The carrot or the stick?

My typing abilities aren't what they used to be since I've broken my elbow, but Ill try to get the occasional one-armed post to the Insource/Outsource front page.

Behold: The Carrot Mob!

Carrotmob will be a non-profit organization. Our goal is to improve the world by helping companies embrace socially responsible choices. Our primary focus is the environment. We recognize that corporations must keep profit as their top priority. Historically, this fact has meant that the environment has suffered, since companies have made more money by harming the planet. We are going to put rewards in place that will make environmental responsibility the more profitable choice. Companies will do what we want, not because of negative pressure, or morality, or a boycott, or a petition...there are enough sticks out there. We need a big juicy carrot. They will do what we say because they won't be able to resist the profits.

We will create a large network of consumers. We will form partnerships with other larger advocacy groups to use their research and infrastructure. Together we will identify opportunities for improving corporate behavior. For example, let's say there's an environmentally harmful chemical in common brands of soap. We would approach several competing soap companies. We will explain the problem, and see which of them is willing to eliminate the harmful chemical. They will bid for our support. Each company will raise the bar with how much good they are willing to do. Perhaps Company X pledges to remove the chemical. Then Company Y pledges to remove the chemical and reduce factory emissions 20%. And so on. The bigger our network, the further they will be willing to go. We accept the best offer. Company Y agrees to take the steps that we want, and then we make it worth their while with a carrot: Everyone in the network buys millions of dollars worth of their soap, and in the process Company Y gains a wealth of reputation capital as well. The most responsible business decision also gets the most profit. Delicious!

Carrotmob Makes It Rain from carrotmob on Vimeo.

100% pure solar power from concentrate...

At the Zenith of Solar Energy
Israeli energy startup Zenith Solar is pioneering a "concentrated solar power" method that is up to five times more efficient than standard technology

by Neal Sandler
Busines Week: Energy & Environment March 26, 2008, 1:20PM EST

Rooftops all over Israel look strikingly similar: More than 1 million households in the nation of 7.1 million people have solar panels that produce hot water—a relatively simple technology that gained popularity after the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, when oil prices shot up sharply. As of the early 1990s, all new residential buildings were required by the government to install solar water-heating systems.

Yet despite Israel's sunny climate and early lead in solar heating, it has been slow in adopting more sophisticated solar technologies that produce electricity from sunlight. Now, with oil hovering near $100 a barrel, a local startup hopes to build on the country's early embrace of sun power to carve out a new clean-energy business.

Zenith Solar, based in Nes Ziona near Tel Aviv, is a pioneer in a new type of solar energy that uses mirrors and lenses to focus and intensify the sun's light, producing far more electricity at lower cost. Compared with traditional flat photovoltaic panels made of silicon, this so-called "concentrated solar power" technology has proved in tests to be up to five times more efficient. That puts it on the verge of being competitive with oil and natural gas, even without government subsidies.

A Boost to Israel's Energy Supply
"Our goal is to utilize every suitable roof, backyard, and open space in Israel to turn households, hotels, and factories into net producers of electricity and thermal heat," says Roy Segev, the founder and chief executive of Zenith Solar. Founded in 2006, the startup has raised $5 million from a handful of private investors in Israel and the U.S. Now it's trying to raise an additional $10 million to $15 million to cover the cost of commercializing its technology.

The opportunity is compelling. Israel's National Infrastructure Ministry estimates solar panels for water-heating already satisfy 4% of the country's total energy demand. With technology like Zenith Solar's widely installed, the figure could jump to more than 16%—a big boost for a country now almost totally dependent on imported energy.

Zenith bought the rights to the solar technology from Ben-Gurion University and Germany's Fraunhofer Institute. A joint Israeli-German research team from the two organizations designed a working prototype, which consists of a 10-sq.-meter (107.6-sq.-ft.) dish lined with curved mirrors made from composite materials. The mirrors focus the sun's radiation onto a 100-sq.-centimeter (15.5-sq.-in.) "generator" that converts light to electricity. The generator also gives off intense heat, which is captured via a water-cooling system for residential or industry hot-water uses.

Tested over the past few years at Israel's National Solar Center in the Negev desert, the prototype achieved astounding results: A concentration of solar energy that was more than 1,000 times greater than standard flat panels.

