Addicted to Plastics

On April 20, 6 p.m., Telluride's Wilkinson Public Library in collaboration with The New Community Coalition and Joanna and Daniel Kanow's EcoSpaces continues its Green Film Series with "Addicted to Plastic: The Rise and Demise of a Modern Miracle." The program opens with a trailer of "Bag It," another look at the shrink-wrapped world we live in, a work-in-progress by local Suzan Beraza.

From styrofoam cups and boxes to tote take-out to artificial organs and the credit cards we use to buy them (often referred to simply as "plastic"), the demand for plastic in our culture is so great, my tortoise-framed sunglasses could become an endangered species. For better and for worse, no invention in the past century has had more influence than these synthetics, affecting nearly every ecosystem and invading nearly every nook and corner of human society, including our dinner table, where the toxic chemical compounds on land and in our oceans travel up the food chain and wind up in our food.

In 85 minutes, the documentary details plastic's path over the last 100 years and provides expert interviews on practical and cutting edge solutions to recycling, toxicity, and biodegradability. Not just another eco-horror film, however, "Addicted" also offers hope in many forms, such as plant-based renewable bioplastics.

In the mid-1990s, Joanna Measer Kanow and husband Daniel were teaching in a one-room, off-the-grid schoolhouse powered by solar and hydropower in the little town of Whale Gulch, California, while living in a solar-powered cabin overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The couple were green crusaders long before "green" became fashionable.

In August 2007, the Kanows opened EcoSpaces, a green building design and supply showroom selling everything from roofing tiles made from recycled rubber to look exactly like slate or shingle to insulation made from recycled denim from blue jeans and so much more. Now EcoSpaces has also morphed into a nexus for change in the region, working with the TNCC to help educate our community about ways to live sustainably by offering workshops, lectures, demonstrations, and films such as "Addicted."

To learn more, click the "play" button and listen to Joanna speak about her business, this film and other EcoSpaces events and projects. (Also check out TNCC's website for ways to recycle plastic, especially yogurt containers.)

For more info and to hear a live recoded interview with Joanna Kanow about this topic please go to

http://www.tellurideinside.com/2009/04/wilkinson-public-library-green-film-series.html

Thank you to www.TellurideInside.com for their interest in our business and what we are trying to do here in the world of living green!

The adventures of living off the Grid

LIFE IS AN ADVENTURE WHEN LIVING OFF THE GRID

I was inspired to write this article in the dark.  Old style: pencil and paper by candle light, in solidarity with the other 60 million people all over the world participating in Earth Hour, a global outcry to turn the lights off for just one hour in a symbolic action to bring awareness to the threats of global warming.

 

For me, this was a small exercise in "conservation" that helped me recognize all of the lights and energy that I ordinarily consume at this evening hour. Though, for those people already living off the grid, that is, creating their own energy from the sun, wind, or water to power their houses, they live this experiment daily.  There are more people using alternative energy in San Miguel County than you may have guessed.  They may elect to do it for a variety of different reasons, but overall they love the experience.

 

Kelsey Holstrom, daughter of Kris and John, is a 16-year-old Telluride High school sophomore who has lived off the grid for her entire life.  She lives in a house that gets its power primarily from 16 solar panels, a small wind generator, a back up gas powered generator and is heated by wood.  Her home and organic farm, sit atop the breathtaking Hastings Mesa at 10,000 feet, in a community where the majority of her neighbors also make their own alternative power as well.  This teen is clearly wise beyond her age when it comes to understanding her personal impact on the earth and is already instilled with the knowledge and awareness of sustainability. Conservation is as common to this teenager as talking on the phone, of which hers is charged from the sun.  She admits that she has shorted-out the whole house by blow drying her hair  and drawing too much of a  load from the system when other appliances were running.   Besides having to charge her Ipod, computer, cell phone, etc. one at a time, she does not feel deprived, rather she feels privileged to be able to live comfortably in one of the most beautiful spots in the area.  She has taken her passions to a student run organization called YES: Youth Empowering Sustainability, where she hopes to convince the school district to adopt even greater sustainable energy practices and help to provide a model to her peers that teaches an awareness about all kinds of.  Kelsey shares, "It is gratifying to live this way knowing that we are not contributing to the global issues of pollution and climate change, and to not be dependent on any one else's oil." She hopes to one-day write a book about utilizing and respecting the earth instead of fighting and controlling it.

