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What is your Gas Station’s Social Responsibility?

I would like to introduce you to a nifty chart I recently came across.  It is a ranking system of the Social Responsibly of many gas stations. Each station is assigned a rating based on several criteria including Refining Eco rating, Global Warming pluses and minus, and accident/incident history. The chart is part of the Better World Handbook and claims to use over 20 different sources to compile their rankings. While there are a few blanks spots in some of the companies’ ratings, the chart is still a great place to examine the different gas

stations that may be available to you.

The chart can be found at http://www.betterworldhandbook.com/gasoline.html

If you combine the Social Responsibility chart with fuel price comparisons site such as gasbuddy.com, or GasPriceWatch.com, you can find the cheapest and most eco-friendly gas available to you. Hopefully now you can save a little money and lessen your environmental impact while driving.

It is also worth noting that ExxonMobil received an F on the chart with a score of -45 and just recently had another oil spill of the Texas coast on Jan 24^th. Click for the news article.

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Vampire Power

Are you aware of the “Vampire Power” being used in your home/office? Vampire Power is the power that devices use while in standby/sleep mode. Many electronics and devices draw a small amount of power for memory purposes; while others just waste energy trying to constantly recharge a device. If your device has a LED or other light on it, chances are it is drawing power even when you think it is off. The average home has about 40 devices that are sucking power long after you go to bed. With a number like that, there is room for improvement. Vampire Energy use accounts for over 10% of U.S. Energy use to a sum of nearly $10 billion a year.

Common Energy Vampires in the home:

• Laptop/Netbook chargers
• TVs
• VCRs, DVD players, DVRs,
• Speakers and Audio Receivers
• Phone chargers, answering machines
• Printers, Scanners, Fax machines
• Routers
• iPod and MP3 Chargers
• XBOX, Playstation, Wii, and other gaming systems
• PSP, Nintendo DS, and portable gaming chargers
• Electronic toys and handheld devices

There are several ways you can attack the Vampire Power in your house such as:

• Unplug devices not in use. Power can’t be sucked when a device is not plugged in.
• Use Smart power strips. There are now products on the market stop energy use to devices when they are turned off or done charging. There are also power strips that use one outlet to control other outlets so when you shut down your computer, your monitor, speakers and other devices turn off too.
• Buy Energy Star. While this won’t stop the flow of Vampire Power, it will reduce it because Energy Star Devices factors in a devices standby power.

Take back the energy your devices are stealing while they seem asleep and save money while helping save the environment.

For more information on Vampire Power and tips check out: http://www.vampirepowersucks.com/Default.aspx

For some great products to stop Vampire Power check out:

http://www.igo.com/Green/icat/green

http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=a9_sc_1?rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Asmart+power+strips&keywords=smart+power+strips&ie=UTF8&qid=1264115565

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UrbanGreenSpot for iPhone

UrbanGreenSpot is now iPhone, Blackberry and other Smartphone friendly.  Keep track of all the latest green living, green technology, and green news while you are on the go.

Please report any problems you may have while using the site on your phone.

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UrbanGreenSpot.com on Facebook

Be sure to join our page on Facebook to keep up on all the news, to participate in the community, and to leave feedback and article requests. We will also be adding a widget to allow you to connect to Facebook and other sites straight from UrbanGreenSpot.com soon.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/UrbanGreenSpot/253928517759?ref=ts

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Chicago Green City Market

The Chicago Green City Market has started its Indoor Season on Jan 16^th. Green City Market is Chicago’s only year-round farmer’s market that promotes local, sustainable farmers, producers and chefs. The market seeks to connect the public with education programming and special events. Such events include chef demonstrations, community festivals, and programs to encourage youth to try new, local, sustainable foods.

Location: Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

2010 Saturdays: Jan. 16, Feb. 13, Feb. 27, Mar. 13, Mar. 27, Apr. 10 and Apr. 24
8:00 am- 1:00 pm

http://www.chicagogreencitymarket.org/index.asp

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Green Tech Review: ASUS MS238H 23″ LCD

I would like to welcome you to the first of many to come green technology product reviews for UrbanGreenSpot.

