WHAT İS SUSTAİNABİLİTY?

As it is our main issue in GreenSavings, we hear the word 'sustainability' really much.    Since it is an abstract concept, we might not get understand it fully.  According to the definition of United States  Environmental Protection Agency, it is based on a simple principle. Everything that we need for our survival and well being depends, either directly or indirectly, on our natural environment.   İt is important to making sure that we have and will continue to have, the materials and resources to protect human health and our environment.  So, the main issue in sustainability is not to risk the potential resources in the future that people would meet their needs.  So, in order to call something sustainable, we should look at whether it ables to continue forever or not.  Therefore, protecting the environment is really crucial for sustainability.  Recycling, consuming green products and services, clean and protected environment and usnig alternative energy resources are one of the ways to contribute to a more sustainable community.  So, we should all care about that!

WİNTER GREEN TİPS

As you know,winter is coming. So, it is good to give some green tips for the winter.  
İn http://www.earthshare.org/2008/09/button-up-your.html , there are some inexpensive solutions for the winter that should be considered.

*Cover your air conditioner: Keep cold air from entering your home through the space around the air conditioner.
*Upgrade your thermostat: Controlling the temperature in your home at different times of the day without you being home.
*İnstall heat reflectors: Reflecting heat away from the wall and into the room and maximizing  each radiators energy efficency.
*Caulk it: Small spaces and gaps around windows and pipes entering the home create energy wasting drafts.  So, good to caulk.
*Reflective window film: The plastic sheets are placed on the inside of window pannes and glass doors.  The film reflects inside heat back into your home, reducing the amoung that is conducted outside through windows.
*Weatherstripping: Creating a tight seal around all your windows to reduce heated and cooled air from escaping outside.

GO GREEN!

We hear "go green" slogan most of the time.  But, do we know what it actually means?  İt is a wide concept that can be said much about it.  But, basically going green helps you to save more by giving less damage to the environment, which is good to live in a more sustainable community and good for future.  So, how can we "go green"?  Here are some simple tips that can be used in our lives.

*Recycling is really important.  İt decreases the waste and helps the product cycle.
*İnstalling compact fluorescent light bulbs.
*Unplugging appliances when they are not used.
*Preferring organic food also for your health.
*Using long-lasting products.
*Using alternative energy resources.
*Conducting an energy audit would be useful.
*Using smart dishwashers.


Do not forget, small steps could make a big difference!

UNİVERSİTY OF MARYLAND VİSİT

As you know, GreenSavings Coop. has a partnership with University of Maryland and works closer especially with the Department of Sustainability.  So, we went there to talk about what both sides can do and work on. There were also 2 people from Electric Advisors and Footprint Free to discuss about their sides and how they can encourage people in the University to use their services. For our sides, we had prepared some questions before going there.  Also, we had prepared some flyers to hang around the school to highlight the advantages, which are basically the discounts, to encourage them to use the green products.  But, people in Department of Sustainability told us that flyers were not a good idea.  They said that they tried it several times before, but it was not attracting people.  Anyways, we will be testing our flyers in UMD to see whether it works or not.  Second idea is to make an event or panel as we call, on December to make people more eager to buy green products.  People who used and benefited from green products and discounts will be giving a speech about the advantages of it.  İt is an alternative way to make people inform about this partnership and encourage them.  Besides the talk with Office of Sustainability, we also went to some potential supply members to talk about the benefits if they join GSC. We got some contact information to inform more about what GSC does, how the system works and the benefits for themselves to increase their businesses.  So, it was a good experience for all of us and had a good day.

ENVİRONMENTAL POLLUTİONS(NOİSE, THERMAL, VİSUAL, WATER)

Noise pollution:

• Airplanes, helicopters and motor vehicles
• Construction or demolition noise

Thermal pollution:

• Warmer lake water from nearby manufacturing (using cool water to cool the plant and then pump it back into the lake)
• Included in thermal pollution should also be the increase in temperatures in areas with lots of concrete or vehicles, generally in cities

Visual pollution:

• Skyscrapers might block the view of a mountain
• Graffiti or carving on trees, rocks or other natural landscape

Water pollution:

• Raw sewage running into lake or streams
• Industrial waste spills contaminating groundwater
• Radiation spills or nuclear accidents                                  http://www.sustainablebabysteps.com/kinds-of-environmental-pollution.html

