A New Kind of Sustainability Workshop

Posted on May 26, 2011 by JesseGorden

Cross-posted from the Sustainable Business Leader Program blog.

On May 23rd the Sustainable Business Leader Program, Cambridge Local First, and the Cambridge Energy Alliance hosted a new kind of business sustainability workshop: a business-to-business conversation featuring the Cambridge Brewing Company, a handful of business-centered sustainability services, and a score of small business representatives curious about their own green options.

By having many of the players in the room at the same time, small Cambridge businesses were able to comfortably learn how they could make their businesses more environmentally friendly while saving valuable natural resources and money.

The workshop featured a presentation by Phil “Brewdaddy” Bannatyne, owner of Cambridge Brewing Company, who highlighted the steps that his business took to “go green,” including much praise for the Sustainable Business Leader Program, and shared insights into the challenges and benefits of doing so.

After the presentations, business representatives had the opportunity to meet and hear from various organizations about the many programs and incentives that are available to them to make their own journey of sustainability and energy efficiency easy, rewarding, and fun. Arrow Paper, New Generation Energy, Prism Consulting, Save that Stuff and ThinkLite were on-hand to showcase their services and answer questions during the networking portion.

Attendees (and organizers) enjoyed this informative and relaxed night, and folks left with a clear understanding of how and why to green their small business, after enjoying conversation, food, and free local brews.

Please browse the links throughout this article to make use of the resources presented that evening.

The Sustainable Business Leader Program, a program of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Boston, supports locally owned independent businesses in improving their environmental business practices, reducing their carbon footprint, and saving money. Visit http://www.sustainablebusinessleader.org to learn more.

Fostering Sustainable Behavior

Posted on May 25, 2011 by Tara Holmes

Tara Holmes

This past Friday, I attended a workshop lead by Dr. Doug McKenzie-Mohr entitled “An Introduction to Community-Based Social Marketing: Fostering Sustainable Behavior.” As someone who’s personally very intrigued by the oftentimes overlooked (and dare I say critical) link between our everyday psychology and environmental sustainability, I was eager to attend. What I learned was both enlightening and somewhat anticipated.

In brief, humans, at least the populations Dr. McKenzie-Mohr has studied, tend to default to the easiest common denominator of behavior when it comes to environmentalism. Of course, this isn’t to say there aren’t outlier personalities who go above and beyond the “green” call, but overall, unless regulated to do so, or cajoled by neighbors or friends, most people will resort to the path of least resistance. Knowing this intrinsic behavior trend, Dr. McKenzie-Mohr was able to extrapolate on how to best create systems whereby these same individuals could easily do their part to create a more sustainable, healthy and balanced planet.

One interesting example is recycling. Initially in the 1980s, recycling was seen as a confusing burden to the majority of consumers. Today however, many people view recycling as commonplace and most US cities have recycling facilities in operation. Now, to what extent these materials actually are recycled is another policy issue altogether (Cambridge has historically recycled at a rate of 35% and now with added single-stream recycling, that’s expected to increase by 10-25% in recycling tons). Even so, the mere act of recycling, sorting out plastic from paper and glass from cardboard is today viewed as a commonplace action that requires little thought. So, how did this behavior change happen? Interestingly, Dr. McKenzie-Mohr cites community influence and social norms coupled with municipality engagement. If a person sees their neighbors, family members or friends recycling, they may begin to question their own behavior and adapt accordingly.

Energy efficiency and green energy demand is another example. Today, consumers have a multitude of product options from CFLs via utility rebates to energy-saving Energy Star appliances, but, as Dr. McKenzie-Mohr pointed out, there remains a disconnect between awareness of the the product’s existence, where to get the rebate for said product and product installation. These barriers may seem trivial, but they can lead to significant impacts, both environmentally and programmatically. During the workshop, Dr. McKenzie-Mohr cited an example of a user who purchased a low-flow shower head only to have it sit in a drawer due to installation confusion. It’s thereby key to not only increase awareness of energy efficiency products, but to educate the consumer on proper follow through behavior and maintenance resources to ensure the true benefit of the product is achieved.

