Visual Acoustics

Photographer Julius Shulman passed away this past summer at the age of 98. Shulman's work played a major role in making modernist architecture familiar and aesthetically accessible to mainstream America by capturing the work of nearly every modern and progressive architect since the 1930s( including Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, John Lautner and Frank Gehry).

Bricker's film, Visual Acoustics narrated by Dustin Hoffman, is both a biography and a survey of Shulman's career.

Official Website

WINDFARMS AND STARBUCKS

World's largest, 781.5 megawatt wind farm, located in West Texas USA.
Ranchers in west Texas are resorting to leasing their land to energy companies to "break even". To some though, "selling out" causes upset.

Personally, I love the idea that wind farms can revitalize a community and help maintain an old mainstay industry and culture of ranching and cowboys. The wild west is staying wild by accepting something modern.
On the other hand it definitely does change the landscape a bit. Thoughts?

Read more about the "Starbucks Rule" for siting wind farms.

-via Treehugger
Business Week-
"Turns out there's something called the Starbucks Rule when it comes to siting wind farms. He said Suzlon and its rivals plot where Starbucks are in the general area and then make sure their project is at least 30 miles away. Any closer and there'd be too many NIMBYs (not in my backyarders) who'd object to having their views spoiled by a cluster of 265-foot-tall wind towers."


Video credit:Sunday Morning Show

Dish Sale Fundraiser

Glenbrook Valley Dish Sale Fundraiser
via Houston Mod
The Glenbrook Valley preservation committee is holding a sale of fine china to support its efforts to be designated Texas' first post-World War II historic district. The neighborhood includes numerous architecturally-significant mid-century houses including some detailed in Houston Mod's on-line database.

According to organizers, the sale will include "100's of pieces, prices starting at 50 cents. Great Christmas gifts, traditional pieces to more mod pieces like Russell Wright."

Sale hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday. The sale will be held at 8206 Glencrest at the corner of Glencrest and Montglen.

CRUDE

A documentary on the true price of crude.
"Three years in the making, this cinéma-vérité feature from acclaimed filmmaker Joe Berlinger (Brother’s Keeper, Paradise Lost, Metallica: Some Kind of Monster) is the epic story of one of the largest and most controversial environmental lawsuits on the planet. The inside story of the infamous “Amazon Chernobyl” case"...The landmark case takes place in the Amazon jungle of Ecuador, pitting 30,000 indigenous and colonial rainforest dwellers against the U.S. oil giant Chevron. The plaintiffs claim that Texaco – which merged with Chevron in 2001 – spent three decades systematically contaminating one of the most biodiverse regions on Earth, poisoning the water, air and land. The plaintiffs allege that the pollution has created a “death zone” in an area the size of the Rhode Island, resulting in increased rates of cancer, leukemia, birth defects, and a multiplicity of other health ailments."

Find out where it's showing near you and Stay Updated. Sign Up to receive occasional updates about the movie’s release, special screenings and events, the ongoing legal case against Chevron and more.
Check it out.

PNC greenwall

PNC UNVEILS LARGEST GREEN WALL IN NORTH AMERICA- PITTSBURGH, PA

"The 2,380 sq. ft., soil-based wall - similar in size to a doubles tennis court - features a variety of regional plants grown into living art on the south-facing wall of One PNC Plaza at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Wood Street in downtown Pittsburgh.

It is estimated that each of the 602 panels, with 24 plants in each 2x2 sq. ft. space, will offset the carbon footprint of one person. The vertical garden, similar to a green roof, will help to cool the 30-story building. Preliminary studies show the south-facing living wall will be 25 percent cooler behind the wall than ambient temperatures. "The wall is a fitting reminder that PNC is the world leader in green building," said PNC Director of Corporate Real Estate Gary Saulson. "City sidewalks are cooler and quieter thanks to shade and sound absorption by green walls and urban planting."

