Project Green Planet

Use Voice Mail Instead of Answering Machines

Shaolin Boy — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 23:18:30 +0000

It may not be intuitive, but voice mail uses less energy, and results in less hazardous waste than answering machines.

Similar to the way that power plants result in less pollution than everyone running their own fossil fuel-based generators (or using electric cars versus gas-powered ones), centralizing voice mail into large servers requires less electricity than everyone using their own dedicated machines, which must be on 24/7. If all answering machines currently used in U.S. homes were replaced by voice mail, the annual energy savings would be nearly two billion kilowatt-hours, equivalent to taking 250,000 cars off the road, reports The Green Book.

When answering machines break, become outdated or are no longer needed, they become part of the growing glut of so-called e-waste. Most e-waste (computers, cell phones, fax machines, TVs and so on) is not recycled, and is responsible for 70 percent of the toxic heavy metals leaking from landfills, according to the EPA. Plastic breakdown products and flame retardants are also commonly found in e-waste, and can contaminate soil and water.

Using voice mail doesn’t totally solve the problem, but it cuts down on e-waste, and makes it easier to recycle the equipment that is needed by centralizing it.

Source: thedailygreen.com

DiCaprio Series to Anchor Green Cable Channel

Shaolin Boy — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 15:29:24 +0000

The Discovery Channel recently announced plans to launch a 24-hour cable channel meant to ride the wave of interest in global warming and environmental issues.

Planet Green, Variety reported last night, will cover everything that’s gone green in fashion, architecture, technology and food.

Anchoring the channel will be the series “Eco-Town,” for which Leonardo DiCaprio is a producer, about the rebuilding of a Kansas town after a tornado–to exacting green specifications.

(more)

Source: observer.com

Do you know? Small changes to your car can save tons of co2

Shaolin Boy — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 07:00:33 +0000

Source: liveearth.org

Book: Buy from Amazon

Do you know? Use Compact Fluorescent Bulbs to save energy

Shaolin Boy — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 05:31:49 +0000

Source: liveearth.org

Book: Buy from Amazon

Chevrolet: Fuel Solutions

Shaolin Boy — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 03:05:45 +0000

Chevy is focused on offering fuel efficiency with a choice. This is no more evident then when you look at the role Chevy has had bringing a number of fuel solutions to market.

Website: chevrolet.com

LIVE EARTH: The Concerts For A Climate In Crisis

Shaolin Boy — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 11:24:38 +0000

Live Earth is a monumental music event that will bring together more than 2 billion people on 7/7/07 to raise awareness about global warming. With 24 hours of music across 7 continents, and performances by more than 150 of the world’s top musicians, Live Earth will engage, connect, and inspire individuals, corporations and governments to take action to solve the climate crisis.

Get the ticket now! Click here to find out more.

Source: liveearth.msn.com

Philips Online Advertisement

Shaolin Boy — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 08:55:19 +0000

Click on the picture or the link below to find out more about Philips health and wellbeing.

Website: philips.com

Gadgets ‘threaten energy savings’

Shaolin Boy — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 05:12:44 +0000

The growing popularity of hi-tech devices, such as flat-screen TVs and digital radios, threaten to undermine efforts to save energy, a report says.

UK consumers spend £12bn a year on electronics, much of which is less efficient than older technology, a study by the Energy Saving Trust found.

By 2020, the gadgets will account for about 45% of electricity used in UK households, the organisation projected.

It said flat-screen TVs and digital radios were among the worst offenders.

(more)

Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Green scorecard puts IBM top, Apple last

Shaolin Boy — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 15:44:13 +0000

An organic climate change lobby group has issued green ratings for hardware and software-based IT suppliers as well as other businesses. IBM leads the IT pack while Apple, Amazon and eBay are bottom with zero green credentials.

The lobby group is Climate Counts and it is funded by Stonyfield Yogurt, a producer of organic yoghurt, and Clean Air-Cool Planet (CA-CP), a non-profit organisation based in the USA’s New England region and dedicated to finding and promoting solutions to global warming.

Stonyfield and CA-CP got together with GreenOrder, a New York-based consultancy, to devise the supplier rating scheme. According to Fortune magazine, ‘Green Order advises Fortune 500 clients on how to make money by going green.’ The client would be Stoneyfield in this case.

GreenOrder provided strategic guidance on the Climate Counts program, assisted in the development of the scoring system, and has verified the scoring results for accuracy.

Climate Counts use a 0-to-100 point scale and 22 criteria to determine if companies have measured their climate footprint, reduced their global warming impact, support or oppose ‘progressive climate legislation’ and have made clear and comprehensive public disclosures about their climate actions’. The higher the Climate Counts score, the greater the company’s commitment to fighting global warming.

IT sector company scores are led by IBM with 70. HP has 59, Sony 51 and Dell 41. Yahoo! has 36, like Hitachi, and Microsoft has 31. Then Google is awarded a low 17 with eBay and Apple having a derisory 2 and Amazon zero.

It is apparent from the scorecard that the green analysis is not very sophisticated. For example, Lenovo is classed as an IBM brand and not treated as a separate company.

There is no attempt to rank companies on absolute carbon emissions or carbon intensity, that is emissions related to business model, head count and/or revenue. To give Google a 17 with all the efforts Google is making to reduce its emissions and couple that with Dell at 41 and Apple at 2; both companies making strenuous attempts to ‘green’ their operations, makes the Climate Counts effort seem almost naive.

Certainly its efforts differ substantially from those of Greenpeace.

The main founder, Stonyfield, claims it was ‘America’s first manufacturer to offset 100 percent of its CO2 emissions from its facility energy use’. There are doubts about the real effectiveness of carbon offsetting and thoughts that if sales of organic yoghurt increase Stonyfield will be ploughing a much greener furrow.

Source: techworld.com

Toyota Eco Youth: Today’s youth is tomorrow’s future.

Shaolin Boy — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 04:07:36 +0000

The youngsters. The teenagers. The schoolchildren.

They’re the keys to tomorrow, when the world we know today is theirs. That is why we believe in instilling environmental attention in our youth. Because the right perpective can change the world.

And that’s the long and short of Toyota Eco Youth.

Website: toyotaecoyouth.com.my