Thu.Jan 23, 2020

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What businesses should know about the evolution of rural solar

GreenBiz

Solar panels may harness the sun’s energy in the same way that plants do, but while some rural residents view them as another revenue-enhancing crop, others see them more as weed-like nuisances that threaten their pastoral way of life.

Energy 508
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Restored Georgian townhouse has rainwater-fed green roof

Inhabitat - Innovation

The Sun Rain Room is an extension and restoration of a two-story Grade-II Listed townhouse designed and constructed by Tonkin Liu. Partnering with local craftspeople to complete the project, the London-based architecture firm was able to create an extension of the existing structure through landscape that feeds off of the sun and rain.

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Think distributed solar-plus-storage isn’t cost-effective? Think again

GreenBiz

Commercial customers paying demand charges and time-of-use rates should seriously consider an investment in these assets.

Demand 491
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Check out these amazing sustainable cabins by ZeroCabin

Inhabitat - Innovation

Armed only with experience in biology, chemistry and physics, a group of Chile-based scientists took concepts ranging from photosynthesis to thermodynamics to create Zerocabin, a collection of off-grid and self-sustaining cabins that use “free energy” to function.

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Electrofuels Are the Future: The Driving Force to Decarbonizing Heavy Transport

Speaker: Ayesha Choudhury - Senior Vice President, Head of Capital Markets at Infinium

With the first wave of the energy transition, renewable energy sources (such as solar and wind) have begun replacing coal power generation. However, some sectors are lagging behind and struggling to decarbonize more than others, including large-scale transportation like commercial aviation, shipping, and rail transit. Electrofuels (aka eFuels) are the next generation of solutions to help the hardest-to-abate sectors pivot from their reliance on fossil fuels.

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How companies can source polyester more sustainably

GreenBiz

The most widely used fiber in the world, polyester accounts for roughly half of the fiber market overall and about 80 percent of all synthetic fibers.

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Stunning House on the Rocks uses geothermal power

Inhabitat - Innovation

On Finland’s windswept Turku archipelago, Helsinki-based design practice and log house kit purveyor Pluspuu has completed yet another ecological wood house — fittingly named the House on the Rocks. Designed to embrace landscape views in multiple directions, the three-bedroom, two-bath residence is a custom design based on Pluspuu’s pre-designed house models Isokari and Kustavi.

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Portuguese Oil Firm Galp Becomes Major Solar Player With 2.9GW Deal

GreenTechMedia

Portuguese oil company Galp Energia will become one of the biggest players in Europe’s booming Spanish solar market, after closing a €2.2 billion ($2.4 billion) deal for the solar assets of Spanish construction firm ACS. The deal includes 900 megawatts of operational assets and a pipeline expected to yield a further 2 gigawatts by 2023. ACS, via subsidiary Cobra Concesiones, won 1,550 megawatts in Spain’s 2017 auction.

Europe 193
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Charming hobbit home in Slovenian 'Shire' is built of local, natural materials

Inhabitat - Innovation

While it may not be located in the Shire, this hobbit home in Slovenia is just as magical as a Middle Earth abode.

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Could Green Hydrogen Become the ‘New Oil’?

GreenTechMedia

Less than one percent of all hydrogen produced today comes from renewables. Is that about to change? The vice president of Siemens Middle East just called green hydrogen the “new oil” in the coming decades. A lot of big industrial companies and oil majors are taking another serious look at hydrogen. Why? In an era of extremely cheap renewables that are increasingly being curtailed, hydrogen production could finally be an attractive use.

Hydrogen 189
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And the winners are: How awards can celebrate past achievement and spur future innovation

GreenBiz

And we need innovation to tackle the climate emergency.

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AR/VR Simulations for Sustainable, Regenerative, Circular Cities

Speaker: Nik Gowing, Brenda Laurel, Sheridan Tatsuno, Archie Kasnet, and Bruce Armstrong Taylor

With 191 country signatories to the Paris Climate Agreement now hard at work in the race to zero carbon by 2050, much of the heavy lifting in ecosystem sustainability falls on the shoulders of the world's densely populated urban centers. This conversation considers how today's AI-enabled simulation media, such as AR/VR, can be effectively applied to accelerate learning, understanding, training, and solutions-modeling to sustainability planning and design.

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Firm delivers savings and efficiency for new life science facility

Envirotec Magazine

Initially, Bürkert was approached to deliver a number of diaphragm valves. Creating a new hygienic production facility that includes ATEX zone 1 areas is a complex task, especially when the facility will need over 1,400 control valves. Hygienic process systems specialist Briggs of Burton PLC called upon the expertise of measurement and control systems manufacturer Bürkert to help deliver a large-scale manufacturing facility for a Life Sciences company, Purolite.

