green ideas

Are You Willing to Pay More for Greener Electronics?

jplatt — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 08:00:00 -0400

If you had the choice between two products, and one was greener but cost 10% more, which would you buy?

According to a new survey conducted by Retrevo, a service that matches people with electronics, 35% of people who think that buying energy-efficient appliances is important would not be willing to pay a premium price to buy those devices.

Now, according to Retrevo's survey of 632 people, 75% of those surveyed felt that buying energy-efficient devices was important. That's the good news. But few are willing to pay much extra for that energy efficiency. In addition to the 35% I just mentioned, 50 percent would only be willing to pay up to a 5% premium.

Of course, if you really think about it, paying more for an energy-efficient device will probably save you more money in the long run, but sticker shock is a tough barrier to break through, especially in these tough economic times.

So what about you? Do you pay more for greener devices? Let us know by posting your feelings below. It won't be scientific, but we'd love to hear your feelings on the subject.

P.S. -- Retrevo offers a free 30-page PDF -- Retrevo's Survival Guide to Greener Living -- which offers tips on buying the greenest electronics and lists some of the worst energy offenders. Worth a download.

Cut Emissions 88% by Downloading Software

jplatt — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 08:00:00 -0400

I had to buy some new software recently, and when I did I found that I had two options: have the program shipped to me or download it directly to my computer. I chose to have it shipped. Boy, did that turn out to be the wrong decision.

According to a recent survey by Microsoft, in cooperation with Accenture and WSP Environment and Energy, downloading a single program saves the equivalent of a gallon of gas.

The savings comes not just from shipping costs, but also from the manufacture of software disks and packaging.

Microsoft initiated the study so it could visualize the impact of its Office 2007 suite. They found that 80% of their sales came from traditional retail outlets. If they could convince those 80% of buyers to download the program instead, it would be the same as taking 13,008 passenger cars off the road for one year.

The ultimate message: "Through electronic software distribution, technology companies, like Microsoft, are supporting the transition to a low-carbon economy."

So think about that the next time you need to order a program. Do you really need that CD-ROM to sit to on your shelf for the next five years, or will a simple download do the job? I'm guessing "Download Now" is going to be your best option.

Save Paper, Save Money by Downloading Coupons to your iPhone or iPod

jplatt — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 -0400

Looking for a way to save money but trying to avoid using all of those annoying paper coupons?

Try CouponSherpa, a new app for the iPhone or iPod Touch that downloads coupons to your device. Once you have the coupons, you can either just show the image on your screen to the cashier or let them scan the accompanying bar code on the screen. Either way, you save money, and you avoid using any paper.

(Of course, you're still using electricity, so you have to weigh that out, but you're not generating waste around you, so that's more efficient than paper coupons.)

CouponSherpa gets your location from your iPhone or iPod, then comes up with a list of coupons for stores in your area. In my test, that "area" seemed to be pretty broad. Some of the retailers that came up don't have stores within 50 miles of me. But others will work just fine.

And tragically, there are no grocery coupons quite yet, since the coupons are from merchants, not from manufacturers. This would be a great tool for grocery shopping, but for now, that will have to wait.

“We know that paper coupons will not be completely replaced, but providing consumers and retailers with an outlet for mobile coupons is a positive start towards reducing the waste created by the mountains of mail we all receive,” said Luke Knowles, who created Coupon Sherpa with his brother Jesse Knowles. “In the future, an increasing amount of coupons will be presented on mobile devices, and that will be great for the environment.”

CouponSherpha is free until Earth Day -- just one more day! -- so download it now and see how much money and paper it can help you to save.

Do you have other favorite "green" apps for your iPhone? Share them with us here!

Another Way to Recycle Electronics: Radio Shack

jplatt — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 08:00:00 -0400

Great news -- yet another retailer is jumping into the "we'll recycle your old electronics for you" bandwagon.

This time it's RadioShack, one of the most ubiquitous electronics chains in the country. Through The Shack's new trade-in program, you can bring products or accessories to their stores or mail them in, and you'll get a gift card with a small dollar value in return.

The program accepts MP3 players, cell phones, cameras, gaming consoles, and even laptops. (Laptops, HDTVs and a few other items can only be traded in through their website.)

Here's what happens: you present your item for trade-in, Radio Shack makes you an offer, and you accept the offer to get your gift card.

If you do the trade online, you'll get to print out a pre-paid postage label, so the whole program is free to you.

There's no word on the website about how your old electronics will be recycled or re-used, but since the one major requirement for your trade is that the products are in working order and can turn on, it appears the old devices will be refurbished and resold.

Give it a try. I'm sure there's a Radio Shack right around the corner from you.

Get Ready for Spring with an Electric Lawn Mower

jplatt — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 09:00:00 -0400

Well folks, Spring is in the air, and so is the pollen. The grass is getting greeners, and starting to get tall. Any day now, it will be time to start mowing the lawn -- if you haven't started already!

But did you know that lawn mowers contribute to an amazing five percent of pollution and climate-change emissions in the United States? Yikes! That's a lot of dirty air for the pleasure of a green lawn.

Now, gas-powered mowers will need to be much more efficient and less polluting in a few years, starting in 2011, when the EPA will require new mowers to have 35% fewer emissions than today's models. But you don't need to wait until 2011 to lower your own impact on the air, and on the planet.

Electric mowers -- there are quite a few models on the market -- use less energy, produce fewer emissions, make less noise, and provide an excellent cut to your finely manicured lawn. Hand-powered push mowers are even better, offering zero emissions while you get lots of good exercise!

