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Give a tweet!
Twitter quenches the world’s clean water crisis

by The Green A-Team

How is Twitter helping to provide clean water to developing countries?

Still fuzzy on what Twitter is? If you can express it in 140 characters, you’re ready to “tweet” yourself into the micro-blogging community some 750 thousand strong.

One thing you may find difficult to express in 140 characters, however, is the dire need for clean water in countries outside our own.  Unsafe drinking water and lack of sanitation cause 80% of all the sickness and disease worldwide.  So how does a seemingly trivial web gadget help this planetary plight?

On February 12th, over 100 cities will be hosting Twestivals, bringing together Twitter communities to raise money and awareness for the non-profit organization called charity:water.  All donations will directly fund costly yet vital clean water bearing systems.

Because of the power Twitter has to connect, mobilize, and inform people, these Twestivals have turned a quirky phenomenon into a force for global change.

Join the Twestival in your city by clicking on the following links:

Anaheim Asheville Atlanta Augusta Austin Baltimore Baton Rouge Boca Raton Boston Calgary Charlotte Charlottesville Chicago Cleveland College Station TX Columbia MO Columbus OH Dallas Denver Des Moines Detroit Durham Edmonton Fargo Galveston Halifax Hampton Roads VA Honolulu Houston Indianapolis Ithaca Iowa City Kansas City Kelowna Lafayette Lakewood Las Vegas Los Angeles Madison Memphis Mexico City Miami Milwaukee Minneapolis Moncton Montclair Monterrey Montreal Nashville New Orleans New York Ottawa Philadelphia Phoenix Pittsburgh Portland Raleigh Richmond VA     Rochester San Diego San Francisco San Jose Santa Barbara Savannah Seattle Somers CT South Padre Springfield Tampa Toronto Traverse City Vancouver Washington Wichita Wilmington International Cities and South America


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City Spotlight: Brooklyn, NY

by The Green A-Team

US cities are growing, populations are exploding, and the environment is suffering.

In this City Spotlight, we travel to the New York City borough of Brooklyn.  Better known for its brownstones than green space, it’s home to the the country’s largest oil spill and faces challenges that all growing cities face.

Residents and legislators have had their hands full treating hazardous conditions caused by it’s man-made industrial waterways like the Newtown Creek. An estimated 30 million gallons of oil has been leaking into the soil and water around it since the 1950s.

Brooklyn Borough President, Marty Markowitz.

We have no choice.  This is the future.  It’s about our economy in the future.  It’s about our health in the future.  It’s about jobs in the future and we can’t allow the energy industry to get by us.

While your city may not be 2.5 million people crammed into 70 square miles like Brooklyn, increased awareness of your surroundings can secure safe living environments for your family and neighbors.

For more city spotlights, click here!

Listen here for our full interview with Marty Markowitz.

Photo by *Your Guide.


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Brooklyn Borough President, Marty Markowitz

by The Green A-Team

At the recent USGBC New York Chapter Gala,  Borough President Marty Markowitz took the time to address  a few things that are on the minds Brooklyn residents, small business owners, and the environmental community.  It was clear from his direct and sometimes gregarious responses that while every politician is subject to criticism, Borough President Markowitz certainly isn’t afraid to express his personal views.

Markowitz became involved in politics in the 1970s, by organizing tenant and senior citizen organizations in Flatbush, Brooklyn.  His role as a community leader got him elected to the State Senate in 1978, and spent over two decades as a New York State Senator for Brooklyn. During his time as a state senator, he was known for creating a series of oceanfront concerts and other festivals rather than drafting legislation.

Q: What’s Green about Brooklyn?

A: Well, listen, in fact if you look in New York City, the most environmentally active community in the city is Park Slope.  We lead the way, it’s true!  There’s no question about it.

Q: Can small business get help to clean up toxic industrial sites and move in safely?