Watch the video below: (or if you if you're viewing this in your email- click on post to view online)
Read More

The Cove

TRAILER: (If you can't see trailer click here)


Taiji, Japan-
"In a remote, glistening cove, surrounded by barbed wire and “Keep Out” signs, lies a dark reality. It is here, under cover of night, that the fishermen of Taiji, driven by a multi-billion dollar dolphin entertainment industry and an underhanded market for mercury-tainted dolphin meat, engage in an unseen hunt. The nature of what they do is so chilling -- and the consequences are so dangerous to human health -- they will go to great lengths to halt anyone from seeing it...

O’Barry joins forces with filmmaker Louis Psihoyos and the Oceanic Preservation Society to get to the truth of what’s really going on in the cove and why it matters to everyone in the world...The result is a provocative mix of investigative journalism, eco-adventure and arresting imagery that adds up to an urgent plea for hope."

Toxic Ocean

These guys traveled to the middle of nowhere to document the seriousness of the plastic pollution that ends up in the ocean. It's not the "island of trash" they expected... but worse. Tiny particulates that are impossible to ever extract completely, that get eaten and re-absorbed ...

"it's the composition of the ocean...we've without realizing it consigned ourselves to eating our own sh*t"

It's completely disheartening.
I've posted links to videos 1 and 3 of this series... they're a little long and the people documenting it can get a bit annoying. Still worth a watch.

Part I:

Part III:

6 Acre Living Roof

Vancouver's 6 Acre Living Roof from Dave Budge on Vimeo.

The roof of the Vancouver BC Convention Centre is covered with over 2.5 hectares (6 acres) of native grassland.

Tour and interview with the landscape architect of the project, Bruce Hemstock.

(via Archinect.com)

TOWN HALL MEETING

... on Climate Change and Green Jobs
Moderated by: Gene Norman
Chief Meteorologist, KHOU Channel 11

WHERE Communications Workers of America, Local 6222
1730 Jefferson Street, Houston, TX 77003

WHEN Wednesday, June 17, 2009 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Registration will open at 5:30 p.m. and refreshments will be
provided.

INFO For more information, contact:
Dallas Jones or Brandon Dudley
Office of Texas State Senator Rodney Ellis
713-236-0306
Dallas.Jones@senate.state.tx.us
or
Royce Brooks
Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
202-789-3528
rbrooks@jointcenter.org

Co-Sponsors: Congressman Al Green, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, State Sen. Mario Gallegos, Rep. Garnet Coleman, Rep. Sylvester Turner, Rep. Ana Hernandez, Rep. Alma Allen, Rep. Carol Alvarado, City Councilmember Ronald Green, City Councilmember Jolanda Jones, NAACP - Houston Branch, American Association of Blacks in Energy- Houston Chapter, Houston Citizen's Chamber of Commerce, Houston Area Urban League, Public Citizen, Environment Texas, Defense Fund, Sierra Club, Houston ACORN

Last chance to see 'Tapumes' at Rice Gallery!‏

Save the Rainforests

Featuring a very green frog....and a prince or two ;)
Thought i would share this cute video i saw via- treehugger.com



If you can't see this video in your email click here

The Green House of the Future

Via - Wall Street Journal - APRIL 27, 2009 - CONSUMERS- By ALEX FRANGOS

"....A fresh look may be long overdue, given the amount of damage that homes can do to the environment. It's easy to envision a power plant spewing pollution or a highway full of cars burning billions of gallons of petroleum. But buildings -- silent and unmoving -- are the quiet users of much of our energy, through electricity, heating and water consumption. The U.S. Energy Department estimates buildings are responsible for 39% of our energy consumption and a similar percentage of greenhouse-gas emissions."

Read more...

Living Green SA

For those living in the San Antoino/Hill Country area, there's a great new website dedicated to living green!  Browse through it and you'll find an events calender full with green events, tip of the week, local and national green stories/news, forums and lots more.  