Want to see a wide selection of electric and push mowers? Check out Clean Air Gardening for dozens of models, plus tons of other great gardening supplies. Or try your local hardware store -- you might be surprised at what is available right around the corner.

Don't Forget Earth Hour This Weekend!

jplatt — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 08:00:00 -0400

Who knew the brightest idea in fighting climate change was sitting in the dark?

This weekend, people around the world will turn off their lights for one hour to show their support in the fight against climate change.

The Earth Hour event takes place this Saturday, March 28th. Everyone who signs up is encouraged to turn off every light in their homes from 8:30-9:30 pm (that's your local time).

Earth Hour started two years ago, when 2.2 million people participated. This year, sponsor WWF is trying to take it to the next level, with a goal of 1 billion participants in 1,000 cities. So far, they have signed up more than 1,100 cities in 80 countries.

Time is running out, but there's still time to sign up for this year's event, so go ahead and send a message about our impact on the planet and fight climate change!

At Last, a CFL That Will Work in Any Lamp

jplatt — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 08:00:00 -0400

One of the major complaints I hear about CFL bulbs is that you can't attach a lamp shade directly to them, like you can with old-style incandescents. Well, GE has finally gotten around that little problem, so it's time to switch those last of your lamps over to CFLs!

Yes, the GE Energy Smart® compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb is billed as the "world's first truly incandescent-shaped" Energy Smart® CFL bulb. The 15-watt bulb produces the same amount of light as an old 60-watt incandescent, and lasts for 8,000 hours. It's guaranteed for five years based on four hours of daily use.

The bulb went on sale at Target stores in December and will be available worldwide this Earth Day (April 22).

Don't forget, incandescents are being phased out starting in 2012, and some retailers (like Wal-Mart) are already dropping them from their shelves, so it looks like innovations like this are coming around just in time.

A bright idea, indeed!

Business Meeting? Think Green by Meeting Online

jplatt — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 08:00:00 -0400

Every time you drive or fly to a meeting, or ask someone else to drive or fly to meet you, you're contributing to global warming.

One way you can reduce your impact on the environment (and save some of your company's rapidly disappearing monetary resources) is by meeting online. There are plenty of services offering teleconferencing or web conferencing, but ThinkGreenMeeting.com will not only save you some green, it will show you how much you are going green by meeting online.

TGM (as I call it) has a neat little online calculator where you can figure out how much carbon will be generated by the people driving or flying to an in-person meeting, and who much you will save by meating online instead. For example, according to their calculator, if five people were flying to a meeting, it would take 25 trees to offset that meeting's carbon footprint.

(Obviously, that's a generalization. The calculator doesn't take distance or other factors into account, but still, it's a nice illustration of a meeting's impact.)

The service offers flat, monthly fees based on how many people will be attending your meatings. If you need three "seats," the service starts at just $9.95 a month for unlimited meetings. And to get you started, the first month is free!

Give it a try. You may never fly again! (Now if I could just get my next family reunion to meet this way...)

It's Spring, So Start a Virtual Garage Sale to Benefit a Green Charity!

jplatt — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 09:00:00 -0400

Today's the first day of Spring -- are you ready for your first garage sale of the season?

Don't worry, you don't need to leave your house or open your doors to strangers. Now you can search for "garage sale" items or sell your own through Facebook's Marketplace app. And the sales you make or the items you buy can support green charities in the process!

Take Sierra Club's virtual garage sale for an example. Their members are posting items for sale, and a few celebrities have also offered up some pretty nice goods. If the items sell, the money goes to Sierra Club. As the organization puts it, "If every Facebook member sold just one item for $10, more than $1 billion would be raised."

Now, this isn't an automatic donation. To be honest, it's really more of a classified ad system. But the people listing their items for sale can pledge to donate their proceeds to charity, and every item that sells is something that gets re-used and doesn't end up in a landfill.

So give it a try. Come on, you know you're looking for an excuse to spend a few more minutes on Facebook anyway.

What is a Smart Grid?

jplatt — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 08:00:00 -0400

President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan includes US$4.5 billion to create a "smart grid" electrical transmission system. But many people still ask, what exactly is a smart grid?

Basically, a "smart grid" really is just that -- it's a smarter version of our national energy grid that uses advanced communication tools and a whole new range of computing technologies to make the transmission and distribution of energy more efficient.

The first step would involve deploying an infrastructure that will automate electricity metering. This is more than just putting the guy who comes to your house to read your meter out of a job. It creates a two-way communication system between customers and utilities, allowing everyone to see how much their energy use is costing them on a second-by-second basis. For instance, you'll be able to decide if you want to run your dishwasher in the afternoon, when rates are higher, or at night, when you can see that rates are lower.

The smart grid will also improve the adoption of renewable energy sources. Let's say you install solar panels on your roof, and they actually generate more electricity than you need. With a smart grid, you'll be able to sell your excess energy back to the utility and upload it into the national electrical grid.

It will also make it easier to generate electricity from wind and solar in one part of the country, and then transmit it thousands of miles to a completely different part of the country. That's not possible with today's antiquated grid, which is not set up to transmit energy long-distance.

Theoretically, a smart grid would create enough efficiences that it would actually reduce carbon emissions by 25%.

We're not going to see a smart grid tomorrow, but this technology isn't too far off, if we allow it to come to being. All it takes is willpower, and a lot of money. But think of what we'll save when it comes to pass.