Elements of a Net Zero Home in Texas

energy efficiency upgrade

There are six key ingredients to a net zero energy home. Learn more about how to achieve net zero energy usage with proper orientation, responsive envelope design, rainwater collection, solar power, and more.

Read More

Netting Some Zeros: Net-zero

Net-zero

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”101988″ media_width_percent=”100″ shape=”img-round” uncode_shortcode_id=”468649″][vc_column_text] How investing in a net-zero home could effectively eliminate those pesky energy bills. There are only a few places we really care to see some zeros – the first, on our paycheck after a positive integer; the second, under the “turnovers committed” column for our favorite basketball team; and lastly,…

Read More

Seeing Green in the Future of Energy

Future of Energy

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”101991″ media_width_percent=”100″ uncode_shortcode_id=”359293″][vc_column_text] What our energy past and present can tell us about our energy future, and the role renewables will have to play in that future. Here’s a hint: a big one. The Story Thus Far It began with agriculture. The Neolithic Revolution ushered in the first flowering of human civilization, the beginnings of…

Read More

Climate Change: A Collective Failure of Human Empathy?

Climate Change

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”101993″ media_width_percent=”100″ shape=”img-round” uncode_shortcode_id=”974765″][vc_column_text] Why the discussion of global warming needs to add an expanded moral dimension that can help inform economic and political change. The Million Dollar Question: Why Don’t People Care About Climate Change? If an individual were offered one million dollars in cash, would they take it? In a theoretical world…

Read More

Cutting Down To Size

Cutting Down To Size

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”102008″ media_width_percent=”100″ shape=”img-round” uncode_shortcode_id=”463932″][vc_column_text] The best strategy for sustainability isn’t better renewable energy or a miracle technology. The best strategy for sustainability is to simply curb consumption. The challenge lies in reducing consumption in a way that does not reduce comfort or hinder daily activities: Cutting Down To Size When it comes to housing, sometimes…

Read More

New Solar Breakthrough Has Wall Street Excited

Solar Breakthrough

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”102015″ media_width_percent=”100″ uncode_shortcode_id=”863540″][vc_column_text] This is one in a series of Green Tech updates to keep you informed of the many new innovations being produced by the cleantech sector every day. After all, technology and sustainability are inherently synergistic. Fuel Cell Technology Gets a Boost Part of the reason Solyndra went broke was a result…

Read More

Chilly? Put Some Clothing On. . . Your Home – Building Clothing

Building Clothing

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”102041″ media_width_percent=”100″ shape=”img-round” uncode_shortcode_id=”111669″][vc_column_text] Investing in insulation and other energy conservation methods could save homeowners money and make this winter a little more toasty. When it is cold out, you put on a jacket. The jacket keeps your warm body heat right where it belongs – near your body. When it comes to a…

Read More

Energy Democracy

Energy Democracy

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”102058″ media_width_percent=”100″ uncode_shortcode_id=”860634″][vc_column_text] The development of smart grids, distributed solar energy, time-of-day pricing, and functional electric vehicles offer a vision of a less centralized energy system tied to the one-fuel dictatorship of fossil fuels. One day, individual households and communities, operating their own power sources, may shape the electric grid by how they decide to consume…

Read More

Urgent Lessons From Hurricane Sandy

Hurricane Sandy

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”102064″ media_width_percent=”100″ shape=”img-round” uncode_shortcode_id=”113342″][vc_column_text] Hurricane Sandy is but the tip of a rapidly melting iceberg. As climate change continues to wreak havoc on the nation, from record-breaking heat waves and droughts in the American midwest, to “Frankenstorms” menacing the eastern seaboard, Americans are learning to grapple with new climate realities. What can Hurricane Sandy…

Read More

More Than Just Global Warming: Harsh Realities

Global Warming

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image media=”102066″ media_width_percent=”100″ shape=”img-round” uncode_shortcode_id=”100350″][vc_column_text] Everything we are as a society, from the health of the economy to the car-based suburban lifestyles we lead (and even the food we eat), is predicated on the availability of affordable fossil fuels. What happens when the costs of global warming, regional insecurity, the irreversible decline of biodiversity, and…

Read More