Let Your Money Find the True Meaning of Being Green
With the global push for environmental conservation many people are looking at additional ways to help the environment with indirect means. Perhaps building or zoning codes prevent solar or wind energy in your area, or a grand array has already been installed and you want to help the cause more. A great alternative for people who still want to help make the planet more green would be to invest in green funds, investments or projects. The cost of investing can be less than installing a rooftop solar array, and the satisfaction of helping complete a green project can be great. As with investing in any funds or stocks, though, patience is the key. One must remember the main purpose of investing in a green fund or project, and it is not to make you a billionaire, but to help the planet while providing a slow and steady fund growth.
Invest in Alternative Energy
Guinness Atkinson Funds has an Alternative Energy Fund (AEF), currently listed as GAAEX on the NASDAG index and is currently $3.12 a share. On their website, www.gafunds.com, they state that this fund does invest in international securities, thus there can be more risk involved since the world’s political status can be a factor. For the AEF, Guinness Atkinson Funds seeks to invest in companies that utilize all forms of alternative energy including solar, wind hydroelectric, geothermal, and other techniques.
Take It to the Max
Green Century Funds (GCF) is leading the way by issuing the first carbon footprint report of the companies in its funds. The combined carbon footprint of the companies that the Green Century Fund invests in shows over a sixty percent reduction in carbon emissions when compared to the S&P 500 Fund companies. With the belief that companies embracing environmental conservation will see bigger returns, GCF has introduced a balanced fund with the NASDAQ index of GCBLX, currently listed at $16.10 a share.
GCF has strict criteria that must be met by a company prior to their investment which, according to their website at www.greencentury.com, includes: not being involved in nuclear weapons, nuclear energy, tobacco, fossil fuels, animal testing, factory farming, pesticides, or in genetically modified organisms. Along with these restrictions, the companies must be involved in alternative energy, community development, water solutions, or other environmental projects. The Green Century Funds takes investing in the environment seriously, and it does make note to investors that because of their commitment to assuring their investments go to environmentally conscious companies, returns from the funds can be restricted and may be worse than other funds not concerned with the environment.
Get Satisfaction by Keeping It Local
If investing in mutual funds is not the type of return you are interested in, and you are looking for a more soul satisfying way to get green projects going, then look no further than your local school or university. Many establishments have created a fund specifically for completely environmental improvement projects in the local areas and campuses. The University of Pittsburg started the Pitt Green Fund in 2009 when a group of students wanted to initiate new sustainability projects on campus. These projects are submitted by students and then implemented by the students. Information may not always be readily available online, so the second best action would be to contact the local education groups to see what current projects are being worked on. Investments do not have to be monetary, and physical involvement can have the biggest returns and gains.
Do Not Get Duped
Whether you want to invest in green funds or help support a local green project, the first step is to always research the company or organization that you are considering to invest in. With environmental conservation becoming more attractive for investors, scam artists will always follow the money. Be aware that a fund with a great site might just be that, only a website. Check the Better Business Bureau for any bad news with the business. The U. S. Department of Energy website, www.eere.energy.gov, has plenty of information on green energy and opportunities for projects being funded. Checking www.usa.gov for fraud cases can help provide more comfort that the business is legit.
A Little Step is Better than None
Having interest in investing in the planet is the first step to helping fund a greener world. There are many choices for putting your money to a good green use. Whether you choose to invest in mutual funds, an organization completing a green project, or donating to a group with a green cause, the satisfaction will be in the knowledge that your money will help the planet. The most important fact is to take that first step, and then continue to focus on one step in front of the other.
Let the Wind Blow through Your Air: Investing in Wind Farming
With alternative energy becoming all the rage, development in wind energy is gaining momentum. Solar energy is limited by having daylight to supply power, where wind energy can work 24 hours a day to produce electricity. Over the last twenty years, wind power has become the fastest growing alternative energy. Wind power can be scaled up or down to your needs and funding, and the government has different tax rebates available for certain applications, which can help save even more money. People have been using windmills for thousands of years to help pump water from wells. Only in the last few decades has technological advances allowed using windmills to produce electricity an effective alternative to power.
