HP Launches New Green Desktop PC

 HP has released a new RP5700 desktop PC which has been awarded the first gold award rating from EPEAT, a website that evaluates computers based on their environmental status. 95% of the components are recyclable and the unit has power efficient power supplies. There is even an optional solar renewable energy source to power the machine. It comes with an Intel Core 2 Duo chips up to 2.13GHz, up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, and SATA hard drives up to 250GB. Of course the EPEAT Gold machine that was tested was a downgraded Celeron 440 CPU with 512MB RAM. Here are the full specs from HP. I am sure Dell will be coming out with their Green Desktop very soon.

http://www.inhabitat.com/2007/06/06/hp-announces-new-green-pc-design/

Add comment June 7th, 2007 Alex

Eco Hangers

When you go to the dry cleaners, they always give you back your clothes with those wire hangers that you end up tossing afterwards, which isn’t very sustainable. Over 3.5 billion wire hangers end up in landfills every year. EcoHangers however, are made from 100% recycled paper and are 100% recycleable. The EcoHangers are also made in EPA regulated plants in the USA instead of in low wage factories in other Countries. What makes this a great business idea is the fact that they have advertising on them. The hangers are taken into your homes and have a 100% view rate. The hangers are rolled out nationwide which also allows for targeted advertising according to geography. I think this is a great idea that could easily replace all wire hangers and make this company millions of dollars. Why couldn’t I have come up with this idea?

http://www.hangernetwork.com/html/ecohangerstm.html

Add comment June 5th, 2007 Alex

Eco Friendly Kitchen Counters

 Many new houses and condos usually have granite countertops because they define elegance and beauty in a kitchen. There are however, drawbacks to granite, such as being expensive, it can crack, and it can absorb stains. Here are five eco-friendly kitchen counter alternatives: recycled glass, bamboo, recycled paper, sustainable wood, and recycled aluminum. Recycled Glass can be very colorful as it uses recycled glass mixed into a cement base but can be pricey. Bamboo can create a nice natural or brown rectangle blocks look. Recycled paper in a resin base can come in different colors and be heat and stain resistant and has a relatively low cost. Using Reclaimed or recycled lumber reduces the need to use new wood and the benefits of using old lumber can be a tighter grain and better quality. Lastly, recycled aluminum has a clear coat finish that is food safe and nontoxic but the price can be comparable to granite. To find out more about each alternative, check out this article from Sunset Magazine.

http://www.sunset.com/sunset/home/article/0,20633,1576733,00.html

Add comment June 4th, 2007 Alex

Is the IT industry sustainable?

As our society becomes more and more technological, we rely more on our computers and gadgets. Computers will continue to advance and as people continue to get new machines, there will be a continual disposal of older machines. There are figures released by The Carbon Trust, an independent body funded by the British Government, that show carbon emissions being the main cause of climate change. A study revealed that making a PC requires ten times the weight of the finished product in chemicals and fossil fuels. Dumping computers and TVs or any electronics is actually illegal.  If IT equipment is not disposed of properly for recycling, it is often disposed of in landfill sites. These will then be shipped off to a Third World Country where the toxic chemicals can be released out into the environment. There are many places to drop off your computers and electronics and some will even pick up your equipment for a small fee. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) refers to the social, environmental goals of a company. With global warming and the current Green trend, it is very important for companies to be more aware of these concerns and realize that developing a good CSR plan can lead to economic benefits as well as benefit the environment. Here is an article from IT Report that discusses more about creating the trend of having a CSR.

 http://www.itpreport.com/default.asp?Mode=Show&A=1117

Add comment June 4th, 2007 Alex

E-waste will continue to grow.

Green Citizen is a company that helps save the environment from harmful electronic wastes by providing a place to bring your electronic recycling.  Every year, an estimated 400 million units of obsolete electronics are produced and by 2010, this figure will become three billion units. Electronic equipments that are treated improperly can release harmful toxins that can harm our water, land and air. Toxins such as lead, mercury, and cadmium can cause birth defects and damage your internal respiratory and nervous systems. Here is an article that interviews James Kao, GreenCitizen’s founder and CEO. The company opened its first store in Palo Alto two years ago and Kao has continued to find new ways of improving his electronic recycling. About 800 businesses and 30,000 individuals bring their electronics to Green Citizen to dispose of properly. Kan hopes to bring his ideas worldwide and develop reverse supply chain factories that can be deployed in third world countries. According to Moore’s Law, the number of transistors on integrated circuit boards doubles every 24 months. Applying this to computers and technology means that computers will get faster along with memory and hard disk spaces increasing in size, while the prices continue to decrease. This means that people will continue to upgrade their computers and will get rid of their old ones. Therefore, it is very important that we dispose of our old computers properly because the number of scrapped computers will continue to increase as technology continues to advance.

Add comment June 2nd, 2007 Alex