In brief, sustainable behavior impediments can be boiled down to the following barriers: commitment, affordability, convenience, and incentives. The Cambridge Energy Alliance, like many local and national energy efficiency organizations, strives to reach consumers and the community via outreach and education and aims to address each of the mentioned barriers, which is a key first step. The critical next step is up to the consumer: application and follow through. Only then do they – and the planet – reap the true benefits of increased sustainable behavior.

Senator Brown’s Environmental Flip-Flop

Posted on April 13, 2011 by Tara Holmes

Over the past week in Washington, DC, Republican legislators in Congress have been debating steep budget cuts to many publicly-funded programs such as PBS, Planned Parenthood and the EPA. In today’s Boston Globe, Senator Brown’s wavering stance on environmental issues, specifically the regulation of greenhouse gases by the EPA, is dissected in a scathing editorial review. In the article, it’s noted that Brown’s turnaround on greenhouse gas regulation is “…especially disappointing to any Massachusetts voters who thought they saw in Brown a conservative on fiscal issues who was also a conservationist when it comes to protecting the environment.” The editorial piece further points out that Brown’s vote prohibits any improvement in auto fuel-efficiency standards after 2016 and continues to deny that green house gases directly contribute to climate change. Ironically, Brown voted in favor of Massachusetts’ participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), which requires utilities to reduce carbon dioxide emissions or face financial penalties. Massachusetts, much like California, is one of the few states leading the way in green, clean energy and job creation – an economy that brings significant revenue and technological development to the state. In fact, Massachusetts is the only state in the nation to combine energy and the environment into one governmental body: the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. For Senator Brown to deny his constituents and instead favor private Koch donations and coal and oil interests is a local tragedy.

Spoil and The Great Bear Rainforest

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Tara Holmes

This past weekend, I attended the Wild and Scenic Film Festival in Boston, hosted by e-inc. Though I had already attended Maynard’s top notch version of the Festival a few weeks back, I was pleasantly surprised by how little overlap there was between films at the two events. That said, one of the films I was able to see in Boston was Spoil, put out by The ILCP, EP Films and Pacific Wild. While I tend to consider myself someone who’s current with pressing environmental issues, I must admit – I was stunned. The potential devastation taking place in one of our planet’s most majestic and critical natural habitats, the Great Bear Rainforest, needs immediate attention. One of the largest tracts of temperate rainforest left in the world, the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia, Canada, is home to a plethora of cohabitant species ranging from whales and wild salmon to wolves and bears. The bear, given the Rainforest’s name, holds a special place to those who have lived in harmony with the forest for thousands of years. The unique “Spirit Bear”, a black bear born white due to a recessive gene, roams these lands and is known for its beauty and rarity, yet today numbers only in the low hundreds.

The Spirit Bear, along with the other species who call the Great Bear Rainforest home, are in constant threat. Not only from continued trophy hunting, but now from a proposed Enbridge crude oil pipeline stretching across Canada bringing tar sand oil from Alberta to the North Coast of British Columbia for export to China and other countries. Supertanker ships, that carry upwards of 2 million barrels of oil, would be navigating through tight, delicate and dangerous rocky terrain in order to reach a shipping port bound for Pacific travel. The Exxon Valdez faltered in similar waters in Prince William Sound and damage is still taking its toll on wildlife and natural habitat.

In the case of the Great Bear Rainforest, as with any struggle between business and conservation, it’s critical to understand the balance between energy, economic growth and the importance of natural ecosystems. As we continue to demand greater amounts of energy and as countries – like China – continue to develop and grow, we face serious environmental challenges. The Alberta tar sands are an example of how far we’re willing to go to obtain fossil fuel reserves while destroying everything in our path; the tar sands extraction process is one of the most environmentally damaging and GHG-intensive to-date. The risks are getting higher and fragile and necessary ecosystems like the Great Bear Rainforest are under attack with continued and unabated development. To learn more about the current challenges facing the Great Bear Rainforest, please visit Pacific Wild’s website.

Local Green Happenings for Spring

Posted on March 24, 2011 by Tara Holmes

Oftentimes, I find myself wondering: what green happenings are taking place in and around Cambridge and Boston? If you have similar sentiments, there are a number of leads that might satisfy your curiosity.

