If you’re dialed into the transit scene here in America, you’d probably know that Minneapolis is where it’s at for bikers. Bicycling magazine recently named the City of Lakes the #1 bike-friendly city in the country, dethroning the strong bike scene in Portland, Oregon. Portland still maintains the highest percentage of commuters that ride, but [...]
So a couple weeks back on a beautiful sunny midwest afternoon, I had the pleasure of touring one of the most energy efficient homes in the country. Called the Passive House in the Woods (PHitW), the single-family residence is humbly striving towards carbon neutrality… it will actually produce more energy than it will use when [...]
Hey folksies, happy bike to work week! The weather here in Minneapolis is absolutely gorgeous and the number of peops on two wheels is definitely more than usual… we however have a long way to go to catch up to Utrecht, Holland, the country’s 4th largest city in which 1/3rd of its residents commute by [...]
I had the pleasure of spending my holidays this past year in New Zealand soaking in a whole lotta beauty… fjords, glaciers, monster Kaori trees, gorgeous beaches and believe it or not, some pretty rockin’ architecture! Scattered throughout both the North and South islands were some really sleek minimalist structures with plenty of glass to [...]
Forty years ago today, 20 million Americans took to the streets. They were marching for the first ever Earth day… many had anger and defiance over the level of degradation and pollution that surrounded them. Others rallied in more of an optimistic spirit, celebrating the beauty and wonder of our home planet… Certainly a lot [...]
All the signs are pointing to an electric future. Plug-in cars, bikes, gadgets, etc are getting a lot of play in the field of sustainability. Sure, there are some amazing benefits of electric innovation… emissions and GHGs from burning fossil fuels would be dramatically reduced, air quality will improve in urban areas, our national security [...]
It’s that time of year when peops all across the land are putting together plans for their big summer vacations. Generally, travel and bein’ green go together like mint toothpaste and orange juice , but the folks at Travelzoo are making it a bit easier by offering great deals on LEED Certified hotels throughout the [...]
Imagine 18 tons of plastic materials being diverted from a landfill. Imagine this 18 tons of waste being converted into a mouldable liquid compound that can be poured like concrete. Imagine taking this mixture of plastic concrete and making a house out of it. Imagine a Welsh business already doing this. Imagine their name being [...]
It’s all about the H2O my friends… the clear wet stuff is where it’s at… so yeah, two-thirds of the planet is covered in water, but many of us don’t recognize that potable, usable water is in short supply. Less than one half of a single percent of the world’s H2O is accessible for human [...]
Greetings Metro Hipstas!.. To date, I’ve had all sorts of fun sharing innovate eco-solutions and ideas with you, but have kept most my posts and updates relatively impersonal. I realized the other day that it might be beneficial to share a bit more of what I do on a daily basis, which is run Thrive [...]
Author: Joshua Foss