Thursday 25 October 2012

Guest Blog Post: Green Living Ottawa

I'm a guest blogger on Green Living Ottawa, sharing some information about Saturday's Green Home Reno Tour.  Here's the link to the post! 

Green Living Ottawa

Tuesday 23 October 2012

Silent Auction - Green Home Reno Tour Tickets!

I've donated two tickets for Saturday's Green Home Reno Tour (see my previous post) to the silent auction at tomorrow night's Ecology Action Eco Gala. If you are interested in the tour and haven't bought tickets, there will be a chance to bid on a pair tomorrow evening! 

Thursday 18 October 2012

Green Home Reno Tour

I'll be taking part in the Green Home Reno Tour next Saturday October 27th. 

Here's some information from the organizers - Envirocentre:

As part of Building Greener Futures Together, EnviroCentre is conducting the Green Home Reno Tour to showcase several older homes where targeted renovations have resulted in improved comfort and huge savings, as assisted and measured by EnviroCentre’s residential energy assessment programs.

This all-day event is the result of collaboration with the Social Planning Council of Ottawa, and Tucker House, where we will enjoy a delicious afternoon meal while meeting prominent local green renovators and other businesses, displaying and discussing their sustainable work and wares.

Our tour is for people who are:
  • planning renovations,
  • considering buying an older house,
  • looking for ways to increase the resale value of their home,
  • curious about the real effects of these mostly invisible upgrades,
  • contractors involved in, or considering, sustainable renovation practices, or
  • happy to enjoy a fall bus tour to noteworthy houses that includes a tasty local meal!
Here's the link to register. Hope to see you there! 

Wednesday 17 October 2012

Upcoming Ecology Ottawa Eco Gala

I will be at next Wednesday's Ecology Ottawa Eco Gala. It's our third year in a row attending the annual fundraising evening. This year's event will have a green business and green building focus. I hope to see you there! 

Wednesday 10 October 2012

Municipal Energy Retrofitting


I'm sharing an interesting update from Ecology Ottawa on municipal energy efficiency retrofits:

The City of Ottawa recently committed to conducting a feasibility study on municipal financing of energy efficiency retrofits.The concept is not new and we have been calling on the city to look into for some time. The David Suzuki Foundation and others have produced compelling reports on the idea and it is being implemented in other Canadian, North American and European jurisdictions. If we are to effectively work to prevent runaway climate change, we must improve the built environment and become much less wasteful in how we use electricity and energy in our homes and businesses. 

The city has determined that buildings (and how we heat and electrify them) are responsible for nearly 60% of the Ottawa community's greenhouse gas emissions.
 
Recently the city of Toronto committed itself to a report (due to be tabled by October) on a pilot project that would bring municipal financing of energy efficiency retrofits to various areas of that city. Here in Ottawa, the feasibility study is expected to be completed sometime in 2013.

Tuesday 9 October 2012

Trees and Native Plants in Ottawa

I hope that you had a relaxing thanksgiving weekend and were able to spend some time enjoying the out of doors. The leaves are beautiful this year and just about to reach their peak. If you are interested in learning more about the trees of the Ottawa area, Dave Brown has a useful a Tree 101 article in The Ottawa Citizen. My family enjoyed a walk in the Arboretum yesterday, it's a great destination for being exposed to a huge diversity of tree species. You can also learn more about native plants at the Fletcher Wildlife Garden, just a short walk up the hill from the Arboretum.