Several of my posts on this blog have presented a selection of my favorite quotations. Here is an index of those posts, for anyone who enjoys reading good quotations for the wisdom, inspiration, or humor that they convey:
I have also prepared quotations-based posts that have been published on MotherEarthNews.com:
For a more comprehensive compilation of quotations, see our QUOTATIONS page.
Please share your own favorite quotations in the Comments!
Many new electric vehicles have hit the marketplace in the past few years, and their popularity is growing fast. This post lists some of the non-car—two-wheeled or three-wheeled—electric (or hybrid) vehicles that are now available or are expected to be available soon. These vehicles have a wide range of prices, from very affordable to pretty pricey. Think of how much gas you could avoid buying (and burning) if you were to use one of these instead of driving a car!
The following vehicles are currently in production and are available to buy:
BMW
C Evolution electric maxi-scooter
(only manufactured and sold in Europe, so far)
Bolt Motorbikes
M-1 electric, pedal-able moped
Brammo
High-speed electric motorcycles: Empulse and Enertia models
KTM
Freeride E off-road electric motorcycle
Mission Motorcycles
Mission R and Mission RS models: High-performance, high-speed, high-priced electric motorcycle
Segway
Two-wheeled, standing, “Personal Transporter” electric vehicles
(an off-road version is available; and a three-wheeled version is available for law enforcement patrol use)
Switch Vehicles
Three-wheeled electric vehicles
Trikke
Three-wheeled, electric “carving vehicles”—essentially standing scooters (but with sort of a roller-blade or ski-like feel)
(Trikke also makes non-electric, human-powered scooters)
ZAP Jonway
Various electric motorcycles, scooters, and foot scooters
(as well as electric cars, trucks, and a minivan)
Zero Motorcycles
4 models of high-performance electric motorcycles
In addition, there are also many brands of electric bicycles and electric bike DIY kits. (Click on that link to see listings of a wide range of other Light Electric Vehicles (LEVs), as well, including other motorcycles and scooters, and various types of velomobiles.) The ELF is a particularly cool, solar-electric and pedal-powered hybrid, covered tricycle that has cargo room.
The following are alternative vehicles that are currently in development; they’re in the prototype phase, and they’re expected to be mass-produced in the near future. Some of these companies are currently taking reservations from people who want to be the first to buy these vehicles when they become available.
Elio Motors
Three-wheeled, enclosed electric vehicle
Green Lite Motors
Three-wheeled, two-passenger, 100MPG, enclosed, hybrid vehicle
Halfbike
Standing, folding, three-wheeled, human-powered bike
Harley-Davidson
Livewire electric motorcycle
Lit Motors
Two-wheeled, enclosed electric vehicle: C-1 and Kubo (cargo) models
Sway Motorsports
Three-wheeled, tilting, scooter-like electric vehicle
Toyota i-Road
Three-wheeled, enclosed electric vehicle
(currently in limited production in Japan and being used for a car-share fleet in Europe; not for sale to individuals at this point)
Have you tried riding/driving any of these yet? Do you know of other two- or three-wheeled electric or hybrid vehicles?
You can find fresh, daily morsels of information and inspiration on The Green Spotlight’s Facebook Page. Anyone can view the page, even if you don’t have a Facebook account. But if you do have an account, we hope you’ll click on the Like button (if you haven’t already “Liked” the page).
Please visit the Page to get a sense of the wide variety of topics that it covers. You are welcome to comment on the posts and we hope you’ll share some of our links. To make sure that Facebook will continue to show you our posts on your homepage/newsfeed, visit our page regularly and give a thumbs-up to (“Like”) your favorite posts.
Here’s a sampling of topics that we’ve highlighted on the page over the last month or so:
B Corporations (known as B Corps, for short) are “a new type of company that uses the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.” As of May 2014, there are now more than 1,000 certified B Corporations, in 33 countries and 60 industries. Among the most well-known companies that are certified B Corporations are: Patagonia, Ben and Jerry’s, Method, and Seventh Generation.
