Report Shows Schools’ Environmental Progress

Cambridge Public Schools published its 2012 Sustainability Year-In-Review this summer and celebrated several environmental successes. The report outlines the schools’ environmental progress and accomplishments in energy reduction, recycling, eco-friendly products and other green topics.

Over the past two years, multiple energy-efficiency projects have been implemented. The result is a net projected annual savings of $295,738 for the whole school district; 618,313 kWh of electricity savings; and 29,863 therms. Projects included:

  • the installation of a high-efficiency condensing boiler at the Longfellow School Building
  • high-efficiency lighting and occupancy sensors at the Peabody School, Kennedy-Longfellow School, Baldwin School, Haggerty School, Morse School, Solomon Garage, and High School Field House
  • the installation of Direct Digital Control systems at nine schools
  • additional energy upgrades

But energy isn’t the only area of improvement. Custodians now use metered green cleaning supplies, and six schools are now composting their lunch leftovers. From March 2009 through April 2012 the King Open School alone composted nearly 20 tons of food scraps. The school’s food waste is picked up and taken to a farming facility in Massachusetts for composting as part of the “Food to Flowers” program. The Cambridge Green Schools Initiative also partners with local organizations such as “Walk-Ride Days” and the Cambridge Health Alliance to promote sustainable and healthy modes of transportation.

2011 Intern Dana Rubin to Travel the U.S. in Search of Practical Environmentalism

2011 summer intern Dana Rubin will be traveling around the country starting on September 1st, 2012 to seek out the practical and economical environmental projects that are occurring all across the nation.

Dana, and her partner-in-crime Hannah Blackmer, want to take the fear out of climate change and make it a more positive transition. There are so many projects that individuals and small businesses can conveniently do to build up a better resilience to save money and help the environment.  Their voyage is The Search for Convenient Resilience and they will be seeking out projects that range from homesteading, rooftop gardens, personal alternative energies and upcycling projects.

Dana and Hannah, recent graduates of Mount Holyoke College, really need your help to raise enough funding to make the endeavor possible. The duo is looking to raise about $15,000.

Have some cool projects they should check out? Want to follow their blog? Care to donate to their cause? Check out their website at: www.convenientresilience.com, like them on Facebook, or send them an e-mail at littlegreenthings.dh at gmail.com.

EPA Launches “Greener Products” Portal

In celebration of Pollution Prevention Week and amid an atmosphere of intelligent concern for the environmental health and safety of products we use in every day life, the EPA has launched a simple online guide for the eco-labeling  programs it supports; the Greener Products Portal.

Consumers, small businesses, retailers, manufacturers, and institutional purchasers can use the Portal to search for products that are included in EPA-approved product labeling systems. Using a set of 3 drop down boxes to narrow their inquiries folks can find information on a wide range of products; from appliances to building materials, from automotive products to cleaning products. This tool can be useful for a wide range of people; from parents to industrial purchasers, and the many demographics in between.

For those most concerned with energy efficiency and e-waste, there is an electronics category that contains a label for most items you can think of. For example; how can you identify the most ec0-friendly computer monitors, and which programs cover them? Take a look:

Currently, the most prevalent labeling system to appear when testing several different types of electronic products is, of course, Energy Star. It is refreshing, however, to note that in addition to this familiar energy efficiency marker, there are other labeling systems in place for some electronic pieces- two of which are visible above.

In addition to the searching methods previewed here, you will also find a Greener Products FAQ section in a menu to the right side of the web page.

Take a look at this valuable new resource today to gain a better understanding of the products you use at home or in the workplace!

Freiburg’s Eco-Villages

Rieselfeld Center

Two areas of Freiburg have been developed as eco-villages — Rieselfeld and Vauban.  The eco-villages showcase integrated planning based on principles of sustainability.

Rieselfeld, the larger of the two, was built on land that was formerly used for sewage disposal.  It lies toward the western outskirts of Freiburg.  There are about 4,500 apartments in buildings of 3 to 5 stories housing around about 10,000 people.  Most of the buildings are built to a “low energy” standard for heating requirements, which we are told is about 65 kwh/square meter (in Europe they use kilowatt-hours as a basic energy metric in the way we use BTUs).

