2013 - Page 4 of 15 - Green Businesses

Solar — $1.20/Watt In Europe (Unsubsidized), & Much More Solar $ Fun

Originally published on Solar Love. We’re in the midst of a massive cleantech revolution. Solar power is beginning to disrupt the hell out of the power industry. Electric vehicles are on the verge of putting gasmobiles to sleep. Wind power is already one of the cheapest options for new electricity generation in the world — if not the cheapest. The movement is exciting to watch. And, in a decade or so, we might need to change our name from CleanTechnica to Your Life. The solar revolution is certainly one of the more exciting things to watch. Below is some solar number fun that should get your blood pumping. Full disclosure: much of the legwork for this piece was done by one of our excellent readers — we’ll just call him CleanTechnica advisor #1. Low Solar Prices Around the World EU solar without subsidies as low as $1.20/watt: Deutsche Bank has reported that about ⅓ of small- to mid-sized solar installations in the EU are now going in without subsidies. Furthermore, “Multi-me…

Interns Help Create Solutions For Clean Energy Challenges

by National Renewable Energy Laboratory on Earthtechling They travel far and wide, from all corners of the country. They come from a diverse set of backgrounds, and they have very different plans for their futures. But the 54 student interns at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) this summer all have something in common — a thirst for knowledge and a desire to apply what they have learned in school to real-world science in a state-of-the-art laboratory environment. Each summer, students make their way to NREL’s facilities in Golden, Colorado, seeking an opportunity to work side by side with top researchers investigating the solutions to our energy challenges. “Students get to take their knowledge from school and apply it in a national laboratory environment,” said NREL Education Program Coordinator Linda Lung. “The students are contributing members of these research teams. It’s an invaluable experience for both the interns and their ment…

Investors Achieve Strong Results on Climate Change

Investors achieved noteworthy victories during this year’s shareholder proxy season, with a near record 110 shareholder resolutions filed with 94 U.S. companies on corporate sustainability challenges such as climate change, supply chain issues and water-related risks. Shareholders achieved numerous successes within the energy sector, as described in a previous press release issued two weeks ago. Among resolutions filed with other major U.S. manufacturers, consumer brands and service providers, many investors requested board oversight of corporate sustainability issues and comprehensive disclosure via sustainability reports. Overall, investors withdrew more than 40 of the 110 resolutions after the companies responded affirmatively to their specific requests. A full listing of Ceres-tracked resolutions, including information on lead filers, votes and complete resolution text, is available at www.ceres.org/investor-network/resolutions. Highlights of the 2013 proxy season inc…

When Your Rooftop Solar Panels Make More $ than S&P 500

by Chris Meehan for SolarReviews Thirteen might not be a lucky number, but it seems like a better number when you consider that in 13 states—over a quarter of all states, including the most populous ones like California and New York—solar offers a better return on investment than investing in the S&P 500. That’s just another way to look at why solar is a better investment today than many other investments people can make. That’s according to the latest Geostellar Quarterly Index, which looked at the profitability of investing in rooftop solar across the U.S. The report found that the internal return on investment over the anticipated 25-year lifespan of solar panels was highest in Hawaii (24 percent) and that the majority of top states for internal returns on investing in solar were primarily on the East coast. Among the top 10 states only California (eighth with a 12 percent return), Colorado (fifth with a 15 percent return), New Mexico (seventh with a 13 percent r…

New Coating Inspired By The Pitcher Plant Turns Glass Into ‘Super-Glass’

Originally published on: CleanTechnica An incredibly slippery, self-cleaning “super-glass” can be created from ordinary glass with the application of a simple, transparent coating that was recently invented by researchers from the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. The super-glass is so slippery that it even repels oil, and super-sticky materials such as honey — as well as resisting ice formation and the growth of bacterial biofilms. The researchers think that their new super-glass could be used to create “improved” solar panels, super-durable eyeglass lenses, self-cleaning windows, and new medical diagnostic devices. The new coating was inspired by the ultra-slippery surface of the carnivorous pitcher plant, which feeds on insects by funneling them with their extremely slippery leaves into a “pitcher” filled with digestive fluids. The insects which venture onto the plants can’t gr…

How To Throw An Awesome Eco-Friendly Bridal Shower

Rob for GreenGuides Do you have a friend who is about to get married anytime soon? Are you planning to throw off a party for her before she will tie up the knot? Then why not consider throwing off an eco-friendly bridal shower for her? This is a wonderful way to honor the bride-to-be especially if she’s an environmentally conscious person. If you need some help to pull off a great party, then you should read further. We are going to talk about how to throw off an awesome eco-friendly bridal shower in this post. Why Bother Thinking About The Environment While Planning For A Party: An eco-friendly bridal party is a practical celebration in many ways and one of which is that it will produce less post-consumer waste. Whenever we plan for a party our minds are focus more on how to have a great time and we think less of the waste we produce after the celebration. Plastic cups, paper plates, and left-over foods are often thrown away after the party and these products can caus…