Global Green Sustainable Design Awards, NYC

By: Alisa Ahmadian 

Global Green held its 11th Annual Sustainable Design Awards Ceremony on the picturesque Hudson River at Pier 60 in New York City.

eBay's John Donahoe

The event honored innovative leaders in bold environmental design that is transforming our international infrastructure for a greener future.Global Green is known for its pioneering policy and green building efforts in New Orleans post-Katrina. 

The night began with an intimate cocktail reception where guests mingled, enjoyed organic spirits and perused displays ranging from green building supplies to exotic vacations. Aside from event honorees, other attendees included Entourage star and environmental activist Adrien Grenier and actor Edward Norton, who told us that he supported Global Green’s work because “no one has done more than Global Green to re-build New Orleans sustainably.” Heatherette designer Richie Richalso attended the event as well as former Law & Order: Special Victims Unit star Judith Light.

Global Green USA Sustainable Design Awards, Dec. 6th, 2010, NYC.

The evening moved on to the main event: a formal dinner, with tables beautifully decorated with potted plants and herbs and a delicious organic dinner.

Global Green CEO & President Matt Petersen served as the Master of Ceremonies for the night, introducing honorees including: 

• eBay Inc., John Donahoe, President & CEO – Organizational Design Award

• Lincoln MKZ Hybrid, Sue Cischke, Group Vice President, Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering, Ford Motor Company – Product Design Award

• Sophia Bush and Austin Nichols– Entertainment Design Award

• Arianna Huffington, Co-founder & Editor-in-chief of Huffington Post – Media Design Award

• Wade Greene, Philanthropic Advisor to the Rockefeller Foundation- Policy Design Award

Sophia Bush and Austin Nichols

 Speaking about the successful launch of Huffington Post Green [of which Greening Hollywood was one of the foundational contributing columns], Arianna Huffington underlined the urgency of the launch, saying that “green is more important now than ever. Washington is full of ‘flat-earthers’ that are waging a war on science, evolution, everything.” Sam Champion of Good Morning America broke up the night with jokes, saying that he was “here to support Global Green, but I’m leaving soon to go to bed!” due to his 5 AM call time. 

Adrian Grenier

One Tree Hill co-stars Sophia Bush and Austin Nichols re-hashed their eye-opening trip to Louisiana following the BP oil spill this spring, telling us about the anger they felt when visiting beaches “that were totally controlled by BP-we felt like BP completely took over, and we wanted to do something about it.” Other honorees voiced similar passion and inspiration to make change, including Wade Green, a longtime anti-arms political advocate. Wade said that “after thirty years, I am still committed to working for solutions for peace on local, state and federal levels.” John Donahoe of eBay echoed the sentiment, stating that he is “constantly amazed by the power of the global community.”

Rounding out the inspiring evening, Matt Petersen took the stage once again to announce that over $400,000 had been raised during the event to benefit Global Green’s widespread international campaigns.

Sponsors of the event included Hotel Gavarni, Paris's first independent hotel to be European Ecolabel certified.

To learn more about Global Green, please visit http://www.globalgreen.org

Alisa Ahmadian works for Cook + Fox in environmental building and architecture in New York City. All photos credited to Alisa Ahmadian

 

Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd

The Green Blog Network

Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood

Greening Vancouver

Greening Beauty 

Facebook/GreenBlogNetwork

 

Posted via email from The Green Blog Network

Global Green Sustainable Design Awards, NYC

A Green Day In Paris

By X. M.

Originally published on Follow the green light

Here are four options to move in an ecological way around the capital:

• Hop into one of the G7 hybrid taxis for an eco-friendly journey!