For the People
Before you run down to the local home improvement store to snatch up the latest windmill, research needs to be done to confirm that your local government will allow wind power. Many communities have a height restriction of 35 feet, which would include your wind mill standing on a pole. The United States Department of Energy has an excellent website to help you get started with finding out the information you need to know at www.energysavers.gov. This website has information on the average wind speed across the nation with an interactive map to find out if your area has enough wind to make installing a wind turbine worth the cost.
In general, the consensus is that your area should have an average of 6 to 8 meters per second of wind to be a good candidates for wind power. However, newer wind kits allow wind power to be used in areas with a lower wind average. Along with height restrictions, average wind, you will need to research zoning laws, building codes, easement requirements and noise abatements. Thankfully, the Department of Energy’s website has all the information and links to start with.
Wind Farming Opportunities
In addition to providing wind energy for eco-friendly electricity, investing in wind energy can also help you create money. One way to do this is to lease land to a wind farm. According to some sources, a landowner can earn as much as five thousand dollars per turbine each year just by giving a company permission to install wind turbines on their vacant land. Given the high cost of wind turbine installation, most of these leases last for ten to twenty-five years, giving wind farm leasing long term income potential.
Another way that a wind farm can be financially lucrative is when a farmer installs wind turbines in his land to power his own systems. If sufficient turbines are installed the electrical gain will be more than the farmer can use. This opens up investment opportunities. Farmers can then sell shares of their wind farm, providing electricity to those who buy into the farm.
One of the biggest problems with wind farming is that most of the best places to put wind turbines are far from population centers that need the electricity. However, companies who own large amounts of land in windy areas near population or manufacturing centers may be able to lease their land to wind farmers, buying back some of the electricity at a substantially reduced rate. For many companies and investors, buying into wind facilities near them can be an excellent investment.
Wind is the Best Choice
No matter if you decide on a large wind turbine to completely take you off the grid, or a smaller version to help supplement the electric bill and provide backup power, choosing to go with wind power is a smart choice. Wind power is a clean and never ending power source that will continue to be used more often in the decades to come. Advances and development will continue to make wind turbines more efficient and cost affective only adding to making wind the right choice in alternative fuel.
Mixed Go Green-Choice Food, Great Service, Sustainability
Mixed is a fast casual restaurant that specializes in made-to-order Salads. Also serving Wrap, Soups, and Paninis too.
It all started from a conversation between a father and his son back in 2008, both who have a passion for bringing fun and unique ideas “to the table”. It was from this conversation that this idea of creating and starting a restaurant that specializes in made to order salads first came about. It was only a casual conversation that they both often had on business ideas and as it was further discussed that day the beginning of Mixed brand started to form; even though they both didn’t know it at that time.
After thinking and pondering on this concept for a few weeks the idea stuck and wouldn’t leave the mind of Mixedowner, creator, and Sioux Falls native Cole Shawd. Cole knew that this was something he was interested in and would love to open so he could offer these fast and fresh healthy salad options that are hard to find in most markets. Cole knew his area and city fairly well and thought what better of a place to start this concept then Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He knew he wanted salads to be the restaurants specialty, but offering other items like wraps, soups, and paninis would provide other great tasting varieties to the customers of Mixed.
The Green Business Bureau asked Cole to tell us 2-3 actual examples of things the team at Mixed are doing to be green?
“All of our cups/lids/straws/plates/silverware and compostable. All of our lighting and refrigeration equipment is energy efficient.”
Cole, what have been some of the biggest challenges to going green? ”One is finding items that are ‘green’ to have in the restaurant. There are still some items and technologies that aren’t available yet in the ‘green’ world. Another is pricing. Even though most items have came down in pricing for ‘green’ products and items it’s still a challenge to balance these expenses.
Please tell us more about the positive results have you seen around the restaurant by going green and about some of your favorite initiatives. ”I like the following GBB initiatives because it’s been fun to train the staff on these easy things that you don’t really think of until your more careful of your wasting:
· Reuse paper waste and have a scratch paper bin which people can use the back of unused printouts for drafts, scratch paper or internal memos, etc.
· Donate a portion of your profits to an environmental cause.
· Offer durable, reusable bags at checkout.”