Solar panels and green roofs appear throughout the development.  The ecumenical Maria Magdelena Church has a solar PV system on its roof.  The revenue from the feed-in tariffs and electricity savings is used to support solar energy projects in Ethiopia.

Virtually all the buildings in Reiselfeld are connected to the district heating plant located in the development.  The plant runs a co-generation system to produce electricity and heat and is fueled by wood pellets produced from a forest certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

Rieselfeld is adjacent to large areas of open space.  Also, open greenspaces have been incorporated in between buildings and arranged in a way to encourage interaction among residents.

In terms of car dependency, Rieselfeld appears to be typical of Germany, although that means there are still a lot of bicycles and walkers.  There are bicycle paths and bicycle friendly streets throughout.  A tram line comes into the development, making it easy to access the city center.

In contrast, Vauban is a little more “alternative” in feeling.  The buildings are set closer together and vegetation around and on the buildings seem more unkempt.  We also noticed a lot of children in the development.  The eco-village has about 5,500 residents.

Vauban is built on a former French military base.  When the Berlin Wall fell and it was clear the French would be leaving, citizens started thinking about the future of the area.  The citizens advocated for an affordable residential area.  We were told that citizens were much more involved in the planning of Vauban than in Rieselfeld.  Freiburg’s 1986 climate protection plan influenced the eco-friendly design. 

The plan for Vauban retained many of the large trees that were on the former military base and reused some of the buildings.

There are examples of buildings that meet Passivhaus standards (15 kwh/square meter).  Passivhaus is a private energy efficiency standard developed in Germany and used by some developers and followed by some cities.  The first multi-family building to meet Passivhaus standards in Germany is located in Vauban.

Geo-exchange heat pumps are commonly used.  All the buildings are connected to a neighborhood district heating plant, except the multi-family building that was the first to meet Passivhaus standards.  That building was intended to be connected to its own biogas plant that was to be fed by sewage from the building.  However, the biogas plant was not feasible.

Vauban Cogen

In Vauban, cars are less encouraged than in Rieselfeld.  No car parking is included at or adjacent to residences, except for visitor spaces.  Residents who own cars are obligated to purchase spaces in one of the common garages (we saw two).  The garages have large solar PV arrays.  A city tram line goes through the middle of Vauban.

Waste management practices are less conspicuous.   Recyclable and compostable materials are collected separately from trash.  We were told that there is a system whereby residents can pay lower rates for trash disposal for recycling and composting more and using worm farms.  Trash is commonly incinerated in Germany.

Across the street from Vauban is a small Plus Energy housing development, called the Freiburg Solar Settlement.  Architect Rolf Disch designed multifamily homes and small commercial buildings to produce more energy than they consume.  It’s the first and only such development in Germany, we were told.  The buildings are modular units that are mostly pre-fabricated and are finished on site with siding and details.  The roofs are completely covered with solar PV panels, which also form long eaves to provide shading in summer and allow sunlight to reach the south side windows in winter.

Plus Energyhouse

Rieselfeld and Vauban seem like large leaps for most Americans.  But for communities like Cambridge where multi-family residences are the norm, they seem possible.  But a key factor that enabled their development in Freiburg is that the City government has more land and public housing under its control.  So it is a lot easier for the projects to be planned and sited than in Cambridge.

A New Kind of Sustainability Workshop

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.

Report from the Summit

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Cambridge, MA-Friday, April 24: Over 300 people, including your faithful Warm Home Cool Planet correspondent, assembled in Walker Memorial Hall at MIT to hear from some of the major players and most provocative thinkers in the field of sustainability. Unlike the content you’ll find here, which stretches all the way from global energy policy to insulating your water pipes, the Sustainability @ MIT conference was exclusively focused on the big picture.

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MIT Sustainablility Summit Friday April 24th

Just another reminder of the MIT Sustainability Summit-Starting this Friday:

Location: Walker Memorial Building 50 142 Memorial Drive Cambridge, MA 02139
Click here for more details
Description: The MIT Sustainability Summit, Discovering New Dimensions for Growth, brings together students, engineers, business leaders, academics, environmental activists, and public servants to discuss how we can most effectively support each other as we face the opportunities and challenges of transitioning to a sustainable world.

For questions contact:
Catharina Lavers clavers@MIT.EDU
Start Time: 9:30
Date: 2009-04-24