On Monday, the 18-month old company, Hara debuted their Environmental and Energy Management (EEM) software online. The EEM software identifies how efficient and eco-friendly a business, organization or government's operations are with energy, water and waste.

"Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis," reads the mission statement of sportswear clothing company, Patagonia. The Ventura, California based company makes sportswear from "environmentally sensitive materials" such as organic cotton and hemp. To date, Patagonia has given $34 million to environmental organizations.

Open-sourced green building sounds like an oxymoron. However, FreeGreen.com provides open-sourced green building designs. Started in April 2008, the year-old company opened up its website for architects to upload their designs and set the price for them.

Eighty percent of the cities surveyed by Living Cities listed sustainability as one of their top five priorities. Only one in six cities said sustainability is not a top priority.

The operation of buildings in the U.S. accounts for 43 percent of all U.S. carbon emissions, and 76 percent of U.S. electricity use. Every year five billion square feet are built in the U.S., five billion feet are renovated, and 1.75 billion square feet of buildings are demolished. Energy conservation and efficiency improvements in the building sector have the "greatest potential for an effective near-term mitigation wedge for climate change," according to a study cited by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

One of the most cost efficient and easiest way to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is to "reduce meat consumption," according to Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, head of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. It's a change he says would have more impact than ditching your present wheels for a hybrid car.

In 1973 when Andy Lipkis was 15 years old trees in Los Angeles were dying at an alarming rate due, in part, to the horrific smog. Many people told Andy he could do nothing to help fix the problem, but he didn't listen. During summer camp he decided to mobilize his fellow campers, take an abandoned parking lot and convert it into a meadow with smog resistant trees. The project was a success and a good monster had been created. Andy never stopped planting. He went on to found the group TreePeople and has been honored worldwide for his efforts to plant millions of trees.

The report by the Earth Policy Institute, Time for Plan B: Cutting Carbon Emissions 80 Percent by 2020 sounds a warning bell to the human race, pointing out that climate change is melting the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets. A melted Greenland ice sheet would cause the sea level to rise 23 feet, and a melted Antarctic ice sheet would add 190 feet to the sea level.

Plastic bags account for 50 percent of the plastic trash in Washington, D.C.'s Anacostia River. In order to decrease the amount of plastic bags in the Anacostia, the D.C. Council proposed legislation that would put a five cents tax on disposable shopping bags. Eleven council members co-introduced it, and according to a Washington Post article, that almost guarantees it will become law.

ng to the Small Business Index survey by Wells Fargo and Gallup. The majority said they are doing at least "everything that can be justified by cost." However, 67 percent think their customers will not pay more for environmentally friendly goods and services. In April 2007, 49 percent thought customers would pay more.

The market for carbon offsets is huge. One website offers to calculate your carbon footprint, then urges you to offset it by donating to the Conservation Fund. Another site tells you that by purchasing offsets, you are fighting climate change.

The building sector is the biggest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the U.S. Energy used in U.S. buildings produces about 43 percent of carbon dioxide emissions. However, buildings certified under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) have less impact on the environment, according to theGreen Building Impact Report 2008. The report assessed non-residential construction because it accounts for 40 percent of the environmental burden from the buildings sector.

The fires in Australia are still raging. Parts of the Western U.S. are experiencing the worst droughts on record. It seems Fortune magazine summed it up correctly in a May 2000 article that called water a "precious commodity" in the 21st century. Consider this: less than three percent of the world's water is fresh. Unfortunately, beyond the challenges of a changing climate, three other factors have decreased that small amount of fresh water: pollution, habit degradation, and wetlands destruction. For both humans and their surrounding natural landscape, water conservation is critical.

Just glancing at the title of the recently released report, Sustainable Consumption Facts and Trends, by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) it might seem that sustainable and consuming are two topics that just do not go together. However, the report points out that the present level of consumption by Western nations is putting stress on the Earth's ecosystems.

The U.S. 2009 Lodging Report, published by Ernst & Young, LLP calls green hotels a global "niche trend" within the hotel industry whose growth is fueled by several factors: governments with requirements to build greener, investors, and hotel companies.

The Senate passed its version of the stimulus package today. Sixty-one voted in favor, with 36 opposed. Three Republicans voted in favor: Senators Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe and Arlen Specter. The Senate's stimulus bill totaled $827 billion. The House bill totaled $820 billion.

Sunita Narain heads India's Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a non-governmental, public interest research and advocacy organization set up for research, lobbying and communicating on issues of sustainable and equitable development. The centre's efforts include spreading awareness, research and advocacy, education and training, building a knowledge base, and pollution monitoring.

Agriculture needs to be sustainable in the 21st century.