Each year, B Lab recognizes a group of B Corps as “Best for the World” honorees for creating the most positive social and environmental impact. These companies have earned an overall score in the top 10% of all Certified B Corporations on the B Impact Assessment, a rigorous and comprehensive assessment of a company’s impact on its workers, community, and the environment. These are businesses that go beyond simply being benign or reducing their harm to society; they strive to be beneficial and could even be considered benevolent. (For more information on B Corp certification, see our previous post on this topic.)
I’d like to highlight a small selection of this year’s “Best for the World” companies, within a few types of industries:
Financial
Energy/Solar
Consumer Products
There is also an Environment sub-group of Best for the World honorees, for the companies that scored in the top 10% of all B Corps within the environmental impact category. And there are sub-groups for the top 10% companies for worker impact, as well as community impact.
Click here to find other B Corps (you can search by location, name, industry, keyword).
Note: B Corporations and “benefit corporations” are similar but different things. For an explanation of each and the difference between the two, please see our previous post on this topic:
Benefit Corporations and B Corps: Businesses for the Common Good
You might also be interested in this post on green and socially responsible business:
Green Business, Corporate Social Responsibility, Ethical Finance, and Sustainable Economies
The Goldman Environmental Prize is the world’s largest and most prestigious annual award for grassroots environmentalists. Many people refer to it as the “green Nobel.” Goldman Prize winners are models of courage, and their stories are powerful and inspiring. “The Prize recognizes individuals for sustained and significant efforts to protect and enhance the natural environment, often at great personal risk. Each winner receives an award of $150,000 [starting this year, it has been increased to $175,000], the largest award in the world for grassroots environmentalists. The Goldman Prize views ‘grassroots’ leaders as those involved in local efforts, where positive change is created through community or citizen participation in the issues that affect them. Through recognizing these individual leaders, the Prize seeks to inspire other ordinary people to take extraordinary actions to protect the natural world.”
This year marks the 25th anniversary of this international prize. And this year, for the first time ever, the Goldman Environmental Prize ceremony will be broadcast LIVE on the Goldman Prize YouTube channel.
This year’s six prize recipients (one from each of the six inhabited continental regions) are:
Helen Slottje (NY, USA) — Helping towns across New York defend themselves from oil and gas companies by passing local bans on frackingClick on each recipient’s name to read—or watch a brief video—about their remarkable efforts and achievements.
Here’s the video about Helen Slottje, who has provided pro-bono legal assistance to help towns across New York (including Dryden) defend themselves from oil and gas companies by passing local bans on fracking, using a clause in the state constitution that gives municipalities the right to make local land use decisions.
Posts on Goldman Prize winners from previous years:
This is a listing of some of the green-themed films that came out in the last couple of years. Click on each of the links below (or go to IMDB.com) to see previews/trailers, reviews, and descriptions of each film. Update: Also check out our newer listing of green-themed films of 2015.
Scroll to the bottom of this post to see a list of some green film festivals; those websites provide information on more films, including some brand new ones that haven’t been shown widely yet.
Energy / Power
Health / Toxic Chemicals
(Note: Many of the films in the Energy section above also relate to health issues, especially Hot Water, Gasland II, and the Atomic States of America)
Food / Agriculture
Animal Sentience / Animal Rights
Water (Oceans, Rivers, Glaciers)
Environmental Movement / Activism
Related posts (more films):
If there are other relevant, recent films that you’ve seen and would recommend to others, please add those in the Comments section below.
Green Film Festivals
These are a few of the annual film fests that I’m aware of. Please let everyone know about others by contributing a Comment! Many of the festivals’ websites feature video clips or entire films (short and full-length films), and they list many additional, new, independent films, beyond what I’ve listed above.
I launched The Green Spotlight about five years ago, in late January 2009. Since its inception, I’ve published more than 70 blog posts, and the blog’s readership has grown steadily—and it continues to grow. The Green Spotlight was also nominated (two years in a row) for a Best Green Blog award.
I appreciate everyone who has taken some time to read the blog. I especially appreciate those of you who have shared the posts (or specific information or links from the posts) with others; have incorporated suggestions from the blog into your lives; or have added helpful comments and recommendations.