Avoiding Costly Panels
One of the biggest advantages of Zenith Solar's approach, especially in today's market, is its limited use of polysilicon. Skyrocketing global demand for traditional photovoltaic panels has led to a worldwide shortage of the material and lifted prices tenfold in the past four years.
"Photovoltaic material accounts for 80% of the cost of standard systems," says David Faiman, chief scientific officer at Zenith, and a 30-year solar-energy veteran who was part of the development team. "Our technology succeeds in reducing this to less than 10%, while at the same time obtaining very high efficiency."

After further refining the technology, Zenith plans in the coming months to take its first major steps toward commercialization. Two large-scale test installations are planned for this summer at a kibbutz and a factory. The company will put 86 of its 7-meter-high dishes on an acre of land at Kibbutz Yavne to provide the community of 250 families with more than a quarter of their energy needs. The second project will replace fuel oil used to produce heat at a large chemical plant in central Israel.

Read the rest of the Business Week article HERE.
Read an older article from Reuters HERE.
Read a Next Energy News article HERE.

It's official, Ohio blows...

It was inevitable...I poke a little fun at the diminutive scale of Ohio's brownfield (re)development, thus eluding to our slackeresque approach to renewable energies, and somebody sends me this:

Ohio development chief predicts area can be solar-energy capital

Ohio's top business booster predicted yesterday that northwest Ohio could one day be known as the solar-energy capital of the Midwest.

At the end of a year that saw more gloomy economic news locally, Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, who directs the Ohio Department of Development, offered a relatively rosy forecast for the region. "I'm very optimistic about the future of the northwest Ohio economy," he said.

Citing the presence of firms involved in development and production of more cost-efficient solar panels in metro Toledo, plans for a commercial wind farm south of Bowling Green, and construction of ethanol plants elsewhere in the region, Mr. Fisher said northwest Ohio leads the state in alternative energy ventures." More HERE.
Wow. Who knew that Cleveland was worth more than rock-and-roll and horrible football (I was born and raised a Bengal's fan, so feel free to insert your joke here)? I know that most don't think green when they think of Ohio, but it looks like the sun/wind tides are turning.

Seriously though, I couldn't be happier. If anybody/anywhere is in need of revitalization, it's the Great Lake region. Since 2001 --the end of the most recent recession-- there's been a significant (5%) increase in employment nationwide. While that might be great for the US, the Midwest has seen little (if not damaging) change. It's evident that the 5% productivity is not consistent for each state:

"...Michigan and Ohio have continued to lose jobs. The problem, not surprisingly, is in manufacturing. Michigan and Ohio have lost 159,000 and 136,000 manufacturing jobs, respectively, since November 2001 (see table below). Ohio's losses add up to just under 15% of the state's manufacturing jobs, while Michigan has lost about 20%—or one in five—of such jobs. Only California, a much bigger state, has lost a greater number of manufacturing jobs."

Additionally...

"Michigan and Ohio rank No. 1 and 2 on mortgage finance company Fannie Mae's list of states with the largest credit losses through Sept. 30. Fannie Mae listed losses --loans written off as having no chance of being recovered-- of $185 million for Michigan and $101M for Ohio."

But...

"Michigan...ranked No. 4 in a 2004 U.S. Department of Energy report on new job potential in the wind energy sector. The top spot on the list belonged to California; Ohio was second."

Like I said, who knew? They might be in bad shape, but it looks like they're only going up.

With Congress authorizing $125 million for green job training in the US and the struggling Midwest looking green with potential energy, I can only hope and pray that we jump into the forefront of the sustainable energy movement. Given the fact that green collar jobs transcend the traditional blue and white, consequently affecting all income classes in the public sector, this would be a HUGE boost for our struggling neighbors up north. Companies, manufacturers, individuals and communities could all profit greatly! The sky is (literally) the limit.

The Skipper, toooooo....

Gilligan, Chuck Knowland, Richard, Dawson...just think how many island desertees could have been saved with a solar vending machine!

Unfortunately, they don't take Australian money. Why? Because it isn't green!

That one goes out to my Dad, inventor of the really, really bad joke.

Anyway, is it overly trendy on its green applications? Yes, but the idea is a good start.

Vending machines are essentially Sub Zero refrigerators on steroids, sucking a constant stream of energy from your from your breakrooms (or as pictured, your dream office on the coast of Spain).