 

Ryan Smith, local DJ and bar tender is building his first home in the Two Rivers deed restricted area of Ilium Valley.   He has elected to install a grid-tied solar electric system.  This type of system does not call for a generator or batteries, which can be toxic and difficult to discard.  Instead, the grid is  used for back up power on days the sun does not produce enough. Smith passionately believes that "It is irresponsible to build any other way right now." His 8 solar panels will produce all the energy he will need for his 1,200 square foot house.  He and architect, Gabe Ciaffre, have designed an advantageous south facing building, using passive solar techniques, a very tight building envelope, LED and Compact florescent lighting, and energy efficient appliances, so that power bills will be obsolete. The entire system, with rebates and a generous installer, only cost him around $7,000. To boot, at the end of each year, the electric company will send him a check if he has generated more power from the sun than he has used. According to San Miguel Power, there are currently 42 net meter accounts in the county, that is, grid-tied homes like Ryan's.

 

The Ward family is a committed bunch to the off the grid life style, living comfortably in the extreme climate of East Ophir with their two young kids in the most rugged and wild of locations.  Their 16 solar panels and battery bank require fairly low maintenance. Twice a year they add distilled water to the batteries to prolong their life.  During big storm cycles or very short cloudy days in winter, their back up generator kicks in automatically, making their alternative energy system rather convenient.  The only effort really is the attentiveness to energy use: nothing is kept plugged in (which create "phantom loads" that draw constantly from the system), and it is mandatory that every light is turned off immediately when not in use. Larkin, 4 and Caleb 2, already are fully aware of the meaning of conservation, and will tell stories when they are older of how their cloth diapers were dried by the heat of their wood stove, fueled by scraps from dad's wood shop. Andy Ward originally started living in a solar and hydro powered Yurt to experience financial freedom from utility bills, though for Amy Ward, the satisfaction is in the environmental benefits. She says, " I feel comfortable with my impact on the planet. It is a truly joyful way to be because it makes you recognize your place on the planet.  We are so thankful we get to live in such a beautiful place, surrounded by national forest on all sides, yet just a half a mile away from our amazing community." The family moved into a "main steam" powered house for a bit, though decided that they liked the adventures of living partly up Ophir pass even more, so they moved back into an off the grid home to raise their kids.   Their house is not accessible by car in the winter, so the kids are driven by snow-mobile into "town", though sometimes they get to sled down the hill to meet their carpool.

         There is no better time to go solar than right now. The local and federal government is handing out fat rebates and tax credits to motivate and stimulate people to decorate their roofs with solar panels and start making their own energy.  The New Community Coalition in partnership with San Miguel Power is offering a $1,500 rebate for solar thermal (hot water) and a $3,000 rebate for solar electric, which are only available until mid June.  The Federal government is also offering a 30% tax credit which has recently been extended to 2016.  The discounts are great and the sun in shining.  And life is rich with adventure when you are making your own power!

--
Be Well,

Daniel Kanow
EcoSpaces  "Green Building Solutions"
Telluride, CO  USA
(O) 970-728-1973   (F) 970-728-8007

Green Building Materials
Green Building Design Consulting

"Be involved in a Movement"

Our New Non Profit Branch

We are happy to announce that EcoSpaces now has a non-profit educational branch to our business thanks to The New Community Coalition. It only make sense for our socially and environmentally conscious business to have a component that reaches out to the public in ways to help educate the masses about the benefits of green building and green living in a way that is healthy for the home owner, the home, and the environment.  After being on sabbatical from a career in environmental education, and classroom teaching, my "teacher" gears are starting to turn again and I am very excited about the opportunity to help educate my community about green buildings and the options that are now available to them. 

EcoSpaces Educational MIssion:

The mission of EcoSpaces Educational is to make alternative green building materials the "main steam" We will do this by providing the  public with free education about green building materials that are now readily available to them in their community.  We will  introduce and expose consumers to the sustainable, renewable, non-toxic, recycled and recyclable choices materials that are healthy for the individual, their home as well as the environment. 

We plan to provide our community with workshops, lectures, demonstrations, films, and festivals that will give our community access and empowerment to greening our homes and thus our community.


Listed is our wish list for EcoSpaces Educational events that we would like to sponsor:

Tabling: bring our educational tabling display to conferences, workshops, schools, festivals, etc.  as a way to expose the masses to readily available green building materials in a hands on display.
•    Weekly presence at farmers market
•    Presence at Blue Grass Festival
•    4corners green building festival


Monthly articles will be submitted for publishing in the Daily Planet as well as our web site blog related to living Green associated with green building .