Logistics 147
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Henning Larsen unveils plans for Copenhagens first all-timber community

Inhabitat - Innovation

A sustainable, nature-filled neighborhood unlike any other in Denmark could soon take root just beyond Copenhagen’s city center.

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ConnectDER Draws Investment from Avista in Latest Funding Round

GreenTechMedia

ConnectDER, a startup with a smart meter socket device that’s been deployed in the thousands by select U.S. utilities to support distributed solar, has closed a $7 million series B round round to help roll out a new version of its system targeting behind-the-meter batteries and plug-in electric cars. This week's round was led by Clean Energy Ventures , Skyview Ventures, and Avista Development, the unregulated arm of Pacific Northwest utility Avista.

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Sweden to develop plan to phase out fossil fuel cars

Charged

Sweden’s government has appointed a commission of inquiry to offer proposals on when and how sales of new fossil fuel cars, and fossil fuels themselves, should be phased out. The group is also tasked with developing a plan to bring about the same changes in the EU as a whole. The commission is to propose a year by which fossil fuels should be phased out in Sweden, and the measures needed for this to happen in the most cost-effective manner possible.

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How Digital Transformation will Bend the Curve of the Linear Economy Toward the Circular

Speaker: Bruce Armstrong Taylor, Co-Founder & Managing Director of SmartNations Foundation, Jimmy Jia, Venture Partner at Pi Labs, Fabienne Durand, Senior Advisor to the SmartNations Foundation, & Roger Strukhoff, Executive Director of the Tau Institute

The Climate 4.0 Economy. Climate change is here. We see it in many ways already. Weather catastrophes: Texas freezing over, the wildfires of California, the increasingly unpredictable violence and frequency of hurricanes, the rapid melting and disappearance of polar ice caps. Much more evidence all around us. What can we do in our corporate organizations, in our homes and communities, to change the current course?

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What Would an Accelerated Global Energy Transition Look Like?

GreenTechMedia

Cumulative emissions from the past five decades reached 1.125 trillion metric tons last year. This has resulted in a temperature increase of more than 1 degree Celsius from pre-industrial levels, and it's had a tangible impact on the environment: bush fires in Australia, continued Arctic ice melting and increasingly extreme weather events worldwide.

Energy 130
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Fastned to bring 13 new fast charging stations to Belgium

Charged

Flanders, Belgium, is about to become a whole lot friendlier to EV drivers. Fastned , a growing charging network operator, plans to add 13 new highway fast charging stations to its network. The new stations, featuring charging levels up to 350 kW, will be constructed at current highway parking facilities throughout the Flemish provinces of Limburg, Brabant and Antwerp.

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McCarthy is looking for 300 local workers for Michigan’s largest solar farm

Solar Power World

McCarthy Building Companies plans to hire more than 200 craft workers and 100 general laborers for Ranger Power’s Assembly Solar Project in Hazelton and Venice townships in Michigan. The project is the state’s largest solar farm. “The Assembly Solar Project will provide clean, renewable energy to Michiganders while creating clean energy jobs in the region,” said Paul… The post McCarthy is looking for 300 local workers for Michigan’s largest solar farm appeared first on Solar Po

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Mercedes-Benz and Geely register smart Automobile Co. joint venture in China

Charged

Automotive powerhouses Mercedes-Benz and Geely have formally established the global joint venture “smart Automobile Co., Ltd.” for the smart brand. Each company will contribute 2.7 billion RMB in capital. The new JV, headquartered in Hangzhou Bay, China, will design the new vehicles using the Mercedes-Benz Design network, while Geely Holding will be responsible for development and engineering.

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UN Global Compact launches new initiative to spur decade of private sector progress towards the SDGs

Business Green

SDG Ambition will be led by the UN Global Compact Local Networks, bringing together more than a 1,000 firms across 40 countries to drive progress towards the global goals. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres yesterday launched a new initiative designed to help the world's corporations put their weight behind efforts to achieve the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the 2030 deadline.

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DeVry University Alumni Receive People’s Choice Award at Global Tech Conference for their Solar Energy Tracking System

altenergymag

“With a working concept that can make collecting and storing clean renewable energy more efficient, we really wanted to see David and Janio compete at the GHTC. We are really proud of the work they produced.

Energy 70
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Knowledge gap leaving ten million UK households wasting energy, Citizens Advice survey finds

Business Green

Nearly three-quarters of Brits underestimate the contribution of British homes to global warming, research conducted by Citizens Advice in partnership with the Energy Saving Trust has found. Almost 10 million UK households have done nothing to curb their energy usage in recent years, despite widespread focus on the urgent need to tackle energy waste and easy opportunities to save hundreds of pounds on bills, a new study has found.