• Take a bike or Vélib ‘: The green Parisian favorite transportation that allow you to avoid traffic jams as well!
• Try the Urban Cab, where the driver carries you on a bicycle. It’s time for you to seat and enjoy your eco-ride.
• Discover Paris on Sedan, the least polluting car model, to appreciate the charm and the beautiful architecture of the city while preserving the planet. (Ecovisit Paris from 150 € )

Naturally Fair

From June 4 to June 7, Naturally the fair on organic products and environment welcomes you at Paris Expo, Porte de Versailles. The calendar of events includes workshops on how to better know your body needs, conferences such as “100 natural prescriptions on 100 common diseases”, “secrets of senior vitality” or “gardens that help us”.
Organic and natural products are everywhere : from cosmetics made out of vegetable butter to hemp made clothes, detergents, books…everything will be present there ! A fair to be visited with your family in order to relax, get some good food and, of course, do some organic shopping !

Salon Naturally
Parc des Expositions de Paris
Porte de Versailles – Pavillon 8
Friday June 4, from 1030am to 10pm.
On June 5, 6 and 7, from 1030am to 7pm..

 

Take care of yourself

• Coiffure & Nature saloon, in the heart of Marais, uses the natural substances to your hair. Vegetal coloration and gentle care of your hair, such as the deep scalp massage using 100% natural wild Shea Nut.
1, rue de la Bastille – Paris 4th

• Couleur Caramel, a bio-cosmetic specialist, opened a Cafe – Beauty Saloon, in the 4th district. Maquillage Caffè is a warm place for you to be more naturally beautiful.
8 rue Nicolas Flamel, 10 rue Jean du Bellay – Paris 4th

• The Cosmetox Guide, published by Greenpeace, classes the leading brands of cosmetics by a scale of eco-friendly. It’s perfect for you to find out the recommended products and those that you need to avoid!

Have a green hand

• Passy Park, located close to Gavarni hotel, was awarded the Ecocert label. Some other parks in Paris have also received the label Ecocert, and you can discover them at Ecolosqy.
Passy Park: rue d’Ankara , avenue Marcel Proust, avenue René-Bolylesve, avenue du Président Kennedy – Paris 16th

• La Coulée Verte, in the 12th district, situated along the route of an old railway line, leads you to Bois de Vincennes. A perfect unusual walk in Paris for all nature lovers.

Let’s do some eco-shopping

• For green gifts: Nature & Découvertes, a nature chain stores offers a variety of products ranging from the solar energy lamp to the organic beauty products.
Shop near Gavarni Hotel: 75 rue de Passy Paris 16th

• For those who wants to be trendy: Monsieur Poulet, a fashion concept store that perfectly links design and environment.
28 rue des petites stables – Paris 10th

• For the fashion victims: Dalia and Rose, a very girly shop, with lots of beautiful ethical products (shoes, swimwear, key chains …) which involved a high quality fashion.
9, rue du Marché St-Honoré – Paris 1st

• For everyone’s liking: Altermundi Mode, the first brand in Paris to have understood that “It’s chic to have an ethic!” The shop brings together numerous fair trade brands and organic products.
9, rue de Rivoli – Paris 4th

• For the fans of eco-luxury: Vanessa Bruno, a fashion designer is very sensitive towards the environment. She has done numerous noble action and beautiful gestures, such as her involvement in a reforestation program.
Vanessa Bruno near the hotel Gavarni: Franck & Fils – 80 rue de Passy – Paris 16th

• For children: the Filambule brand create tee-shirts from organic cotton and handbags from candy paper for young eco-travelers.
12, rue Mandar – Paris 2nd

Eat organic

• During breakfast : Pastries and organic breads at Boulangerie Moisan. This property offers exclusively products from organic farming, and they are home-made. A crispy idea which is perfect to start your green day!
Shop near the hotel: 75 rue Lafontaine.

