Recent Green Living Posts | By Steve Rypka on February 23rd, 2012  Home energy efficiency is a very common topic around here. I believe it is one of the best investments a person can make. It’s also one of the best investments our society can make. Home efficiency saves resources, reduces pollution, increases comfort and improves the economy. The best results occur with the local utility gets on board, offering programs that provide immediate savings and even greater benefits over the long-term. Over the past decade, …(more) Continue reading Keep Energy Efficiency Energized By Steve Rypka on February 9th, 2012  An early model of UNLV's design for the Solar Decathlon. Image courtesy of Eric Weber, School of Architecture, UNLV Competition. It’s as old as life itself. For many, the word brings to mind mega-events like the recent Super Bowl. As big as that mega-event is, there are other kinds of competition that carry much more weight in the big scheme of things. One such competition is the Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon. It’s …(more) Continue reading The Super Bowl of Solar By Steve Rypka on December 29th, 2011  I love the concept of Green Living. For me, it is a simple, common-sense approach to life that improves our daily lives while acknowledging and addressing major issues like climate change and the overall sacred balance of life on Earth. Glancing back over this year’s past columns confirms that it is a topic with great diversity. There are a few recurring themes such as green building, renewable energy and resource efficiency since they have …(more) Continue reading Learning to Live in Place By Steve Rypka on December 15th, 2011  I love the way the seasons remind me of our planet’s journey around the sun. As another winter solstice approaches, I find simple pleasure noticing how the light reaches deeply into our home as the sun traverses its low, southerly arc each day. Another source of enjoyment this time of year comes in the form of giving to others. Exchanging gifts is a holiday tradition that can have great meaning. As a sincere expression …(more) Continue reading Gifting the Future By Steve Rypka on November 17th, 2011  Our Home is changing – unnaturally and much too quickly. The Earth’s fragile, life-sustaining balance is shifting due to rapid and massive releases of carbon, dug up from beneath the surface and thrust into the atmosphere at an explosive rate. This “Sacred Balance,” as Professor David Suzuki so eloquently described it in his book by the same name, is what we depend on to survive and thrive. It is the essence of …(more) Continue reading Five Years and Counting By Steve Rypka on September 8th, 2011  Photo Credit: Josh Lopez Last week’s National Clean Energy Summit provided a partial snapshot of the status of our nation’s shift toward clean energy. It featured a wide range of presentations representing green building, military, commerce, transportation, utilities, manufacturing and labor interests. The message was strong and clear: Renewable energy along with a vast array of innovative technology is here and vital to our future. The concept of clean energy includes everything from …(more) Continue reading Taking Back Our Future By Steve Rypka on August 11th, 2011 
I never met Ray Anderson but he had a profound effect on my life. I learned much from him. I believe others can too. Thank you Ray, for proving that a better world is possible. We must only decide to make it happen. Continue reading In Memory of Ray Anderson. By Steve Rypka on July 28th, 2011  Think about this: We are living during an incredibly unique period in the ongoing history of humanity.
How often did that same thought cross the minds of our ancestors? Did the first generation of farmers realize the profound impact the agricultural revolution would have on the formation of modern society? In the early years of the industrial revolution, did anyone have even an inkling of what they were setting into motion? These key turning points in the development of our species have dramatically changed the world. As important as they were, they will pale in comparison to the Next Big Thing. I’m talking about the new Green Revolution. Continue reading Green Revolution and the Clean Energy Summit. By Steve Rypka on December 16th, 2010  My perspective of home expands when I think of the coming winter solstice. A few of the sun’s rays reach deep into my office as I write these words, an occurrence peculiar to this time of year and south-facing windows. Other beams of light meet a different fate, ending their eight-minute sojourn from the nuclear furnace at the center of our little planetary system by striking the panels atop my roof, transforming their marvelous energy into a useful flow of electrons. I can see it in my little desktop display: 4.031 kilowatts at the moment. Amazing! It’s all about angles and orientation, in step with natural rhythms that resonate throughout the infinity of space and time.
Continue reading Winter Solstice – Imagining Home. By Steve Rypka on October 21st, 2010  In my previous column, I emphasized the incredible amount of energy we use in our daily lives and how it is often taken for granted. A reader subsequently expressed his willingness to conserve energy but also conveyed some trepidation about NV Energy’s new “smart meter” program that is getting underway in Nevada. It seems that many people have similar concerns. It’s a timely topic and since it is still Energy Awareness Month, let’s take a closer look at smart meters.
Continue reading Smart Meters. | The Clark County Library District is sponsoring a series of five presentations on Green Living to be held at the West Charleston Library. I hope you can join us!
Download the flyer (PDF). Green Transportation: Getting Over Oil Thursday, May 31 6:30 p.m. The future of transportation is exciting and changing rapidly. Learn how people are saying adiós to the gas pump, saving money and helping the environment. |
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