Green Career Central Blog

Green Career Trends: Using Water Currents to Create Renewable Energy, Small Blade Wind Power, Hydraulic Hybrid

By using the natural motion of slow-moving water, a new hydrokinetic generator could open vast new areas of the ocean for energy production.  Vortex Hydro Energy, founded by  Michael Bernitsas, a University of Michigan engineer, has developed a prototype energy-harvester that can capture the mechanical energy water currents create. The National Science Foundation, the U.S. Navy, and the Department of Energy have together contributed about $2 million to Vortex to further develop the concept.

Marquiss Wind Power, located near Sacramento, CA., has found a niche in the renewable energy market by focusing on big box stores, hospitals, casinos, or any other large building with a flat roof and a good wind profile.  By using a small blade turbine and ducts to capture and guide the wind, Marquiss has created an energy and economically efficient way for commercial and industrial businesses to reduce their energy costs.  The turbines do not require transmission lines or other infrastructure costs as the location of the power generated is the same as the power consumed.

Hybrid passenger cars using internal combustion engines and energy stored in batteries are not the only vehicle hybrids.  UPS has purchased a prototype delivery truck that has a hybrid system using hydraulic fluid and a high-pressure pump instead of electrical current and a generator. In this design, energy is stored in a series of pressurized tanks as hydraulic fluid pressurized to thousands of pounds per square inch.  Benefits of this type of hybrid include being able to deliver large amounts of energy quickly and storing energy so that it doesn't degrade over time, increasing miles per gallon, and reducing carbon emissions.

The Evolving Definition of Green Collar Jobs

A blog post entitled “What color is your collar?” caught my eye this week. In the course of the last year, the term green collar job has taken hold. Presidential candidates have used it, the media uses it in headlines on a regular basis, and a number of non-profits have taken on the idea as a way to jump start a green economy.

Unfortunately there is no agreed upon definition for the term. To begin to understand, you need to dig into how different groups define green collar jobs. The US Conference of Mayors used a broad definition of green industries with a limited list of job titles while the American Solar Energy Society’s numbers are based on two very specific green industries and an all inclusive set of job titles within these industries (from line jobs to infrastructure and administrative jobs).

At the moment, there are no definitive lists of the industries, job functions, or goals that come together to define the green economy. Some groups are even referring to jobs that represent varying shades of green. In other words, some jobs have more of an impact on the environment than others. Over time as technologies improve, even the way we think about how much impact a particular job has will change!

To learn more about these definitions and distinctions, read this article.

Green Career Central's Global Photo Tour: Greece

After a long, intense week, I decided we'd take a virtual vacation this week on our global photo tour. How about traveling to Greece with us?!

A photo of a stunningly blue bay caught my eye immediately. (Could be my need for a vacation talking!) Upon reading the caption under the photo I learned conservation efforts started in 1991 have helped sea turtles regain ground in their efforts to thrive.

I was also struck by the windmill featured in a photo of fields being tilled. From the photo it looks like the windmill powers a water pump that fills the water storage pool. It's a good reminder that windmills have been a valued technology for a lot longer than our current fascination with wind energy.

Click here to see a menu of all of the photos of Greece by Yann Arthus Bertrand.
Click on any image and then click the arrows to go forward or back.
Scroll down to read the caption associated with the photo.

Which photo or caption catches your attention? What did you discover about Greece that you didn't know before? Please add a comment below to share your thoughts.

Green Career Trends: Industrial Applications of Biomimicry for turbine blades, green plastics and water storage

At the recent Bioneers Conference, companies using biomimicry principles to create new products were highlighted.  We have chosen three of those companies.

Inspired by the sawtooth shape on the edges of the fins on Humpback whales, Whalepower is using biomimicry to improve the efficiency of all sorts of blades.  Tubercle technology will improve the efficiency of turbines, compressors, pumps and fans.

Novomer is taking carbon dioxide and other renewable materials and transforming them into polymers, plastics and other products for a wide variety of industrial uses.  These environmentally friendly plastics have built-in biodegradability.  Using chemistry inspired by green principals and biomimicry, Novomer is moving the world away from petroleum based industrial products.

