Designing a garden to attract birds is an excellent idea and has many benefits that you may not have considered. Birds are fun to watch and they add beauty to your garden, but there are other environmentally and people friendly reasons to design a garden to attract birds.
Some of the reasons you may want to consider designing a garden to attract birds include:
Soil conservation – some plants used in landscaping can help to prevent soil erosion
Increased wildlife populations – various species of birds will flock to your garden
Natural insect control – birds eat insects so naturally the more birds you have the better insect control you will have in your garden
Educational opportunities – children and adults alike will have the opportunity to view and learn about many different types of birds and plants
Food production – many of the plants that attract birds also produce foods that humans can eat
Now that you know a few of the benefits of designing a garden to attract birds it will be important to know the necessary elements to incorporate into the design of your garden.
Garden Elements that Attract Birds
Bird Feeders - Bird feeders are one of the easiest and least expensive elements that you can add to your garden to attract birds. You can use a feeder that hangs from a tree or you could opt for a free standing feeder. By using several different kinds of bird seed you can attract various types of birds. You may attract birds such as sparrows, robins, and doves.
Bird Friendly Plants - Certain types of plants will attract birds to your garden. Some plants will be a place of shelter for the birds while others will provide a haven for mating and nesting. Plants such as berry trees will be a food source for birds. Plants that are bird friendly include things such as: creeping vines, holly bushes, butterfly bushes, larkspur, and evening primrose. Flowers that are nectar producing and brightly colored attract birds such as hummingbirds.
Water Features - Water features not only provide a place from which the birds can drink or in which they can bathe, but water features will also provide aesthetic appeal to your garden. Small fountains, bird baths, or a dish of water on the ground will all be sufficient water features.
The MIT Clean Energy Prize was established in 2007 to encourage innovation in the energy space, specifically with regard to clean energy.
Forbes Magazine recently named this "The Biggest Small Business Competitions".
The winner gets $200,000 and there has been millions of dollars in follow up funding and investments to past winners.
Who Can Apply? This is open to all U.S. university graduate and undergraduate students, over 100 teams are expected to compete in five energy tracks:
energy efficiency and infrastructure
renewables
clean non-renewables
transportation
deployment (clean energy services or processes).
The deadline for entering is February 25th, so if you have an idea, you better get moving! Good Luck. - Scot, MIT Undergrad & Guest Blogger forGreen Energy TV
We often look at ways to save on fuel, alternative fuel ideas, tire pressure, hybrid electric cars, etc. And at the same time, we overlook additional ways to save fuel, time and money. Well, you can do this with E-ZPass.
What is E-ZPass? E-ZPass is an electronic toll collection system which takes cash, coins and toll tickets out of the toll collection process. Instead, drivers prepay tolls and attach a small electronic device to their vehicles. Tolls are automatically calculated and deducted from the prepaid accounts as E-ZPass customers pass through the toll lanes.
Green Energy TV gave E-ZPass the Two Green Thumbs Up Award and here's why:
E-ZPass can process 250 to 300 percent more vehicles per lane, thus reducing toll plaza delays and traffic congestion.
E-ZPass helps to reduce congestion and reduce auto emissions.
You hear a lot of positive news about companies going green, and the best green companies.
Well, Panasonic announced that they aim to be the No.1 Green Innovation Company in the Electronics Industry.
Below are some of the ways they plan on being the top of the list for best green companies in their industry:
Green life innovation- Panasonic will make the green lifestyle a reality by implementing Panasonic ideas for life and offer better living to people around the world with a sense of security, comfort and joy, in a sustainable way. For example, the ideas will include "lifestyle with virtually zero CO2 emissions for the entire home and the entire building," "lifestyle with recycling-oriented products," "evolving and expanding eco cars," and "encouraging eco-conscious products in emerging and developing countries."
Green business innovation - Panasonic will cut its environmental impact stemming from its business activity to the maximum extent possible and introduce to the market its technologies, ideas and measures derived from such efforts. For example, the company will strive for "minimizing CO2 emissions in all business processes," "recycling-oriented manufacturing," "green work-style" and "offering eco-solution using its own expertise."
1) Global networking: Creating a network of strong autonomous Panasonic bases across the world, Panasonic will pursue management approaches that will optimize business efficiency on a global scale.
2) Individual-customer touch points No.1: Taking advantage of the vast array of its products, Panasonic will establish new IT-driven relationships to provide to each individual customer a maximized life-time customer value.