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REDAVIA Launches Solar Carport Product at SGS

altenergymag

Last week REDAVIA, a global market leader of cost-effective, reliable, and clean solar power for businesses, launched its modular solar carport product, the REDAVIA Fast Track Solar 40 Carport (FTS-40CP), with a first installation at SGS, a global leader in inspection, testing, verification, and certification.

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Front and Centered Welcomes Tarika Powell, Expands Policy Expertise

Front And Centered

In January, Front and Centered welcomed a new employee, Tarika Powell. She joins our staff as Policy Manager. Tarika is a regional expert on fracked gas, petrochemicals, and the impacts of dirty energy. Her work has focused on fossil fuel infrastructure and land use for the past five years, as an environmental policy researcher at Sightline Institute.

Policy 76
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CHICAGO SOLAR START-UP HITS $5M REVENUE IN 9 MONTHS

altenergymag

24-Year-Old CEO Jared McKenzie Turns Headline Solar into Illinois’ Fastest Growing Solar Company as Industry Predicted to Grow by 1700% in Next 5 Years

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Asia-Pacific is the next frontier for blended finance

Impact Alpha

ImpactAlpha, Jan. 23 – The Asia-Pacific region has seen enormous economic growth in the last few decades, which has lifted hundreds of millions out of extreme poverty. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), from 2002 to 2015 the region saw a fourfold decline from 1.11 billion people in extreme poverty to 264 million. The work is The post Asia-Pacific is the next frontier for blended finance appeared first on ImpactAlpha.

Asia 91
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Record EV sales break National Grid’s scenario

altenergymag

Electric vehicle (EV) sales bucked the overall 2019 trend of falling car sales with figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers (SMMT) showing that battery electric vehicles (BEVs) registrations have risen by 144% to 37,850.

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China ban spurs circular economy for plastics

Impact Alpha

ImpactAlpha, Jan. 23 – If someone were to remake The Graduate today, the career advice famously imparted to Dustin Hoffman in the 1967 film classic might be: sustainable plastics. The wonder material of the last century has turned into this century’s environmental nightmare. Much of the world’s plastic, from bags and wrappers to containers and The post China ban spurs circular economy for plastics appeared first on ImpactAlpha.

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Encore Renewable Energy adds renewable industry veteran Doug MacDonald to lead engineering

altenergymag

Doug comes to Encore with more than 20 years of experience in renewable energy power systems and will add more in-house engineering expertise to further refine the commercial designs that define Encore's success to date.

Energy 60
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'We ask for fairness': Von der Leyen warns countries to price carbon or face border tax

Business Green

European Commission President warns nations it will tax products imported into EU unless a “global level playing field” is established. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has delivered a warning to high-emitting nations that Europe could impose a carbon border tax "in the name of fairness" unless they implement carbon pricing systems of their own.

Carbon 67
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Spruce Finance acquires 31.3 MW of residential solar assets

Solar Power World

Spruce Finance has completed its most significant solar portfolio acquisition to date. Spruce’s purchase of 5,864 rooftop solar assets totaling 31.3 MW from funds managed by Atalaya Capital Management not only provides meaningful growth to its portfolio but also expands the assets serviced by its independent subsidiary, Energy Service Experts.

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On Demand: 12½ Kick Ass Sustainability Ideas for 2020

Terra Infirma

If you missed yesterday’s Green Academy webinar, you can catch the recording below. To access the workbook (recommended) click here. The post On Demand: 12½ Kick Ass Sustainability Ideas for 2020 appeared first on Terra Infirma.

Demand 59
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'Nature is not an asset class': Prince Charles calls for 'evolution' of economic model

Business Green

Heir to the throne launches Sustainable Markets Council to bring together industry leaders to drive breakthroughs in decarbonisation. The Prince of Wales has announced plans to host a series of industry roundtables that will bring together experts, executives, and investors to identify ways to rapidly decarbonise the global economy. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos yesterday, Prince Charles said he hoped to help build a new "systems-level" framework to that "ground markets in a high

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McCarthy Building Companies to hire hundreds of local workers for construction of Assembly Solar Project in Michigan

altenergymag

Project expected to create 300+ jobs during construction, company seeking applicants for positions ranging from entry level to experienced

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The Brief: Blended climate finance, lab-grown meat, JPMorgan’s development finance, circular economy for plastics, Sorenson’s Winter Innovation Summit

Impact Alpha

Greetings, Agents of Impact! Impact Voices: Blended Finance Climate Finance Partnership blends philanthropic, public and private capital for climate infrastructure in emerging markets. Asset manager BlackRock will leverage $100 million in first-loss capital from the Hewlett Foundation and Grantham Environmental Trust, as well as the German and French governments, to mobilize at least $400 million in institutional private-equity capital commitments for The post The Brief: Blended climate finance,