New to EcoLife San Diego’s sustainable living and building consultants blog we will do our best to bring you eco events and activities locally as well as nationally that we happen across or are told about that support our mission to live in harmony with our environment as well as to lessen our impact on the earths resources. [Read more →]
4 Tips from an eco-consultant
“Everybody wants to be green.”
It’s sexy, it’s cool, and it’s socially responsible being green. Unfortunately it can also be paradoxical and elusive. Is it green to lay down bamboo flooring that’s been shipped from China? Hmm…
Whether your project is a home remodel, redoing a city building or you are incorporating sustainable business practices into your 500 employee company there are some basic tenets for your sustainable green remodeling projects that apply. [Read more →]
Are these guys ‘green washing’ you?
Green washing, loosely defined, is a transparent attempt by a company to promote their ‘sustainable business practices’ so you buy more of their products. Examples of green washing are everywhere-from Clorox’s Green Works to Wal-Mart’s PR dept. publicizing its sustainability goals. With that said, our team here at ecoLife consulting, would like to give you a few pointers to spot green washing and make sure you don’t fall for any green marketing tricks. [Read more →]
To LEED or not to LEED
One of the biggest debates in the green building movement seems to be whether to pursue LEED certification. LEED certification by the US Green Building Council in theory is a great program, however it does have some shortcomings. A few thoughts on both sides of the debate: [Read more →]
Living close to San Diego’s coast and surfing for fun I see the effects of plastic pollution regularly. So as a green building and life style consultant for businesses and homeowners but most importantly a dad who wants the best earth for his child to live in, how could I not comment on this topic - Plastic!
It’s no secret that the overuse of plastic in our world is one of the most dangerous aspects to climate change/deteriorating health of the planet/people.
The 2 main reasons for this are simple: [Read more →]
The simple definition of ‘ecolife‘ is living a life where you are aware of your impact on the planet. A life where you make choices to reduce your impacts and support companies/products/people that do likewise. Obviously that is not a perfect definition but that’s my humble opinion at 7:24am on a Saturday morning the day before my daughter’s third birthday.
When my daughter, Kaya, is my age the planet is going to probably look a lot different. It sure looks different than when I was a kid. Growing up, you could eat snow, go in the ocean after a rain, and ski until May. I remember one of my fondest memories was sitting outside of my grandmother’s house in the rain and tasting the rain as it fell from the sky. I was 5. Can you imagine that now? [Read more →]
The Environmental Protection Agency’s definition of sustainable development: “Environmental protection does not preclude economic development and that economic development must be ecologically viable now and in the long run”.
U.S General Services Administration’s definition of sustainable design: “Sustainable design seeks to reduce negative impacts on the environment, and the health and comfort of building occupants, thereby improving building performance. The basic objectives of sustainability are to reduce consumption of non-renewable resources, minimize waste and create healthy, productive environments”. [Read more →]
Put simply-if going green isn’t profitable why would developers do it? The easy answer is they wouldn’t. One of the biggest fundamental flaws in the green building discussion is that green building costs more and is less profitable. Our goal is to help you design projects that are profitable AND green. Yes, you can be profitable and green at the same time, they are not mutually exclusive.
With that said, one question still mystifies developers– what exactly is sustainable planning and development? What does sustainable development mean? Why are we worried about issues like climate change, environment pollution and energy shortage? Why is everybody talking about sustainable development? Is sustainable development advice just the latest buzzword being thrown around? Is it simply fashionable to claim being eco-savvy and plant trees and switch to CFL bulbs to show proof? [Read more →]
As an eco-consultant, I am often asked by clients about how companies connect sustainability and green business initiatives to show that these measures result in real financial advantage. It is an obvious concern for any business focused on the bottom line. For a business, every action must have a proportionate change in its net profits and the impact of putting green business practices in place should be no different. In fact, ‘profit’ is one of the 3 principles of sustainability and plays an important role in whether or not more companies would get into the ‘green business club’.
But it is a complex question because, for one, the immediate effect of green business practices can be an increase in costs, albeit a marginal one if at all. Secondly, green business tips abound on the Internet and through green business guides and following them leads to more than one benefit in different areas. It is a task melding those benefits into a cohesive form. [Read more →]