3) Synergy creation: Panasonic believes group synergy occurs when Panasonic companies collaborate spontaneously and autonomously in diverse fields. The Panasonic Group aims to become a flexible and dynamic company, consistently promoting collaboration and creating synergies within the Group through spontaneous initiatives and autonomous management.
Green Energy TV is giving Panasonic the Two Green Thumbs Up Award for being one of the best companies going green. Keep up the great work!
A few of our readers sent us emails asking us to post the following ideas for some recommended Green New Year's resolutions for 2010.
Below are 7 of the 2010 Green New Year's Resolution Ideas:
Go on a Green Diet- In the New Year, many people go on a diet. This means, you can start eating certified organic foods that do not contain the food toxins or chemical toxins that are in most of our foods. You can also start to buy more of your food locally as well and get food that is fresh and support the local economy and help create more green jobs as a direct result of your purchases.
Do the Green Diet Exercise - One of our Guest Bloggers wrote about how he lost over 70 pounds by pedaling his bike to power his TV. Here's a link to that blog post if you are looking to power your TV while you watch it and save electricity and lose a lot of weight in the process blog.greenenergytv.com/blog/wind-power-technology/0/0/new-green-diet-pedal-and-watch
Say good-bye to Household Toxins - You can have an environment friendly home by eliminating the chemical toxins. Most of the store bought cleaners contain very harmful chemical toxins, however, you can switch to safer cleaners from companies such as Shaklee or Seventh Generation. There are many new green and safer cleaning products out there right now that do a great job without exposing your family to chemical toxins in your home.
Green your Lawn - Most of the chemicals in fertilizers used on the lawns in the US are banned in Europe because of the dangerous chemical toxins they contain and they seep back into our drinking water and affect fish and other wildlife as well. There are more options for this year with chemical free lawn care and organic lawn care. You can use bone meal and other organic lawn care products that prevent weeds and still give you a green lawn without the chemicals. Check out your local nursery and read the labels!
Get Green Jobs& Get Certified- There is an increase in green jobs, whether you decide to become a solar installer, energy rater, get involved in Sustainability Programs, etc. We have green jobs posted on our main site, and there are many other major outlets advertising green jobs on Indeed.com and Monster.com
Get a Green Degree - There are more schools and independent organizations offering classes on Sustainability Programs, certifications for LEED, Energy Raters, Solar and Wind Installers and more. Many of the top green universities are also offering green educational classes and degrees now and this can help you land green jobs and prepare you for the future blog.greenenergytv.com/blog/green-jobs
Start a Green Business - There are many areas in green that are fast growing and opportunities increasing daily. We did a post a while back that talked about the growth areas of green and here's a link to some of the hottest and upcoming areas that deal with organic natural foods, eco friendly products, solar installation to geothermal energy, energy efficiency and green building.
If you have any Green New Year's Resolutions for 2010 that you would like to share, feel free to do so in the comments below. - Stay Green!
There is a lot of positive news about companies going green and the best green companies. Green Energy TV has given Ze-gen, the Two Green Thumbs Up Award for being one of the Best Green Companies.
What does Ze-gen Do? Ze-gen is transforming the way we view waste. Instead of a liability or burden, waste should be seen as a domestic, distributed energy source. We offer an economically and environmentally superior alternative to land filling or incineration. Our clean and highly efficient gasification technology unlocks the potential for waste to be a domestically produced, renewable resource
Their green inventions, energy innovation, and process of taking waste to create energy is incredible. Check out their site http://www.ze-gen.com/ and keep up the great work Ze-gen!
Many people question if you could use wind power technology to recharge electric vehicles?
Well, according to IBM, on the small Danish island of Bornholm, a coalition of governments, universities and industries are working on an innovative pilot program – the EDISON Project.
The EDISON Project could provide some unique technical insights to help answer that question by using wind power technology to recharge electric vehicles.
Check out the video of how this small Danish town is using wind power technology, energy innovation to power and recharge electric vehicles, and creating green jobs in the process. (Source: IBM)
There are a lot of companies going green and new types of energy innovation and green inventions.
In the video below, you will see how this company is getting rich during a recession. The company is called Agromin, and they are a making a lot of money from waste and benefiting the environment in the process.
What does Agromin do? Agromin, a green waste recycler in Ventura County, California processes over 300,000 tons of green waste a year. They process the material into soil products and makes the material avaialbe to consumers (in bags and bulk) farmers, cities and landscapers--thus closing the recycling loop.
Check out their video below & you guys get theTwo Green Thumbs Up Award!
