Green Farming Role Models

The core of our mission in all aspects of this farm and farming is to preserve the ways of the past while honoring mother nature.

So reads the mission statement of Stoney Mountain Farm in Burlington, North Carolina, an organization that strives to perhaps revolutionize farming by simply reverting to older, less technologically advanced methods.  As opposed to many green farming technologies and developments to keep up with the changing world, the methodical approach of Stoney Mountain is to simply revert back to times when greater forces than technology – like nature – had control. 

The farm allows old Mother Nature to take control of much that governs activity on its grounds.  The fields and pastures are not intensively plowed or even mowed.  The animals are not fed any hormones or medications.  They only worm as needed, and plant a variety of herbal remedies around their grounds, which the animals are naturally drawn to when they instinctively need it. 

These methods prove extremely important not only to the environment, but to Stoney Mountain’s main revenue stream.  The farm specializes in 100% all natural wool products for consumers, offering a wide variety of felting kits, wool dryer balls and kits, and even eco-friendly wool cat toys.  Also, what is extremely unique is Stoney Mountain’s ability to produce and provide roving, batts, and yarns of over 20 natural colors. 

All of this, we believe, and all that Stoney Mountain Farm stands for, is great in all its simplistic glory.  Few words can sum up our reasoning for loving Stoney Mountain more than its own words:

Through these practices, we believe we offer beautiful venues for our guests and the best quality products with healthy, happy livestock

Green Transportation Technology Stimulates Local Economy

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced an award of $40 million to the state of Maryland to upgrade its public transportation system. The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) will use this money, along with $13 million in state funds to replace the bus yard and buildings at the Kirk Avenue facility. This bus yard is a major hub for the transit administration. It has 351 employees and provides a storage and maintenance site for 175 buses that serves 16 routes, transporting more than a million passengers per week.

This upgrade is long overdue. In 2004, The Johns Hopkins Center for Urban Environmental Health conducted a study in the area, and the results of readings indicated that noise levels in that vicinity exceeded the limit set by Baltimore’s health ordinances. Additionally, air samples indicated that the “two-week average exposure to diesel exhaust and other combustion was slightly above the federal safety threshold for a full year’s exposure”.

This new facility will provide the technology necessary to maintain energy-efficient buses. The building will be more environmentally friendly, cutting operating costs. The project will provide off-street parking, which will enhance the surrounding neighborhoods in terms of reduced traffic congestion and aesthetics. This upgrade stimulates the economy by providing for construction jobs and for positions to help maintain the “green” buses.

This project is part of a $787 million package to repair and modernize the transit infrastructure nationwide. It definitely is a positive step in the direction to live green, be green.

Hydroculture for Green Houseplants

I just saw an interesting news video on hydroculture, a system for growing plants that incorporates expanded clay as a growing medium rather than soil.  Hydroculture has been around for years.  Unfortunately, while very popular in Europe, it has not caught on in the United States.  In fact, all of the materials needed for hydroculture are produced in Europe.  One company is trying to change that.  Greenspacers, a green technology company in Columbia, Maryland, is “dedicated to growing fresh air through the production and installation of soil-free plants".

The basis of Greenspacers’ mission lies in the hypothesis that plants can remove volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the air.  These compounds consist of the chemicals produced from household items, such as paint, glues and cleaning supplies that can cause adverse health effects.

In addition to removing targeted VOCs, hydroculture plants, do not harbor microbes, and  do not release bio-aerosols.   The plant system starts with a growing medium of lightweight expanded clay (LECA).  The clay pebbles are fired in a kiln, causing them to expand with formation of air pockets within the individual pellets.  These air pockets retain moisture and allow maximum moisture to flow to the plant roots.  The plant systems use a slow-growth fertilizer and contain a water indicator which, when used properly, prevents over-watering that drowns the roots.

Greenspacers now contracts with green-minded businesses to provide “green” planting systems on their premises, including Children’s Hospital, National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.  The company’s goal is to also provide services to consumers.  More information can be found at http://www.greenspacers.com.

With research and innovation, “green” companies are discovering ways to help us make sure our homes and businesses are healthy.  Our support of these companies’ efforts to live green, and be green is vital to the environment.

SPOTLIGHT: Green America, “Come Together”

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Green America organization, as I’d imagine the majority of people are not, it is the feature of this week’s spotlight.  Green America: Come Together.

