All donations DOUBLED
grist-georgia-psc-header-ai

energy at home

  •

    Power your house with poop

    Have you ever thought to yourself, “Man, my family sure does produce a lot of excrement; how can I cash in on this?” Well, according to DVICE, SeabEnergy’s MuckBuster might be just the ticket. “The MuckBuster is a self-contained anaerobic digester, built inside a repurposed shipping container. It can produce renewable energy from any organic […]

    Jen Harper Culture

  • Ask Umbra’s pearls of wisdom on apartment dwelling

    Dearest readers, Sometimes when I’m down in the stacks researching answers to your latest dilemmas, I enjoy taking a stroll down Ask Umbra archives lane. Here are some shiny tidbits I culled from my past advice on making the most of renting a small urban abode. Have any of your own sustainable apartment living tips […]

    Ask Umbra® Culture

  • Ask Umbra on water bottles, gas dryers, and tea lights

    Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, Hey! This whole freakin’ deal about aluminum, steel, and plastic bottles is bewildering. I wanted to get a BPA-free Nalgene, but should I buy an aluminum instead? I don’t have or see the use to spend $20USD for a darn bottle. What’s the best way to go? […]

    Ask Umbra® Culture

  • Reinventing the JP Green House

    For the last year and a half, Ken Ward and Andrée Zaleska have been rehabbing a 100-year-old former neighborhood store in the Boston neighborhood of Jamaica Plain. They’re converting it into a home for their combined family, a community gathering place, and a zero-carbon demonstration home to inspire others — and sharing their journey in […]

    Ken Ward & Andrée Collier Culture

  • Ask Umbra on shower caps, computers, and junk mail

    Q. Dear Umbra, I’ve taken to washing my hair less and less often to keep it from drying out. Since I’ve switched to the “no-‘poo” method (baking soda followed by a vinegar rinse) it stays cleaner longer. However, I still take a shower (brief and lukewarm) most days. To keep my curly hair from becoming […]

    Ask Umbra® Culture

  • A surprising sneak peek at the clothesline revolution

    This interview is part of a series on people who are making their communities smarter, greener places to live. Got a nomination? Leave it in the comments section or send it along to us. Alexander Lee founded Project Laundry List as a Middlebury College undergrad in 1995, after hearing Dr. Helen Caldicott say we could […]

    Katharine Wroth Culture

  • Ask Umbra on climate-skeptic teachers, low-flow toilets, and more

    Q. Dear Umbra, I know it’s a little early, but I had this great idea for a New Year’s resolution. Every month in 2010, I pick a certain eco-area of my life and focus on that for a whole month. So far I have: reduce energy consumption; reduce water consumption; reduce material waste; reuse; recycle; […]

    Ask Umbra® Culture

  • A $4 billion push to make affordable housing green

    Norton hit Congress to testify about the value of green building in 2008.globalwarming.house.govA major investment in making affordable housing greener — a $4 billion investment, to be precise — was announced Wednesday. The injection comes courtesy of Enterprise Community Partners, a 25-year-old non-profit dedicated to community development and affordable housing. With heavyweight partners including NRDC, […]

    Katharine Wroth Cities

  • Weatherization will save us all

    Doug Letterman via flickrPop quiz: What saves money, saves energy, creates green jobs, fights climate change, can fix the economy, will make America great again, and is both a floor wax and a dessert topping? Answer: It’s weatherization! And both the U.S. government and the European Union are embracing its potential. In a report released […]

    Katharine Wroth Culture