How To Go Paperless

Go Paperless: for Earth Day and for Every Day

April 22 will mark the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, forty years of "living green" and working towards building a clean and healthy and sustainable planet. Each year, the Earth Day event causes many folks to adopt environmentally-friendly practices, including a conscientious reduction in the amount of paper they use, discard, and/or recycle.

But new technologies mean that the ability to "go paperless" can last well beyond one day a year and can become regular practices in our daily lives. With an increasing ease in creating, sharing, and storing information electronically, we can hopefully consume less and less paper. Here are a few tech tips on how to reduce your paper consumption:

Paperless billing. Most bills and bank statements can be received and paid over the Internet. When possible, opt out of having paper mail sent to you. (This includes catalogs!)

Print to PDF. Instead of sending your documents to the printer, print them to PDF files. To do this, select Adobe PDF as your printer option. The PDF format is also recommended for scanning and storing documents. Remember: if you choose to store important documents electronically, do make sure you are diligent with your backups!

Digitize your signature. Despite the prevalence of email communications, the command to "sign this and fax it to me" still exists (and might just be the most common reason those of us that try to "go paperless" still find ourselves printing out hard-copies). You can avoid printing to paper in order to merely sign a form or contract by creating a digital version of your signature.

• To do so, simply sign your name on a piece of paper. Use white paper. And sign big. You can always shrink the size using a graphics software program.
• Scan it (Use as high a resolution as you can).
• Crop the image.
• If you use Photoshop, you can use the magic wand tool to trace around your signature and copy it to a transparent background. This way, rather than an overtly rectangular image, you'll have a version of your signature that will blend nicely with any document into which you insert it.

Digital note-taking. I'm a big fan of "jotting things down" and I used to have numerous scraps of paper and post-it notes strewn on my desk, containing my various ideas and "to do" lists. There are a variety of programs available now so that your computer and your mobile device can take and store notes for you electronically. (I'm a big fan of Evernote as it works on both my computer and my iPhone and allows the syncing of the notes I take with either device.)

Read it online. Turn to the Internet to read newspapers, magazines, and blogs (including, of course, Justmeans.com!)

Technology continues to make it easier "go green" and in particular to reduce the amount of paper we consume in our everyday lives. What steps have you taken to "go paperless" in your life?

Bosgraaf Companies - recognized leading builder of the greenest neighborhoods, homes and dreams within and beyond West Michigan ... find out more at http://bosgraaf.com ...

Energy Star, Shining Bright?

In short, a robust Energy Star brand is critically important as the nation moves toward greater levels of energy efficiency and savings as part of its national policy.

So, how bright is the Energy Star brand shining these days?

Download the free report from EcoAlign.com.

Read more: http://www.greenbiz.com/business/research/report/2010/03/19/energy-star-shining-bright#ixzz0juKdB5tr

Bosgraaf Companies - recognized leading builder of the greenest neighborhoods, homes and dreams within and beyond West Michigan ... find out more at http://bosgraaf.com ...

Ask a Green Expert

Today, March 31, Job-Hunt.org Green Jobs Job Search expert, Carol McClelland, PhD, will be visiting the Job-Hunt’s Job Search News Blog to answer questions for job seekers who hope to find their place in the green economy.

Post your question in the Comments HERE, and – if you have asked the best question, as determined that day by author Carol McClelland and Job-Hunt’s Susan Joyce – you will win a free, signed copy of Green Careers For Dummies.

As the author of Green Careers For Dummies, Carol has spent much of the last three years studying developments and trends in the new economy and finding resources and job search tactics that work.
Please submit the questions you are wrestling with as you search for your green career.  

Just post your question in the comments HERE.  Then, come back towards the end of the day on the 31st to see Carol’s answers and to see if you have won!

For more about Green Jobs and Careers, including green employers, job boards, professional associations, plus articles about green jobs, visit Job-Hunt’s Green Industry Online Search Guide.


