Greenzone Online

“LEED AP” not for Dummies

If you’ve had delusions, as I did, that you’ll simply pick up a hammer one day and start “green-renovating” your home, you can snap out of it.  After attending a green-building conference in Austin, TX this past week, I’ve discovered that it nearly takes a degree in physics to grasp some of the ideas presented [...]

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DeFreitas Home a Masterpiece of Green Design

This house manages to be incredibly elegant and modern while using 60% less water and 50% less energy than a typical house of its size.  Kevin DeFreitas, the architect and owner, started by paying extra to salvage the original house on the site so the materials could be repurposed in Mexico. Its efficiency is partly due to [...]

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Eco Eco

Ecology and economy have not been the best of pals. We have had to compromise one for the sake of the other (usually, it is ecology that gets hits). But what if there is possibility to settle the battle between the two ‘ecos’? William A. McDonough thinks that green living and industry enterprises can be [...]

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Green Technology Costing Jobs?

The aim of the green boom is efficiency, and with this efficiency comes longevity. With cutting edge green materials being integrated into various everyday industries, the products are lasting longer.  As Americans, we are accustomed to using and discarding products when we are finished with them.  Our economy thrives on this unwavering culture of consumerism. [...]

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Sleeping green

With increasing environmental consciousness around the globe it seems no industry is safe from scrutiny through an environmental prism. The tourism/hospitality industry is no different, but not many people are aware of the ways in which to ensure they travel in a more sustainable manner. Take for example lodging. This is a large area in which you [...]

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The Most Fitting Name

May 4, 2007: a tornado nearly two miles wide plows through Greensburg, Kansas. Ninety-five percent of homes and businesses were destroyed. On the Enhanced Fujita Scale, an EF5 storm like this one exhibits winds of over 200 mph. There have been only two since the scale went operational in early 2007. The thing about [...]

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