In my early twenties I was a vegan for ethical reasons. It only lasted a year because I did not know how to eat a good vegan diet. But ever since then I have been a vegetarian who eats meat….Yes I know that makes no sense. Anyway, now as a New York green contractor I …
Finally, a way to pursue the “triple bottom line” (people, planet and profits) with legal backing! It is called the Benefit Corporation (as opposed to a normal C or S Corporation for example). Signed into NY legislation by Governor Cuomo the new law allows businesses to be recognized and filed a for more than their financial …
Benefit Corporations law signed and active in New York State! Read More »
Here is a great local green builder from the Bronx. His name is Steve Ritz and he is a classic example of how green building is much more than the daily activity. He may grow vegetables but like he says, he is not a farmer. Like so many green builders he is driven by love …
Unable to sleep at 4am in New York I came accross this video of an abandoned town renovated by a small group of utopians. It is one of the most inspirational green building stories I have seen in a long time. So often green building is housed withing the capitalistic context where it is just another product to …
The web site CleanAirNY.org has an email list worth subscribing to. Sponsored by the NY Dept of Transportation, the alerts tell you whenever NY is at risk of smog. You’ll get an email the day before saying, “Hey tomorrow is a clean air day!” with advice on what to do: drive less etc. It is …
Copenhagen has become the model for making streets bike friendly. I went there about 15 years ago as part of a construction and city planning tour to check out the city and it was amazing. At the time they had a 15 year plan to drastically reduce their cars and turn the city over to …
Eco Brooklyn’s clients usually get a gray water system. And our clients tend to be natural minded anyway, with a healthy dose of liking to save money. Thus comes the interest in making your own laundry detergent. Store bought laundry detergents are full of chemicals. In fact they are packed with fertilizer! Plants love laundry water that has …
I see the Brooklyn Farmers’ Market as the antithesis of a Twinkie. The Twinkie is always the same. It lasts forever, is full of chemicals and is made on some distant planet. And never does it create a healthy sense of community. The Brooklyn Farmers’ Market on the other hand is possibly the most powerful community force since …
The NY Dept of Health released the latest figures for cancer in New York State. It is in the form of an interactive map where you can click on an area and see the amount of cancer cases since 2000 as well as the population. Zoom into the Brooklyn area and click the “Identify” button …
