Save Eco Destinations

I’d never heard of something like this before-two countries, Italy and Switzerland, will have representatives meet to agree on new boundaries to divide their lands due to melted Alpine glaciers that used to mark the frontier between them, and are now gone.

Alpine glaciers melting

I suppose in the (I hope not too) near future we will be hearing more about this-between Argentina and Chile, perhaps the US and Canada, China, Russia, perhaps in Scandinavia (I need a map!).

This is really interesting. How would this affect tourism? What if certain nations decided to team up? Say one country had lots of wind turbines already set up, and the other did not, but was relying on solar power for a lot of its energy and had some to spare? These countries could team up and mutually benefit each other by sharing energy-and perhaps food and other amenities. Climbing temperatures could have unforeseen political consequences, perhaps great ones! Exciting.

Of course, there could also be wars (and probably there will be wars, the universe help us) over desperately coveted natural resources such as potable water (in particular!) and fertile soil. Well, we’d probably have these anyway, but I suspect border-related dilemmas could provide additional fuel to the debates.

And what about residents’ desires? In the Italy/Switzerland scenario, no communities are involved because the borders in question lie 4,000 meters above sea level, in deserted areas unfit for human habitation. I am reminded of the Falkland Islands–geographically and lawfully, they are part of Argentina. Politically, however, they are part of England. When in 1982 Argentina went to war to get the Falklands back (a desperate attempt by the dictator related to staying in power because he was losing control) a few things happened. First, Falkland residents protested against Argentina, saying they were English and wished to remain so. Second, the Argentine soldiers were so ill-equipped they lacked microwaves and such to heat their frozen food and they were inappropriately dressed for the violent cold of the far south. Third and last, in part because of the second point, the English kicked the Argentines’ ass. Argentina has no decent army. They recruited random young men to fight, inexperienced men, and many of them died in miserable conditions.

My point is, when politicians start getting involved in choosing new boundaries, I hope that, to avoid trouble, they seriously consider local residents’ opinions and desires regarding what nation they want to belong to. (I actually think nationality is absurd-you don’t choose where you are born, and you don’t know everyone you share a nation with-it’s an imagined community, an illusion.)

The gorgeous prefabricated WeberHaus Passive House

This is one of the most amazing things I have ever known about – if you live in Germany or Scandinavia, you could be living in a house that keeps you comfortable without heat or AC, no matter the temperature. You’d be saving more energy (and money) than you’d know what to do with!

Passive houses, as they are called, adjust to temperature. These homes use one-twentieth the heating energy of typical German homes. While architects outside of Germany and Scandinavia are working to achieve something similarly spectacular, barely any passive houses have been built in other countries. So far, these houses cost just 5-7% more to build than typical ones. This system is also being implemented in Frankfurt schools. I am swooning.

The key to the amazingness of passive houses is ultra-thick insulation and doors and windows with complex airtight mechanisms that keep cold and heat from entering and exiting the structure. The house heats up via sunlight, the use of appliances, and bodies! The central ventilation system keeps mold and stagnant air out.

Passive house in Ireland

“The European Commission is promoting passive-house building, and the European Parliament has proposed that new buildings meet passive-house standards by 2011,” the New York Times reports.

Sweet. And the U.S. Army might build passive house barracks. Who would’ve thought the army would be this progressive? Not me, that’s for sure.

Hey, Obama! Turn the White House into a passive house!

More:

Passive Houses FAQ

Check out passive houses resources and builders around the world

The Passive House Institute US

Promotion of European Passive Houses

Passive House (Passivhaus) Standard for Energy Efficient Design

How to design a passive house in a specific climate

Photos of beautiful passive houses!

More photos (Weberhaus)!!

And more still!

Renewable energy sources are harvested within the city and markets are omnipresent

The Swedish are taking another amazing step toward green living and sustainability.

Kjellgren Kaminsky Architects have come up with the Super Sustainable City. The plan is to turn the Swedish city of Gothenburg into an ecotopia.

It would be dense and interconnected, an urban land where less space is necessary and more is done with it: people have to travel less, fewer materials are needed for building homes, and more people can be placed in smaller spaces. Rooftops hold lush gardens for internal climate control and to serve as a local food source, wind turbines and solar panels (even as art!) abound, and roadways harvest energy! All this while preserving the city’s architectural heritage-it will feature yellow bricks, granite pavements, and myriad canals and markets.

Once they realized that by 2020 Gothenburg will be growing at a rate of 8000 new residents per year, they decided that the city’s lateral sprawl can’t go on, and it is time for a new architectural paradigm, so to speak.

The Super Sustainable City’s new design will house about a third of the city’s population until 2020 while simultaneously strengthening the link between the banks of the site’s river.

The aforementioned farmed rooftops will be energy-efficient, reducing the need to lower and up living quarters’ temperature. Many roofs will even contain small-scale wind turbines! Gosh, I wish my building had some of those! At least my apartment!

Further, sustainable transportation will consist of an emission-free personal rapid transit system and bike-friendlier roads and highways. Said paths will also serve to collect rainwater and solar energy. Hooooly JeZeus.

Now all that’s left for me to do is take Swedish lessons and save money to move over there within the next few years. Who’s with me?

Copenhagen - photo by nat_k

…sings Danny Kaye about Denmark’s capital. And, hey, this Kaye guy might truly be up to something: by 2015, Copenhagen will have stopped contributing to global warming, becoming the planet’s apotheosis of the eco-metropolis. Just like that.

Taking the typically green motto “think globally, act locally” to heart (as we all should!), the goal is everything from cleaner air and water to healthier food, lower noise pollution, and more green spaces. Amazing.

Amazing.