PAX Scientific has studied nature's way of moving fluids and discovered a way to design fans, mixers, pumps, turbines, heat exchangers, ducts, propellers, and other applications to take advantage of these flow efficiencies. With increased efficiecies, decreased noise, decreased power usage, optimized flow pattern, decreased manufacturing and maintenance cost, and increased structural integrity, this bio-inspired flow geometries have the potential to transform a variety of industrial applications. You can learn more about the companies that are using this technology.

 

How to Scan for Green Career Clues in Local Media

While I was staying in San Rafael for Bioneers, I found the regional paper slipped under my door each morning. As I scanned the front page on Saturday my internal “Green Trends” bells went off. I started to read the paper to discover what I could about the region’s green attitudes and economy.

Although this way of reading the paper, a blog, or a website is normal operating procedure for me these days, I realize that you may not be as familiar with this way of gathering information about your target industry/profession, the green economy, and the local green economy.

I thought I’d use this newsletter tip to let you look over my shoulder as I read the Marin Independent Journal.  I’ll point out the articles that caught my eye and give you some ideas on how to take the next step.

It doesn’t take long to scan a website or the paper each day. You’ll gain new perspective and perhaps the clue that awakens your passion about something you can do to make a difference in your community.   

Read over my shoulder in this week's tip.

Next Stop on Green Career Central's Global Photo Tour

After writing about the elephants in Kenya last Friday, I decided to check out the aerial photos of Kenya by French photographer, Yann Arthus Bertrand.

I wasn't too surprised to discover that the two photos that really got my attention had to do with wildlife.

• Check out these flamingos! How many do you suppose are in this photo?
• And I'll always fall for a good giraffe photo...What can I say, I've always loved them.

I learned several things as well...about crops within Kenya and some very interesting bodies of water. Never heard of this phenomenon before...have you?

What intrigues you about the photos from Kenya? What did you learn about Kenya as a result of reviewing these photos?

(What does this have to do with green careers or the green economy you might ask?

• The green economy is global. No matter what we do, in this country or in any other country, there are ramifications throughout the globe. You'll see some of the ramifications in the photos on this tour.
• To act responsibly in this new economy, we must know much more than we do about the world at large. Understanding the natural resources, industries, and living conditions in other countries (and other regions within our own country) give us a much broader perspective on the impact of our actions.
• Furthermore, I believe most of us are greening our careers because we have a passion for the earth...but how much do we really know about our planet? I'm hoping our Global Photo Tour will inspire all of us in our quest to make a difference through our work. )

Join the conversation below with your thoughts about this stop on our global photo tour.

Elephant Texting Rangers...What!?

I happened upon a story on a green blog yesterday that caught my attention on a couple of levels.

First...I did a double take on the title of the post - Kenyan Elephants Text Rangers Before Raiding Villages.

Second...I had to read the post to get a handle on how exactly the elephants were texting rangers. It turns out that rangers included a mobile phone SIM card in the tracking collar of an elephant known for destroying crops in a particular area of Kenya. And then they set up a "geofence" using a global positioning system that matched the conservatory's boundaries. When the elephant gets close to the "fence" a text message comes into the rangers' station. The rangers then head out to do what they can to turn the elephant away from the crops.

Thus far they've turned this elephant away 15 times and the last time he came near a farmer's field was four months ago. Apparently elephants learn behaviors from each other so changing this elephant's food-finding tactics may have a longer term payoff.

They are now beginning their next test for another troublesome elephant in another region.

Third...I was intrigued by the green careers that are involved with this small scale, yet innovative, test. Clearly the farmers benefit because they no longer lose six months of income in one night. They no longer have to stand guard with sound makers and fire to deter the elephants. Instead, the rangers have a proactive system that allows them to act before the trouble occurs.

