Tag Archives: green

We Green DC
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From Waves to Grain: New Green Flicks

Photo courtesy of
‘Surfer Rides Wave Brought by Hurricane Bill’
courtesy of ‘michelemeek’

Take a break. Right now, really, and watch the lush, smooth, curling waves on this trailer from BlueGreen. Ahhh, the beach! I can even feel the sand between my toes.

BlueGreen, they say, is a documentary about the human connection to the ocean. That sounds wonderful, and I think I vaguely heard people saying as such on the trailer. But mostly I was mesmerized by the waves and the surfers sliding along them, including stars Keith Malloy, Layne Beachley, and Robert August. Robert “Wingnut” Weaver narrates.

BlueGreen is one of three summer movies with an earth-friendly bent that have screenings around town in the next few days. The next few hot, dog days of summer, that is — days perfect for slipping inside a chilly theater.
Continue reading →

The Daily Feed, We Green DC
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Green Houses

Photo courtesy of
‘IMG_1860’
courtesy of ‘soundfromwayout’

Get out your hankies. The “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” TV crews are here, and they’re painting the town…green?

That’s right. They’re rebuilding the nonprofit Fishing School in DC and the Hyattsville home of Nikema and Tamara Tripp, both with energy-efficient features. The masterpieces will be unveiled on Saturday, to tears of joy.

This isn’t the only extreme green makeover in town. Carbonfree DC soon will be doing the same for 20 homes in Deanwood and Shaw.

The Daily Feed, We Green DC
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Splish Splash Statues..and Free Yoga Mats

Photo courtesy of
‘Dew on bamboo’
courtesy of ‘Lip Kee’

Over the years, artists have tried to capture the magic of water in myriad ways. Sergio Martinez chose bamboo and organic hemp rope. His sustainably made eco-statues now leap over walkways at, fittingly, the Crystal City WaterPark, near Crystal Drive and S. 18th St.

Come by tonight from 5-7 p.m., and you can meet the artist himself. Sport & Health will lead “a yogic commemoration reflective of the eco-art.” And they’re giving away free yoga mats. Boat pose, anyone?

The Daily Feed, We Green DC
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Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover to Come to DC

Photo courtesy of
‘Front Step’
courtesy of ‘Michael Cornelius’

This just announced — CarbonfreeDC has won $20,000 in the Green Effect contest sponsored by National Geographic and Sun Chips!

They will use their winnings to carry out an Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover, and help 20 families from a low-income block to green their homes and lifestyles.

Congratulations, Carbonfree DC — and thanks to everyone who voted!

The Daily Feed, We Green DC
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Vote to Green DC!

Photo courtesy of
‘VOTE’
courtesy of ‘christaki’

A green effort in DC may soon win a national contest — if you vote!

CarbonfreeDC is one of 10 finalists in the Green Effect competition for its “Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover” campaign, which would use the $20,000 winnings to help 20 families from a low-income city block in DC to green their homes and lifestyles, and save money. National Geographic and Sun Chips are sponsoring the competition.

You can vote once a day through Monday. Cast yours now!

The Daily Feed, We Green DC
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Pepco Goes Green?

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

Pepco announced a green honor today  — its corporate headquarters has received the city’s first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance certification, at the Gold level. (See more about LEED and DC’s first LEED Silver office building.)

To earn the recognition, Pepco dropped the building’s energy consumption by nearly 17 percent and water use by 1.12 million gallons through retrofits and energy conservation measures. An audit and education programs increased recycling.

I applaud any efforts toward sustainability, including this one — yet feel I must point out that only about 4 percent of the energy coming over Pepco’s lines today to DC and Maryland is renewable. (Did you know you were burning that much fossil fuel?) To put your utility dollars toward green power, check out Clean Currents.

The Daily Feed
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Don’t Miss the Big Green Bus

Photo courtesy of
‘school bus’
courtesy of ‘unai pascual’

The Big Green Bus is coming to Saturday’s Bethesda Big Train baseball game. This summer, 15 Dartmouth students are driving this bus, powered by waste vegetable oil, across the country to raise awareness and spur action on climate change.

You can see them at the 7:30 p.m. game at Shirley Povich Field in Cabin John Regional Park. Wear your Bethesda Green t-shirt, or buy one there, and you can get a free ticket as long as their supply lasts.

We Green DC
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We Love DC Green: Events Guide

Photo courtesy of
‘Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens Pond’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

As the first day of summer rapidly approaches and even more rain drops from the sky, our world is turning green. Green with leaves, and with green-related events! Here’s a quick roundup of ways you can enjoy and help the planet in the next two weeks:

Thursday, June 18

Celebrate the Solstice.
7 to 9 p.m., Arlington, Bluemont Park, Wilson Blvd. and N. Manchester St.

Celebrate the year’s longest day with an active evening in the park. Choose from multiple service projects, including invasive plant removal, stream cleanup, neighborhood cleanup, and storm drain marking. Gather afterwards for snacks. Register.

Get Happy.
6 p.m., Arlington, Guarapo (near Courthouse Metro).