Did I mention how I think this is amazing??

More than 90% of the municipalities in Denmark have devised a sustainable development strategy at the local level. And citizens are actively taking part in this revolution, which comprises an imperative factor.

Sønderborg - photo by arne.list

Throughout Denmark, then, cities are taking bold steps just like Copenhagen’s take their eco-friendliness to the next level. In northern Jutland, Frederikshavn wants to be one of the first cities ever to make its energy (electricity, heat, and power) supply 100% renewable. Wow.

The city of Sønderborg in southern Jutland launched Project Zero, which will make the region CO2-neutral, the first in Europe. The short-term plan is that Project Zero will showcase Sønderborg for the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December 2009.

2015, here we come!

Visit www.denmark.dk for more information on Denmark’s genius steps toward sustainability.

What is up with the Nordic countries? I have recently posted about similar amazing happenings in Sweden, Iceland, and now Denmark. Seriously. Probably, had I grown up there, I would have a greater resistance to cold climates. I would feel so proud being a part of this. I’d organize a green parade and beat the gay parade’s gaudy party vibe with my bright green allure and biodegradable piñatas filled with organic seeds of all sorts. Wait, that sounds (a) impossible (unless I could get scantily clad, buff people drenched in vaseline to dance throughout) and (b) like a bad idea, I mean, what if a cacao plant sprung next to a pine tree? I have no idea what would happen then.

But you know, like a friend said to me, maybe I’m needed here. Maybe all of us who can make a difference are needed most where things still need to get on their way, where the preliminary stages are or are yet to be taking place. Don’t you think?

Horse in countryside

Last time I touted Kalmar, Sweden as an ideal ecotourism destination because it’s going green fast-plus it’s beautiful, of course. Today I will tout Iceland! (Sure, you think “brrr this blogger is friggin nuts!!” now because it’s probably winter where you live, but come summer you may start fantasizing about traveling somewhere fresh, clean, and COLD!)

I would say Iceland should change its name to Greenland, but that would cause trouble. In any case, Iceland is proving to be one of the most progressive (it did breed Bjork, after all, heheh) and green-friendly countries in the world. So despite their recent economic meltdown, Iceland has gotten its ass in gear and is relying mostly on its own energy!

Here’s a brief on Iceland’s progress:

-         1970s: Iceland relies on imported coal for 75% of its energy

-         2007:  more than 82% of its energy comes from geothermal and hydropower! Oil makes up just 16% of its energy source and is reserved for cars and fishing fleets.

-         2009: 99+% of Iceland’s electricity comes from hydropower and geothermal energy!

-         By 2050: the country’s goal is to be energy-independent

“It’s our goal to be a carbon-free and oil-free country by 2050,” asserts Össur Skarphédinsson, Iceland’s minister of industry and energy.

Take a bath!

Imagine this: frequent earthquakes (last May it was a 6.3) that cause intense geothermic activity-Iceland has 200+ volcanoes, 600+ hot springs, and 20+ scalding steam fields. They have no coal, petroleum, or even trees-can you even imagine that? Tundra city all the way. And all this has led them to become practical, harnessing their geothermic activity for heat for many centuries.

I’ve always been intrigued by places so close to the poles-how do they handle it? What are their secrets? How does their culture significantly differ from that of warmer climates (does it?). What do their landscapes look like up close? What does their air smell like? What does it feel like to have hours of sunlight per day, or 14?!

Now (okay, supposing I could afford the trip and all) I could find the answers to those questions while at the same time knowing I would be supporting a laudable effort by honorable people to make the world a better place.

Read more about Iceland’s progress here.

A castle in Kalmar

Not sure where to go for your next overseas vacation? Let me help you: consider the beautiful and eco-friendly city of Kalmar in south-east Sweden on the coast of the Baltic Sea.

Kalmar and Kalmar County (total: 236,501 people) are currently working on eradicating their use of fossil fuels and permanently replacing them with biofuels–and all this with the Swedes’ support. Residents’ standard of living remain, as they aren’t having to endure cold inside their houses in the winter or give up their cars. Essentially, the only change Kalmar will be making is its choice of fuels.

Specifically, Kalmar is switching from oil, gas, and electric furnaces to recycled energy. They call it district heat and it’s made from timber companies’ by-products, sawdust and wood waste. Ninety percent of the electricity at Kalmar comes from hydro, nuclear, and eolic (wind) power.

The busses and cars are publicly owned and most of them-you better sit down for this one-run on biogas (produced from waste wood, chicken manure, or 85% ethanol from Brazil). Read about their alternative fuels. There are more bicycle lanes, trucking firms are teaching eco-driving, building codes must now meet insulation standards, street lights use low-energy bulbs, and fuel-efficient and hybrid cars are all the rage.

Naturally, the switch to biofuels is not only making local Swedes happy because they’re increasingly eco-friendly, but also because of how much money they get to save in fuel and their opportunity to preserve jobs in these rough times worldwide. Kalmar has managed to make a drastic and fantastic change toward environmentalism without slowing down its economic growth. Visit Kalmar in 2030, and you will find no trace of fossil fuel use.

We can do it, too! Push for change in your cities!

Uteservering in charming Kalmar. (Click for more pictures of the city of Kalmar and its nightlife.)

The Svenssons, a couple of municipal workers in Kalmar, have taken to bicycling to work, buying locally produced food, don’t use a clothes dryer, and have other tricks up their sleeve. “We wanted to do something so we could look [our daughter] in the eye in 20 years’ time and say, ‘We tried,’ ” Sara Svensson told the Chicago Tribune.

What will you tell your kids and grandkids 20 years from now? They probably won’t buy it if you tell them you were too busy to make small changes.