Please subscribe to The Green Spotlight’s e-mail list. Doing so means that you will receive a brief, quarterly email—only once every 3 months—that provides a listing of my most recent posts, along with a favorite quotation. Here’s one example of a recent email bulletin. I won’t send you any spam or share your email address with anyone else.
Also, if you haven’t already, please join (“Like”) The Green Spotlight’s page on Facebook, and share the page with your friends. The page is getting close to reaching 1,000 Likes, and with your help, it could pass that mark soon.
To mark The Green Spotlight’s 5-year milestone, I recently added an ARCHIVE page, which is essentially a Table of Contents that lists the titles of all of my blog posts to date. Please peruse this list, to see the wide range of topics and issues that I’ve covered so far; I hope you’ll find a few that pique your interest.
The following are among The Green Spotlight’s most popular (i.e., most viewed) pages and posts:
And these are a few of the topics that I plan to write about in future posts:
Of these topics, which one(s) are you most interested in? Do you have a suggestion for another topic that you’d like to see covered?
Please add a Comment to this post or send me an email message [email: info (at) thegreenspotlight.com] if you have any feedback or constructive criticism. And I’d be thrilled to hear about any changes you’ve made or actions you’ve taken based on information you found on TheGreenSpotlight.com (or the Facebook page). Too often it can feel like I’m working in a vacuum. I rely on interaction and feedback from my readers to get a tangible sense of the results of my efforts.
If you are a big fan of The Green Spotlight: Please send me a message [email: info (at) thegreenspotlight.com] if you would be willing to write a short blurb (1-3 sentences would be plenty!), stating what you like about the blog. You can read existing blurbs at the bottom of the About page. It’s up to you whether your name (and/or a link to your own website) will appear with your blurb.
Thank you for reading The Green Spotlight, and for striving to do your best—and spreading the word to others—to keep our planet life-supporting, habitable, and beautiful for all people, all species, and future generations.
– M
The 13 buildings that are highlighted in this post are among the greenest building and renovation projects of recent years. They include Living Building Challenge certified projects (and a couple of projects that are currently pursuing that certification), as well as some of the highest-scoring LEED Platinum certified projects around the world. (Bear in mind that many traditional and indigenous structures were built using more sustainable materials and methods than those that are typically used in these modern times, so many of the world’s greenest buildings were constructed long before the advent of green building certification systems.) The following projects were all built or renovated within the past decade.
The Living Building Challenge, administered by the International Living Future Institute, is widely recognized as the most rigorous certification system for green buildings; it can also be applied to infrastructure and other types of development projects. It goes beyond most of the LEED requirements. In their own words, “It calls for the creation of building projects at all scales that operate as cleanly, beautifully and efficiently as nature’s architecture. To be certified under the Challenge, projects must meet a series of ambitious performance requirements, including net zero energy, waste and water, over a minimum of 12 months of continuous occupancy.”
So far (as of late 2013), t
hese are the only four buildings to have achieved the full Living Building certification:
Bertschi School’s Living Building Science Wing
Seattle, WA
More Info
Hawai’i Preparatory Academy’s Energy Lab
Kamuela, HI
This building also achieved LEED Platinum certification under LEED for Schools v2007.
More Info
Omega Center for Sustainable Living
Rhinebeck, NY
This building also achieved LEED Platinum certification under LEED NC v2.2.
More Info
Tyson Living Learning Center
(at Washington University’s Tyson Research Center)
Eureka, MO
More Info
[February 2014 Update: A fifth building has now achieved the full Living Building certification:
Smith College Environmental Classroom, Northampton, MA]
These two ultra-green buildings have also been completed and their project teams are currently pursuing the Living Building Challenge certification:
Bullitt Center (Bullitt Foundation office building)
Seattle, WA
(Living Building certification pending)
More Info
Phipps Center for Sustainable Landscapes
Pittsburgh, PA
This building achieved LEED Platinum certification under LEED NC v2.2. (Living Building certification pending)
More Info
So far (as of late 2013), the following projects have achieved the highest scores among all LEED certified projects with the Platinum rating (LEED’s highest rating level). Some are new buildings; some are renovations. And a couple of the projects involve interior spaces (office or store interiors) only.
