looking for then consider changing out you light bulbs to florescent. They might be a bit more money at first but they will last longer as well as save money. Add in light dimmers and it will save you even more, plus give your home a warmer feel. I personally installed a few light dimmers in my house a few months ago and I love how it gives everything a soft feel. I can't imagine living without them.

Heating a cooling of your home can be the largest monthly expense you have. If you have the money in your budget you might consider changing to an energy star rated heating and cooling system, but this can get costly depending on your needs. Geothermal systems can run over 30,000 dollars and are better for new construction not remolding. Inexpensive fixes could be installing on demand water heaters so you don't keep your water heater running all day. Electronic programmable thermostats are another cheap way to save money and can be installed by you with a bit of knowledge. If your remolding take a look at installing radiant heating for the floor as well as insulations that is environmentally friendly.

I hope the simple tips will help you in your goal to go green. Please feel free to add any tips and advice you have below.

So you want to go green

2009-03-06T21:46:00.001-08:00

Today were faced with so many ways we can go green. We can save money, help our planet become more sustainable, and grow our economy. This is the new market place for the world economy and America is going to dominate the industry. Green Jobs will become part of everyday life and make up a large part of our worlds in the future.

So how can I go green?

There two main categories in going green

Reducing your dependence
Recycling what you use

Reducing what you use can be the hardest part of going green. It requires you to change your daily habits. Ya, I know it's a pain in the butt to change; but today you really don't have the choice. We wanted it easy the last 30 years and we got it, living beyond our means and disrespecting our planets resources has shown us that we just won't survive as a human race unless we change.

What can I do to reduce my dependence.

Drive less
Take shorter showers
Turn of lights
Change you're light bulbs to more energy efficient means
Don't eat as much!!!!

Recycling can be cheapest and the easiest way to save money and help or planet at the same time. It can be hard at first but that's what life is all about.

What can I do to recycle the waste and save money

Compost
Recycle
Utilize rain runoff for irrigation
Buy Recycled goods
Get rid of the credit cards

Reducing your waste and Recycling could make or break us as a human race. Please feel free to post you options.

Compost Bins

2009-03-05T18:31:00.000-08:00

Compost bins help you reduce large amounts of the waste your family is sending to the land fill. They save you money by cutting east collection costs as well as trash collection costs. But the best benefit is by far the amazing soil you produce for all your gardening needs.

Check your local communities form composting programs.

Composting occurs when organic waste is mixed with air and moisture, allowing decomposition into a multipurpose, nutrient rich, gardening instrument. Both air and water are needed to allow the microorganisms to break down the material.

What can I compost-
· Grass clippings.
· Manure.
· Alfalfa meal.
· Cottonseed meal.
· Coffee grounds.
· Tea bags.
· Spoiled juice.
· Wilted fresh flower bouquets.
· Feathers.
· Leaves.
· Shredded newspaper.
· Pizza or other food contaminated cardboard boxes not suitable for recycling.
· Dried flowers.
· Bread.
· Cereal.
· Beans.
· Spices.
Compost bins can create an Oder, that’s why we recommend building a sealed bin or buying a commercially available compost bin that can be also sealed.

What not to compost-
· Fish.
· Meat scraps.
· Bones.
· Dairy products.
· Fatty foods.
· Oils.
· Pet manure.
· Metals.
· Plastics.
· Glass.
· Large amounts of sawdust.
· Weeds with seeds.

New Energy

2009-03-02T21:02:00.000-08:00

I found this the other day while browsing YouTube. If this generator can do what they say it can then our world will be jump stated into a truly green plant. Not only do the inventor claim this will power you house with free energy you'll also be providing energy back to the grid. Their project that the free power generating uni will be available in about a year for around $5,000 dollars. I truly hope these guys have done what they claim and their not using faulty testing equipment. If true we might have to rewrite some of the laws of physics that we've become so happy with.

Debating Costa Rica vs. Australia

2009-03-01T17:47:00.000-08:00

Lets debate between people representing a developing countries and people representing a developed.
I’ll pick Costa Rica which is classified as a Developing Country and Australia which is classified as a developed country. The areas well be focusing on in this discussion are population growth, energy use, resource use, and sustainable development.
Developing Country - Costa Rica
Costa Rica falls into the Developing Country category because it has yet to reach the Western-style standards of democratic governments, free market economies, industrialization, social programs, and human rights guarantees for their citizens. The population of Costa Rica is 4,195,914 (July 2008 est.) with a growth rate of 1.388% (2008 est.). Their current energy use is 7.776 billion kWh (2005) with a and annual electricity export of 70 million kWh (2005). The arable land resource of permanent crops is 5.87% while sustainable development has be focuses of the conservation of the rain forest in distinct regions.
Developed country – Australia
Australia is classified as a developed country due to it’s developed economies in which the tertiary and quaternary sectors of industry dominate. The population of Australia is currently 21,007,310 (July 2008 est.) with a growth rate of 1.221% (2008 est.). The current energy use is 219.8 billion kWh (2005) with a export of 0 kWh (2005). The current agricultural resource are wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits, cattle, sheep and poultry. One of the major sustainable development projects in Australia is the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act of 1975.
While comparing theses two different countries one of the major differences is the population and energy consumption. While both countries are run similar sustainable development programs there industrial and economic standing in the world our quite different. Threw the Kyoto Protocol Costa Rica produces drastically less environmental hazards than Australia

Conventional and alternative energy sources.

2009-03-01T17:08:00.001-08:00

1. Fossil Fuel – The long term sustainability of fossil fuels is none existent due to the millions of years it takes to create and the current rate of consumption. According to the projections we’ll run out of fossil fuels within the next 100 years.
2. Solar – This technology has long-term sustainability due to the use of sunlight a free renewable resource. Today Solar technology works even in climates that don’t receive high levels of constant sunlight.
3. Hydroelectric – This is a great sustainable resource for power production. Like in the case of the Hover Dame mass amounts of power can be produced without long-term environmental effects. The down falls to this technology is the building cost and geographical location where they can be built.
4. Nuclear – This new energy source to produce power is efficient in concept but produces a large amount of highly reactive waste. Currently the United States is not equipped with the disposal facilities to handle the bi product of Nuclear power. This in my opinion make it a none sustainable resource.
5. Wind – This power is sustainable in locations that offer a constant source of wind. Large scale power production from wind is still on the expensive side but as the technology goes it will become increasingly more cost efficient.

The Union of Concerned Scientists has created a clean energy blueprint. One component of this blueprint is efficiency standards on furnaces and automobiles. The CAFE standards for automobiles stipulate that a company's cars must average a certain fuel mileage. The diagram below illustrates the effects of the new standards proposed in the blueprint. Look at the savings in millions of barrels per day and compare those values to our daily consumption of petroleum (175 million barrels for North America).

By looking at the diagram below and comparing current usage to savings under the clean energy blueprint there would be substantial savings of oil. With the current consumption of oil at 175 million barrels a day the clean energy blueprint would save an estimated 230 million barrels of oil in the year 2008.

The clean energy blueprint also finds that the US can meet at least 20 percent of its electricity needs by renewable energy sources-wind, biomass, geothermal, and solar-by 2020. This would reportedly save the US consumers $440 billion by the year 2020. By the clean energy blueprint this would also reduce the need for 975 new power plants and reduce the need for natural gas by 31% and coal by 60%.

The clean energy blueprint is a large undertaking and would require multiple industries to participate. This could be difficult due to the changes could eliminate the need for their industry.

References

ucsusa.org. Retrieved November 9, 2008, from www.ucsusa.org Web site: http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/solutions/big_picture_solutions/clean-energy-blueprint-a.html

Retrieved November 9, 2008, from ian.umces.edu Web site: http://ian.umces.edu/

How to Save Water

2009-03-01T12:25:00.000-08:00

Simple Water Saving Steps

Indoors

Wash only full loads of laundry.
Switch to low flow tolets, fosets and shower heads.
Wash only full loads of dishes.
Talk to your family and friends about saving water. Turn off the water when you brush your teeth.
Sorten yor showers by one or two minutes.
Fix leaky faucets.

Out Doors

Water your yard before 8 a.m. to reduce evaperation and interferance from wind.
Install a smart filter control.
Use a broom instad of a hose to clean driveways and side walks.
Check your sprinkler system for leaks, overspray and broken heads.
Rederect rain water runoff into colection tanks for erigation.

Green Bus Stop

2009-03-01T10:28:00.000-08:00

I was up in Big Bear Lake california yesterday and it was really cool to see the city had put solar panels on top of their bus stops. I wonder if they have the bus shelters completely off the grid and what kind of power the two panels put out.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

2009-03-01T09:40:00.000-08:00

Today their is so much talk about going green and I don't even know where to begin. I've started this blog to help myself as well as others learn more about what we can do to make our planet a better place to live. If you have ideas, comments or cool research you've done please feel free to share it with the community.