In The News

Metropolis profiles Philly's 'Doctor of Green'

Metropolis Magazine Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Local sustainability expert Max Zahniser gets some love in Metropolis Magazine.

To give you a better idea of his philosophy, Zahniser will tell you that systems thinking is his foundation for understanding the world. He rejects a fragmented, specialized worldview and ascribes to the dawning “Age of Integration,” anticipated decades ago by Buckminster Fuller and Lewis Mumford. In contrast to healthy interdependence, Zahniser sees Philadelphia as an example of “dispersed environmental initiatives.” His new Sustainability Nexus enterprise aims to pull that all together.

Original source: Metropolis Magazine
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AP showcases Vetri's 'Eatiquette' school lunch program

The Associated Press Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Chef Marc Vetri is bringing his 'Eatiquette' school lunch program to the People For People Charter School.

It sounds more like a restaurant order than a school lunch menu: baked ziti with a side of roasted fennel salad and, for dessert, cinnamon apple rice pudding.

But that's one of the meals offered in the cafeteria at People For People Charter School in Philadelphia. And it's served family-style. Students pass serving dishes around circular tables, where they eat off plates, not cafeteria trays, and use silverware instead of plastic utensils.

People For People is one of four schools participating in the "Eatiquette" program, which was designed by local chef Marc Vetri to provide nutritious, low-cost lunches in a setting that reinforces social niceties and communication skills.

Original source: The Associated Press
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Historic PA farm opens its lands up to fracking

The New York Times Tuesday, March 05, 2013

The owner of Dennis Farm, a historic farm in Susquehanna County, has signed a lease to allow fracking (a method of natural gas extraction) on the property. She hopes the funds will help her rehab the historic farmhouse, but critics have remained skeptical. Philadelphia’s City Council has held hearings on whether public water supplies could be contaminated by gas drilling in other parts of the state.

The owner, Denise Dennis, initially rejected an approach from Cabot Oil and Gas to lease part of her 153-acre farm in gas-rich Susquehanna County in northeastern Pennsylvania. But late last year she changed her mind and signed a lease that allows the company to drill horizontally below her land without sinking any wells within its boundaries.

Ms. Dennis is a direct descendant of Prince Perkins, a free black veteran of the Revolutionary War who came to Pennsylvania from Connecticut and bought the farm in 1793, beginning a continuous record of family ownership that is now in its eighth generation. Part of that legacy is a trove of historic and archaeological materials, including rare records from the Revolutionary and Civil wars as well as evidence that the farm was a stop on the Underground Railroad for slaves fleeing Southern states.

Original source: The New York Times' Green blog
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ABC News praises developments at the Navy Yard

ABC News Tuesday, February 12, 2013

The Navy Yard earns some national attention from ABC News for its exciting work fostering business, entrepreneurship and green technology.

"There was a lot of uncertainty early on," said John Grady, president of the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp. "People weren't sure what we were going to do to replace this engine of activity that was there."

Last week, The Navy Yard marked its 10,000-employee milestone and unveiled an update to its 2004 master plan that is forecasting 1,000 apartments, more parks and open space, more new construction and continued adaptive reuse of Navy-era industrial buildings.

Original source: ABC News
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Local company Momentum Dynamics develops vital electric car tool

The Daily News Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Malvern-based Momentum Dynamics has developed a wireless charging pad for the Chevy Volt. The 10-person startup is helping revolutionize charging technology for electric vehicles. The Daily News chatted with the company's founder.

Q: How did you come up with the idea for wireless charging?
A: I was working on a project to deliver solar power to troops during the Iraq war, which led me to a safe, short-distance method of transmitting power wirelessly. The clear application was electric vehicles. The challenge was not the vehicle or battery but the charging connection to the grid.

Original source: The Daily News
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Green City, Clean Waters earns praise post-Sandy

Huffington Post Tuesday, November 13, 2012

The Huffington Post's Mark Tercek gives props to the Philadelphia Water Department's pro-active stormwater management program, which should help mitigate damage in future storms.

Like many cities, Philadelphia has been battling a problem with stormwater management. During heavy storms, water running off rooftops and roads overwhelms the city's aging sewer systems, dumping unsanitary water into local waterways and basements, and -- as we saw in New York City -- overwhelming power sub-stations and other critical infrastructure. Stormwater problems and the resulting sewer overflows are a major source of river pollution around Philadelphia, and elsewhere around the world.

Philadelphia's "Green City, Clean Waters" program tackles this problem by replacing impervious grey infrastructure with natural alternatives: green roofs; blue roofs that hold large quantities of water for long periods of time; tree-lined streets and side walk planters; new and restored wetlands; rain gardens; porous pavement; and creek-side restoration. These green areas either absorb water or help it to flow at a more manageable rate rather than water hitting concrete and racing to the sewage system.

Original source: Huffington Post
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Young Visionaries: United By Blue's organic apparel and accessories

Entrepreneur Monday, November 05, 2012

Entrepeneur's Young Visionaries series pays a visit to Philadelphia's United By Blue, an organic apparel and accessories company with a heavy social mission.

His vision provides for the removal of one pound of garbage from the nation's waterways through the sale of each item on the site. Each cleanup involves thousands of volunteers and has resulted in the removal of many thousands of pounds of garbage.

