2nd Day of Living Future 2011

The 2nd day of Living Future 2011 started at 7am with a nice buffet breakfast followed by the morning plenary by Jason F. McLennan, one of the most influential people in today's green building movement. He gave a strong presentation, inspiring everyone with his ideas and innovations in sustainable design.

I was already impressed with the diversity of the attendees, young and old, salesmen, technologists, engineers, writers, contractors, buyers, architects, the list goes on. It was great to meet people and talk about green buildings, biotecture, alternative energies, and best of all our own city! It's amazing how mature our young city appears, with regard to our use of renewable energy and the efficiency of some of our modern buildings. Vancouver has always been utilizing hydroelectric power and has recently stepped up to the wind energy game with Grouse Mountain's 200-foot tall wind turbine and projects like Naikun Wind Energy's offshore wind farm. Green roofs and rooftop gardens have been popular in this city for quite some time and now ideas like urban farming and living walls are favored.

Today I attended two 2-hour class sessions, the first being Renovation Revolution : Quantifying the value of building reuse. It talked about really looking at all the factors when deciding to renovate a building or tear it down and build a new one. Factors such as building efficiency, type of occupant, imported materials, energy requirements, local workers and urban impact among others. The instructors made it easy to understand and encouraged participation and conversation around the classroom. This session really opened me up to the analysis and considerations that must go into a building renovation or new construction.

After an offsite lunch at V Restaurant in Yaletown, I returned the the Sheraton Wall Centre to attend my afternoon class, The Red List and Beyond : Engaging to find Healthy Materials and Transform the Industry. This course was a great introduction to the Red List and the intentions behind it. The Red List is a list of materials and chemicals that we definitely do not want in our buildings, such as asbestos, formaldehyde, mercury and lead. This session brought out some great minds and resulted in a lively discussion about how to best regulate these Red List standards and how to persuade both manufacturers and consumers to adopt these logical practices.

I was unable to attend the Big Bang Awards Dinner or the 2nd day of classroom sessions, but I was impressed with what I did experience at this years Living Future Conference. Thanks to the girls at the Sheraton for taking care of this one, and I am seriously thinking about dropping the $700 to attend World Future 2011 and/or Living Future 2012.

1st day of Living Future 2011

I was not sure what to expect when attending Living Future 2011 as this was going to be first unconference. As I entered the North Tower of the Sheraton Wall Center, I was greeted by an organized registration booth and a loud buzz in the air. As I received my lanyard and program, I noticed many small groups of people interacting and an overall positive forward-thinking vibe.

I went up the escalator to the check out the trade floor level, and I was impressed by a few of the new products, but not the diversity. Most were wood based building products while only a few were new innovations such as Biostruct's Earthen Wall Systems, a hemp-based concrete or hempcrete and Liveroof's Hybrid Green Roofing System. I was quite happy with the little snacks and my two free scotches, but the variety of booths didn't really satiate my palate.

I was really looking forward the keynote presentation and it did not disappoint, with presentations by Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robinson, CrowdBrite founder Darin Dinsmore and eco-entrepreneur Majora Carter.

I can't wait to share more of my experience at Living Future 2011 but in order to do that I should probably head to bed so I can be well rested to take it all in tomorrow.

Future Living 2011 : The Unconference for Deep Green Professionals

I am excited to say that I will be attending this years Future Living 2011 Unconference taking place at the Sheraton Wall Centre in Vancouver, BC from April 27th to 29th. This event is put on by the Cascadia Green Building Council and this years theme is - Our Children’s Cities: Visualizing a Restorative Civilization. Below is an excerpt from their website.

Their future is in our hands.

As stewards of our children’s planet, we are faced with an incredible challenge. We must lay the groundwork for a built environment that thrives within the reality of increasingly limited resources and foster an economy that serves the triple bottom line.

A tall order to be sure, but not impossible.

When the green building movement’s leading thinkers and practitioners come together to share their deep expertise and dearest hopes, we can leap ahead as a movement and as a society. Living Future, Cascadia’s annual unconference, offers a unique forum for exactly this kind of gathering.

Living Future 2011:

* It’s where cutting-edge practice meets inspiration.
* It's where visionaries get down to brass tacks.
* It's just around the corner.


Join us.


http://cascadiagbc.org/living-future/11

Blind mice no more

Logitech has utilized a cool technology that allows you to use your wireless mouse on any surface around the home or office. From the leather couch to the kitchen counter or lacquered tabletop, this mouse is designed to work on all surfaces. With a retail price of between $80 - $120 and I think it is a fair price for this technology.

"Beginning in 2005, Logitech – the world’s leading manufacturer of computer mice – embarked on a multiyear research and development project to create a mouse (that could be used on any surface). After considering many options – including Doppler radar, UV imaging and interferometry techniques – Logitech® Darkfield Laser Tracking was developed.

Darkfield Laser Tracking provides precise cursor control on virtually any surface – even glass. Darkfield is derived from the principles of dark field microscopy, which is used in laboratories around the world to detect the most difficult-to-see particles."

Read more at www.logitech.com and check out an excerpt from the Wiki page below...

Dark field microscopy is a very simple yet effective technique and well suited for uses involving live and unstained biological samples, such as a smear from a tissue culture or individual water-borne single-celled organisms. Considering the simplicity of the setup, the quality of images obtained from this technique is impressive.

The main limitation of dark field microscopy is the low light levels seen in the final image. This means the sample must be very strongly illuminated, which can cause damage to the sample. Dark field microscopy techniques are almost entirely free of artifacts, due to the nature of the process. However the interpretation of dark field images must be done with great care as common dark features of bright field microscopy images may be invisible, and vice versa.

While the dark field image may first appear to be a negative of the bright field image, different effects are visible in each. In bright field microscopy, features are visible where either a shadow is cast on the surface by the incident light, or a part of the surface is less reflective, possibly by the presence of pits or scratches. Raised features that are too smooth to cast shadows will not appear in bright field images, but the light that reflects off the sides of the feature will be visible in the dark field images.

China Creek USED SK8 Gear Giveaway!

I wish there was an event like this when I was a kid! Skateboard gear is not cheap even though it has been the same price for 20 years and if you have been skateboarding for that long you know what I mean!

On Saturday, April 16th at 1pm at China Creek Skatepark, bring down your used decks, trucks, wheels, helmets, etc. and donate them to those in need - all the local kids that want to skate, but can't afford the gear!!

For more information, check out the Facebook page...

And for all you old timers from Burquitlam and Coquitlam, be sure to check out the Washed Up Skateboarder Reunion at Railside park in Poco on April 30th! Again, check out the Facebook page for more info!