At first blush, SOccket sounds like a crazy fun gadget dreamed up by a zany scientist. SOccket is a soccer ball that generates electricity by harnessing kinetic energy from game play.
It's the brainchild of four women who met at an engineering class at Harvard University...
For 41 years, the San Diego-Coronado Bridge has been an architectural icon in the region. Now, a plan is underway to make it into a model of energy efficiency as well.
The port, in partnership with Caltrans, is working on a project to light up the iconic span with a green touch...
Nothing like a high-profile competition to spark new ideas in sustainable architecture and get people all over the world excited about the movement.
As part of Solar Decathlon Europe, the best minds from universities worldwide put their brain power into designing energy self-sufficient homes...
One of the hottest trends in higher education is getting a green MBA -- a graduate business degree focused on the triple bottom line of saving the planet, making money, and helping people.
The latest to join that trend is Marshall Goldsmith School of Management in San Diego...
The annual EarthFair in Balboa Park, set for April 19, is entering its 20th year. Its longevity and success are due in large measure to Carolyn Chase, founder and CEO of San Diego EarthWorks, the nonprofit that puts on the festival each year with the help of hundreds of volunteers.
Chase, a Pacific Beach resident and UCSD graduate, has been involved with EarthFair from its inception in 1990. That’s just one small part of her resume in environmental activism. She is a former San Diego Planning Commissioner, past chair of the local chapter of the Sierra Club, a one-time City Council candidate, and publisher of San Diego Earth Times...
Coin-only parking meters that stick out like sore thumbs up and down streets may soon become history in San Diego.
As part of a pilot project, the old single-space meter heads are being replaced by solar-powered counterparts that accept card payments, in addition to coins.
The high-tech meters are not just convenient and good for the environment, they are also good for the city's coffers...
Imagine being able to bike or walk everywhere -safely- so you can get to a destination and burn calories at the same time.
Biking and walking as a means of transportation is not very practical in San Diego County or in much of the rest of the country, but there is a group of San Diegans who are trying to change that.
Former San Diego City Council President Scott Peters, county Supervisor Greg Cox and leaders of groups, such as WalkSanDiego and the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition, are pushing for Congress to include money in the next federal transportation bill to fund walking and biking infrastructure...
Trash cans in front of Jeff’s Burgers in downtown La Jolla Shores, are prone to overflowing in the summer because the popular eatery draws droves of customers.
Something changed this summer when a gray trash receptacle with a built-in solar-powered compactor was installed in front of the restaurant. Some residents noticed that the street seems to be cleaner.
This high-tech invention, about the size of a mailbox, holds up to five times the volume of regular trash receptacles. The compactor’s arm, aided by sensors, regularly presses down on the garbage with up to 1,250 pounds of force...
Beth Townsend was intrigued a few years ago when she saw a solar cooking demonstration at the annual San Diego Earth Day fair in Balboa Park. She checked out the same demo again at last year’s fair.
Inspired anew, she went on to become a solar cooking devotee and a founder of the San Diego Solar Cooking Club, a loosely organized group of like-minded folks.
Club members _ there is no formal membership, the only requirement being a shared interest _ exchange ideas and arrange get-togethers to share solar-cooked meals through ...
Long before solar energy became mainstream, Barry L. Butler was into it. Deep into it.
The owner of Butler Sun Solutions Systems Inc. in Solana Beach, which makes equipment for solar water heating, worked for the solar program at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, starting in 1972. He researched concentrating solar power using parabolic dishes and other means.
At the time, he also served on the Solar Energy Industries Association’s board of directors. Throughout the years, he continued doing research in the field, both professionally, and on his own time as a hobby.
In 2002, he retired from SAIC where he worked on solar-powered Stirling engines...
Green thumbs who grow an abundance of food in their backyards often face a dilemma: what to do with all the surplus vegetables that they can’t consume on their own.
Many backyard growers opt to give their produce away for free to neighbors, friends, family and co-workers. But what if you want to recoup a few dollars and get the satisfaction of seeing somebody pay for your labor of love?
There is now a way to do that...
For San Diegans concerned about how climate change will alter their region in the next few decades, there are two public meetings for them to learn about the latest scientific research.
The meetings scheduled for the evenings of March 19 and 26 are sponsored by the San Diego Foundation, which recently released a report titled “San Diego’s Changing Climate: A Regional Wakeup Call.”
As a sign of how hot the topic is, all the seats for the first event were taken within hours of it being announced. As a result, the foundation organized a second one...
Helen is a SoCal journalist covering technology, education, politics, and culture. She is an avid reporter of green technology trends.