Original source: Entrepreneur

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Barnes becomes first major art institution to go LEED-Platinum

The New York Times Monday, October 01, 2012

The New York Times writes about the Barnes Foundation's recent LEED-Platinum rating, making it the first institution of its kind to earn such a designation.

“From diverting 95 percent of construction waste from landfills as it redeveloped this brownfield site to a building with anticipated energy savings of 44 percent over a traditionally designed equivalent, it’s a marquee project not only for Philadelphia but the country,” the council’s president and chief executive, Rick Fedrizzi, said.

Original source: The New York Times

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Katherine Gajewski on greening our gritty city

Grist Monday, September 24, 2012

Grist interviews Philadelphia's sustainability director, Katherine Gajewski, who has injected youthful energy into the city's green directives.

We have experienced tremendous support, considering our [Greenworks Philadelphia] plan came out right before the recession hit. I expected more departments to say “We’re focused on our core functions and can’t take anything new on. This does not fit with our priorities.” I haven’t had anyone say, “No. I’m unwilling to do that.” Our mayor has been a leader on this and he’s made it clear that it’s important. But I think it’s also just been an exciting and logical extension of the work a lot of folks are already doing.

Original source: Grist

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SEPTA's regenerative braking technology saving estimated 10 percent

Wired Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Early estimates place SEPTA's power savings at about 10 percent thanks to the regenerative braking system it activated in June, reports Wired.

Currently, trains running along the Market-Frankford line use the same kind of braking technology found in most hybrid cars, converting kinetic energy from braking into electricity and sending it along the third rail to a massive array of more than 4,000 30 Ah nickel cobalt aluminum batteries. Otherwise, that energy would’ve been wasted as heat. By recapturing and reusing that energy, SEPTA estimates it could save up to $190,000 a year in energy costs, not to mention decreasing wear and tear on its trains’ braking systems.

Original source: Wired

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Historic jab: Joe Frazier's gym, legacy to be honored in Philly

The New York Times Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Late heavyweight great Joe Frazier is getting some posthumous love in his adopted hometown of Philadelphia, reports The New York Times.

Mr. Frazier’s relationship with the city was complicated. People flocked to him for autographs, especially in North Philadelphia, a neighborhood of boarded-up row houses, drug markets and littered streets. But even there, he labored in the shadow of his rival Muhammad Ali, who ridiculed him as an “Uncle Tom” and the “Great White Hope.”

Original source: The New York Times

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On the farm with Garces

Seedstock blog Monday, August 20, 2012

Seedstock, the sustainable agriculture innovation conference, blogs about Jose Garces' organic farm in Ottsville, northern Bucks County.

Garces has teamed up with a successful and well-known Bucks County organic farmer, Alex McCracken, who, along with his wife Jenn, owns The Turnip Truck -- an organic kitchen gardening company, also based in Ottsville. A year ago, when McCracken caught wind that Garces had purchased the Luna Farm property, he did something that he had never been bold enough to do in the past: he e-mailed Garces directly to see if he could play a key role at Luna Farm.

Original source: Seedstock blog

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NJ's Sourlands: The last green space between NY and Philly, just outside Bucks County

Smithsonian Magazine Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Smithsonian Magazine glances at Sourlands, an area untouched by development and rife with sustainable touches like organic farming and green tech entrepreneurs and the subject of a recent documentary.

Flesher hones in on the Sourlands’ microcosm of local sustainability, from small organic farmers to hunters to conservationists to green tech entrepreneurs. Though they face daunting obstacles such as climate change, local extinctions and an uncertain ecological future, Flesher says they do not sink into despair:

The environmentalists I meet and interview are rarely naïve. They seem to understand the big scope of the environmental problems we face. What is heartening is that these folks do what they can anyway, usually with a gritty sense of optimism. I believe this is a lot better than doing nothing.

Original source: Smithsonian Magazine

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Philly future: Government as 'an enabler and a platform for innovation'

GreenBiz Tuesday, July 24, 2012

GreenBiz reports on Philadelphia's Chief Innovation Officer Adel Ebeid and his talk to attendees at the GreenBiz Cities 2.0 webcast last week.

The city of brotherly love has published more than 100 datasets since April, when Mayor Michael Nutter issued an executive order requiring city branches to release their once-buried information through an online portal accessible to anyone. The site includes data from nonprofits, universities and businesses, as well as municipal data from maps of enterprise zones to a searchable database of childcare providers.

Original source: GreenBiz

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Philadelphia leaders take to Toronto to share and 'steal'

Yonge Street Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Greater Philadelphia Economy League Executive Director Steve Wray talkes to Flying Kite sister publication Yonge Street about his organization's Greater Philadelphia Leadership Exchange, which visits Toronto this week.

One the focuses of the Economy League is what it means to be a world-class region and what it would take for Greater Philadelphia to attain status as a world-class region. As we select places to go, we look for regions that are world class or striving to be world class. Clearly Toronto has attained the status in the global community as a city and region on the rise, as a global financial capital and as an international city. We thought there were a lot of lessons we could bring back to Philadelphia from Toronto that would serve us well.

Original source: Yonge Street

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