Bosgraaf Companies - recognized leading builder of the greenest neighborhoods, homes and dreams within and beyond West Michigan ... find out more at http://bosgraaf.com ...

This Energy-producing house gets the power company to pay YOU!

Video Tour: Energy-producing house gets the power company to pay YOU

Walk up to this house, and you might think it was just like all the others on the street. But take a peek in the backyard and basement, and you'll see that it's bristling with high technology. The $350,000 house, located between Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, creates so much electricity that its owner receives a check from the power company each month.

Watch the video for a free tour, then follow the link below for the full story.

When the Newman Company set out to design this house, the goal was to create enough electricity to provide power to the house, to charge a Chevy Volt electric car, and then create enough excess power so that it could be sold back to the power company. The house, which was sold last month, accomplishes that goal to such an extent that the company is now guaranteeing for five years that the owner of this house — and more than its currently constructing — won't pay any energy bills at all.
It's done using $150,000 worth of solar gear, geothermal energy and insulation, and even better news is that with federal and state rebates and tax credits, the net cost of all this energy producing gear is less than half that, $74,130.


The Gear
There are two solar electric systems powering the house — a Wattsun tracker system in the backyard that supplies 4,600 kWh of electricity per year, dedicated to charging up a Chevy Volt. On the roof is a much larger array, supplying 14,700 kWh per year, enough to run the entire house with plenty left over to sell back to the power company.

A geothermal loop field, consisting of pipes buried 8 to 9 feet under the ground and carrying a glycol-based liquid, are hooked up to a heat pump that supplies all the heating and cooling for the house. With this system there's no need for an external air conditioning unit. Because the Earth at that 8-9-foot depth is a constant 54° year-round, heat can be extracted from that glycol liquid on cold days or added to it on hot days.

Supporting all this energy conservation are Energy Star-certified appliances throughout the house, a sealed wood-burning fireplace, enough insulation to seal up the house up like an FedEx envelope, and a temperature-exchanging ventilation system that brings fresh air into the house without sacrificing any heating or cooling.

The Tour
Walking around this deceptively futuristic house, it was apparent that no sacrifices were made for the sake of energy savings. Another amazing aspect of it this seemingly ordinary house is its low cost. The Newman Company did extensive research to identify the most cost-effective building methods for such a project, and decided that techniques such as exotic walls made of concrete, passive solar construction, and wind power didn't provide as big a payoff as the technology they ultimately decided to use.

Overall, the cost of homeownership using this technology, including the price of fuel for one vehicle, will pay for itself. In the meantime, no fossil fuels will be used whatsoever. Take a look at the gallery above for some specifics.

Energy-Producing Home
 

Bosgraaf Companies - recognized leading builder of the greenest neighborhoods, homes and dreams within and beyond West Michigan ... find out more at http://bosgraaf.com ...

Why just build "a" community, when you can build "FOR" Community

Community Sense

When you build green, you are building safe, comfortable, and healthy homes. You are not only building a community - you are building for community. 

Healthy homes

High performance design and construction is the path to healthy housing. Using green materials lets you care for residents, especially those with compromised immune systems and respiratory ailments, including children and seniors. Flooring, insulation, and finishes that reduce dust and release low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) help to keep asthma in check. Good ventilation systems that are designed to efficiently bring fresh air into a home can reduce moisture problems, eliminate pollutants, and increase indoor air quality.

Neighborhoods for community

Housing planned with input from residents and neighbors encourages community ownership. When you link homes to parks, gardens, and nearby businesses, residents have places to gather and to establish a positive presence in the neighborhood. An emphasis on safe, well lit streets for pedestrians and public transit creates an environment for kids, not cars, and encourages active lifestyles.

Services nearby

When schools, grocery stores, banks, churches, pharmacies, and other key services are nearby or easily accessible via transit, residents will spend more time with their families and in their neighborhood. If you show a willingness to work with residents to provide the community resources they need, obstacles to development may be eased. This is especially the case when you are bringing affordable housing or mixed-use development to a neighborhood.