A smart place to start is, of course, the Cambridge Energy Alliance Community Events Calendar, but on the off-chance you still can’t find what you’re looking for, there is still hope!

Whether you’re interested in a weekend afternoon outing, or changing your transit habits, look no further. The City of Cambridge has designated May, 2011 as “Go Green Month” and the third week of May as “Climate Change Week.” During the month of May, (and hyper-concentrated in the week from May 13th to 22nd), you can find an array of local activities including nature walks, talks, workshops, and other environmentally-focused events. Guests include Zipcar, MassRIDES, MBTA, CAC Gallery and Cambridge Bicycle Committee, to name a few. There are also commuter challenges throughout the month, so take a look if you typically drive to work but instead want to try taking public transit, carpooling or biking.

In addition to Cambridge, Boston has an informative site complete with local area green event listings. The Boston GreenScene also comes complete with a local green directory highlighting area companies and organizations that focus on green-related industry and services. Services listed include green consulting, green building and green cleaning in addition to community groups such as Boston Green Drinks and various MeetUp groups.

Convincing Businesses to Go Green

Posted on March 2, 2011 by mdlittlehale

Solar panels are just one of many possible investments that can save businesses money in the futur

Business owners, when confronted with the decision of moving towards more sustainable practices, are sometimes weary of giving such an idea the green light. For owners, almost every decision is made with the bottom line in mind; a business that does not earn profit simply will not survive. The potential for high up front costs is enough for many owners to say “no thanks” and stick with the same practices that have been in use for years. Owners may think, “If a company is making a profit, why change anything?”

Well, when looking at a switch to sustainable business practices as an investment rather than a cost, the decision can be a lot more beneficial to the bottom line than one would think. This is exactly how L. Hunter Lovins presents the switch to sustainable practices for businesses. She recently sat down with The New York Times to talk about the non profit Natural Capitalism Solutions of which she is president. In order to promote sustainability, the company provides “innovative, practical tools and implementation strategies for companies, communities, and countries”.

NCS’s strategy is to present the switch to sustainability as an investment, and focuses on finding the areas of a business that can be more efficient, thus effecting the bottom line in a positive way. It is important to show that there can and will be a return on the investment, not just a large up front cost. For example NCS worked with Scandic Springs, a metal manufacturer in California. The company made a small change in the amount of cardboard used in their packaging, saving them $8,000 a year. While they paid very little to make this happen, other investments in sustainability can cost a lot more up front, so it takes more to convince some businesses.

Lovins says that they stay away from presenting any arguments about climate change or global warming, and choosing instead to stick to the economic benefits. This way, business owners who may not believe in global warming can still be swayed to make changes towards greener practices. It has become another way to help solve climate change without actually talking about climate change. In fact, according to Lovins, it is easier to convince those who are skeptical or may not know much about climate change, rather than those who consider themselves believers.

With their success working with businesses, NCS is able to show interested companies the progress of others who have worked with them to help find a place to start. Even small businesses can start changing towards more efficient practices and get a quick return. According to Lovins, one of the quickest returns is efficient lighting by switching to compact fluorescents from old fluorescents or incandescent bulbs.

Lovins also stresses the importance of following trends in your area. Local, state and federal laws regarding energy efficiency are changing, so it is important to stay ahead and be prepared to make changes to comply with new efficiency codes. Also, keep up (or better yet, ahead) of competition. On top of the savings from sustainability, there may also be a competitive advantage especially if a business is in a community where it’s important to residents that companies do good within the community.

Today, energy efficiency and sustainability are more than just fashionable trends. They are good business. More and more local small businesses are doing it, and even large worldwide corporations are making green changes. As Lovins said, “Why is Wal-Mart going green? Trust me, it’s not out of the goodness of their heart. They are going green because they are saving money.”

Green Jobs get the Green Light

Posted on February 25, 2011 by Tara Holmes

Green jobs, no longer just an environmental buzz phrase, represent a critical component to the progressive growth of the US economy. On February 23rd, the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) announced the availability of $40 million in green jobs development grants. The funds are authorized for the Green Jobs Innovation Fund (GJIF) and are meant to encourage the growth of the green economic sector, which includes everything from renewable energy technology and implementation, to policy and programmatic work. The announced grant will also support individual training and development within the green jobs sector to ensure interested candidates receive the proper credentials to be competitive within the green economy.