A: The answer is yes but it’s going to require a partnership with State and Federal Government and as you know right now, finances are such in the State that are most challenging and I’m sorry to say that we’re on a cutting mode right now but once our economy becomes stronger it’s my hope that the Federal and State Governments will be eager participants and provide the resources to allow the city to clean up.  First up, we need that property, we need that land and it’s environmentally a necessity.  I can tell you that, for instance, there’s a business in Brooklyn, I think you know, Whole Foods, that is not able to really get going because of the toxic level of the property that they bought and that’s a shame for all of us, the jobs potentially that we’re losing not only there but other locations.

I see the future as very bright, you know why?  America has no choice! We have no choice.  This is the future.  It’s about our economy in the future.  It’s about our health in the future.  It’s about jobs in the future.  And you know what, we in this nation better get on this curve because Japan and Korea and some of those Mid-East countries are already on the track and we can’t be left behind.  We already failed in the automobile industry and unless we grab that industry back, we’re gonna be further behind and we can’t allow the energy industry to get by us as well.  This is the future of America at stake so I’m convinced that we’ll make it happen.

Q: What are you thoughts on carbon tariffs?

A: I must tell you that I think we have to provide incentives to corporations to do what they have to do.  First you entice then and then you slap them so let’s see what more we can do to entice them before we slap them.  I always believe the first approach, the best approach, is to provide incentives and then if they don’t live up to their public responsibilities, then the hammer comes down.

Q: What’s happening with the Gowanus Canal?

A: Well, there’s some exciting things about the Gowanus Canal.  There are proposals, as you know, of Toll Brothers to build new housing there and I believe the key, by having more development around the Gowanus and having more residential units, it will really really put the pressure on Federal, State and City Govern to clean up the Gowanus Canal once and for all.

Q: Are you involved in the Newtown Creek cleanup efforts?

A: Newtown Creek is another area.  Riverkeeper and I have been very active, I’m part of the suit and there’s no question that Exxon/Mobil I believe, under Barack Obama and Congress, that we’ll have a much better opportunity to get the oil companies to clean up their garbage.  It’s the truth!  This is our shot, this is our chance.


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As the economy impolodes, green collar jobs explode

by The Green A-Team

Wall Street’s bailout has heads spinning but Green collar jobs are exploding!

In the weeks following the unanimous Congressional decision to extend tax credits for the production of solar and wind energy, jobs in clean energy have increased exponentially.

Here are just some of the American cities taking the Government’s help to the bank:

Little Rock, Arkansas: General Wesley Clark’s Polymarin Composites and Wind Water Technologies (WWT) announced that it will invest $20 million on an expansion creating 830 new jobs with an average wage of $15/hour.

Muncie, Indiana: Brevini USA, a wind turbine manufacturer announced plans for a new $60 million facility that will create about 450 permanent local jobs with annual pay averaging more than $46,000.

Newton, Iowa: TPI Composites newly-built plant replaces a former Maytag facility returning jobs to upwards of 500 Iowans.

For more on Green collar jobs in your area, check out the following links.

Good Jobs, Green Jobs National Conference (February 4th-6th, 2009 Washington D.C.)

Green Collar Jobs in American Cities (AmericanProgress.org)

What is a Green Collar Job, exactly? (Time.com)

Photo by mgleiss.


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Eating Your Way Back to Nature

by The Green A-Team

What’s the simplest and most enjoyable way for city dwellers to  get back to nature?

The answer… eating.

If there’s one thing that makes the cramped conditions and lack of open spaces of city life worth the high cost of living, it surely must be the food.  International merchants, master restauranteurs, and local producers all converge in American cities to connect, and conduct business with a cultured and diverse consumer base.

Anna Lappe, bestselling author and co-founder of the Small Planet Institute, shares her thoughts on the future of food at a recent Sustainability Roundtable Discussion at the Mini Rooftop series in New York City.

