Brummet's Conscious Blog

Of Asphalt and Cement There is a lot of new "green space" movements happening across the planet - schools and universities and even hospitals are increasingly putting in gardens.  A recent issue of the Seeds of Diversity magazine  shared several articles about school and college programs that work with seed saving organizations using grants, volunteers and donated seed to create new grow-out programs helping to ensure there will be a variety of plants available to future gardeners.  I read a post on Facebook that LA has passed a bylaw that reverses other, closed-minded laws…  laws that prevented people from growing gardens in empty lots and unused, uncovered (no asphalt or concrete) lots and spaces. Today, where ever they are allowed - people are taking up shovels and expressing creativity and concern for the environment and where their food is coming from by replacing front lawns (often unused space) into gardens. Restaurants are creating gard...

-- Quote of the Day --  "I think of life itself now as a wonderful play that I've written for myself, and so my purpose is to have the utmost fun playing my part." ~ Shirley MacLaine  -- Green Buildings --  Did you know that the color of your building plays a role in climate change?  If you think about it, the colors black and red in particular are well known for absorbing and attracting heat - so if buildings have these colors on their roof, driveways, or siding then they will attract more heat, trapping it in the area and thereby contribute to Urban Greenhouse Effect . Where as white colors and shiny surfaces reflect heat and light, contributing to Urban Glare. And these effects play a huge role in the energy costs for your building and the comfort of the residents. Painting those surfaces tan or light gray, or installing siding of similar colors is a simple solution.  You can choose to purchas...

-- Quote of the Day --  “The creative individual has the capacity to free himself from the web of social pressures in which the rest of us are caught. He is capable of questioning the assumptions that the rest of us accept.”  ~ John Gardner -- Green Roof --  Have you heard of green roof systems yet? We’ve written about and spoken on the topic many times over the years and have found there are some amazing projects going on in the world to create healthier buildings and communities.  You see, having a “green” building means that plants are grown on the flat surfaces on the building surface (which can really include balconies as well as walls) and also in the areas surrounding the exterior of the building, and sometimes indoor gardens as well.  Having a garden on the roof for instance might make for a healthy walking area for employees on breaks where they can socialize and get fresh air. I...

 -- Quote of the Day -- "The three hardest tasks in the world are neither physical feats nor intellectual achievements, but moral acts: to return love for hate, to include the excluded, and to say - 'I was wrong'." ~ Sydney Harris  -- Advancements in Solar Technologies -- Some fantastic news about paint came from a recent program on the CBC radio station which discussed a new solar cell that can be painted on roadways, rooftops, building siding and more – this is a new technology that is, like most alternative energy sources, needing some way of storing the captured energy. But the idea of using the surface area of the road infrastructure on this planet (said to equal the surface area of the US) to produce at least 20% of the world’s energy needs is a pretty cool prospect. Speaking of pretty cool – I was watching an environmental DVD and learned that part of the issue with Urban Greenhouse Effect is that we have so many dark roofs,...

-- Positive Eco-News -- I love celebrating youth initiative programs or group efforts... the youth have such a powerful voice and once they learn to use it, they can then choose to employ it for the rest of their lives. So often younger people feel like they are powerless, like their voice doesn't matter and that they can surely hardly have an impact on this imposing society. But they can, and do... In Japan, for instance, there is this really interesting program called The Shibuya Flower Project that involves youth organizing groups of volunteers that work to grow flowers " in front of the Shibuya train station, on the side of Miyashita Koena Park, and along Sibuya Park Street ". This project started in 2003 with potted flowers, in an effort to create a garden environment in a place where the congested streets are often littered with garbage and cigarette butts. Local shops support the youth by offering incentives, and the youth get to share their experiences through ...