Brummet's Conscious Blog

-- Quote of the Day --  "If you woke up breathing, congratulations! You have another chance."  ~ Andrea Boydston  -- Positive News --  Solar, wave and wind power - the top contenders in creating a greener global society. While advances in technology is enabling tighter, smaller, more efficient models, the fact that there is so much interest is helping too to bring the price down.  Helping this is the battery industry, who are sparked by the driving influence of the public demand for electric cars. The more people get on board, the more the price can come down and technology can improve.  Yet another tool that is advancing this cause is the increasing demand from consumers for LED and other energy conserving lighting and heating equipment. By reducing the home's need, and increasing technology's efficiency, offering alternative ways to get green homes greener - we can definitely (so the scientists say) speed up the...

-- Quote of the Day --  “Kindness reminds us that each person has a soul,  each soul searching for its purpose.” ~ Deri Bakker -- Positive News --  A few years ago here on this blog I wrote about carbon sequesturing man-made "trees" -  pulling in the traffic pollution along streets. Just a few months ago I also wrote about some new innovations with solar man-made "trees" - collecting power, providing shade in public areas.  Well today I'd like to chat about wind trees ... also man made. Like the other man-made trees, these wind trees are built with steel, plastic and turbines. The tree is apparently silent, and work even when there is very little wind. These trees can really help use existing space, creating shade, while generating  power for public lighting, or carbon sequestering properties.  Isn't it amazing where technology is leading? Find Dave and Lillian Brummet at: http://brummet.ca ...

-- Quote of the Day --   " If I devote myself to other pursuits and contemplations,  I must first see, at least,  that I do not pursue them  sitting upon another man's shoulders."   ~ Henry David Thoreau, On the Duty of Civil Disobedience -- Recommended Resource --  Hey all - check out the Inhabitat website focusing on creating a better world... they have some ongoing, fresh, exciting topics there that I'm sure our readers would want to know about.   Inhabitat | Design For a Better World! Find Dave and Lillian Brummet, excerpts from their books, their radio program, blog, and more at: http://brummet.ca * Support the Brummets by telling your friends, clicking those social networking buttons, or visiting the Brummet's Store - and help raise funds for charity as well!    

 -- Quote of the Day --    “Better to keep yourself clean and bright;  you are the window through which you see the world.”  ~ George Bernard Shaw -- Positive News -- Alternative power is picking up by leaps and bounds across the globe! It is an exciting time we live in. You know, one of the issues with peak oil effect is that greener energy sources, combined, have to replace all that oil does for us with the same or similar power behind it. So can we fly a plane on solar? Can we power a train? These kinds of questions are certainly being answered. Scroll through the archives on this topic and you'll see we've highlighted incredible experiments and trials and successes over the years.  Just recently I learned of the Solar Impulse 2 aircraft which runs entirely on solar power and is leading the way to proving solar can indeed replace oil.  There are many ways of generating solar panels from the r...

 -- Quote of the Day --     “ I, for one, truly believe that individuals can make a difference in society.  Since periods of great change such as the present one come so rarely in human history, it is up to each of us to make the best use of our time to help create a happier world. ” ~ Tenzin Gyatso, H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama -- Positive News --  Did you know that: - Solar energy accounted for nearly a third of all new electricity generating capacity installed in the U.S. in 2013? - More Solar has been installed in the last 18 months than in the previous 30 years? - Parking lots in the US equate to more space than all the highways and roads in the entire North American continent?  ...Imagine if every parking lot installed raised solar panels that not only shaded the parking area and reduced Urban Greenhouse Effect (because the pavement and cement would be cooler) but also generated power for surrounding buildings and ...

-- Quote of the Day --   “The quality of what is on the paper is more important then what kind of paper you choose. …A good cover letter complements the resume offering information on why you are a good fit for that company. …They can address things in the resume such as a gap in employment, volunteering, etc. …Using QR codes allows - takes them to different links that offer a blog that is relevant to their career, their linked in profile, or online portfolio – they are the way of the future, and you stand out …shows that you are up-to-date with the current trends. ” ~ Melanie Denny Today’s quote originates from the Conscious Discussions Talk Radio episode that aired back on Nov 29… titled: Professional Resumes   (*Click on the title to access the full discussion) -- Green Technology --  A lot of new jobs are being created in what is now dubbed the Green Co...