As agriculture begins to turn back it’s clock to methods more conducive to sustainability, city dwellers will have more opportunities to dig into the freshest of what urban markets can bring.  So while there may not be much dirt to farm in the concrete jungle, know where your food is coming from and how it can transport you back to nature.

For more on sustainable agriculture and the full interview with Anna Lappe, click here.

Photo by Patrick Boland.


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August Audio

by The Green A-Team

August 1st - Fly the Eco Friendly Skies

August 4th - Olympic Update: Green Games Still a Smoggy Grey

August 5th - Superhero Series Presents: Morgan Freeman

August 8th - Home Tours: Conservation on the Commode

August 12th - Green City Spotlight: Albuquerque, New York, Grand Rapids

August 20th - Word of the Day: Upcycling

August 21st - Worst Polluters: US Department of Defense

August 22nd - Greenwashing 101

August 27th - A Laser Focus on Greenhouse Gas: Debate Destroying Data Emerges

August 29th - Back to School Blues and Greens

Photo by dream_sister.


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Green City Spotlight:
Albuquerque, New York, Grand Rapids

by The Green A-Team

Green means GO for American cities and the momentum continues to build.

Extraordinary advances in sustainable living have taken hold of our cities and this Green City Spotlight shines on some of their glowing examples:

Albuquerque, New Mexico - Inspired by the nearby Earthship community living in, under, and off the land, Albuquerque has recently mandated that all new buildings must meet at least a minimum of Green requirements.

New York, New York - The city that never sleeps has apparently been up all night thinking of ways to make city life sustainable.  From 300 new hybrid taxis, Mayor Bloomberg’s progressive PLAN NYC, and city-wide eco-education programs, the Big Green Apple has plenty to offer it’s 8.2 million residents.

Grand Rapids, Michigan - Now one of the largest purchasers of clean energy, receives 20% of it’s electricity from locally operated renewable sources.

For more Green City Spotlights, click here.

Photo by OpenThreads.


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Green City Spotlight:
Richmond, Seattle, and Goodland

by The Green A-Team

The Greening of America is growing like wild and a massive surge of improvements are taking place in our cities.

Here are three cities which deserve special recognition in this week’s Green City Spotlight.

Richmond Virginia is easy to love as small businesses can obtain big loans to purchase Clean Air Act compliant equipment and agricultural structures that adhere to Green standards.

Seattle, Washington home of Microsoft, Starbucks, and the Webby Award winning environmental juggernaut, Grist.org. It’s become the publication of a generation when it comes to environmental information and commentary.  Make sure to visit them at g-r-i-s-t dot org.

And Goodland, Kansas home of Van Gogh’s super-sized “Sunflowers” is beautifying its reputation with a brand new ethanol plant, biomass electrical plant and a wind farm.

Photo by Daniel J. Ludwig.


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City Spotlight:
Chicago, St. Louis, and Dallas

by The Green A-Team

How green is YOUR city?

As we swing from tree growing programs to recycled tire sidewalks, we’re noticing American cities Greening up! Air pollution, untreated wastewater, and outdated infrastructure are all maligning forces that will rot our cities from the core. Given the current technology and dedicated individuals in government, science, and in the community eager to see ecological solutions happen in their city, a massive surge of improvements are taking place, some of which we think should be recognized.

Chicago, Illinois: The windy city is also the leader in wind power innovations. University of Illinois professor and inventor, Bil Becker, has found a way to harness the downtown winds that bounce off buildings and pavements and convert them to electricity with turbines built into the buildings themselves!

St. Louis, Missouri: There’s MUCH more than meets the arch when it comes to collaborative programs like the St. Louis Gateway Initiative. This powerful force combines local citizens and state and local governments to identify environmental concerns, set priorities, and develop comprehensive solutions.

Dallas, Texas is living large and thinking Green as one of the first major US cities to pass comprehensive building standards for both residential and commercial construction aimed at reducing energy and water consumption in all new city structures.

Photo by Jimmy Six Bellies


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