My firm will usually try to step around this problem by powering down our snack-filled vending machines, but have no ability to do so with our frozen and refrigerated machines for obvious reasons (although Spring lightning storms will sometimes choose to do so on their own).

Hopefully we'll see more alternative power sources for seldom-used machines.

From their website:

Location has always been the key to selling products, this machine has no restriction. Wherever the customers, the machine can be placed, static or mobile. It has its own internal supply of DC energy. Should power cuts occur, it will carry on operating when conventional machine stop. No matter if the skies are grey, rain or even at night, 365 days a year.

The only Mariah I can stand...

Sleek vertical axis small wind...is there anything sexier?

At 30 feet tall and 2 feet wide, and only $4000 - I don't think so.

Nevada based company Mariah Power has developed the Windspire, the smallest behemoth (huh?) I've ever seen. With numerous applications, residential/small business/kinetic sculpture, I still can't get over the shape. It's pretty.

See for yourself...

If that doesn't get your eco-blood moving, try this...

Kind of like your looking up nature's skirt.

Anywhoo...I've exclaimed my love for vertical axis technology before, but this Savonius design actually knocked the patchouli right out of me. It's mounted on a cement foundation so you don't need to secure it to the ground with hundreds of guy wires, and you can even plug it directly into your house because it doesn't need to be hardwired (a plus for any affluent renter!).

From their website:

Mariah Power’s patented technology includes a rotor, generator, and inverter designed as a complete system to optimize the conversion of wind energy into electricity. The 1kW (1 kilowatt, or 1,000 watts) Windspire will produce approximately 1900* kilowatt hours per year in 12 mile per hour average winds. The Windspire also includes an internal wireless modem that can continuously transmit power production information directly to your computer so you can check your power production at any time.

The rotor is a Modified Savonius design. Our high efficiency rotor was...combined with an innovative high-strength yet cost-effective construction, using a steel frame with low cost insertable plastic panels. The extruded plastic panels come on rolls and are simply inserted into the rotor frame. These breakthroughs in design and construction provide high efficiency with low cost and an extremely safe blade-free design.

Don't know if you have wind? Check out their wind maps.

Have 8 mph breezes? That's enough to start generating energy.

Worried about too much wind? No problem...it's rated up to 100 mph gusts.

I love it that there are so many new prototypes hitting the market. I can't figure out which I like more. Is a vertical axis turbine sexier when it's laying on its back?

What about on the road?

THREESOME!!!!!!

I need a clove.

Vortex Mania...

I recently posted a blog about evil genius Louis Michaud and his wind vortex engine. Well, it appears as though we're only mere moments away from earth and fire vortex engines, because somebody is already working on a water vortex. Brilliant insanity!

From the website:


Austrian engineer Franz Zotlöterer has constructed a low-head power plant that makes use of the kinetic energy inherent in an artificially induced vortex. The water's vortex energy is collected by a slow moving, large-surface water wheel, making the power station transparent to fish - there are no large pressure differences built up, as happens in normal turbines...

Zotlöterer's results are quite respectable. The cost of construction for his plant was half that of a conventional hydroelectric installation of similar yield and the environmental impact is positive, instead of negative.

Although I understand a national fixture like Niagara Falls would never be permitted to install something this grand in scale, it does tickle-me-interest to think what sheer power would be generated from a world wonder so vast in size. Conversely, I'm now working on a much smaller scale, developing a mini-water vortex for my loo. Something's got to charge my cell phone!

Seem much less invasive than our other options:

Monitor your usage, pig....

As I continue to explore the delusions that come with what is -now- a 102.6 degree fever (WebMD says I have Tuberculosis in their Symptom Checker...I'm going for a second opinion), I managed to find something good that was featured on FOX news (fever delusion or not?).

The Power Cost Monitor claims that it can help you save 20 cents on every dollar you spend on electricity by monitoring what you spend as you spend it. It's real-time feedback on your environmental degradation!

From the website:

The PowerCost Monitor™ is a real-time direct feedback display device for domestic energy consumers. It will tell you at a glance how much electricity your home is currently using and your home's total electricity used in dollars and cents and in kilowatt hours.

For instance, as you turn on or off electrical appliances, you will be able to see the adjustment right away on the clock-sized display which would be located inside your home.

The PowerCost Monitor™ shows only your home's electricity usage in real-time. Ultimately, it is up to you to use this information to reduce your electric bill.

I'm weary, but interested to see it in action.