Organize a green home tour
•    one afternoon in summer, meet on bikes
•    tour 6-10 homes in town that have used a green building material.  Tour invited to see these materials in a finished form.
•    ride to picnic on valley floor

Promote alternative energy with the human powered smoothie maker
•    An exercise  bike that powers a blender
•    Will accompany our educational table
•    Enjoy an organic fruit smoothie while learning about alternative energy and green building

Green movie series at the library
•    Sponsor green movie night in conjunction with the Wilkinson Library
•    Invite the community to share in free showings of films (documentaries) that highlight green living and green building

Internship position
•    Offer summer internship position to student passionate about the world of green building
•    We would expose a student to many angels of the green building world in order to empower him/her to many aspects of our business to  inspire the student to find a direction they are interested in through their exposure to the field.

Non Profit Web Site:  Construction Material New life
•    Create a website where local builders can post extra building materials that would other wise end up in the landfill. People interested in salvaging materials for building can look here, too. This would not be a brokered deal, rather a free service to swap goods and reclaim materials.
•    The EcoSpaces Green Community web site will help keep the community connected to green events, workshops, etc. available to them in their community
•    A Green Blog will also be available
•   

Provide Workshops:
•    women's carpentry workshop with Rodney Porsche (book shelves)
•    Do it yourself workshops: Flor carpet install, clay walls, denim insulation,  or cork floors

Revitalize Green Bucks (small scale)
•    Partner with Koto to conduct community greening activities (cock and seal, trash pick up, restoration projects, valley floor etc) 5 hours of volunteer work in exchange for concert ticket. 
•    Mountain Film, Film Fest etc. could get involved

Kinetic Sculptures powered by Alternative Parade and Race
•    A call to contestants to build (out of recycled material) a vehicle that uses energy only from alternative energy (no automobile engines allowed)
•    Parade down main street and race to the mine (or down the bike path)

Donate Green Building Materials at cost
•    Obtain funding so that we can offer green building materials at a considerable lower price to schools, hospitals, Habitat for Humanity, non profits etc as show pieces to encourage others to use green building materials and build healthy build environments for our community.

2009 Green Build Conference in Arizona
•    Help to make this conference available to others in our community by offering discounted registration fees (through group rates)
•    Offer an essay contest or application for entrance into this event.

EcoSpaces Solar Panel
•    Obtain grants to acquire solar panels for in front of our store in order to off set our coal powered energy that runs our showroom currently.   Grid tie by creating our own power from the sun.


Long Term Projects
Green Building Conference in Mountain Village Conference Center
•    Obtain $10,000 sponsorship money to host a Green Conference
•     guest lecturers, workshops, LEED classes, education
•    A arena to expose local people working in the field of greening our community
•    Telluride as model sustainable community
•    A green weekend, events all weekend long around the theme of sustainability.



--
Be Well,

Daniel Kanow
EcoSpaces  "Green Building Solutions"
Telluride, CO  USA
(O) 970-728-1973   (F) 970-728-8007

Green Building Materials
Green Building Design Consulting

"Be involved in a Movement"

Lights Out

Have you unplugged lately?

Telluride  was the first city street on the globe to be illuminated with street lights, thanks to the advent of AC/DC power conceived right here in our very own Ames Valley. Currently, almost every occupied home in this county is "lit" long after the sun has dropped.

The abundance of electrical energy flowing freely into our homes now allows us to watch a DVD, while on-line shopping, while nuking popcorn in the microwave as our clothes and dishes are washed spontaneously without even touching them. Around here, your fully charged cell phone that you nuzzle with every day, your warm blown dried hair in the winter chill, and your home brewed coffee machine, like all other electrical appliances, are charged by coal power burned at our neighboring Nucla power plant.


Today, in our current environmental and economic crisis, sustainable can simply be defined as "USE LESS!" Once dedicated to sustainability, as an attempt to heal the planet, you will also find that healthy personal, physical, and emotional benefits that follow from the practice of Living Green. Have you unplugged lately?