The High-Speed Rail Future?

Posted on February 16, 2011 by Tara Holmes

Following the release of President Obama’s 2012 federal budget, buzz around high speed rail projects in the US has increased. In the budget, $8 billion is allocated for high speed rail projects in FY 2012 and $53 billion is allocated over the next six years. Vice President Biden, a self-proclaimed train lover and regular rider, stated recently “We know that public infrastructure investment increases private-sector productivity, promotes growth, and creates jobs.”

Nevertheless, debate on up-front costs, accessibility and ridership continues to haunt the high-speed rail future in the US, even though Ray LaHood, the current Secretary of Transportation, believes that no realistic alternative currently exists that makes more sense stating “…there is no amount of money that could build enough capacity on our highways and at airports to keep up with our expected population growth in coming decades. America’s population will grow by 70 million in the next 25 years and 100 million in the next 40 years. Adding capacity to an interstate highway in the congested Northeast would cost more than $40 million per mile and cause enormous traffic backups, assuming we even had the space. A relatively “inexpensive” airport runway can cost half a billion dollars to construct.” From LaHood’s quote alone, it’s clear an alternative to the existing train, car and airplane must take tangible shape, and soon.

High-speed rail is already regularly and heavily used in other parts of the world – France’s TGV, Japan’s Shinkansen and Shanghai’s Maglev Train to name a few of the successful lines. SNCF, the company that operates the TGV in France, has in fact proposed its services to the US a number of times with little to no movement from the US government. In addition, Talgo, a Spanish-owned rail manufacturer, recently set up business operations in Milwaukee, Wisconsin hiring more than 100 American workers with anticipated growth, however, when Governor Scott Walker closed the door on Wisconsin’s high-speed rail segment, Talgo ended its operations in that region and moved out. Amtrak’s Acela, which runs along the bustling Northeast corridor between Washington, DC and Boston, has demonstrated great success and high ridership, yet cannot match the high-speeds of TGV or Shinkansen, for example, due to federal speed regulation and existing landscape challenges. Nevertheless, high-speed rail segments are currently in plan and construction in Illinois and California with the aim of more to come.

That said, President Obama’s 2012 budget highlights the need to move high-speed rail to the front and center of the economic agenda. High-speed rail creates long-term domestic jobs, decreases carbon emissions through an efficient method of mass transportation and connects US business centers and cities in a much more streamlined, accessible – and rapid – way than what currently exists. As Ray LaHood said, “President Obama is launching a high-speed rail network that will serve 80% of Americans and its legacy will be more than trains, tracks, and ties. It will be an economy on the move and a future that we are prepared to win.”

Federal Efforts for Energy Efficiency

Posted on February 14, 2011 by mdlittlehale

President Barack Obama

In the 2011 State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama highlighted many goals as part of the administration’s “winning the future” campaign. Energy efficiency was one such goal, and last Thursday the President, speaking at Penn State, unveiled the Better Buildings Initiative, a plan for a 20% improvement in energy efficiency in commercial buildings by 2020. It’s no coincidence the plan was reveled at Penn State, a school with more than 500 researchers working on energy and environmental studies. The President touted Penn State as a leader in the research towards a clean energy future.

The initiative also strives to reduce companies’ energy bills by $40 billion per year. The plan aims to achieve these goals through a number of different approaches, including tax incentives, loans, and challenges to turn the private sector towards the mind set that clean energy is a worthwhile investment.

In the plan, five main points are presented to achieve these goals.

Tax incentives – A call to redesign tax code, this would create more incentives through tax breaks and credits for businesses to make energy efficiency improvements to their properties.
More financing opportunities – Through a recent increase in loan size limits, the Small Business Administration is encouraging current lenders to promote loans made specifically for small businesses to improve the efficiency of their buildings. Also, a new pilot program is proposed in the President’s budget that will guarantee loans for improvements on hospitals, schools, and other commercial buildings.
Promote state and local governments to encourage energy efficiency in the private sector – The President’s proposed budgets will include new competitive grants for state and municipal governments to encourage the private sector to invest in energy efficiency upgrades to commercial buildings. This is important because many codes, regulations, and standards on commercial energy efficiency are set and controlled by state and local governments.
The Better Buildings Challenge – The President will challenge CEOs and University Presidents to become leaders in the movement of commercial building energy efficiency by making those leading the way eligible for benefits that include public recognition, technical assistance, and access to “best-practices sharing” within a network of like minded peers.
Training the next generation of commercial building technology workers – The plan looks to provide more transparency around energy efficiency performance, and provide better training in energy auditing and building operations.