• During lunch: La victoire suprême du cœur is an excellent vegetarian restaurant. The chef offers you mouth-watering and original organic culinary creations and you will enjoy it in a friendly and colorful environment.
31 rue Bourg Tibourg – Paris 4th

• In a rush: Stop at Exki. The chain of the famous Belgian bios fast-food proves that you can eat as quickly as you want at any time but keeping at the same time the “I love environment” spirit.
Exki – 9, bd des Italiens – Paris 2nd

• Cocktail break: The Artisan Nature bar introduces a numerous unexpected bio drinks (pears cocktail, aloe vera brew, Maracuja syrup …).
123 rue Saint-Maur – Paris 11th

• Fruits and vegetables: There are two organic outdoor markets in Paris, one at Batignolles (Paris 17th) on Saturday from 9am to 3pm, and the other at Boulevard Raspail (between rue du Cherche Midi and Rennes ) on Sunday from 9am to 3pm.

• Some tips to buy organic eggs: Attention to the number indicated on the shell. If it is 0 or 1, you can purchase with your eyes closed, but if it is 2 or 3, better not!

-> Exhibition «La Terre et Nous» at the Cite de Science until August 30th 2009. To learn more about the consequences of population concentration in cities on the environment.

-> Eco-friendly books at «Nature & Découverte» and in other book shops :

• «Paris Ecolo» by Patricia Michel, 2,90€, First
• «Pesticides» by Fabrice Nicolino et François Veillerette, 19 €, Editions Fayard

• «Toxic» by William Reymond, 19 €, Flammarion
• «Guérir par les plantes» by Claire Laurain, 18,90 €, Editions Anagramme
• «Protégez vous enfants de la malbouffe!» by Cyril Lignac, 17 €, Michel Lafon
• «Santé, les trucs qui marchent» by Sophie Lacoste, 17€, Michel Lafon

Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd

The Green Blog Network

Greening Beauty

Greening Hollywood

Green Blog Network *  Greening Vancouver

Facebook/GreenBlogNetwork

Posted via web from The Green Blog Network

A Green Day In Paris

Greening Paris: Hotel Gavarni In The Parisian Chic 16th Arrondissement

Hotel Gavarni is the greenest little hotel in Paris. But you wouldn't know it unless you a) did your research a b) took some time to have a conversation with hotel manager Xavier Moraga, Hotel Gavarni's own eco-chic Parisian.

Tucked away just off Rue du Passy in the chic shopping district of the 16^th arrondissement, this 25 room hotel is luxurious and at the same time offers an easy and relaxing charm that is both welcoming and discreet...and eco-friendly. It carries the European Eco-Label rating, equivalent to North America's Green Keys.

The staff is there to help with all your requests, whether that's picking you up at the airport in a hybrid Prius, getting you instantly connected to their complimentary Wi-Fi or guiding you on how to make the 5 minute walk to the Musee' de la Mode at the Trocadero or the 10 minute walk to the Eiffel Tower, they'll do so graciously and with good manners. They'll also readily engage you in conversations about the state of solar paneling on buildings in Paris (problematic because many of the buildings are heritage or historical) and in gray water management, a topic often reserved for the most sincere eco-ists.

Parisian Green Philosophy

Xavier Moraga's green philosophy is to show guests how easy – and subtle – it is to be green in our every day lives and thereby have a big impact on the environment.

He believes that talking about ecology in general, not backed up by actions, no matter how small, and “guilting” people into ecology is not the way to go. Not if you want to see results. The better way is to lead by example and to make those examples enjoyable.

“In Paris we can't change the facade of buildings. We have no right touch the facade, add solar panels, change the windows, things like that. We can't do structural changes but we can do systemic changes. A hotel this size is like a house. All our 'small' actions can resonate with our guests so that they can copy the actions at home,” said Moraga.

Hotel Gavarni, like all good luxury hotels, practices understated hospitality in an atmosphere of quiet elegance. So it follows that you'll only notice the hotel's eco-aspects when you really pay attention.

For example, each of the rooms boasts a jacuzzi bathtub. The warm jets of water pulse on your tired muscles as you lie there, your neck and head cushioned on the back of the fitted soft pillow. You'd never guess that all of the faucets in the hotel's bathrooms have been replaced with valves that save about half the water usage of the average Parisian bathroom. Each of these valves cost about 5 Euros. And by saving half the water usage, they save about half the water bill.

