| 3/18/10 | | | 3/23/10 | | | 3/25/10 | | | 3/25/10 | | | 3/27/10 | | | 4/1/10 | |
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SiGBA Welcomes New Members & Membership Director
SiGBA is in the midst of its membership drive. We are signing on new members for the 2010 season and we have some attractive bundled packages which include all the business membership privileges, an ad in the 2010 resource guide and a standard space at greenFEST. Please support green building by renewing your SiGBA membership today.
This month, a new membership director jumped aboard whose sole purpose is the make sure that membership benefits are realized and our members are given the attention they deserve. SiGBA announces Andrea Walhof-Grisham from West Rriver Design & Organize 2 Live Green who has served SiGBA for many years as a volunteer.
So our new members are... PLATINUM - Advanced Green Builders; GOLD - TRPA & Genoa Trees & Landscape Materials, Inc. SILVER - Dale Carlon Consulting LLC & L&P Designworks; BRONZE - Elise Fett & Associates, Ltd. & New Castle Peak Painting & US Bank Home Mortgage & Granlibakken Lodge & Conference Center & Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort & Truckee Tahoe Airport District & UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research; INDIVIDUALs Dean DeGidio, Paula Ash, Byllie Andrews, and Carol Perry ...if anyone has been left out, Andrea will let us know and your name will be included in the next issue of SiGBA Times. |
SiGBA Seeks Innovation in Green Building
SiGBA is asking for your help in identifying businesses who use green building practices in innovative ways. We are also seeking good content for our website and newsletter. If you know of businesses or individuals who are outstanding and have a good story to tell, please let us know! To contribute ideas or content, send an email to info@sigba.org. Or contact SiGBA president Ian Waide at ian@sigba.org if you wish to discuss a story idea. |
UNR's Sustainability Plan
Dr. John Sagebiel, UNR's Environmental Affairs manager gave a talk about Sustainability Efforts at UNR. The talk addressed some of the history and leadership that UNR has shown in the area and some of the current programs.
UNR created the position that Dr. Sagebiel holds in 2001 and since its inception, the position has had an emphasis on sustainability. Following a drive by a student group, the new Joe Crowley Student Union was built "green" using the USGBC's LEED program as a guide. This is the building where the meeting was held.
In 2007, UNR's president Milton Glick signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. Under this commitment, UNR agreed to complete a comprehensive green house gas inventory and take some tangible actions as we work the drastically reduce our carbon footprint. To guide this effort a new Sustainability Committee was created in 2007. UNR's actions have included a lot of efforts that were on-going before the commitment was signed such as efforts to reduce single occupant vehicle trips and a goal to build green, efficient buildings. A new policy was put in place to require energy-star appliance purchases. The inventory shows that over 60% of UNR's total greenhouse gas emissions are due to the electricity we purchase and our on-campus fuel use for heating and similar.
The other high profile efforts on campus include the recycling program that covers everything from common materials like paper and cardboard to electronic waste, metal scrap and other materials. The food services on campus has also made great strides in buying local, organic produce and helping with a composting program for green waste.
The last issue Dr. Sagebiel addressed was in his judgment the most important and that is the curriculum. A key element of UNR's ultimate impact on the community and the broader society will be by sending educated, informed graduates out into the world. |
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| SiGBA Announces Lake Tahoe Eco-Symposium on April 23 |
By David Gemme - SiGBA Vice President
SiGBA announces the First Annual Lake Tahoe Eco-Symposium on April 23rd from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at The Resort at Squaw Creek.
At this signature event, there will be a series of panel discussions including Going Green to Make Green - creating sustainable business models through the green economy, Riding the Green Wave - how businesses can leverage their environmental efforts in marketing, Global to Local Climate Change Initiatives - what we can do to save energy while reducing greenhouse gases, Building the Voice of Sierra Businesses - a focus on green jobs in the Sierra's and Ski Industry Resort Development & Sierra Tourism - warming climates, changing demographics and the impact they have on resorts. This is SiGBA's contribution to the Earth Day and of course you can find a SiGBA booth at all the Earth Day events in the region. More details to come! |
By Elizabeth Dunn, Landscape Architect
The Foothills Chapter began their speaker series with Mike Leslie of Tekton Solar. His presentation was the first in series of three that covers retrofitting your home to save energy and money. This presentation was an overview of common areas in a building where insulation is lacking and the tools used to find these areas. Other gadgets were presented that provide feedback on the amount of energy being consumed in the home. These will allow the users to alter their behavior to reduce the energy requirements. One gadget, the GreenSwitch, allows any non-essential appliances, electronics and lights to be turned off with one switch. By using the tools presented by Mike, a home owner can reduce their energy consumption and reduce their energy bills.
The Foothills Chapter would like to thank the APPLE Center in Nevada City for the use of their space, Lori Lachman Catering for the deliciously prepared, locally grown food and Dawn Cecil Catering for the scrumptious desserts.
The next talk in the SiGBA Foothills Speaker Series is on Tuesday, March 23rd at 6:00 p.m. Lynne Cody Lacroix, Recycling Technician, Nevada County Recycles and Tom Larsen of GreenSmart, Inc. will present the "Keep the Sierra Green" Business Program.
Does your business practice ecological and economic sustainability? Would you like to be recognized for your efforts? Come to this presentation and find out how Keep the Sierra Green program will help your business! Learn about: the history of KSG, why this makes sense, and marketing opportunities for KSG members. Anyone interested in learning how to become a green business, interested in supporting green businesses, and/or interested in shopping at green businesses should attend.
Join us Tuesday, March 23rd at 6:00pm at Sierra Commons, 107 Sacramento Street, Nevada City (top floor of the Stone House).
Pre-registration is required, send RSVP to secretary@sigba.org
Please visit SiGBA.org for meeting information and call Lynne @ (530)265-7119 for KSG program details or log onto KeeptheSierraGreen.org
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| Tahoe Sustainable Food Initiative Hits the Ground Running |
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By Garry Bowen
Imagine, if you will, being seated at your favorite family outing restaurant, and the server arrives promptly, takes your entire order, and then invites you to indulge yourself at their newly-revamped salad bar, beckoning with an offer that includes "our colorful, fresh, and tasty homegrown produce". Would that make your choice of eating place a secure choice to revisit, and inspire you to tell others of the experience?
That is now a realistic plan taking shape in South Lake Tahoe, for both our neighbors and our visitors alike.
In mid-December, some key players in town created a year-end present for the community, consistent with the work of the City's Sustainability Commission, South Tahoe Refuse, Embassy Suites, both Marriotts', Aramark's Zephyr Cove Resort, and a 'smattering' of restaurants, they will all now partner on a time and motion study to determine routing of all food waste to a composting facility in Carson Valley. Part of that determination will also factor in bringing back to Tahoe a high-quality, balanced compost to grow high-quality yields of the most productive vegetables, those that offer the most value and the least loss of nutrients through travel, not to mention much better taste and the value of freshness. We will also offer space for the citizens to work, to grow special varieties, and to learn from each other.
Progress is now far enough along to announce a proposed Community Garden project with far-reaching implications for the future local economy. The two project parts, soil and a growing facility can now be explained in more detail, in preparation for a more formal 'roll-out' in the near future.
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| greenUP! Speaker: Lora Richards |
On April 1, Lora Richards, Resource Planner, Truckee Meadows Water Authority will speak about the US EPA's "Water Sense Program," a program to implement water conseration technologieis in residential and commercial buildings. This event is co-sponsored by Builders Association of Northern Nevada and will take place at BANN, 5484 Reno Corporate Dr., Suite 100, Reno from 8:30 a.m. until 10:00 a.m. |
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