To show the government is truly behind its aspirations for energy efficiency, President Obama issued an executive order to federal agencies, directing them to achieve zero net energy by 2030. Among the requirements, all new constructions and alterations must employ high performance and sustainable design principles. As a mark of progress of this Executive Order, at least 15% of existing federal buildings must meet these principles by 2015.

As for the energy efficiency in the homes of American families, this particular plan does not touch on the subject, but it builds off of the proposed “HOMESTAR” legislation, which encouraged Americans to make energy saving upgrades to their homes. While the house passed the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010, it never came to vote in the Senate. The President says his remains committed to passing this legislation.

As 2012 approaches, President Barack Obama will be starting to campaign for reelection in the coming months. Look for energy efficiency policy to be a big part of his “winning the future” campaign unveiled during the State of the Union Address last month.

Green Communities Act

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Tara Holmes

Many Massachusetts residents want to live in a healthy and thriving green community, but don’t know how or where to start considering many of the broader environmental challenges that are so vast they can be paralyzing. With such a wide assortment of programs, subsidies and rebates, it can be a challenge for Massachusetts residents to stay on top of state and local energy efficiency options available to them [even though some communities have organizations like CEA to help navigate].

One useful state-wide resource was established under the Green Communities Act, which was signed into law by Governor Patrick in July 2008 and created the Green Communities Division within DOER to serve as the hub for all cities and towns on all matters related to energy. The Green Communities Act established the Green Communities Grant Program that provides grant funding to cities and towns and other local governmental bodies. In 2010, fifty-three cities and towns from across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts were designated as Green Communities. To become a Green Community, a city or town must meet the following five criteria as detailed in the program guidelines:

1). Provide for the as-of-right siting of renewable or alternative energy generating facilities, renewable or alternative energy research and development (R&D) facilities, or renewable or alternative energy manufacturing facilities in designated locations.

2). Adopt an expedited application and permitting process under which these energy facilities may be sited within the municipality and which shall not exceed one year from the date of initial application to the date of final approval.

3). Establish an energy use baseline inventory that includes municipal buildings, vehicles, street and traffic lighting, and put in place a comprehensive program designed to reduce this baseline by 20 percent within 5 years of the baseline year.

4). Purchase only fuel-efficient vehicles for municipal use whenever such vehicles are commercially available and practicable.

5). Require all new residential construction over 3,000 square feet and all new commercial and industrial real estate construction to minimize, to the extent feasible, the life-cycle cost of the facility by utilizing energy efficiency, water conservation and other renewable or alternative energy technologies. The recommended method for meeting these criteria is adoption of the Stretch Code, 780 CMR 120.AA, appendix to the MA State Building Code.

While the Green Communities Act has already established a solid base and grant program for communities who wish to participate, it’s important to continue to increase public awareness of grant and education programs associated with the GCA. For example, coordinate state-wide community outreach efforts to expand GCA impact, use GCA success stories to promote more green-community advancement, encourage increased participation in DOER’s Energy Audit Program and utilize Green Communities Regional Coordinators to learn more specifics.

Green Communities Regional Coordinators:

Central Region: Kelly Brown, 627 Main Street, Worcester, MA 01103 (508) 767-2703 / Cell (617) 780-8144
Northeast Region: Joanne Bissetta, 205B Lowell Street, Wilmington, MA 01887, (978) 694-3315 / Cell (617) 823-4029
Southeast Region: Seth Pickering, 20 Riverside Drive, Lakeville, MA 02347 (508) 946-2838 / Cell (617) 780-7156
Western Region: Jim Barry, 436 Dwight Street, Springfield, MA 01103, (413) 755-2232 / Cell (617) 823-4588

Please note, this article will also appear in the MA E-Sierran this spring.

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