Working with nature

You can create dynamic new spaces where nature and community life will take root. Converting pavement into pocket parks collects and cleans stormwater, restores wildlife habitat, and cools the neighborhood with shade. Trees create comfortable outdoor 'rooms' where people can sit and talk. Natural areas can be designed to work with buildings to increase safety and to create public spaces that let residents take pride in and enjoy their community.

Bosgraaf Companies - recognized leading builder of the greenest neighborhoods, homes and dreams within and beyond West Michigan ... find out more at http://bosgraaf.com ...

Rethink the purpose - Buildings to help Haiti

Consistently "giving back" and creatively thinking "outside the box" are two of our greatest passions - on that note, we recently ran across the following article and just had to share it with all of you as well ...


Shipping Containers to Help Haiti?

Designers from Clemson University started the SEED project to reuse excess shipping containers found around the world.  They take these cargo containers, designed to withstand extreme weather at sea and made of steel, and rethink their purpose.  Why not use the 304 square feet of floor space in these things as housing?  What was once an obsolete hunk of metal is now an extremely solid, weatherproof, insect-resistant, fire proof home.

But wait, you’re thinking, those things are UGLY!  True, in their original form they certainly are, but designers at SEED have set their minds to transforming these giant hunks of metal into light, livable spaces arranged like apartment buildings.


The men and women working at Clemson University have wasted no time in finding practical applications.  They have proposed these SEED containers as a cost effective and sustainable strategy for rebuilding Haiti.  Their design images seem almost surrealist, but it’s just crazy enough that it just might work.

In light of the Haiti earthquake there are tons of ways you can be green and help out.  Donate your cell phones, clothes, and money.  But don’t stop there, educate yourself about the issues in Haiti, why the earthquake was so disastrous, and what the US has done to cause the abject poverty we’re seeing in photographs.  To rebuild Haiti sustainably we have to know what caused the destruction in the first place – only a part of it was the earthquake.

Bosgraaf Companies - recognized leading builder of the greenest neighborhoods, homes and dreams within and beyond West Michigan ... find out more at http://bosgraaf.com ...

Building Green ... about more than just hugging trees

You will undoubtedly be hearing the term "green builder" thrown around more than ever in 2010 ... which is especially why it's so essentially important to clearly recognize the vast levels of green this definition could be referring to ...

There's few if any physical possessions that will impact your entire life more than your choice of home.  Thus, of course, it's just good common sense to be absolutely certain that you've chosen the very best choice for a builder.

In light of the given, it is obviously so well worth it to take the time necessary towards finding out more about what "level of green" the builder you're considering working with is ...

Are they "green" only in reference to meeting the bare minimums required by code?

Or have you found the rare find of an authentic, cutting edge, Builder of Greenest Homes.

Here's a good knowledge base start, via a most recent news article that I've clipped below ...

Green building expert
We've profiled several green buildings in our Boise Green Living series. From homes to commercial buildings, the practice of green construction is common place. But there's an even greener type of structure that many haven't heard about.

"We're talking about buildings that are net-zero energy, net-zero water," says Jason McLennan. "They go well beyond conventional green buildings."

Unlike the homes and buildings we've profiled, net-zero buildings are ones where a hundred percent of that structure's energy needs are generated on-site through renewable resources. McLennan is a renowned green building expert who visited Boise recently to talk about net-zero green construction. He admits any kind of green construction is a good thing.

"I think that people, if they're not looking at these issues they're missing some opportunities really," says McLennan. "The thing that people don't understand is that regardless of budget, there's always something green you could do to a project."

McLennan gives high marks to Boise considering some of the green projects the city has seen recently. He just hopes green construction catches on even more.

"People are realizing this is not just hugging trees," says McLennan. "This is about making smart choices for buildings and the built environment that benefit everyone."

Bosgraaf Companies - recognized leading builder of the greenest neighborhoods, homes and dreams within and beyond West Michigan ... find out more at http://bosgraaf.com ...