Earth Day Houston

EARTH DAY HOUSTON

Start celebrating Earth Day, which falls on April 22

Where: Discovery Green, downtown, near McKinney and Crawford

When: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday; an Earth Day 5K run begins at 8 a.m.

Information: For more on the event and 5K, go to www.earthdayhouston.org

All the events are free. Most of the activities will be divided into zones:

• Air Zone includes smelly scavenger hunts for hidden air-pollution sources and a find-it-and-fix-it leak-detection test.

•Land Zone offers activities to help people with the four R’s: reduce, reuse, recycle and respect the Earth.

•Water Zone involves interactive activities, a look at a pile of trash gathered from Houston’s bayous, games and puzzles.

•Renewable Energy Zone has solar ovens, displays and a microwave powered by solar and wind energy.

• Environmental Education Zone houses 30 local green nonprofits.

• Kids Energy Zone includes inflatables, recycled art and the Discovery Green playground.

Solar America Cities

The 2nd annual meeting for the Department of Energy’s Solar America Cities is taking place right now in the Alamo City, March 31 through April 2.  City leaders from across the nation will talk about the best ways to promote solar energy use and how to use solar energy for a cleaner more secure energy future.  This year Houston and San Antonio were the only Texas cities to be named Solar America Cities and joins Austin which became a Solar City in 2008.  For more information visit Solar America Cities.  

H-E-B, Eva Longoria Parker are encouraging people to go ‘green’

From our friends at the San Antonio Biz Journal:

HEB and Eva Longoria Parker have teamed up to produce a 30 second commercial for Earth day promoting environmental awareness. The commericial will debut on April 1 and continue throughout the month. During this time, you'll be able to purchase a limited-edition reusable grocery bag for under $1.50. It looks cute!
According to the article, our local HEB stores are trying to do their part in contributing to a better environmnet. For example, they allow customers to recycle plastic bags at store bins and also recycle aluminum, steel, paper etc at their company. Very soon HEB will start recycling their own tires into mulch to be sold in several stores in Texas.

Easy DIY Greywater Recycling System: Sloan Aqus

Great article from our friends at Inhabitat:

"Who says plumbing is boring? The forward thinking folks at Sloan Valve Company have come up with a compact greywater system for your bathroom that is easy to install and works with the existing fixtures. The Sloan® AQUS® Greywater System filters the water that goes down your sink drain and then uses it to flush your toilet, potentially saving a household up to 5,000 gallons of potable water each year."

Homes Tour

Choose one of two tour times: 10AM or 2PM on Saturday, April 25.

RSVP by April 17
Order tickets by mail from Houston Mod at P.O. Box 541353, Houston, TX 77254 or
reserve tickets for pickup the day of the tour by e-mailing: info@houstonmod.org

Tours depart the Lawndale Art Center, 4912 Main Street. Browse the 20th Century Modern Market before or after the tour (10A-5P).

Both tours have limited space, so reserve early. Priority extended to current or renewing members of Houston Mod.

Tour Price, Members of Houston Mod: $20
Tour Price, Non-Members: $30
Mod Enthusiast Package: Tour, Membership and Guidebook: $60

Your reservation will be reconfirmed ahead of the tour by e-mail.

Tapumes Invite

Gulf Coast Green 2009 Symposium & Houston Green Expo

WHEN: April 16-17, Symposium
April 18-19, Consumer Expo

WHERE: Reliant Park, Houston

www.gulfcoastgreen.org

The Houston Green Expo is free and open to the public on Saturday and Sunday April 18 and 19 at Reliant Park. It is the largest green product expo in the city, offering the latest in green companies and their products for living a green life. The Expo will also offer educational presentations targeted to homeowners and interactive programs for children and young adults. The Houston Green Expo is free and open to the public, and requires no advance registration.

The Houston Green Expo is conducted as a green event. Your attendance promotes responsible use of materials and resources.

Visit www.gulfcoastgreen.org for more information.