I had a great phone conversation last week with Rob DeLine from Applied Materials. Rob works with Energy & Environmental Solutions for Applied Materials.
I am very impressed with the direction their company is headed when it comes to manufacturing energy. Applied Materials has a new way to define solar energy and one of the ways is through energy innovation and green manufacturing.
But first, here are some interesting facts:
Applied Materials is #1 in Silicon Process Equipment
They Produce the world's largest and most powerful thin film panel
#1 in LCD display equipment
#1 Solar PV Process Equipment & experienced world leader in Solar PV technology
One of the things I loved hearing about was the Applied SunFab Solar Module Production Line which enables customers to manufacture world class, 5.7m2 thin film silicon photovoltaic modules.
The Applied SunFab Line delivers state-of-the-art green manufacturing capability needed to produce the lowest cost per watt modules. There are no factories in the US at this time, but there are many of these factories throughout the world that are in production and seeing the benefits.
Green Energy TV is giving the Two Green Thumbs Up Award to Applied Materials because what's great about them is the fact that these factories are creating thousands of green jobs, delivering hundreds of millions of dollars annually in local economic growth, enabling clean energy to be produced locally, they are helping to create energy independence and their business model helps keep jobs local. Maybe cities going green and states going green need to look very closely at Applied's model for here in the US and look to create real green jobs that sustain cities, communities and provide clean energy solutions.
How do you turn trash to Gas? You can watch the video below and learn about the World's First Commercially Viable Flex-Ethanol Process.
Gas prices will probably always continue to fluctuate, and there is still a growing interest in energy independence, renewable fuels and an alternative fuels program.
Interest in domestically produced bio-fuels like ethanol (E85) is still on the rise. Coskata Inc., a leading developer of alternative fuels program on bio-fuels, announced the successful start-up of its semi-commercial flex-ethanol facility.
Cool Fact: Flex Fuel vehicles that can run on gas, E85 or a combination of both, and are already available from Chevrolet, Ford, Dodge and GMC. GM has built 5 million of these vehicles to date.
I wanted to let your readers know about MIT's Clean Energy Ventures Workshop that will be held on May 2-6, 2010.
I read Kate Anderson's press release about this hands on workshop which is geared towards senior execs. It's a four day program for senior executives from corporations and government agencies or major program leaders to more effectively encourage, lead and manage the clean energy venture creation process.
The program costs $9,950 not including accomodations.
You can apply via this site http://mitsloan.mit.edu/execed/coursedetails.php?id=792 and be part of the MIT Sloan School of Management, in collaboration with the MIT Energy Initiative and the School of Engineering, in this groundbreaking new workshop called Clean Energy Ventures: Creating Innovative New Businesses Through Entrepreneurial Management. -Kevin Adams, Guest Blogger for Green Energy TV
It’s been 6 months since my son was born… how time flies. It’s been a joy and a blessing to see our new bundle of joy. My natural maternal instinct kicked in immediately and I couldn't believe how much I loved him at the first sight. It’s only natural, right? You would think that by 4th baby, I would be an expert in just about everything. Trust me. Theoretically, I am an expert. But when it comes to actually nursing a new born baby, I am a complete mess. The lack of latching, bleeding, soreness and aching, and to top it all off, I had swollen glands with each child… ugh! I just can’t understand how something natural as breastfeeding can be so incredibly infuriating!
The lactation specialist and other moms tried to help me through the process. But in the end, I gritted my teeth and plowed through it for the first 3 weeks until the pain subsided. I completely sympathize with other moms who give up because nursing becomes too difficult. But I chose to keep trying. In my personal opinion, there is nothing better I can give to my child than breast milk. The benefits of breastfeeding are endless and I’m sure you’ve heard most of them. It is the most effective way of providing organic natural foods.
But with the latest information about chemical toxins such as rocket fuel (perchlorate) in baby formula, I feel more confident that breastfeeding is best for my kids.
Although EPA believes that the level of perchlorate found in baby formula deemed safe, it is mind boggling that chemical toxins can be found in baby formula in the first place. So for those awesome moms out there that decided to give breastfeeding a try, don’t give up! You are providing your baby with nutrients free from food toxins and it really is the most eco friendly living. But to help ease into the transition, you should gear yourself with a really good breast pump. I wore mind out with the first three kids and recently had to get a new one. However, I also found out that my OB/GYN can write a prescription for a breast pump that is covered by my health insurance. I was able to get the newest Medela electric pump from an insurance approved medical supply store. I suggested this to several of my friends already and so far, all but one were successful. So give the insurance company a call and then talk to your doctor. Good luck and happy nursing!