    My friend Margaret, after working for the peace Corp in Honduras, retuned home to the typical American urban environment to see if she could maintain a connection to the natural rhythms of nature among a culture that does not support it.  Thus, as a way to practice energy conservation, sustainability, and living simply, she vowed to not use electricity after the sun went down.  She says, "Electronics seem to keep us constantly busy feeling that there is no end to work that could be done."  The sun became the natural bell that signified the workday was over, instead of flicking on the lights and keeping the day going longer than it needed. She found that you get your computer work, laundry, and phone calls done during the day, so you can then enjoy time to unwind, be with family, share conversation, and relax.   Think, how many electronics are on in your household at night?    By disconnecting, saving a little energy, burning a little less carbon, she was also able to connect in a meaningful way with her family, enjoy the present moment, and her body, as noticed she was always well rested as bedtime came at a normal hour when darkness set in. This experiment in unplugging is uncommon in American households, as we seem to let our electrical appliances suck time and energy away from us.  Unplugging, simplifying, getting in tune with the natural cycles are not new concepts.  They are rather ways of life to which we strive and struggle to return to. 

Every Friday, Jews celebrate Shabbat fully submitting to a day of rest from sundown to sundown, where all electronics, cars, or anything that "burns a fire" is turned off, in order to spend time with family and on spiritual enrichment. Furthermore, let us celebrate the Amish for all the energy they conserve for the greater good.  Their religion restricts access to television, radio, and telephones since the Inception of these electronics as an effort to keep the modern world from intruding into their home life. 

As the green movement gains momentum, find a small way to get involved.  If you are not moved to change your habits in the name of the health of the planet, you may find that placing the health of yourself first is also a means to living green, and is healthy for you, your home, and the environment.


--
Be Well,

Daniel Kanow
EcoSpaces  "Green Building Solutions"
Telluride, CO  USA
(O) 970-728-1973   (F) 970-728-8007

Green Building Materials
Green Building Design Consulting

"Be involved in a Movement"

Green Resolutions

It is mid January?  How have those new years resolutions been going? This year my family made Green New Years Resolutions in addition to the standard kind.  Daniel declared that he would give mostly "LOVE" gifts instead of "stuff" gifts.  This went over so great during the holiday season, especially with our 5-year-old daughter Ayla.  Each gift she received was written on one link of a long paper chain that had an experiential "date with daddy" on it.  She racked it in with a day of ice skating and sledding, a lunch date, and an art project; go out and take pictures, built a snowman and many other great experiences that will go down in her memory and not in the land fill. In return, she started giving "Love" gifts to us: she put us to bed by singing a song, made our bed one day, and gave a back rub.  We all found that these presents were not only green, but satisfied us much more than a material product.

Ayla's green resolution was to not eat any food that was wrapped in plastic or packaging. We thought that was a great idea she came up with on her own, but quickly realized that, for our picky eater, this was not going to fly, as most everything you buy comes in plastic in some form: even our brown rice, cereal, healthy bars, bags of nuts etc. It was a little daunting when you started looking at all of the food that way.  So, in order to not limit her food intake even more we settled on: no plastic bags at the store. I have had this Green Resolution before and made it through the whole year w accepting only 3 new plastic bags into my life during the whole year.   My daughter experienced this with me as there would be many times we would want to pop into the store to get a few things for dinner, and if I didn't have a reusable bag with me, we would just skip the shopping and make do. A great tip for no-bag shopping is to go to the produce and ask for an empty box.  They have great sturdy big boxes there.  Pack all your food in the box instead of 8 bags.  It is easy to carry up to your house in one load, and then you can reuse or recycled the box. 

And for me, I am perfecting our winter compost practices and tending our food scraps through the frozen winter in order for them to make the most potent soil amendment for our garden in the summer. And I am also living by the saying, "If it ain't broken, don't fix it" meaning, I am staying away from getting a new "one" until the existing one that I have is no longer functional instead of just replacing something when I think it is time or I want it.

Remember, habits form if you do something 21 times in a row. Then, your resolution will not be something you have to practice; it just becomes a part of life.

Warning, This Facility Causes Cancer

Recently, I stayed at a hotel with my family in Southern California.  The grounds were nice and the rooms were spacious.  Though, posted all around, inside and out, were WARNING SIGNS stating: This facility Contains chemicals known to the state of California to Cause Cancer and/or birth defects or other Reproductive Harm. All the happy vacationers excitedly swung open and close the doors and gates to which the signs were affixed: desensitized to the information. Most of us guests were lying over at this particular hotel before our big convergence on the "Happiest Place on Earth…. Disneyland," just blocks away.