That is the organization’s tagline, and that is indeed what they strive for.  Basically, GA is a not-for-profit membership group that constantly aims to harness economic power, through the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace, in order to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society. This mission may sound like it’s full of huge ideas, and it is!  All of which, however, make perfect sense and seem extremely attainable, given the organization’s current vision for the future:

We work for a world where all people have enough, where all communities are healthy and safe, and where the bounty of the Earth is preserved for all the generations to come.

What is extra interesting about GA is its focus on economic variables in order to reach the roots of many social and environmental issues.  They take action against abusive business practices, whether obvious or not, and try to change them to more socially just and environmentally responsible ways.

In fact, GA does virtually all it can to help businesses convert to eco-friendly practices.  The organization offers and issues its Green America’s Green Business Certification, which allows not only recognition to individuals and businesses, but resources as well.  The group has a massive network of environmentally friendly firms along all areas of the conventional value chain of the business world, from producers to retailers, from marketing to financing.


For more information on exactly what criteria potential members of Green America’s Green Business Certification program must meet, visit the organization’s site and learn more!

Make Green Diets Appetizing

We all realize the importance of a healthy diet.  Nevertheless, we often find it difficult to incorporate “green” diets into our lives because face it—that plate of salad and skinless chicken breast does not look as appetizing as that juicy burger with the melted cheese and other topping on that huge toasted bun.

With a little research and creativity, it is possible to prepare “green” food that appears appetizing, and most importantly, tastes good.  A great place to start is with recipes influenced by Asian, Latino and Mediterranean cuisine.  Try planning a meal with the vegetables as the centerpiece. And then add meat.  Avoid just boiling vegetables and pay attention to enhancing the flavor of these items by adding seasonings and color with the use of varieties of peppers.  Also be mindful that the serving size of vegetables and whole grains should be larger than the serving of meat.

When planning meals, purchase fresh and lean cuts of meat.  Incorporate heart-healthy seafood into your diet.  Learn healthy cooking techniques and avoid frying meats and seafood as much as possible.  If you grill meat, avoid over-charring as this cooking method releases toxins Try marinating meats with seasonings and juices to enhance the flavor.  Be mindful that the reduction of the use of salt goes a long way to improve the heart.

During your time browsing online, pay attention to the many websites available with healthy recipes and cooking tips, along with meal planners.  While shopping, take advantage of the newsletters and meal planners available in most grocery stores.

Summertime, with its bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables, is a great time to experiment with “green” dieting.  This is an excellent opportunity to reduce our carbon footprint.  Let’s live green, be green.

Green Information Technology (IT)

Every business in today’s world, big and small alike, is practically forced to partake in some form of information technology services in order to remain relevant and survive.  I have used some form of IT services, I have worked in related fields, and I know many people who work in IT services, some of whom I call dear friends.  What I did not know, however, was that there were ways in which these services can be delivered as eco-friendly.  Did you?

Companies like SHI International – headquartered in Somerset, NJ, with branches across Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and Hong Kong – are working hard to provide their green IT services to corporate customers, without harming the environment or their customers’ budgets.  SHI works alongside its customers, going so far as to ensure that, within appropriate territories, their customers’ sites operate under adequate conditions to be eligible for incentives from willing utility providers.

SHI even goes so far as to operate in an eco-friendly manner.  Within all their restrooms, a visitor will find green soaps and recycled paper products.  The company attempts to reuse all shipping materials, provided they can withstand the trip.  Timers operate facility lighting across their plants.  These small steps are very admirable among businesses and are too often overlooked, even with today’s understanding of their significance.  Bravo.

Green Office Furniture: Could the Idea Catch On?

I recently came across an innovative work desk setup that helps to harness its own energy, effectually producing and using its own recycled energy in a self-sustaining cycle.  (Although the setup does not yet produce enough energy to completely power its many electronic vices, the idea is that it will one day be completely self-sustainable, and therefore, completely unplugged from any power source other than itself.)  The desk design, appropriately called “Unplugged,” was designed by Eddi Törnberg, and is meant to generate all the energy it needs from everyday office activities of the person sitting behind it.





The desk setup has outstanding features, such as the ability to harness power from the heat energy transferred from the user’s computer to the desk top, and even from the user’s back to the back of his or her chair.  The floor mat or rug that is also part of the design has been constructed with technology that allows it to harness energy from the pressures applied to its surface, from walking over it or sitting upon it.

While the idea is still far from mass development or even complete sustainability as an independent workspace, it carries with it a tremendous amount of integrity as an engineering feat.  I recommend you look a bit further into this truly intriguing design.  It may very well be the precedent necessary to slowly reconstruct the future as we come to imagine and realize it.  These green, eco-friendly designs can come to change the world someday, and it could happen in fewer more beneficial areas than within the workplace.