Cole, have you noticed a cost savings since you’ve joined the GBB and used the certification portal? How? ”I’ve seen cost savings, positive feedback from customers, customer loyalty due to us being green, better/cleaner atmosphere in the restaurant, extra fun part of the business to have fun with and for our customers to enjoy.”
Finally, please tell us about your experience with the GBB. ”It’s been a good one. I’ve learned a lot from the GBB on how to help my business be more green and to maintain our green restaurant. I continue to improve our green operation and the GBB is a nice guidance piece to help along the way and a useful resource.”
Can there ever be Tree-Less Paper
Over twenty-nine million; that is the number of trees estimated by the United Nations to be cut down in a single day on the Earth. In the United States, about half of the lumber cut down is used to produce paper. Of all the paper produced in the United States, only about one percent is made of materials other than tree pulp. Processing trees into paper takes an enormous amount of energy, water, and chemicals. It is a wonder that this is called the electronic age when a third of the waste in our landfills is still paper. Recycling measures are helping to save the trees, but the processes still use high amounts of energy, water, and bleach. Reforestation efforts are helping to save the tree population, but still take 10 to 20 years to replace a tree that has been cut down. Now, new processes are being tried to replace tree pulp paper with other substances and production methods; let’s look at a few.
Bamboo, More Than Just Panda Food
Bamboo is tree-like grass that takes only three to five years to reach maturity. This grass has been used for centuries to create wooden furniture, flooring, and now paper. One company, Smock, states that bamboo paper is better than even the finest cotton paper. With Bamboo having natural anti-fungal and anti-bacterial features, bamboo paper lends itself to being used for archival items. The bamboo plant collects more carbon dioxide than some trees and in turn releases more oxygen. Less water is used to produce bamboo paper than in the regular tree pulp process. Bamboo appears to be the most likely material to be able to produce printing paper on a large scale.
One Lump or Two
Sugar Cane is one of the most common alternatives to tree pulp from paper. When sugar cane is processed to produce sugar the remaining plant is turned into a byproduct called bagasse. By using bagasse in paper, this byproduct is recycled instead of wasted. The Sugar Cane Paper Company, Inc. says that they are able to produce paper by using an elemental chlorine free bleaching process. Sugar Cane products can replace many tree pulp made products including toilet paper, napkins, and lunch containers. However, this company’s website does not list printer paper as a product… yet.
Let’s Get Exotic Paper is normally made from trees smashed into pulp. So, if other items could be smashed into a pulp, pretty much anything could be used to make paper. That is exactly the line of thinking a company called Mr. Ellie Pooh has done by making use of elephant dung. The elephant has already done the hard process of taking vegetation and creating a pulp. The company then cleans the dung and removes the pulverized plants to create a very unique paper product. The paper is more coarse making it perfect for stationary, cards, and scrapbooking, though not a good printing paper. China has taken inspiration and word is that panda poo paper is now in the works.
Rock, Paper, Scissors
As children playing the old time favorite of rock, paper, scissors, it was unimaginable that one day rock paper would actually mean printable paper from stones. That is just what the brainchild company TerraSkin has produced. The company calls it “The New Stone Age, with a little help from technology.” What they have done is found a way to combine three quarters of ground stone dust with a quarter of a non-toxic resin to create a very usable paper. This paper is water resistant, and can be used for bags, product wrapping, posters, and printing paper. Since the paper is mostly stone, less ink is needed to print upon it. As long as the paper is stored indoors, out of ultraviolet light, it can last inevitably. If left exposed to the outdoor elements it can completely degrade back to dust in three to four months time. Since non-toxic glue is used to make the paper, absolutely no water is needed for the process. Rock paper is a new player to the green game and may take the lead as a superstar.
Keep the Trees Where They Belong There is hope that many of these alternative papers will take hold and catch on in the industry, but of course, there will be resistance from the lumber companies. Just as change for alternative fuel resources is taking hold, changing what is used to make paper has the potential to grow as well. Forests help remove millions of pounds of carbon dioxide from our atmosphere, and if the removal of these trees is not slowed down soon, global climate change will simply continue to accelerate. Saving a tree is not just a tree hugger’s job anymore, everyone needs to give a hand, and in this situation, to purchase a case of paper not made from trees.
