Category Archives: Going Green

GreenFILE — free database from EBSCO

Posted on by

“EBSCO’s GreenFILE is a free database offering access to research-related information on human impacts to the environment. Its collection of scholarly, government, and general interest titles include content about the environmental effects of individuals, corporations, and local /national governments and what can be done on each level to minimize the negative impact. Topics covered include global warming, green building, pollution, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, and recycling. Articles are retrieved from 600 titles with nearly 300,000 articles, including full-text access from more than 4,600 open access titles. The same general search of terms and concepts related to green or sustainable buildings (including libraries), architecture, design, etc., provides nearly 3,900 records from academic journals, magazines, books/monographs, book reviews, reports, and government documents.”

Online, Mar/Apr 2010, p. 23 or http://proquest.umi.com/pqdlink?index=8&did=1980426771&SrchMode=3&sid=1&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1272476313&clientId=17210&aid=1
Libraries Taking the ‘LEED’: GREEN LIBRARIES LEADING IN ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN
Frederick Stoss. Online. Medford: Mar/Apr 2010. Vol. 34, Iss. 2; pg. 20, 8 pgs

Green Energy Portal from the DOE

Posted on by

To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) has opened the Green Energy Portal. It offers to all — scientists, students and the public — quick access to research and development in the area of renewable energy. There are thousands of full-text documents.

"The DOE Green Energy portal is part of the DOE Open Government Plan, which furthers the Administration’s Open Government Initiative. DOE Green Energy contains both current and historical research, including bibliographic citations, technical reports and patent information on different types of renewable energy resources and energy conservation. Subject areas include but are not limited to solar, wind, bioenergy, hydroelectric, geothermal, tidal and wave power, and energy storage."

Source: Email from Tim Byrne at OSTI byrnet@osti.gov

This is most likely a just a short cut, but I trust that most all of these documents and their indexing is available via NTIS, NTRL, Science.gov and/or the DOE’s Information Bridge.

Green Chemistry & Techology funding from EPA & NSF

Posted on by

EPA’s Office of Research and Development is currently requesting proposals for Phase I SBIR funding. Green chemistry technologies may be submitted under "Innovation in Manufacturing" or other topics, as appropriate. EPA will accept proposals from March 25 to May 11, 2010. Information is available at www.epa.gov/ncer/sbir/

In addition, the National Science Foundation (NSF) will be accepting proposals for SBIR funding for Environ-mental Technologies. NSF will accept proposals from May 9 to June 9, 2010. Information is available at www.nsf.gov/eng/iip/sbir/

A notice from the EPA’s Green Chemistry Program

Thoreau’s Legacy: American Stories about Global Warming

Posted on by

This book is available free on the Web, compiled by the Union of Concerned Scientists in 2009:

Thoreau’s Legacy: American Stories about Global Warming introduces a new generation of writers and photographers with a personal connection to global warming. The 67 essays and images in this anthology are drawn from nearly 1,000 submissions about beloved places, people, plants, animals, and activities at risk from a changing climate—and the efforts that individuals are making to save what they love. A foreword by author Barbara Kingsolver serves as a powerful call to action.
The essays we selected represent a variety of perspectives, voices, and experiences. The authors follow in the long tradition of great American environmental writers, like Henry David Thoreau, who have broadened our awareness and sharpened our perspective about the world we share. And they are inspiring action to protect our planet from global warming. They are Thoreau’s legacy.

Source: Email from Union of Concerned Scientists [action@ucsusa.org] June 22, 2009.

Climate Change Conference Copenhagen — keeping track

Posted on by

The Telegraph Media Group Ltd. appears to be blogging or tweeting the issues from Copenhagen.

The public comments, so far, appear to be against reducing the rate of climate change.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/copenhagen-climate-change-confe/6728106/Copenhagen-climate-summit-live.html

For the RSS feed:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/copenhagen-climate-change-confe/rss

The Institute of Physics on the science behind climate change

Posted on by

UK Institute of Physics publishes briefing note on climate change – 08 Dec 2009

“The Institute of Physics (IOP) has published a physics briefing note to help understand the science behind climate change as several world leaders have gathered in Copenhagen to discuss environmental issues.

Prof. Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, President of the IOP, has expressed hope that world leaders will appreciate the major contribution science can make to our understanding of all aspects of global change, including climate change. Science can improve our predictions of what might happen; physics can provide critical, objective analysis of new schemes. Physics along with technology can develop new and more efficient energy sources, and find ways of minimising waste (of all kinds).

Prof. Burnell further states that climate models are the best tools available for understanding changes in climate, and from these models it seems we are entering an unprecedentedly difficult period for the human race. Science can diagnose the problem and it can work to remedy it, but it can do neither without support from world leaders.

These comments accompany the publication of a briefing note from IOP which summarises advances in human understanding of the climate and the work being done to create a low-carbon energy infrastructure. It includes comment from some of the UK’s leading climate experts.

Search for more such environment related initiatives in K-Store

Discuss this NEWS

Click here to read the original press release »”

Source: Knowledgespeak Newsletter.

Inspiration for Copenhagen

Posted on by

Here are a couple of websites that were listed by Dana Roth and Fred Stoss on Chemical Information and Science & Technical Librarians listservs:

1. From Saturday’s International Day of Climate Action http://www.350.org/?p=4

2. Announcing two major photography exhibits, "Climate Change In Our World" and "How We Know About Our Changing Climate," which will premier in Washington DC just as the U.S. Senate begins debate on climate and energy legislation and a month before the international UNFCCC meetings in Copenhagen.
In an effort to educate and inspire about climate change and its solutions, Gary Braasch brings twenty 5-foot color photographs of climate change and its solutions today, to the Washington headquarters of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences — November 10 through March 15, 2010.
Accompanying this show of images from his book Earth Under Fire: How Global Warming is Changing the World is a teaching exhibit for kids and adults about how scientists learn about climate change, in association with Lynne Cherry. This show includes educational ideas for classrooms and Cherry’s films about kids who are reducing their climate impact in school and their communities.

Location: AAAS

For more information:

http://www.earthunderfire.com/pages/exhibit.html

Special Note: The "Young Voices" films also will be shown several times at events in Copenhagen.

Norman Borlaug, of the Green Revolution, has died

Posted on by

Nobel Winner Norman Borlaug Dies At 95
Norman Borlaug, the U.S. agricultural scientist who received the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize for developing high-yielding crops to prevent famine in the developing world, has died at age 95.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17778-norm-borlaug-the-man-who-fed-the-world.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture

Article from New Scientist online from 9/18/09. A shorter piece is available here:

The New Scientist, Volume 203, Issue 2726, 16 September 2009, Page 7

doi: 10.1016/S0262-4079(09)62442-8