In a press release today, Positive Energy Rebrands as OPOWER, the Leader in Energy Efficiency Software; Announces Commonwealth Edison, Xcel Energy and Dominion as New Utility Customers.
With Six of the Nation’s Top 10 Utilities as Customers, OPOWER Provides Consumers Nationwide with Energy Saving Tips through Comparative Home Energy Reports. Pretty impressive news.
When you go to OPOWER's site www.opower.com, on the bottom left side, you will see a section titled: Our Impact and a running total of the following categories:
Kilowatt Hours Saved
Savings on Energy Bills
lbs of CO2 abated
Here's a look at the founders of the company and their About Us page: OPOWER™ was founded on a simple premise: it’s time to engage the 300 million Americans who are in the dark about their energy use. Co-founders and long-time friends Dan Yates and Alex Laskey combined their talents to actualize their belief in the power of information to improve people’s lives. Together, they envisioned a product and created a company that would empower people to make smart decisions that could conserve our resources and preserve our planet.
Green Energy TV Awarded OPOWER with the Two Green Thumbs Up.
Check out their site www.opower.com and here you go OPOWER! - Stay Green!
Green Energy TV has given out the 2009 Two Green Thumbs Up Award. We are still in the process of announcing the other 2009 Award recipients, but here's a peak at some of this year's winners already:
Patagonia
Lewis Pugh - swim across the North Pole
Clif Bar
Stonyfield Farms
Google
Kamal Meattle - Plants that clean
WebEx
Liberty Tire Recycling
Shaklee
John Francis - Man that Walks the Earth
Seventh Generation
Voltaic Systems
Eden Foods
Portland, Oregon
Eco-Products - Disposables
Frog's Leap
Siemens
Intel
Solyndra
Interface
Michael Pritchard, founder of Lifesaver Systems
Inventor Saul Griffith & his team - Giant Kite Turbines
Shai Agassi - Better Place
Inventor - William Kamkwamba -built an electricity-producing windmill from spare parts and scrap in Africa when he was 14.
PNC
Cary Fowler - Future of Food
Greensburg, Kansas - Tornado hits town and turn green
AORA - world’s first hybrid-solar power plant
Ice Energy
Southwest Windpower
There's still time if you would like to nominate a company, organization, schools, individuals and/or inventors that qualify in the following categories. Note: please do so in the comments below or send us an email to news (at) greenenergytv(dot) com (Put NOMINATE in the Subject line):
Companies going green
Green inventions
Energy innovation
Schools going green
Green Cities
Alternative Fuels Program
Best Green Companies
Leed Building
Organic living
Renewable and Alternative energy solutions and more!
Green Energy TV has Awarded Southwest Windpower Two Green Thumbs Up for their wind power technology.
Southwest Windpower is the world's leading producer of small wind turbines. Since 1987, they have pioneered new technologies to make renewable energy simple. Their wind power technology can be used to reduce your home electric bills, power a home, boat, business, or off the grid.
The company has shipped more than 500,000 of its wind turbines to date and created energy independence and green jobs for many people in the process.
In addition to their wind power technology, their websites makes it easy to find information on tax incentives for going green, wind maps, costs of their wind turbines and dealers located in your local area. http://www.windenergy.com/index_wind.htm
Keep up the work Southwest Windpower, and here's your Two Green Thumbs Up Award!
In a Ted talk, biodiversity warrior Cary Fowler wants to save the world from agricultural collapse, one seed at a time.
Cary Fowler is protecting our future food sources, by freezing seeds, one at a time. He talks about how just in the US, in the 1800's, farmers were growing 7,100 different types of apples, and they each had their own name. Today, 6,800 of those are extinct, and will never exist again.
We Awarded Cary Fowler with Two Green Thumbs Up! for his work to save the world from agricultural collapse, one seed at a time.
We focus on all types of energy such as solar, wind energy, geothermal, alternative fuels, etc., but without food, humans cannot power themselves. Cary is working to preserve seeds for future generations of humans as well as insects and other lifeforms that depend on agriculture.
Green Energy TV awards Solyndra with Two Green Thumbs Up for being one of the Best Green Companies.
Solyndra knows how to define solar energy with their energy innovation and designs. They manufacture photovoltaic systems, comprised of panels and mounting hardware, for the commercial rooftop market.