Become a Certified Green Printing Company
Printer Ink: Virgin vs. Remanufactured
One item that people hate shopping for is the ink cartridge. Not only can it be complicated to find the right number/letter combination for your particular printer, but they are extremely expensive. Many people have stood in that dreaded ink cartridge aisle and wondered why a small amount of liquid has to cost so much. However, that conundrum is coming to an end now, and printer manufacturers are worried. A large portion of printer manufacture profit comes from the consumer purchasing more cartridges. However, an educated consumer can find ways to reuse their ink cartridges and avoid standing in that dreaded aisle.
Recycle and Be Green… or, Greener
There are several ways around purchasing new, or virgin, ink cartridges: remanufactured, commercially refilled and self-refilled. By reusing or recycling your ink cartridges, you keep the plastic casing out of landfills, making printing just a little bit more green. It is important to note, however, that the cartridge cannot be reused endlessly. On average, a cartridge can be refilled about four to six times before the printer head or electronic contacts are burnt out.
Buy Refurbished
When it comes to printing at home or business, you have little choice but to buy those pesky printer cartridges to get your materials printed. But by purchasing refurbished cartridges you can at least know that you rescued this cartridge from a trash bin, rather than requiring a totally new one to be manufactured. Usually a remanufactured cartridge is a completely repackaged product that uses returned cartridge bodies. The cartridge will have had maintenance performed including cleaning, chip replacement and more, then tested for proper functioning.
These refurbished cartridges will save you a few dollars, but they can still be costly. Additionally, care must be taken when purchasing cartridges labeled as remanufactured or refurbished. Some companies may use questionable techniques to refill the cartridge, such as drilling a hole and filling the cartridge or splitting it in half and then clipping it back together. Both of these methods will reduce the efficiency and reliability of the cartridge and should be avoided whenever possible. Be sure to research the companies that sell refurbished products and check on the methods used.
Ink Refills are Us
If you would rather not purchase remanufactured cartridges, having your own used cartridges refilled is another option; there are companies, such as Walgreens, that will refill them for you while you shop. You can have your cartridge refilled three to five times for the same prices as buying a new cartridge. Unfortunately, since cartridges do have a limited number of times that they can be recycled, you will still find yourself making that dreaded turn down the cartridge aisle eventually, but much less often. With a little research you can be assured that your refilled ink cartridge will work as well, or even better, than a more expensive virgin cartridge; spend some time reading reviews of ink refilling services and ensure that you choose a company who has left a trail of happy customers. One note of caution, for most printers refilling your ink cartridges will void your printer warranty, so buyer beware. From an environmental standpoint, however, refilling is a great way to get five times as much use out of a cartridge before you throw it into a landfill.
Fill ‘Em Up on Your Own
If you want to save even more money, then the best way is to refill your ink cartridges on your own. Refill kits are cheap and you can fill six cartridges for the price of a single refill at some other company; that makes refilling your own cartridges about a tenth the price of buying them new, so you save green money and the green environment.
Refilling ink or toner cartridges yourself can be done, and it is less expensive than having a company do it, but it requires a steady hand and patience. Be sure to research how to refill the particular cartridge you have because you cannot just grab any needle and squirt ink into it. Different cartridges also use different styles of needles to get into the fill holes. Just as with purchasing remanufactured cartridges, you want to be sure to research where you buy refill kits from. They should include the proper sized needles, high quality ink, and instructions. Also, ensure that you choose inks that are non-toxic and safe to work with, while also working in a well ventilated area.
#gbbbiz Twitter Chat: “Sustainable Business-Top Down or Bottom Up Approach?”
GBB invites you to participate in our #gbbbiz twitter chat on Wednesday October 12th from 12 to 1 PM CT where we will discuss best practices for incorporating sustainability in business practices. Here’s a list of questions we will be discussing during the chat:
1) How to incorporate sustainability in corporate culture?
2) How well does Top Down approach work? What should be the role of State and Local Government?
3) Is making a green team a more viable way of encouraging sustainability?
4) What are the benefits of Bottom Up approach? How can customers encourage businesses to go green?
Join #gbbbiz to share your insights. Looking forward to having a great conversation.