Their complimentary organic breakfasts feature fresh, organic fruits from the market like seasonal melons, cherries, oranges. There are farm fresh eggs and “bio”(organic) jams to accompany your warm croissants and aromatic, fair trade coffee. The hotel has established relationships with local organic farmers so they buy direct. In fact, the hotel even serves as a distribution center for the upscale neighborhood's Community Supported Agriculture co-op, a program that is so popular there's a waiting list to get on.

Green Means Think For Yourself!

Moraga emphasized over and again how being green is simply re-thinking the way you do things. “It's thinking for yourself,” he said. “Even if you're not rich, genius, famous, you can still make a difference.”

For example, the hotel's lights are all LED lights. This switch-over resulted in 10X less energy consumption and a savings of 21% in their energy bill.

Using natural cleaning supplies was also a shift towards the simple, the natural. Vinegar, it turns out, is one of the best cleaners to prohibit the lime build up caused by the hard Parisian water. And vinegar is not just a safe and non-toxic cleaner, it's also very cost-effective.

Being green isn't simply a job for Moraga. Like so many of the green tribe, it's a way of life, it's in the DNA. When he's not at the Gavarni, he and his family are building three apartment buildings and two houses that are all environmentally friendly, even implementing gray water and natural building materials. “It's a small step for man, a huge step for mankind,” said Moraga with a smile when he described his personal projects. He's also just returned from a trek to the Antarctic where he documented the pristine natural habitat of seals and penguins through fabulous photos. “People say the Antarctic is 'all white,' it's not...It's blue!”

Moraga has given green a lot of thought as it pertains to Paris's hotel industry. He's come up with a number of good questions, one of which is why don't the tourist booking agencies, such as Thomas Cook, have a booking search filter for how green a hotel is? For example, people search for hotels based on cost, based on star ratings, so why not based on an Eco-Label rating? After all, it is well documented that the tasteful traveler today is ever increasingly choosing eco options.

He has goals to match his progressive thinking. “We'd love to get the chance to speak with the Minister of Tourism so we could talk about undertaking a campaign about what hotels are doing in Paris to be green. For example, to get a 5-star rating, a hotel should be required to implement at least 10% eco-friendly practices,” he suggests.

Progressively Green: Passy, Paris

A quick walk around the Passy neighborhood reveals even more good ideas. Across the street from the hotel is one of Paris's “Velib'” which are the bicycles on demand. For about 1 Euro per day, you can take one of the bikes, use it, then drop it off at the bicycle station nearest your next destination. On a Sunday afternoon, there were hundreds of Parisians and tourists alike on these bikes swarming the streets near the Eiffel Tower and the Trocadero. Municipal programs such as these show that when the city and the citizens are on the same page, great (green) things can happen.

A direction to go in from here would be to focus on building energy retrofits throughout Paris. Moraga is quick to agree. In a city whose buildings predominantly fall under historical preservation, demolition is out of the question. Energy retrofits, including window replacement, however, would demonstrably cut down on energy consumption and also GHG emissions, of which buildings generate even more than transportation.

“It would be great, for example, if there were tax incentives and favorable terms for bank loans taken out specifically for energy efficiency building retrofits,” suggested Moraga. “This could also potentially create a number of good green jobs,” he noted.

Hotel Gavarni is located at 5, rue Gavarni. www.gavarni.com also www.greenhotelparis.com Find them also on Facebook.

Follow Us On Twitter@GreeningHollywd

The Green Blog Network

Greening Beauty

Greening Hollywood

Green Blog Network *  Greening Vancouver

Facebook/GreenBlogNetwork

 

 

Posted via web from The Green Blog Network

Greening Paris: Hotel Gavarni In The Parisian Chic 16th Arrondissement