A California architect has constructed a home that heats itself from the warmth of its appliances. Homes like this have been popular in Germany, where a local architect built the first of its kind in 1991, but they are only just starting to catch on here in the States.

[Creative Commons photo by KeWynn Lee]

Nabih Tahan’s “Passive House” on Grant Street in Berkeley is the first one in California. It uses a ventilator to recycle the heat that radiates from the appliances, reducing the use of heat from fossil fuels by 80%-90%.

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Though the topic of eco fatigue seems to come and go, according to Trendwatching.com, all is well in Ecoland.

No, there will be no ‘eco fatigue’ in 2009, mainly because it’s hard to ignore or to dismiss the mind-boggling fortunes (and the accompanying power shifts and reductions in pollution) that are in store for those who figure out how to get the world off its addiction to oil and coal. Which means a steady stream of eco sub-trends.

They state and I agree though, that the growing wave of green companies will shift from product providers to service ...

Many bloggers and webmasters are wont to check their stats so often it borders on behavior that could be classified as obsessive-compulsive. Fortunately, that is how the folks behind the scenes at the New Orleans-based activist group, Levees.org learned that the harassing comments being left at their blog were coming from computers registered to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Well, maybe they weren’t OC about checking their stats, but after this incident, I’m guessing they might be.

Levees.org is a watchdog activist group that is pushing for an independent analysis of the “failure of ...

[Guerrilla Gardening. Creative Commons photo by Ondřej Lipár]

File this under genius! Carbon Copy has an easy recipe for making seed bombs. Carry these little home-made pellets around and toss them into places that could use a little bit of plant life. Here’s how you do it!

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Jaime Lerner is obsessed with cities. Specifically, he is obsessed with improving their sustainability through urban planning.

[Curitiba, where Jaime Lerner served three terms as mayor. Creative Commons photo by Felipe Freeze]

He transformed the city of Curitiba, Brazil while he was mayor there and now helps urban planners across the world build and improve cities.

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[Creative Commons photo by shoe the Linux Librarian]

An Indiana University study found that urban areas with more green space have healthier kids. Childhood obesity has tripled over the past 30 years in children aged six to 11 and is associated with a number of health risks. Greener neighborhoods could help combat that, according to their findings.

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A new campaign launched by Friends of the Earth calls for investing in clean options for transportation, not in building new roads.

The government’s new stimulus package is in grave danger of being hijacked by the road-building industry to redirect billions of dollars toward new roads that we simply don’t need. New Roads = New Pollution aims to mobilize grassroots activists to fight for a clean investment in our future.

“More roads mean more pollution and more dependence on oil—hurting our economy, security and climate. Investments in clean transportation alternatives, as well as road and bridge maintenance and ...

[photo by Becky Striepe]

The average woman in the U.S. uses around 16,000 tampons during her menstruating years. That equals a lot of waste. In 1988, a field study found that 6.5 billion tampons and 13.5 billion sanitary pads and their packaging end up in America’s waste stream every year. Disposable pads and tampons are wasteful, and on top of that they’re not even necessary. There are reusable alternatives to both pads and tampons. Some of these products seems a bit daunting at first glance, but with a little practice they’re as easy ...

[Image Credit: Steve Voght on Flickr, Creative Commons license]

Can you believe that Thanksgiving is just a few days away? Whether you’re hosting a meal or attending as a guest, this is a great time to flex those cooking muscles and spread the word about eating less meat. Meat production creates more greenhouse gases than the transportation sector. If your family and friends wouldn’t go for a whole vegetarian meal, just reducing the amount of meat at the table can have a big impact. Even cutting back the size of that turkey by a couple of pounds significantly ...

With the holidays approaching and the economy on the downturn, I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels the pinch in my wallet. There’s not much you can do to lower rent or mortgage, utility bills, or car payments, so your food budget will likely be what gets cut back. If the thought of eating nothing but rice and beans for your holiday meals scares you, don’t worry! You can trim your food budget while still eating well and keeping it green. In fact, there are many ways to lower your grocery bill while helping ...