The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International has published its top-10 ways for making energy efficiency and sustainability a priority in commercial real estate.

They are: (more…)

Whether they’re building a new house or improving a well-loved home, energy-conscious homeowners everywhere are trying to lower energy use and costs. Even with the best of intentions, however, consumers are overwhelmed by too much information, which causes many of them to give up long before they screw in their first CFL light bulb. To (more…)

Imagine this. You and your beautiful bride-to-be take a break from wedding planning for a much needed weekend away. With your mid-sized SUV loaded, you head west for snow covered hills. After a few days of playing in powder, sleeping in and drinking adult beverages on a sun-kissed patio, you head home feeling refreshed and ready to button-up the final (more…)

Now that the Sequester has officially begun, people are wondering what the impacts will be, both long term and short term. The message from the two sides of the political spectrum could not be more opposite. Republicans are confident that the concern is overstated, and the wasteful federal government needs the motivation to start effectively managing its (more…)

Treatment without diagnosis is risky, for human health or home energy performance.

For any tax-paying citizen, the term “audit” probably has more negative than positive connotations. That’s why companies and individuals who perform home energy audits often refer to their services as “energy assessments” or “energy evaluations.” If the “A” word stigma isn’t bad (more…)

No doubt if you follow energy or environmental issues, you’ve heard over and over again that the least expensive way to tackle our energy difficulties is through efficiency. One report from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) suggested that $168.6 billion could be saved through energy efficiency by 2020. Still, some of those close to the ground have (more…)

The Bank of America Energy Efficiency Finance Program has provided low-interest loans and grants to community development financial institutions (CDFIs) to increase access to energy efficiency retrofits in low- to moderate-income communities. The program was launched in 2011. (more…)

Imagine this. You live in historic home built in 1916. At the end of your flagstaff walkway, pale grey banisters lead you up weathered stairs onto a wrap around porch. The front window is grand and welcomes early morning sunshine in as you drink your robust Columbian blend. However, your morning coffee isn’t agreeing with you. It’s not that the table cream (more…)

Homeowners may hold some common misconceptions about how to begin conserving energy in their homes. In this article, I hope to debunk a few of those misconceptions. An energy audit is a good place to begin as it will show homeowners where to concentrate.

A report called Driving Demand for Home Energy (more…)

A report released last week by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (“ACEEE”) showed that overall spending on industrial energy efficiency (“EE”) projects is on the rise. 

The report tracked 2010 spending by utilities, state and federal agencies, public benefit fund (more…)