The item at hand is the new ASUS MS238H 23″ LCD monitor. While not widely advertised as a green technology model, this monitor packs plenty of planet friendly features. ASUS has advanced the notions of traditional LCD design by incorporating several new ideas in this monitor.

Pros:

·         LED backlight

·         Eco friendly construction

·         Lower power consumption

·         Lightweight and slim profile

·         Full 1080p display at 1920×1080

·         Included HDMI to DVI cable

Cons:

·         No native DVI input

·         No built in speakers

·         Ring stand does not allow for adjustment past 90 degrees

Review:

One of the first things you will notice about the MS238H is how slim it is. At just .65 inches or 16.5mm thick, this LCD is very sleek. It also is very light compared to traditional LCD monitors at about 8.4 lbs. Asus has accomplished this elegant design with LED backlighting. That’s right; this is one of the first LED monitors widely available today.

The advantages of a LED backlight monitor include

·         Lower energy consumption

·         Less heat produced

·         Mercury free

·         Purer whites and larger color spectrum

·         Light weight

·         Slim design

So what makes the Asus MS238H a good choice for the green minded individual? As a LED backlit monitor there is no need for mercury containing Cold Cathode Florescent Lamps, which are found in about every traditional LCD monitor. Power consumption is also low at just 33 watts while in full usage and 1 watt when in standby mode. While I was unable to decipher if the MS238H was EPEAT approved as other Asus products are, it does sport an environmentally friendly design. This design includes a 50% reduction in hazardous materials to go along with the 40% power reduction compared to other LCDs.

Another notable design aspect is the ring style stand. This is a departure from the traditional pedestal style display on most LCDs. It consists simply of a ring that is attached to the back of the monitor via a small hidden bracket. The stand allows the monitor to be adjusted at the tip of a finger, however, due to the design the monitor cannot be tipped forward past vertical. ASUS considers this to be a more ergonomically correct position and after using it for some time I can’t complain about the angle. There are also 5 small LED touch activated buttons on the front as well as a touch activated on/off switch. Some users have reported difficulty using them; however my experience was mostly positive and I would like to see more such interfaces in the future.

By now I am sure you are wondering how it performs. I can say that it performs excellent. Straight out of the box I hooked it up with the included HDMI to DVI cable and was treated to a crisp, colorful image. After adjusting my desktop resolution to match the native 190×1080p resolution of the MS238H, I marveled at all the new screen space compared to the 17” LCD I was previously using. However I did have to adjust some properties on my graphics card due to a black border that was being projected. This appears to be an issue with many HDMI graphics cards and not the monitor. The software on my ATI card easily fixed the problem.

Conclusion:

I think the ASUS MS238H is an excellent monitor for those looking for a widescreen LCD that is both athletically pleasing and loaded with green technology features. The monitor also comes in several other sizes including 20”, 21”, and 22”. Color options include all black or a black front with white back. The price on the 23” was $190 with free shipping at the time from newegg.com.

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Green Product Certifications

While many of you may be familiar with Energy Star as a product certification I wanted to take some time to mention a few other certifications you may not be familiar with but are worth taking a look at.

Energy star

Energy star is a program between the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of energy to help promote energy efficiency in products and practical applications. It features programs for consumer products, home improvements, new building constructions, and industrial improvements. Looking for energy star approved products will help in lowering your environmental impact as well as lowering your energy costs.

http://www.energystar.gov/

80 Plus

80 Plus is a program funded by utility companies to encourage the use of energy efficient power supplies and computers. It requires that power supplies in computers be at least 80% efficient under various loads. Non-certified power supplies and computers are much less efficient than 80 Plus certified ones. Benefits of using 80 Plus products are a reduction in energy consumption and energy costs. They also produce less heat as well are improving computer reliability and decreases maintenance costs.