Solyndra employs high volume manufacturing based on proven technologies and processes to meet the needs of the global solar market. They use proprietary cylindrical modules and thin-film technology and their systems are designed to provide the lowest installed cost per system and the highest solar electrical energy output for typical low slope commercial rooftops.
They received great news last week with the US Government's $535 Million Loan Guarantee for Solyndra. The funding will finance construction of the first phase of the company’s new manufacturing facility and create thousands of new green jobs.
Annual production of solar panels from the first phase is expected to provide energy equivalent to powering 24,000 homes a year or over half a million homes over the project’s lifetime.
Keep up the great work!
Picture: “US Energy Secretary Steven Chu and California's Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger flanked by Solyndra executives.”
Green Energy TV has given Intel the Two Green Thumbs Up! Awardfor being one of the best companies going green.
Intel was listed as #1 on the EPA Green Power Partner List, has solid Sustainability Programs and is not only going green, but offering eco friendly products and solutions for businesses and individuals.
From Intel's recycling and waste reduction processes to employee incentive programs, they support and encourage environmental sustainability in their organization.
Intel is a leader and a great model for other companies going green or interested in going green. When they design a product, they keep the life-cycle of the product in mind, ranging from creation, materials to disposal through recycling or reuse.
They are big on energy innovation and keeping their employees active in reducing their carbon footprint through energy efficiency and recycling initiatives/programs.
Other Sustainability Programs include LEED Buildings and more.
Green Energy TV has awarded Siemens the Two Green Thumbs Up Award for being one of the best green companies.
Siemens is a German company that has developed a range of energy-efficient and eco friendly products and solutions.
Here are just some reasons why they were Awarded Two Green Thumbs Up:
Renewable energy systems that harvest wind and geothermal heat.
Green Building Technologies - In the US alone, Siemens Green Building Technologies have saved over $1.8 Billion in energy costs.
Electronic Health Records - They are the #1 application service provider in health care and process 170 million transactions a day. That is saving a lot of trees and energy.
Green Cities - Helping cities around the world become more energy efficient, implement sustainability programs and become carbon free, green cities.
Better batteries for electric locomotives and motors.
Smart Grid Solutions - the only supplier of products, services and solutions across the entire energy conversion chain.
According to Siemens, since 1995, their products have conserved some 1.2 billion tons of carbon dioxide. In 2007, a new Siemens gas-fired power plant is expected to set a new record in energy efficiency. Siemens also employs approximately 69,000 employees in the US, and many of these jobs are green jobs.
We awarded the world’s leading organic yogurt-maker the Two Green Thumbs Up! Awardfor being one of the best green companies.
Stonyfield Farm, uses a simple recipe with only all natural and organic ingredients—never any preservatives or artificial flavors, colors, and sweeteners like other brands. And all of their organic ingredients are produced without the use of antibiotics, artificial growth hormones, chemical fertilizers, chemical toxins and persistent pesticides.
Cool Fact: They started out as an organic farming school, which means they have been caring for the planet longer than they’ve been making yogurt.
Here are some things Stonyfield Farm does:
Their organic ingredient purchases help to keep over 100,000 farm acres free of chemical toxins, persistent pesticides and chemical fertilizers known to contaminate soil, rivers, and drinking water.
To help reduce global warming, they offset all of the C02 emissions from their facility energy use.
Started a nonprofit called “Climate Counts” which shows people how they can help fight climate change by the way they shop and invest.
The solar array on the roof of their Yogurt Works, generates some of the clean renewable energy they use to make their yogurt.
Reuse and recycling, they prevent hundreds of tons of waste from reaching landfills and incinerators each year.
Give 10% of their profits to efforts that help protect and restore the earth.
Although EPA believes that the level of perchlorate found in baby formula deemed safe, it is mind boggling that chemical toxins can be found in baby formula in the first place. So for those awesome moms out there that decided to give breastfeeding a try, don’t give up! You are providing your baby with nutrients free from food toxins and it really is the most eco friendly living. But to help ease into the transition, you should gear yourself with a really good breast pump. I wore mind out with the first three kids and recently had to get a new one. However, I also found out that my OB/GYN can write a prescription for a breast pump that is covered by my health insurance. I was able to get the newest Medela electric pump from an insurance approved medical supply store. I suggested this to several of my friends already and so far, all but one were successful. So give the insurance company a call and then talk to your doctor. Good luck and happy nursing! 
They received great news last week with the US Government's $535 Million Loan Guarantee for Solyndra. The funding will finance construction of the first phase of the company’s new manufacturing facility and create thousands of new green jobs.
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