Come to what’s billed as HUGE happy hour, with specials on appetizers and drinks. Meet other greenies from CarbonfreeDC and other community groups including the 20’s & 30’s Going Out Group, the Kick A$$ Professionals, the DMV Ladies, NoVa Singles and DC Simplicity.
Continue reading →

The Daily Feed, We Green DC
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Vote for the Greenest School

Photo courtesy of
‘Recycling Kid’

The Arlington Traditional School has been named one of 20 finalists in Walmart’s “Earth Day, Every Day School Challenge.” They’ve received a $500 gift card to continue their efforts and are now up for the grand prize. The school with the most votes wins $20,000 to further environmental projects.

To be fair, I’ve not read all the entries. But hey, these boys and girls are local. They recycle, they plant gardens, and best of all they’ve got a plan to reduce pollution in Lubber Run. Maybe they can take on the Alexandria waterfront next.

They have my vote!

We Green DC
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We Love DC Green: Lafayette Tower a DC First in Green Buildings

LEED Platinum
The first thing I noticed when I saw Lafayette Tower at 801 17th St., N.W., near the White House, were the windows — lots of glass running from floor to floor, reflecting some fluffy clouds and blue sky. But this is not just any glass. It is triple-paned glass, made to be energy efficient. Its thickness blocks sound, makes it nearly as hard to break as a car windshield, and gives an extra layer on which to put a special coating that keeps heat from seeping through the pane — so the office stays warmer in winter and cooler in summer.

The windows are just one of the many features of this, the first commercial office building in DC to be recognized for its energy efficiency with LEED Platinum certification.

Okay, I hear you. What does that mean?
Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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New Green Meetup Tonight

Photo courtesy of
‘Leaf after the Rain’
courtesy of ‘nightmareguitars’
This just in: a fun idea for escaping tonight’s spring showers.

There’s an inaugural networking event tonight for The DC Green Connection at DC Bread & Brew near Dupont Circle, 1247 20th St. NW, from 7:30-9:30 p.m.

It’ll feature a short talk on Mayor Fenty’s new Green DC agenda, thoughts on what being a green restaurant means, and the chance to try a new organic vodka line. Appetizers and drink specials are part of it too, all for $10 worth of green.

Technology, The Features, We Green DC
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We Love DC Green: Getting 70 MPG on GW Parkway

Photo courtesy of Ford Motor Company
Wayne explains more, courtesy of Ford Motor Company

I have to admit–when I think of driving on the George Washington Parkway, fuel efficiency isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. I think more of the feel of the car rolling along the gentle hills and curves, of sneaking glances out at the river and up at the thick green web of leaves, and of blasting the music.

But last Saturday, I got to experience the parkway from a whole new perspective. The crew from the 1,000 Mile Challenge was in town, attempting to eke 1,000 miles from a single tank of gas in a Ford Fusion Hybrid, and world record hypermiler Wayne Gerdes was giving driving lessons.

The idea behind hypermiling is that the way you drive can greatly affect your gas mileage, and that by using special driving techniques you can coax more mileage out of each gallon of gas. Wayne and the Challenge team proved this point nicely. The Challenge began on Saturday morning at Mt. Vernon, with team members driving the Challenge car round the clock. That one tank finally ran out at 1,446 miles.

Meanwhile, I hopped in a replica with Wayne, PR maven Nicole, and a guest from Earth911.com to find out how hypermiling works. Continue reading →

News
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Capital Frenzy

Photo courtesy of clydeorama

Wow, busy week across the NHL. Lots of moves with the July 1 Free Agent Turkey Shoot, and the Washington Capitals are right in the thick of it.

McPhee managed to re-sign Mike Green on Monday, June 30, effectively sealing up a potential weak spot and relieving many diehard Caps fans. So one less headache to worry over when Tuesday hit.

And hit it did.

Biggest news? Smoking-hot goaltender Christobal Huet bolted for more money and a suddenly very dangerous team in the Chicagoland area. Can’t blame the Blackhawks there – missing the playoffs by three points with an average goalie squad made any potential FA goalies legitimate targets.

Unfortunately, it forced McPhee to take a Vegas-sized risk by approaching – and signing – Avalanche goalie Jose Theodore for a more-than-modest two year deal worth $9M. BIG risk. HUGE. Now, if this was 2003, then it wouldn’t be a big deal (ok, maybe it would be, considering his lackluster play the next few years) – but despite his sudden transformation from mediocre back to the old Hart and Vezina winner with the ‘lanche last season, it really remains to be seen which Theodore the Caps got on this deal.

The goalie situation really is crucial to the Caps’ success in the next year. With Huet bolting for more lucrative waters and Kolzig “bolting” to Tampa (for what will probably be his final year or two of his career) as a mentor for the Lightning’s fresh-faced netminders, the play of Theodore is going to either sink or rocket Capital play. All the offense in the world isn’t going to matter if the goalie position is leakier than Montgomery County’s water lines.

There’s still more signings and moves to be had, for sure, as McPhee is still faced with UFAs Cooke, Fedorov, Bournedienne, Arsene, Riazantsev, Stana, Morgan and Werner. It will definitely be an interesting summer on ice.

Green Winds Up, courtesy of clydeorama