In the United States
St. Martin’s University, Cebula Hall Engineering Building
Lacey, WA
LEED Platinum NC (New Construction) v2009
(97 out of 110 points)
Info
More Info
Integral Group’s Deep Green Office (remodel)
Oakland, CA
LEED Platinum CI (Commercial Interiors) v2009
(102 out of 110 points)
Info
Video Tour
The Bridge Building (historic renovation)
Nashville, TN
LEED Platinum CS (Core & Shell) v2009
(99 out of 110 points)
Info
More Info
502 Second St. NW office building (historic renovation)
Grand Rapids, MI
LEED Platinum NC (New Construction & Major Renovation) v2.2
(66 out of 69 points)
Info
More Info
In other countries
Pixel office building
Carlton, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
LEED Platinum NC (New Construction) v2009
(105 out of 110 points)
Info
More Info
The Change Initiative store
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
LEED Platinum Retail CI (Commercial Interiors) v2009
(107 out of 110 points)
Info
More Info
ITC Green Centre office building
Gurgaon, Haryana, India
LEED Platinum O&M: EB (Existing Buildings) v2009
(99 out of 110 points)
Info
To see other Platinum projects, check out our listing of LEED Platinum Certified Buildings, Offices, and Homes worldwide.
This post has provided a selected, not a comprehensive, list of super-green buildings. If you know of another completed, ultra-green building that you’d like others to know about, please mention it in the Comments, with a link to information about the project.
Related posts:
LEED Platinum Leaders: January 2012 Update of Top-Ranking States and Countries
Model Sustainable Neighborhoods: LEED ND Developments in the U.S., Canada, and China
If you want to avoid buying clothing that was made in sweatshops (characterized by unsafe conditions, unethical labor practices, and poor wages); and/or you want to buy clothing that is made from natural and organically grown fabrics, rather than from synthetic, petrochemical textiles or from fibers grown with toxic pesticides, you should probably—at least for the time being, until the industry shifts—avoid buying most of your clothing from major retailers, especially those that sell clothes for super-low prices. Those “fast fashion” clothes are not just cheap in price. In most cases, they’re also cheaply made (so they’re not durable), and the people who make them aren’t making a living wage. As President Benjamin Harrison said, “I pity the man who wants a coat so cheap that the man or woman who produces the cloth will starve in the process.”
Furthermore, those workers work long hours in dangerous factories: facilities without proper health and safety standards, audits, or enforcement. (For example, in recent years, more than 1,800 garment factory workers have died on the job in Bangladesh, mostly due to unsafe buildings that collapsed on them. Some clothing retailers, such as Walmart and the Gap, have so far resisted signing onto a new building safety agreement, and instead have proposed weaker initiatives of their own.)
Look for well-made and durable, certified Fair Trade or domestically made (Made in the U.S.) clothes, made of certified organic, natural materials (such as organic cotton, hemp, bamboo, wool) or recycled materials, by ethical and sustainable brands [follow the links below to find some]; or buy clothes second-hand. And most importantly, don’t buy way more clothing than you need, and be sure to donate your unwanted/extra clothing.
Apparel Product Assessments and Vetted Brand Listings:
Check the Apparel section of GoodGuide (which also has a mobile app):
…and look for clothing labels that indicate certification with the Global Organic Textile Standard, as well as Fair Trade Certified,
…as well as clothing companies that are Certified B Corporations.
Also check out the Sustainable Apparel Coalition and its preliminary Higg Index, which aims to measure the environmental (and, in a later phase, also the social) performance of apparel products. In addition, there is Greenpeace’s international Detox fashion campaign, which has challenged major clothing brands to get their suppliers to make non-toxic clothes and to eliminate their release of hazardous chemicals, especially those that are contributing to water pollution.
Selected Companies/Brands:
These are a few brands that take the environmental and social impacts of their products more seriously than most other brands. Most of the following companies offer organic and/or Fair Trade clothes. Be sure to check out their “Sale” (or “Specials” or “Clearance”) pages to find discounted products.
If you know of other relevant brands and you would recommend their products to others, please mention those brands in the Comments section.
For further information on this topic, you might want to read this book:
Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion, by Elizabeth Cline. (Also check out the author’s Shopping Directory.)
Other recent posts on green products:
