Canada Blooms and Landscape Ontario Events Calendar '13 - '14

LANDSCAPE ONTARIO’S EVENT CALENDAR

Toronto, Ont. – January 22, 2013 - Landscape Ontario events calendar.

Canada Blooms 

March 15 - 24, 2013 Direct Energy Centre

100 Princes’ Blvd, Exhibition Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M6K 3C3

www.canadablooms.com

Canada Blooms is a not-for-profit organization that gives back to the community throughout the year by funding community garden projects around Ontario. 

Canada Blooms is also dedicated to providing the community with horticulture expertise, education and resources on an ongoing basis.

Canada Blooms was founded in 1996 by Landscape Ontario and The Garden Club of Toronto. Each year it is supported by a committed group of partners, sponsors and volunteers.

Canada Blooms has been named One of Ontario’s Top 100 Events by Festivals and Events Ontario and One of North America’s Top 100 Events by the American Bus Association. Canada Blooms is also the recipient of the 2011 Garden Tourism Award for “Garden Tourism Festival of the Year”.

Garden enthusiasts delight in stunning floral creations at the standard judged flower show featured at Canada Blooms. Interested non-professional exhibitors as well as members of Horticultural Societies and Garden Clubs are welcome to enter these classes. For information go to www.canadablooms.com 

Landscape Ontario’s Expo, Garden and Floral Expo

October 23 – 24, 2013

www.loexpo.ca

Show Dates and Hours:

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Future Dates:

Landscape Ontario’s Expo, Garden and Floral Expo 2014

October 22 – 23, 2014

North Building, Toronto Congress Centre

EXPO 2013 is Canada's fall trade show for the garden and floral industry. The spotlights are on flora, fauna and exquisitely merchandised displays that capture imaginations and provide retail inspiration that can be executed on store floors in the spring of 2014.

Early morning educational and networking events, running 8 – 10 a.m. offer industry professionals the opportunity to improve their retail knowledge.

Current news on the trade show, education programs and social events can be found at www.loexpo.ca 

[Oh Canada! : ) ]

 

Landscape Ontario's Snow and Ice Conference and Expo 2013
Thursday, September 19, 2013

www.snowandiceexpo.ca
Show Dates and Hours:

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Conference 8 a.m. to 12 noon

Trade Show 12 noon to 4:00 p.m.

Landscape Ontario’s Snow and Ice Conference is a one day industry specific event that features morning sessions followed by displays of exciting new products as well as popular snow removal equipment and technology. The purpose of the event is to create a timely and convenient opportunity to help snow contractors and municipal workers responsible for snow management make their operations more efficient and cost effective. In addition to the must attend workshop, the event is host to outdoor displays of some of the latest equipment and technologies for the snow and ice control industry. The tools that will help improve your snow contracting business  include everything from trucks and plows to electronics and software.

Landscape Ontario’s Congress Conference and Trade Show

January 7 - 9, 2014

www.locongress.com

Show Dates and Hours:

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Thursday, January 9, 2014

9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Landscape Ontario’s Congress, one of North America’s largest horticultural, lawn and garden trade show and conference, enters its 41^st year of serving the green industry on January 7 – 9, 2014. Over 13,000 industry professionals congregate in 8 acres of 600 multinational vendor displays – everything a business owner requires  for the construction and maintenance of commercial, public and residential landscapes. 

Landscape Ontario partners with the Canadian Fence Industry Association to co-locate with their fence focused trade show, Fencecraft.

The four day event offers a broad range of products, dynamic educational programs and networking events that advance professional development and business prosperity of those working in the green industry.

Detailed information about the trade show and conference is available at locongress.com. Landscape Ontario is  dedicated to technological improvement, cost reduction, improved relations, and advancing the horticultural industry. 

Landscape Ontario Horticultural Trades Association, one of the most vibrant associations of its kind, is comprised of over 2,000 member companies, ten sector groups and nine local chapters. Its trade mission is to promote the horticulture industry in Ontario, and its public mission, Green for Life, promotes the joys and benefits of plants and green spaces.  Visit www.landscapeontario.com for more information. 

  

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice!

 

 

 

 

See the full gallery on Posterous

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Canada Blooms and Landscape Ontario Events Calendar '13 - '14

Tofino Has New, Green Mayor | COMMUNIQUÉ: Une nouvelle mairesse verte à Tofino

15 January 2013 

Tofino Has New, Green Mayor

“As a small village that is the gateway to a globally significant UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, I believe we have an opportunity and an obligation in Tofino to think 'outside the box' on social, environmental and economic issues, from transportation and housing to business diversity and entrepreneurship,” said Ms. Osborne. “I'm excited about working with all members of my community in this new role as Mayor, regardless of party affiliations.”

SIDNEY, BC – Green Party Leader and Member of Parliament for Saanich-Gulf Islands, Elizabeth May, welcomes the news that Josie Osborne was sworn in today as mayor of Tofino, British Columbia.

Ms. Osborne has worked as a fisheries biologist for First Nations communities and as a leader in social enterprise at the Tofino Botanical Gardens Foundation. She has recently been more engaged as a community and business representative, chairing the local destination marketing organization, Tourism Tofino. Josie Osborne is also an active member of the Green Party of Canada.

“I am so pleased that the new Mayor of Tofino, Josie Osborne, is a Green Party member.  I know she will, as I have tried to do federally, put constituents first and party last. While party affiliations are not raised in most municipalities, the Green Party is nevertheless pleased and proud that one of our own has become mayor.  This is a first in Canada,” said May.

“As a small village that is the gateway to a globally significant UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, I believe we have an opportunity and an obligation in Tofino to think 'outside the box' on social, environmental and economic issues, from transportation and housing to business diversity and entrepreneurship,” said Ms. Osborne. “I'm excited about working with all members of my community in this new role as Mayor, regardless of party affiliations.”

Tofino has a long record for innovations in things green.  It is located in the heart of what was one of Canada's most intense wilderness struggles, the fight to protect the old growth forests of Clayoquot Sound.  It is a beacon for tourism, for everything from whale watching to year-round surfing, as well as aquaculture and First Nations business enterprises.

-30-

«Ce petit village est la porte d’entrée d’une réserve de la biosphère de l’UNESCO. Je suis convaincue qu’à Tofino, nous avons la possibilité, et même  le devoir, de sortir des sentiers battus sur les questions sociales, environnementales et économiques, que ce soit en matière de transport, de logement, de diversification économique et d’entrepreneuriat», a dit  Mme Osborne. «Je suis impatiente de travailler avec tous les membres de notre collectivité dans mes nouvelles fonctions de mairesse et ce, sans égard aux allégeances politiques.»

 

Une nouvelle mairesse verte à Tofino 

SIDNEY (C.-B.) – La chef du Parti vert du Canada et députée de Saanich—Gulf Islands Elizabeth May se réjouit de l’assermentation de Josie Osborne comme mairesse de la Ville de Tofino, Colombie-Britannique.

Mme Osborne fut biologiste des pêches pour les Premières Nations ainsi que responsable du programme d’entrepreneuriat social de la fondation des jardins botaniques de Tofino. Plus récemment, elle joua un rôle clé dans la collectivité et le milieu local des affaires, en dirigeant Tourism Tofino. Josie Osborne est également active au sein du Parti vert du Canada.

«Je suis très heureuse que la nouvelle mairesse de Tofino soit membre du Parti vert. Je sais qu’elle défendra les intérêts de ses commettants avant ceux du Parti, comme je m’efforce de le faire au niveau fédéral. Bien que l’allégeance politique n’ait généralement pas la même importance en politique municipale, le Parti vert n’en demeure pas moins fier et ravi que la nouvelle mairesse porte ses couleurs. C’est une première pour le Canada», a dit Mme May.

«Ce petit village est la porte d’entrée d’une réserve de la biosphère de l’UNESCO. Je suis convaincue qu’à Tofino, nous avons la possibilité, et même  le devoir, de sortir des sentiers battus sur les questions sociales, environnementales et économiques, que ce soit en matière de transport, de logement, de diversification économique et d’entrepreneuriat», a dit  Mme Osborne. «Je suis impatiente de travailler avec tous les membres de notre collectivité dans mes nouvelles fonctions de mairesse et ce, sans égard aux allégeances politiques.»

Tofino affiche un excellent bilan en matière d’innovation verte. Située au cœur d’une région témoin de l’un des combats environnementaux les plus féroces au pays, soit la campagne pour la protection des forêts anciennes de Clayoquot Sound, la Ville est une plaque tournante pour le tourisme et propose une multitude d'activités, de l’observation des baleines à la pratique du surf en toute saison, en passant par l’aquaculture et les entreprises autochtones.

 

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice!

See the full gallery on Posterous

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Tofino Has New, Green Mayor | COMMUNIQUÉ: Une nouvelle mairesse verte à Tofino

Visit Sunny Chernobyl - book by Andrew Blackwell

Environmental reporter Andrew Blackwell was inspired to write Visit Sunny Chernobyl after realizing he hadn't had much personal contact with Eco Disaster Sites. Before writing the book, he did a sort of Eco Disaster World Tour as research.

His book is an exploration in contradictions. Such as how is it that a radioactive site like Chernobyl becomes a defacto wildlife refuge/ nature habitat? Read more in this insightful, humorous and also penetrating look at how our Eco Disaster Sites have greater breadth in their identity than simply locations of extreme environmental degradation.

@GreenBlogNetwork

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Visit Sunny Chernobyl - book by Andrew Blackwell

Sustainable Building Apprenticeship Program For Women

10-Week Women’s Earthbag Dome Building Apprenticeship in Canada  Lillooet, British Columbia, July 28-October 6, 2012 Kleiwerks International’s Women of the Americas Sustainability Initiative (WASI) is hosting a 10-week, hands-on natural building apprenticeship that brings together a group of women apprentices with an experienced team of earthbag builders and native St’at’imc community members. Their project is to construct a Healing & Cultural Arts Centre near Lillooet, BC. This training immersion provides participants with the opportunity to learn construction while building a dome from start to finish, develop leadership skills through facilitating local groups, work side-by-side with a community that is creating culturally appropriate local solutions, and document the story to share with wider audiences. Ideal participants are women who have follow-up projects, intend to share what they learn, want to work in the natural building trades and be part of the growing natural building movement. “This apprenticeship is a unique opportunity for participants to delve into earthbag construction while building the envisioned creative cultural community commons with the people of T’it’qet and Lillooet who are engaged in proactively creating a vibrant future by combining traditional St’at’imc culture and values with refined sustainable and ecological solutions,” says Susannah Tedesco, local Program Coordinator. Today’s building industry uses half of our planet’s resources, yet healthy, time-tested, affordable and soulful construction alternatives exist. These alternatives are based on reclaiming and refining the use of local and recycled materials. Coupled with indigenous knowledge and Permaculture design systems, natural building plays a profound role in creating a way of life that is good for people and the planet.  Instructors Fox McBride and Chloe Wolsey are teaming up for the first time, combining their extensive and global earthbag dome construction backgrounds. WASI Delegate Christine Jack is a Nlaka’pamux First Nations leader who resides in St’atimc Territory near Lillooet, BC. Guest Instructors, The Mudgirls are a network of natural builders from BC. WASI Coordinator, Susannah Tedesco, is devoted to rural grassroots initiatives that empower communities to create viable local living solutions.  Women of the Americas Sustainability Initiative (WASI) is an alliance of women leaders who construct, educate, organize, and advocate for strong and empowered communities through ecological design-build practices with the aim of creating a socially and ecologically resilient world. For details or to apply visit: http://www.kleiwerks.org/wasi-canada-earthbagdome-apprenticeship-2012/. There are 12 seats available. The fee is $3,600, including tuition, meals, lodging and field trips. Photos:

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Sustainable Building Apprenticeship Program For Women

Premiere of Harmony at Sundance London Inspired by HRH The Prince of Wales

GREAT BEAR RAINFOREST SET TO SHINE IN WORLD PREMIERE OF HARMONY, INSPIRED BY HRH THE PRINCE OF WALES Filmed at King Pacific Lodge, environmental film debuts at inaugural Sundance London Film and Music festival NORTH VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, April 26, 2012 – Inspired by HRH The Prince of Wales (Prince Charles), Harmony, A New Way of Looking at Our World will make its world premiere on April 28th during the inaugural Sundance London Film and Music Festival. Harmony grows out of three decades of work by Prince Charles to find innovative solutions to the global environmental crisis, with the goal of creating a more sustainable, spiritual and harmonious relationship with the planet. The project, which filmed at King Pacific Lodge, a Rosewood Resort, features environmentalists, entrepreneurs, farmers, as well as business and government leaders who are working collectively to restore the balance between man and nature. While at King Pacific Lodge, producers captured spectacular images of the pristine wilderness along British Columbia’s coastline, and learned more about the lodge’s efforts as a leader in modern conservation and sustainable tourism. As a floating luxury wilderness lodge operating in the heart of the Great Bear Rainforest, King Pacific Lodge works hard to seamlessly blend sustainable philosophies and unparalleled luxury travel experiences, believing that fish counts are as important as thread counts. For more than a decade, the lodge has been at the forefront of creating a new model for sustainable tourism, one that embraces a triple bottom-line business philosophy equally concerned for social equity, environmental conservation, and creating both memorable and benevolent travel experiences for guests. King Pacific Lodge has made great strides in demonstrating this commitment; first by being the initial private tourism operator to forge a working partnership in 2001 with the Gitga’at First Nation in Hartley Bay, thereby recognizing their rights and title to their traditional territory, and by being the first resort in North America to offset its own carbon footprint as well as that of its guests. Additionally, Condé Nast Traveler has rated the lodge as the number one resort in Canada for four consecutive years. Harmony is produced and directed by Julie Bergman Sender and Stuart Sender, whose work has received Oscar nominations and a Director’s Guild nomination for best documentary feature. To view the trailer for Harmony, A New Way of Looking at Our World, visit www.TheHarmonyMovie.com.

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice!

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Premiere of Harmony at Sundance London Inspired by HRH The Prince of Wales

Environmentalists and Bottom Trawl Industry Develop Innovative Measures To Improve Fishery

Long-time adversaries find common ground to protect and reduce impacts on corals, sponges and deep-sea habitats 

[Press Release]

VANCOUVER — For decades, British Columbia environmentalists have clashed with the groundfish bottom trawl fishing industry, but the two have come together to find common ground, and fragile ocean habitat is the big winner. The two groups have developed innovative measures to conserve corals, sponges and deep-sea habitats. These new management measures have been implemented through

 Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Groundfish Integrated Fisheries Management Plan. Both the environmentalists and the industry representatives agree that these unique measures represent significant progress in the management of this fishery.

The David Suzuki Foundation and Living Oceans Society have been working closely with B.C.’s groundfish bottom trawling industry to develop new measures that are meant to reduce and manage the fishery’s impacts on fragile ocean habitats. The management changes include:

·         defined boundaries for the fishery

·         individual limits on coral and sponge bycatch

·         a procedure to alert skippers if a bycatch in excess of 20 kg of coral or sponge occurs

·         a joint habitat conservation review committee composed of representatives from industry, environmental groups, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada

“It’s the first time anywhere that individual bycatch limits have been used to manage habitat impacts,” said Scott Wallace of the David Suzuki Foundation. “The B.C. groundfish bottom trawl industry should be congratulated for taking on this new level of individual accountability.”

Both sides are quick to point out the important achievement of the formation of a long-term collaborative relationship 

through a formal habitat conservation committee. This will allow both sides to work together to address habitat concerns going into the future and ensure that the measures are achieving the expected results.

“The development of the habitat committee is a major step forward by itself,” said John Driscoll of Living Oceans Society. “When you view it alongside all of the other changes that are being put into place as a result of this effort, it’s clear that this fishery is changing in some very real and exciting ways.”

For the industry, the economic rationale is clear: “Our markets are increasingly demanding evidence that fisheries are well managed, employ sustainable practices and address ecosystem impacts,” said Brian Mose, a fifth generation fisherman and member of the Canadian Groundfish Research and Conservation Society. “We know that in order to maintain and expand market opportunities, we need to provide assurances to environmental organizations, retailers, and consumers that we are serious about managing and reducing our impacts on ocean ecosystems.”

“It is important to address these habitat conservation issues, because we recognize that our industry’s future is reliant on a healthy ecosystem,” said Bruce Turris of the Canadian Groundfish Research and Conservation Society. “Our partnership with the environmental organizations has allowed us to come up with an innovative solution that works for our industry and conservationists.”

For the environmental groups, the conservation improvements are significant. Deep sea corals form forests far b

elow the surface of Canada’s Pacific Ocean, supplying places for juvenile fish to hide from predators and for many organisms to feed. British Columbia environmental groups have long singled out the bottom trawl fishery for its impacts on these marine habitats. Rather than publicly disputing the criticism, industry opened up lines of communication with the environmental groups that continued for more than three years, leading to this precedent setting effort to work together to change the fishery for the better.

Both industry and the conservation organizations are grateful for the support provided by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Pacific Region staff who were instrumental in providing data analysis and showing management leadership.

Policy Context

Fisheries and Oceans Canada Sensitive Benthic Area Policy available at:

http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/peches-fisheries/fish-ren-peche/sff-cpd/benthi-back-fiche-eng.htm

Pacific Region Cold-Water Coral and Sponge Conservation Strategy available at:

http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/oceans/protection/docs/cscs-pcce-eng.pdf

Photo credit: Living Oceans Society

 

 

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Environmentalists and Bottom Trawl Industry Develop Innovative Measures To Improve Fishery

March 31st 8:30 pm - The Lights Go Off!

Earth Hour Global Slideshow - Click HERE

More than 5,200 cities and towns in 135 countries worldwide switched off their lights for Earth Hour last year alone, sending a powerful message for action on climate change. It also ushered in a new era with members going Beyond the Hour to commit to lasting action for the planet. Without a doubt, it’s shown how great things can be achieved when people come together for a common cause.

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice! 

Eco Consulting * Eco Media

 

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

March 31st 8:30 pm - The Lights Go Off!

Gov. Kitzhaber of Oregon To Speak at Globe 2012 Vancouver

Kitzhaber, who is currently serving his third term as governor, will lend his insights on the topic of innovation and collaboration in advancing the clean economy.

“Innovation will be one of the most important drivers of a greener economy,” says John Wiebe, President and CEO of the GLOBE Foundation and Opening Plenary moderator. “Governor Kitzhaber is recognized for his refreshingly innovative approach to policymaking and we’re looking forward to the perspective that he will bring to this critical discussion.”

GLOBE 2012 Opening Plenary confirmed speakers:
 
·         Jim Weigand, President, DuPont Sustainable Solutions, USA
·         Steve Williams, President & Chief Operating Officer, Suncor Energy Inc., Canada
·         John Kitzhaber, Governor, State of Oregon, USA

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

 

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice! 

 

Eco Consulting * Eco Media

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Gov. Kitzhaber of Oregon To Speak at Globe 2012 Vancouver

Global Colding

via animoto.com

Eco Consulting * Eco Media * Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood *
* Greening Beauty *
Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

Like Us on FB! Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice!

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Global Colding

Sustainable, Edible Holiday House

“Not one piece of our structure will end up in landfill,” says Smallworks president, Jake Fry. The gingerbread dwelling is fully sustainable and environmentally responsible with net zero impact on anything aside from your belly. “Every peppermint swirl, candy corn, and multi-coloured jujube will be stuffed into someone’s gob, probably at the end of a huge holiday dinner.”

Who hasn’t decorated their dining table or sideboard during the festive period and wanted to fit in an extra miniature Christmas tree, shiny bauble, or even one more entire gingerbread house? Smallworks has launched this increased density action for better and more efficient space use for your holiday table. Designed to fit on a standard-sized, appropriately-zoned holiday decorating space, the Gingerbread Laneway House works as a stand-alone structure or an additional dwelling to the rear of your traditional Gingerbread House.

Founded 6 years ago, Smallworks is Vancouver’s first and most established laneway house builder. They specialise in building small, beautiful homes and exceed the green building practices of Vancouver’s Green Home program. Inspired by Smallworks' West House laneway house developed for the LiveCity site at the 2010 Olympics, this is their first foray into baked goods. The Gingerbread Laneway House was constructed by Kreation Artisan Cakes, experienced builders in fine gingerbread architecture.Metro Vancouver residents can visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/smallworks.homes between now and December 15 for a chance to win The Gingerbread Laneway House.

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

 

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice! 

 

Eco Consulting * Eco Media

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Sustainable, Edible Holiday House

Un-Analytics: How Google Went Solar

Google said it could not detect bad panels unless 20% or more of the panels went bad. And we call that monitoring? by Dan Auld Google loves talking about a world before analytics -- when web owners knew almost nothing about their sites. Nothing useful, anyway. That all changed when a new technology came along that allowed web owners to monitor their sites as much as they wanted. Any time they wanted. Web sites suddenly became a business proposition, not just an enthusiasm for a few hobbyists. Flash forward from the introduction of Google Analytics up to 2007, when Google got into the solar business and opened a 1.65 megawatt photovoltaic power array. The largest commercial system in the world at the time. Just like web sites before Analytics, Google would soon learn how little it actually knew about its solar array. After its panels were up for 15 months, Google cleaned them and documented its efforts in a report called "Getting the most energy out of Google's solar panels." On several sections of its array, solar energy output doubled after the cleaning. Eight months later, energy output went up 37 percent after another cleaning. But here comes the money graph: It would be difficult to detect manufacturer defects or accidental damage by data analysis alone, unless the damage impacts >~20% of the solar panels in that building. Example: There have been few occasions when some of the solar panels ... were damaged by delivery trucks accidentally hitting the support beams that hold up the solar panels. Since these accidents did not damage a sizable portion of the solar panels, the damage went undetected for a while. Losing 50 percent of your power is real money, even for Google. "Just like the web prior to Analytics, Google had to admit it really did not know what was happening in its array -- because it had no way to monitor when good panels went bad," said Mark Yarbrourgh, a city councilman in Perris, California who pioneered the use of solar in public buildings. "But neither does anyone else. Arrays malfunction and no one knows because they do not use monitors at the panel level." Undetected, solar panels go bad in all sorts of ways. Panels degrade anywhere from .5% to 9.5% a year, depending on the manufacturer, says Sandia Laboratories in a study for the Department of Energy. How will you know what your panels will do? Warranty Week Magazine says you won't. Not really: " And yes, it really is guesswork." Dirt plays even more havoc. If not dirt, a bird dropping, or a baseball, or a golfball, or a rock, or a squirrel chewing a wire, or a Texas oak thick with pollen, or heat on the roof, or poor soldering. Or a shadow -- all worse than you think, says the National Renewable Energy Laboratories: " The reduction in power from shading half of one cell is equivalent to removing a cell active area 36 times the shadow's actual size." "One bird, one truck of dirt, one flowering tree can destroy your solar production, and you would not know for a long time," Yarbrough said. "Welcome to the Christmas Tree Effect: Hurt the panel a little, hurt production a lot. It is amazing how many people put up solar for great reasons, but really do not watch their systems. As a result, a lot of people lose a lot of money because many, many systems are not producing the power its owners were promised. And few know." Maybe because knowing it is not that useful. "If your solar array produces a megawatt of power, that means it is composed of 3000 to 5000 panels," said Ray Burgess, CEO of Solar Power Technologies. "If some panels go bad, you need panel level monitoring to o find the bad panels. But most systems monitor power at the system level, but as Google found out, that is that useful for detecting catastrophic failure, but not much else." Thus the need for small wireless monitors throughout the array. "Now that we have cost effective monitors from a company in Austin, that is going to change the world, just like Google Analytics." Leading the solar monitor business is Burgess and Solar Power Technologies of Austin, Texas. The company is introducing monitors and other devices to give solar array owners unprecedented control over their panels. If you have 3500 panels and a few start breaking, you better have something better than "guesswork" to optimize your array. "As we travel the country talking to panel owners about their systems, we are constantly amazed at how many systems that are producing power far below their capacity, and some not producing power at all. Monitors on the panels can change that and let you know what is really happening with your system. And where it is happening. Saving system owners thousands of dollars a month." Just like Google Analytics. Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty  Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice!

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Un-Analytics: How Google Went Solar

World Water Week

From The Green Blog Network 

Courtesy of Stockholm International Water Institute

 HYRRQNC6AVP2

On the Water Front vol. 2 presents new analysis from global thought-leaders

New edition features 14 essays on water and water quality issues that build upon research presented at the 2010 World Water Week in Stockholm. 

On the Water Front vol. 2 offers a collection of the most innovative and important insights on water and water quality presented at the 2010 World Water Week in Stockholm. This compendium is a must-read for those interested in the latest knowledge, tools and strategies to resolve the planet’s most pressing water quality challenges.

Each of its chapters are authored by leading luminaries from science, business, and public policy and build upon research presented at the 2010 World Water Week in Stockholm, includingStockholm Water Prize Laureates Dr. Rita Colwell and Prof. Takashi Asano and have been edited and peer reviewed by the World Water Week Scientific Programme Committee.

Download it here to gain knowledge on how the public health sector will be impacted by climate change, the most potent policy cocktails to protect coastal waters, the best-practice solutions to wastewater reclamation and reuse, what the potential onset of peak water and peak phosphorus could mean to humanity, new ideas to mitigate the growing dangers of chemical and agricultural pollution to human and environmental health, and much more.

Eco Consulting * Eco Media

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

World Water Week

California And Quebec Leaders In Sustainable Transportation

Eco Consulting * Eco Media 

 Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

California And Quebec Leaders In Sustainable Transportation

International Research Initiative on Adaptation to Climate Change Announces Awards

*Editor's Note: Happy World Environment Day!

(le français suit)

News Release:

International Research Initiative on Adaptation to Climate Change Announces Research Awards
Five Canadian and Developing Country Teams to Study Climate Change Adaptation
Ottawa, Canada, June 2, 2011 –The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) together with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) today announce that five research teams have been awarded a total of $12.5 million dollars under the International Research Initiative on Adaptation to Climate Change (IRIACC).
Each team will receive $2.5 million over five years to study how best to protect people, communities and vital economic sectors, like agriculture and tourism, that are most at risk from the effects of climate change. Two teams will focus specifically on vulnerable indigenous populations. Together, the research projects, which will take place in Canada and in developing countries across four continents, aim to address an important gap in our climate change knowledge, namely, how to anticipate, manage, and reduce climate risk vulnerability through adaptation.
The five successful research teams were selected through a rigorous peer-review process. Their projects and respective team leads are                                                                                              

Coastal Cities at Risk: Building Adaptive Capacity for Managing Climate Change in Coastal Megacities
Anond Snidvongs, Chulalongkorn University and Southeast Asia START Regional Research Center, ThailandGordon McBean, University of Western Ontario, Canada 

Adapting to Climate Change: Protecting Water Resources in West Africa and Canada Ouazar, Université Mohammed V Agdal, Maroc Taha Ouarda, Institut national de la recherche scientifique, Canada

Partnership for Canada-Caribbean Community Climate Change AdaptationMurray Simpson, the CARIBSAVE Partnership, Barbados Daniel Scott, University of Waterloo, Canada

Indigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Alejandro Llanos, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Peru Shuaib Lwasa, Makerere University, Uganda James Ford, McGill University, Canada Lea Berrang Ford, McGill University, Canada

Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Extremes in the AmericasFernando Santibañez, Universidad de Chile, ChileDavid J. Sauchyn, University of Regina, Canada

In announcing the awards, the presidents at the four organizations commented:

 “Africa, the Arctic, and other vulnerable regions face an urgent need to adapt to such effects as rising sea levels, extreme weather events, drought and desertification,” says IDRC President David M. Malone. “This initiative will help determine how vulnerable populations in Canada and in developing countries can best cope with changes to their health, environments, and livelihoods.”

“Aboriginal peoples are particularly at risk, and this initiative offers an opportunity for researchers to combine Western scientific methods with traditional indigenous knowledge,” says CIHR President Alain Beaudet. “Research is urgently needed to help these vulnerable populations adapt and even improve their lives in the face of climate change.”

“SSHRC-funded researchers have helped build a strong foundation of Canadian innovation and expertise on the human dimension of climate change,” says SSHRC President Chad Gaffield. “This international collaboration will enable us to develop new knowledge and capabilities in key areas, as well as to enhance the contributions of social sciences and humanities research to meeting the needs of Canadian and developing communities in the process of adaptation to a changing environment.”
"The knowledge and expertise of NSERC-funded researchers will play a key role in finding solutions to the environmental changes that affect the most vulnerable communities in Canada and around the world,” says NSERC President Suzanne Fortier. "By collaborating on an international scale, these researchers will be able to strengthen efforts that will ultimately lead to the effective management of, and adaptation to, a changing environment."
For more information about this unique, made-in-Canada collaboration between IDRC and Canada’s granting councils, please visit www.idrc.ca/iriacc.
About IDRC
To achieve self-reliance, poor communities need answers to questions like: How can we grow more and healthier food? Protect our health? Create jobs? IDRC supports research in developing countries to answer these questions. IDRC also encourages sharing this knowledge with policymakers, other researchers, and communities around the world. The result is innovative, lasting local solutions that aim to bring choice and change to those who need it most. http://publicwebsite.idrc.ca
About CIHR
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is the Government of Canada’s agency for health research. CIHR’s mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to enable its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health-care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to more than 13,600 health researchers and trainees across Canada. www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca
About SSHRC
SSHRC is the federal agency that promotes and supports university-based research and training in the humanities and social sciences. Through its three funding programs ─ Talent, Insight and Connection ─ SSHRC enables the highest levels of research excellence in Canada and facilitates knowledge-sharing and collaboration across research disciplines, universities and all sectors of society.
www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca
About NSERC
NSERC is a federal agency that helps make Canada a country of discoverers and innovators for all Canadians. The agency supports some 30,000 post-secondary students and postdoctoral fellows in their advanced studies. NSERC promotes discovery by funding more than 12,000 professors every year and fosters innovation by encouraging more than 1,500 Canadian companies to participate and invest in post-secondary research projects.
www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca 

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice!

Communiqué

 Octroi de subventions de recherche en vertu de l’Initiative de recherche internationalesur l’adaptation aux changements climatiques Cinq équipes formées de chercheurs du Canada et de pays en développement se pencheront sur l’adaptation aux changements climatiques

Ottawa, Canada, le 2 juin 2011 – Le Centre de recherches pour le développement international (CRDI), de concert avec les Instituts de recherche en santé du Canada (IRSC), le Conseil de recherches en sciences naturelles et en génie (CRSNG) du Canada et le Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines (CRSH) du Canada, annonce aujourd’hui que cinq équipes de recherche se partageront 12,5 millions de dollars en vertu de l’Initiative de recherche internationale sur l’adaptation aux changements climatiques (IRIACC).
Chaque équipe recevra 2,5 millions de dollars sur cinq ans afin d’examiner les meilleures façons de protéger des effets des changements climatiques les populations, collectivités et secteurs cruciaux de l’économie – notamment l’agriculture et le tourisme – qui y sont les plus exposés. Les cinq projets, qui seront réalisés au Canada et dans des pays en développement de quatre continents, cherchent à combler une importante lacune au chapitre des connaissances en matière de changements climatiques : comment prévoir, gérer et réduire la vulnérabilité à ces changements par le truchement de l’adaptation. Deux d’entre eux seront axés sur les populations autochtones vulnérables.
C’est au terme d’un rigoureux examen des propositions par des pairs que les cinq équipes ont été retenues. Voici le titre des projets de même que le nom des chargés de projet.

Villes côtières à risque : renforcement des capacités d’adaptation pour les besoins de la gestion des changements climatiques dans les mégapoles côtières

Anond Snidvongs, Université Chulalongkorn et centre de recherche régional de l’Asie du Sud-Est de START, Thaïlande

Gordon McBean, Université Western Ontario, CanadaFaire face aux changements ensemble : mieux s’adapter aux changements climatiques au Canada et en Afrique de l’Ouest dans le domaine des ressources en eau

Driss Ouazar, Université Mohammed V-Agdal, MarocTaha Ouarda, Institut national de la recherche scientifique, Canada

Partenariat Canada-Caraïbes sur l’adaptation des collectivités aux changements climatique Murray Simpson, The CARIBSAVE Partnership, Barbad Daniel Scott, Université de Waterloo, Canad 

Santé des autochtones et adaptation aux changements climatiques Alejandro Llanos, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Péro Shuaib Lwasa, Université Makerere, Ougand James Ford, Université McGill, Canada Lea Berrang Ford, Université McGill, Canada

 Vulnérabilité et adaptation aux phénomènes climatiques extrêmes dans les Amériques Fernando Santibañez, Université du Chili, Chili David J. Sauchyn, Université de Regina, Canada