-- Quote of the Day -- “…You have to find a way to differentiate yourself, the cover letter is the best place to do that. So you want to express your passion – why do you want to be a receptionist in this particular company in this particular industry? So what you are not doing is regurgitating what is in the resume, you talk about why you are special, how you are different. …You can’t get noticed by only sending an email or online application, fax (or mail) it as well. …It is important to have the right keywords. …For social networking sites you want to be in charge of the wall deleting inappropriate content posted by connections there – you have to be careful of grammar; if you have grammatical errors we will probably not call you in.” ~ Abby Kohut Today’s quote came from the Conscious Discussions Talk Radio episode titled: Stand Out Among Other Job Seekers  (*Click on the episode title to access the full discussion) -- Positive News --  ...

-- Quote of the Day -- “To me the written and spoken word is the new view point, it is the broom that sweeps clean, it is the idea you have never thought of before, it’s the other persons moccasins that you’ve never worn before, it’s the traveling across the world from your arm chair…”  ~ Lucinda Crosby   Today's quote originated from the Honoring Storytellers interview that aired back on Feb 15 via the Conscious Discussions Talk Radio show. Click on the hyper-linked title (above) to access this interview, or look to the sidebar of this blog to find recently aired episodes.  -- Energy Retrofits -- Today's guest - Shel Horowitz - is offering an article with his thoughts on renewable energy retrofits, showing us how to “reach green, socially conscious consumers with marketing that has THEM calling YOU.” He writes the Green And Profitable/Green and Practical columns and is the primary author of Guerrilla Marketing Goes Green. Shel can be found @ GreenAndProfit...

-- Quote of the Day -- “ When we worked in Japan (& Indonesia) we encountered that being green is already incorporated into the culture – that people recognize the negative impact of their behavior. …When we green an event it is not just our responsibility to ensure that vendors are using recyclables, and bio-degradables, and diverting as much away from the landfill as possible – but it is also a part of our legacy to work with the event to create a program and to train the volunteers who sign up to educate the consumer and sort trash. …It is a personal legacy that we are trying to leave behind by inspiring and educating. …We have an incredible team that deals with sponsors and exhibitors… we ensure a festival attracts the greenest, most ethical companies… Where we need to go as an industry is to plan, in advance – so we would work with the municipalities to consider their water issues, evaluate things like stage construction projects... We also look at product replacement, food an...

-- Don't forget - Prize Draw Reminder -- A copy of She Wore Emerald Then (poetry) by Carolyn Howard-Johnson -&- Magdalena Ball - a collaboration on the subject of motherhood & A copy of Shawna Stewart's book suspense novel, Twisted Lessons To enter the draw all you need to do is: Email me at: ldbrummet @ yahoo . com (remove spaces before sending) with the word "prize" in the subject line. Deadline will be Sept 20th - noon (pacific). -- Recommended Resource -- StopWaste.Org is a wonderful public agency that provides waste reduction assistance to mid-sized and large businesses in their region - click on the hyperlink above to find the org. -- Positive Eco-News -- *Source: Japanfs.org Tokyo Gas Co., a major natural gas utility servicing the Kanto area, installed a solar energy system at its branch office located in Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture, and initiated its operation in July 2009. The system utilizes heat captured by a solar energy collector to operat...

-- Eco-Event -- Recycling Council of BC Zero Waste Conference Location: Fairmont Chateau Whistler Resort, Whistler, BC - Canada Info: www.rcbc.bc.ca -- Spring into Lawn Mowing -- Ahh. Spring arrives with the beautiful twittering of birds preparing their nests for the unborn. What - can't hear them? The low rumble of lawn mowers not only drowns out natures' symphony, but also disturbs skittish wildlife and sleepy neighbors. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, some older gas-powered lawn mowers produce in one hour as much air pollution as a new car does in eleven hours. Lawn mowers newer than 1996 have to comply to new exhaust emission standards, which is a fantastic place to begin. However, these standards are not yet satisfying for the health of the world. Gasoline-powered mowers produce a cut that results in greater water loss and increased disease problems in lawns. Although many are now made with four-stroke engines (much less polluting than two-stroke engines)...