Of course I needed more information, so I went to the desk and smiled, "I am inquiring about the known carcinogens that are being used here at this hotel."  The concierge affably delivered me the information with the same enthusiasm he uses when imparting facts about the recently completed "Small World" renovation.    He pleasantly handed a photocopy that outlined all the carcinogens that, he and I, all the expecting mothers, and all the anxious little kids awaiting Disneyland were presently inhaling and ingesting.

 The list began with Furnishings, Hardware and Electrical Components including building material that contains formaldehyde such as:  carpeting, carpet padding, wall coverings, wood surfaces, and vinyl.  I read on, flabbergasted.  Why would they go to such measures to warn of the harmful materials instead of just using the good stuff? I know they exist, and not for that much more cost.  I read on.

"Construction and Maintenance Materials used in walls, floors, ceilings and outside cladding contain chemicals, such as formaldehyde resin, asbestos, arsenic, cadmium, and creosote, …certain painted surfaces contains chemicals such as lead and crystalline silica…"Yikes!  At that moment, I felt like gathering up my toddler and 5 year old, whose birthday we were about to celebrate at Disney, and head back up to the mountains and our good clean air. 

The list went on, but I will spare you: The subtitles being: Cleaning Products, Swimming Pools, Paints, Fuel and Engine Exhaust. Pest Control and Landscaping, and Foods and Beverages.  We opted to skip the free continental breakfast now knowing that the milk for the cereal definitely came from cows injected with dangerous hormones, those bananas were certainly sprayed to the max with pesticides and suddenly, the coffee didn't smell so appealing.

I learned that it was part of California's Proposition 65 (Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement act of 1986) that now requires businesses to provide warnings prior to exposing individuals to chemicals know to cause cancer, birth defects or reproductive harm.  I guess it was courteous that they went to such measures to make me aware, but I wondered, why they did not elect to use the healthy alternative in order to avoid posting the sign. Wouldn't advertising a healthy green hotel where building materials were selected with the health of their clients in mind help sell the place as well?

Working in the world of green building, sometimes I feel that I know too much…and I try not to get anxious over the pesticides in my food, the fumes that I am breathing, the heavy metals in my drinking water and the formaldehyde in the walls that surround me.  But really, we all know someone who has suffered from cancer.   We all know that the toxic chemicals in our environment do us no good.  Isn't it time to start making some changes and moving towards a cleaner future? 

We left our contaminated hotel and proceeded onto Disneyland.  It was especially decorated for the holiday season, and the concierge at the front desk of the hotel bragged,  "What's magical about our snow at Disneyland is that it is not cold."

--
Be Well,

Daniel Kanow
EcoSpaces  "Green Building Solutions"
Telluride, CO  USA
(O) 970-728-1973   (F) 970-728-8007

Green Building Materials
Green Building Design Consulting

"Be involved in a Movement"

Build Green in Telluride

We are at the brink of change: the season is changing.  Perfectly formed snowflakes fall outside my window as I type this first BLOG post.  The year is changing…2009, almost a decade into the 21^st century already. The president of the United States is changing with the platform to bring much needed change to our country. The economy is changing, as huge corporations come crumbling down daily making way for a whole new system to be born.  The general consensus on environmental protection, alternative energy and conservation seems to be shifting towards acceptance and a change for the better.    

Since EcoSpaces' inception in 2007, our motto has always been "Be Part of a Movement."  It is exciting to be riding the crest of this wave: feeling that the change that is among us is about to propel business, economy,  consumers, children, municipalities, institutions into the fall line of a green revolution.   I can feel that the change is on the way, and what for so long has been the "alternative" in healthy living will suddenly be mainstream. 

Already, people are beginning to make purchasing decisions with social, responsible and environmental concerns in mind. Houses are being built that naturally generate their own energy.  Families are choosing to live in environments where they are no longer exposed to toxins in their daily lives.  The predicaments in the oil and automotive industry are making way for the masses to carve out a new more sustainable way.  

It is an adventurous time to be involved in the Green Movement, and we hope that what appears to be a global "slow down" will give way to a fresh new foundation, where  GREEN ideas, communities, intentions, developments and  technologies are built upon this opportunity. We  hope you can join us on this adventure and ride the momentum of this movement with us.  

 

Happy NEW YEAR!  I look forward to forming a new bogging community with you all.  I will be posting weekly based on the theme of sustainability and how living green is interwoven into all aspect of our daily lives. Enjoy and please subscribe if interested.  http://ecospaces.net/green_bldg_blog.html