 Voici ce qu’ont déclaré les présidents des quatre organismes partenaires à l’occasion de l’annonce.
 David M. Malone, président du CRDI : « En Afrique, en Arctique et dans les autres zones vulnérables, il est urgent de renforcer la capacité d’adaptation aux effets des changements climatiques, à savoir l’élévation du niveau de la mer, les phénomènes climatiques extrêmes, les sécheresses et la désertification, pour ne nommer que ceux-là. Cette initiative aidera à déterminer comment les populations vulnérables, au Canada et dans des pays en développement, peuvent composer le mieux possible avec la manière dont leur santé, leur milieu ambiant et leurs moyens de subsistance s’en trouvent modifiés. »
Alain Beaudet, président des IRSC : « Les populations autochtones sont particulièrement exposées, et cette initiative fournit l’occasion de recourir à la fois aux méthodes scientifiques occidentales et au savoir autochtone traditionnel. Des recherches s’imposent de toute urgence pour aider ces populations vulnérables à s’adapter aux changements climatiques voire à améliorer leurs conditions de vie grâce aux mesures prises en réaction à ces changements. »
Chad Gaffield, président du CRSH : « Les chercheurs financés par le CRSH ont contribué à constituer une solide assise d’innovation et de savoir-faire au Canada en ce qui concerne la dimension humaine des changements climatiques. Cette collaboration internationale aidera le CRSH à acquérir de nouvelles connaissances et capacités dans des domaines clés et lui permettra d’enrichir l’apport de la recherche en sciences humaines pour ce qui est de répondre aux besoins de collectivités du Canada et de pays en développement alors qu’elles s’efforcent de s’adapter à un environnement en pleine transformation. »
Suzanne Fortier, présidente du CRSNG : « Les connaissances et le savoir-faire des chercheurs financés par le CRSNG joueront un rôle clé dans la mise au point de solutions d’adaptation aux changements environnementaux qui ont une incidence sur les collectivités les plus vulnérables, au Canada et ailleurs dans le monde. En collaborant à un projet d’envergure internationale, les chercheurs seront en mesure de consolider les efforts en vue d’une gestion efficace des changements que subit l’environnement et d’une adaptation adéquate à ces derniers. »
Pour obtenir de plus amples renseignements sur cette collaboration sans pareil du CRDI et des trois conseils subventionnaires du Canada, prière de consulter le www.crdi.ca/iriacc_f.
À propos du CRDI
Comment cultiver des aliments plus sains, en plus grande quantité ? Comment préserver la santé ? Et comment créer des emplois ? Voilà quelques-unes des questions auxquelles les collectivités pauvres doivent trouver réponse afin de se donner des moyens d’action. Le CRDI appuie des travaux de recherche dans les pays en développement justement afin de trouver réponse à ces questions. ll veille aussi à promouvoir la diffusion des connaissances ainsi acquises auprès de responsables des politiques, de chercheurs et de collectivités de par le monde. Il en résulte des solutions locales, novatrices et durables, qui offrent des choix aux personnes qui en ont le plus besoin et font changer les choses.
http://sitewebpublic.crdi.ca
À propos des IRSC
Les Instituts de recherche en santé du Canada (IRSC) sont l'organisme de recherche en santé du gouvernement du Canada. Leur objectif est de créer de nouvelles connaissances scientifiques et de favoriser leur application en vue d'améliorer la santé, d'offrir de meilleurs produits et services de santé, et de renforcer le système de santé au Canada. Composés de 13 instituts, les IRSC offrent leadership et soutien à plus de 13 600 chercheurs et stagiaires en santé dans tout le Canada.
www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca
À propos du CRSH
Le Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines (CRSH) est un organisme fédéral qui encourage et appuie la recherche et la formation en milieu universitaire dans le domaine des sciences humaines. Par l'intermédiaire de ses programmes – Talent, Savoir, Connexion –, il permet d'atteindre les plus hauts niveaux d'excellence en recherche au Canada et favorise la collaboration ainsi que le partage des connaissances entre les disciplines, les universités et tous les secteurs de la société.
www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca
À propos du CRSNG
Le CRSNG est un organisme fédéral qui aide à faire du Canada un pays de découvreurs et d’innovateurs, au profit de tous les Canadiens. Il appuie quelque 30 000 étudiants de niveau postsecondaire et stagiaires postdoctoraux dans leurs études supérieures. Le CRSNG fait la promotion de la découverte en offrant un appui financier à plus de 12 000 professeurs chaque année et favorise l’innovation en incitant plus de 1 500 entreprises canadiennes à investir dans les projets de recherche des établissements postsecondaires et à y participer.
www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty 

Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver

Recycle, Reuse, Rejoice!

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

International Research Initiative on Adaptation to Climate Change Announces Awards