From a technological standpoint, I wonder if the SIM card designer and manufacturer realize they have had a hand in an elephant conservation project sponsored by Save the Elephants. I know GPS systems have been in use by wildlife conservationists for some time, but I haven't yet heard of the animal himself triggering an alert message.

And finally, I'm always intrigued to learn what conservationists are doing to protect wildlife. Innovative uses of technology are opening up amazing avenues for creating solutions that allow animals, humans, and the entire ecosystem to thrive.

Here are a few more technological details related to the Save the Elephants work:

Google Earth is partnering with the Save the Elephants organization to track elephants' movement throughout Africa. These detailed maps help local urban planners set aside green corridor to minimize disruption to migration routes. In addition, overlaying the migration maps with GIS (Global Information Survey) data allows conservationists to discern the elephants' motivation for their movements.

Another improvement is that bulky radio tracking collars are being replaced with slimmer GPS collars that have better memory, remote downloading options, and provide live data. With this detailed information anti-poaching teams can be dispatched to areas with the most vulnerable elephants.

Although you may not be interested in heading off to Africa to live in the wild conserving wild animals, you may find working on the technology they use to be of interest.

Green Career Trends: Growing Wind Energy Industry, Off Coast Wind Power, and Investment Capital for Green Industries

The wind energy industry continues to grow in the US, bit by bit, part by part.  Four wind turbine parts manufactures now have plans to put factories in Arkansas, Iowa, Indiana and Minnesota.  These factories will generate hundreds of good paying green jobs in America.  As more states require utilities to get a percentage of their power from renewable sources, the wind energy industry will continue to grow.

America's heartland, aka the wind belt, is not the only place turbines can be located to capture wind energy.  Principal Power is raising capital in order to move forward with its project to build a wind farm off the coast or Oregon.  Principal is confident it can overcome objections from residents about a spoiled view.  Oregon would like to generate more renewable wave energy also.  Principal has offices in Seattle and San Francisco.

The future of green industries, especially renewable energy like solar and wind, is still looking good despite the recent banking crisis.  While some start up ventures may no longer be receiving the large amounts of capital they were receiving in the third quarter, (greentech startups raised $2.8 billion in venture capital with solar companies taking in $1.5 billion) they are continuing to receive capital from cash-rich Silicon Valley corporations like Intel and "angel" investments that typically run no higher than two million.

Green Positives in a Volatile Market

If you’ve spent any time tracking the news over the last two weeks you know about the volatile financial situation.

It’s easy to get sucked into the negative spin.
It’s easy to begin second guessing your own plans for your future green career.
It’s easy to want to hunker down to weather the storm.

It’s harder to stay focused on what’s working in your own life.
It’s harder to stay focused on what you can do to guide your life forward.
It’s harder to envision the future with hope.

And yet, that’s exactly what each of us needs to do: Focus on what we can do to move the green movement forward.

Read this Tip of the Week for five actions that can move you forward in this volatile market.

Planet Earth: A Source of Inspiration

First Stop: Brazil

I recently came across the website of Yann Arthus Betrand, a French photographer who specializes on aerial photographs of the earth. His goal is to share the facts through images rather than words.  This is how Yann's site describes his Earth From Above project:

Though it invites us all to take our own responsibilities, this testimony remains resolutely optimistic. Each portrait, be it of the Earth or its inhabitants, aims at showing the best in order to appeal to what is best in us. For the will to protect is indeed strongest towards that which one has learnt to understand and love.

Each Monday we'll point you to his photos of one country. You'll see an amazing range of photos from the astoundingly beautiful to the profoundly overwhelming to the utterly scary.

How you respond to each photo will depend on your perspective. You'll learn something about the planet...while also learning something about yourself. (You may not understand what I mean until you take your tour through the photos from one of the countries.)

Here's our first stop on this earth tour: Brazil. As you look at each photo, scroll down to read more about each scene.

After you've explored this tour stop, write a comment below about what you discover...about the planet, people, industry, or yourself. Which photo was your favorite and why? Which image made you feel uncomfortable and why? What did you learn about this country that you didn't know before?

I look forward to taking this tour with all of you.