ENVİRONMENTAL POLLUTİONS(AİR, LAND, LİGHT)

İ have found an interesting article about kinds of environmental pollution in http://www.sustainablebabysteps.com/kinds-of-environmental-pollution.html  There are 7 kinds of environmental pollutions.  Three of them are,
Air Pollution: 

• Exhuast fumes from vehicles
• The burning of fossil fuels, such as coal, oil or gas
• Harmful off-gasing from things such as paint, plastic production and so on

Land Pollution:

• Litter found on the side of the road
• Illegal dumping in natural habitats
• Oil spills that happen inland
• The use of pesticides and other farming chemicals
• Damage and debris caused from unsustainable mining and logging practices
• Radiation spills or nuclear accidents

Light Pollution:

• Street lamps that shine light in all directions, instead of with a hood to point light downward toward the street.
• Unnecessary lights, especially around the home

PARTNERSHİP WİTH UNİVERSİTY OF MARYLAND

As you know, GreenSavings Coop(GSC)have made a partnership with University of Maryland(UMD) and our main task for this term is to develop this partnership.  We will be visiting the Office of Sustainability(OS) in UMD and talk about our partnership and how both sides can benefit more out of it.  UMD has many students, employees and alumnis which is a big advantage and market for also our Supply Members.  So, we will be visiting the potential Supply Members around UMD for joining GSC.  For this visit, we have ben preparing for about two weeks.  We have discussed about the questions that we will adress to them and prepared flyers to hang around the campus about how the membership would benefit the students and employees in terms of getting discounts from Supply Members.  İ think this partnership is good opportunity for GSC to increase its members and Supply Members; for UMD members to get discounts and for Supply Members to reach more customers and new markets.

SOLAR ENERGY

Solar energy is one of the most popular alternative energy sources and i think it is the most known  and used one in our daily lives.  İt is the conversion of sunlight into usable energy, either for producing electricity or transportation,cooking and water heating.  Solar energy is growing at 25% per year, which means that it has been used more and more, year by year.

To list the advantages;

*Like in wind power, the source, which is sun, is renewable and free.

*No pollution.

* Solar systems do not require maintenance during their lifespan and their lifespan is quite long like 30 years.

* İt doesn't make any noise while working.

* Solar power technology is growing, which means that it is getting better and better in terms of efficiency and cost.

Of course, there are some disadvantages of solar energy.

*The initial cost is high. Cost includes the purchasing and installing the solar panels.

* Location is really crucial. For the cloudy and foggy places, more panels are required.

*İt is useless in the nights.

WİND ENERGY

İn the last post, i have mentioned about geothermal energy.  To continue with other alternative energy resources, wind energy is next.  So, what is wind energy?  İt is basically providing electrical energy from wind energy by wind turbines and windmills.  İn the past, Babylonians and Chinese were using wind energy to pump water for irrigation purposes and also for sailing. However, as we look at the current situation, only 2.5 % of total electric usage is provided by wind energy, which is really low. İt is known that, almost half of the electricity that is used in US is provided by burning coal, which has  a bad effect on environment; ground,air and water.  So, it is really crucial to use alternative energies like wind energy to live in a healthier world for today and for future.

As we list the benefits of wind power;
* Wind is a renewable energy resource and it is free.
*İt does not create greenhouse gases emissions and pollution compared with fossil fuels
*The land where the wind turbine is built, still could be used for other purposes like agriculture

We could also mention about its disadvantages.
*Since it depends on wind, in some parts of year, there could be no wind and can't be used.
*The strength of the wind is variable.
*İt is a bit noisy
*İt could kill birds.

China, United States and Germany have the highest windpower total capacity in the world.  The best places for wind energy production are coastal areas, top of rounded hills and open plains.

GEOTHERMAL ENERGY

İ believe that using alternative resources is really crucial both for today and for future.  Geothermal energy is one of them.  So what does geothermal mean?  The term comes from two Greek words, "geo" which means earth and "thermal" means hot.  So, the energy is gained by the heat from the world.   At the core of the world, temperatures may reach 5000 C.  Heat from the centre of the earth cause some rocks underground melt and becomes molten as we call it magma.  The magma heats rock and water in the crust.
The Earth's geothermal resources are more than adequate to supply the energy needs of people. Also, it is renewable.  Because any heat extraction is small when you compare with the Earth's content.