http://www.80plus.org/

EPEAT

EPEAT is an environmental certification for desktop computers, laptops, and monitors. Products are required to meet 23 different criteria to be registered and can achieve even higher levels of certification by meeting additional optional criteria. Benefits of purchasing EPEAT products included a reduction in toxic materials including poisonous mercury and lead, elimination of solid waste and hazardous waste, energy savings, and reduction in green house gases. The EPEAT site has many great tools for consumers to use such as a database of approved products by country and location of product retailers, an Electronics Environmental Benefits Calculator, and fact sheets and presentations to share to help inform others on EPEAT certifications.

http://www.epeat.net/default.aspx

ULS

ULS certification or Use Less Stuff promotes earth friendly and recyclable packaging and reduction in product waste, also known as source reduction. A reduction of at 20% must be shown compared to previous versions or similar products to receive the certification. Certification can also be met by 20% increases in product efficiency, or 20% reduction in net disposal weight of primary packing.

http://www.use-less-stuff.com/index.htm

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Carbon Credit reduction opportunity right here in Chicago

Carbonfund.org has partnered with The Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX). The CCX is North America’s largest carbon trading market with an aim to reduce CO2 emissions through targeted emission reductions.

If you were thinking of purchasing carbon offsets and wanted to see the effects a bit more locally then I suggest purchasing through Carbonfund.org. You can easily calculate the amount of carbon to offset for activities such as flying, driving or just donate a flat fee.  During the easy process you can select which activities you want your offsets to be applied to. If you select the “Energy Efficiency & Carbon Credits” option your offsets will go towards the Chicago Climate Exchange program.

Carbonfund.org also has several other options for your offsets to be applied besides the CCX exchange program that include Renewable Energy, Methane Projects, and Reforestation.

UrbanGreenSpot is not affiliated with CarbonFund.org or The Chicago Climate Exchange.

See link for more information.

http://www.carbonfund.org/site/projects/profile/ccx/

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Chicago Green Drinks

On January 13^th, this monthly event that takes places in 300 cities around the world will continue featuring leaders in sustainability movement around Chicago.

The theme of this month’s event is Annual State of Sustainable Chicago (& Power Networking).

The event is an informal meeting featuring networking opportunities, panel speakers, informative table displays, as well as a business card repository. Hosted at Jefferson Tap, it appears to be a place to gather and share new ideas on sustainability and environmental awareness. Internships, volunteers and jobs have been attained from this event.

In the future I will attending this event personally in order to provide detailed coverage of the event and hopefully find leads to even more local green events to provide to the members of UrbanGreenSpot.

January 13, 2010
5:30–8:30pm

Jefferson Tap & Grill
325 N Jefferson St 2nd Floor
Chicago, IL 60661

Event does suggest preregistration.

See the following link for more information:

http://www.foresightdesign.org/greendrinks/

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Welcome to UrbanGreenSpot

We would like welcome all new visitors and members and hope you keep coming back to help us grow. As a content driven site we hope you further UrbanGreenSpot’s expansion by letting us know what you want to see out of the green living revolution. Voice your ideas, tips, opinions to a likeminded community and steer UrbanGreenSpot towards what you want.

UrbanGreenSpot aspires to provide knowledge, news, and involvement in the ever-growing and exciting green living revolution. From eco-friendly life style tips to green technology reviews to environmental sustainability. We also provide a wide reach of events and news from our local Chicago area to across the globe. So please come, learn, enjoy and participate in UrbanGreenSpot.

UrbanGreenSpot came about to fill the void in my life during endless job hunting. I grew tired of one sided emails and job applications and needed to get some substance and meaning back in my life. I decided to invest in a creative outlet for my passions. That outlet was the birth of UrbanGreenSpot.

As always in an effort to back up what we say at UrbanGreenSpot, this site is hosted using green technologies including  100% wind powered webhosting, Energy star and eco friendly monitors, green technology hard drives, and  80 PLUS Certified power supplies.

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