What are the advantages of geothermal energy?
*They have low running cost because it does not need any fuel to generate power.  So, dependency on fossil fuels decrease.
* İt does not create any pollution
*İt provides constant power
*İt can either be used for producing electricity or for heating purposes.

GREEN FESTİVAL

Green Festival is a special environmental event in Washington DC.  Main aim is to focus on sustainability, green products and services and encourage people to contribute to the greener life.  İt increases the awareness of people.  İt is consisted of two days activities and workshops.  Organic food court, recycled craft and educational exhibits for children, keynote speakers about environmental issues and so on.

The festival is organised by Green America, one of the important green business and consumer organization; Global Exchange and Messe.

Time: 21-22 September
Location:Washington Convention Center

For more information: http://www.greenfestivals.org/

TİPS ON ENERGY SAVİNG 2

-Use a heavy-duty, clear plastic sheet on a frame or tape clear plastic film to the inside of your window frames to reduce drafts for cold weather

-İnstall white window shades, drapes or blinds to reflect heat away from the house for warm weather

-Keep your curtains and shades open to use daylighting instead of turning on lights.  Also, decorate with lighter colors that reflect daylight

-Don't keep your refrigerator or freezer too cold and make sure that your refrigerator door seals are airtight.

-Use a covered kettle or pan or electric kettle to boil water, its faster and uses less energy

-Wash your clothes in cold water using coldwater detergents whenever possible

-Wash and dry full loads

-Spending a large portion of time in low-power mode not only saves energy but helps equipment run cooler and last longer

-Today's solar power is highly efficient.  You can buy systems to heat your water, provide electricity and even offload your home heating system

TİPS ON ENERGY SAVİNG

While İ was looking at the site of Department of Energy, İ found a useful guide to share, which is the Energy Savers Guide.  There are some good tips on saving money and energy at home.
-Clean warm air registers, baseboard heaters, and radiators as needed, make sure they are not blocked by furniture, carpeting or drapes.
-Clean or replace filters on furnaces and air conditioners once a month
-Air leaks can waste a lot of energy dollars.  One of the quickest energy saving task is caulk,seal and weather stript all seams,cracks and openings to the outside
-Set your programmable thermostat as low as is comfortable in the winter and as high as is comfortable in the summer,as well as you are sleeping or away from home.
-İf you heat your home with electricity and live in a moderate climate, consider an energy efficient heat pump system to reduce your energy consumption.
-Repair leaky faucets promptly, a leaky faucet wasted gallons of water in a short period of time.

To look at more of them, visit http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2013/06/f2/energy_savers.pdf

WORLD ENVİRONMENT DAY

İ want to highlight an important day, which takes place every June 5. İt is the World Environment Day(WED) which is run by the United Nations Environment Program(UNEP). The purpose of this day is to take attention to the environmental issues, especially the political attention and raise global awareness of the clean environment.  İt was established by United Nations General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment.  On that day, United Nations Conference on the Human Environment begins, so the date is not coincidentally chosen.
There are many activities take place on that day.  Parades, tree planting, clean up events and campaigns and concerts.  The theme of 2013 was Think, Eat and Save.  They want to take attention to the enormous food wastages all around the world, which creates a big obstacle for the ecologic inbalance.  As İ looked at the previous themes, there were also some interesting and important ones, such as melting ice, which refers to the global warmings issue; desertification, and a slogan" When People Put the Environment First, Development will Last".  İ think, it is really good to see that some people do really care the environment and put some effort to highlight this issue wiith these activities.

HOW TO CREATE A BLOG PAGE AND POST?

Blogging is one of the tools to express your thoughts in internet.  İt is useful, easy and could be reached to many people.  Unlike twitter, you are not restricted into 140-characters!  You can write as much as you want. By the way, it is really simple to open a blog page.  

*First, you need to have a gmail account 

*Go to www.blogger.com.  

*Sign up with your gmail for username and create your password.

*Create your blog name and blog site.   

*You could design your page and add images from the settings.  

*To post, just click on the pencil icon to create new post and now you are on the posting page.

Have Fun!