A key component of sustainability is building relationships. We can all get caught up working in front of our computers for days on end, without leaving our office to have face-to-face interactions with others. True sustainability is based on shared experiences that occur over a long span of time. Here are two suggestions on how you can bring this into your life:

• Participate in "Hands Across the Sand" on Saturday, June 26th. This is an event created by 350.org to bring people across the country together to take a stand against offshore drilling.

• Start an EcoTuesday in your city! It's a great way to bring like-minded people together on a consistent basis. You can be an Ambassador if your city doesn't already have an event (or check in with your Ambassador if you'd just like to help! We love volunteers.).

Another component of sustainability is constant learning: learning about new technologies, new policy, new ideas, and new trends (to name a few!). Our friends at Triple Pundit and the ISOS Group are hosting a GRI Sustainability Reporting Certification Course next month. This is a very hands-on course that will truly add value to your career. Let us know if you sign up!

Recently, EcoTuesday Advisor Maura Fallon-McKnight accepted a position at Grid Alternatives, which is an organization that brings solar technology and training to low-income communities. This, of course, supports these homeowners in decreasing their electricity usage, thus reducing their monthly electricity bill.

In May, EcoTuesday San Francisco had Erica Mackie, the founder of Grid Alternatives, as it speaker. Erica and her business partner, Tim Sears, founded Grid in 2003 and have made a huge impact on the sustainability movement over the past few years. Grid Alternatives has completed over 430 solar installations to date, saving 30,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the next 30 years. That's the equivalent of planting about 25,000 trees.

What does Grid Alternatives do to address the need for solar and create a tangible, hands-on project that many people can be part of? "We exclusively serve low-income families in the "barn raising" model," said Mackie. "That means that we get a whole bunch of people, including the homeowners themselves, to be involved in some way during the installation. That can mean that they're with us actually installing the panels, talking about solar at their church, or making food for the volunteers."

One of the great aspects about Grid Alternatives is that it gives those who are not necessarily involved in the solar industry the opportunity to learn about this new technology. The volunteers can come out and help out all day - you don't have to know anything about solar, but you will walk away with a lot of new information. Mackie sais, "we'll teach you the difference between a flathead and a Phillips, how to drill into the panels and what the pressure feels like in your drill so you know when to stop drilling."

Additionally, Grid Alternatives reserves 20% of their installations for job trainings, too. Those who participate in these job training learn real-world skills that they can use to find a job in this blossoming industry.

Mackie perfectly blended the technical aspects of solar with her sincere outlook regarding her inspiration.

"On a personal side, I wanted a job that I could go to and love everyday. I wasn't thinking that Grid Alternatives from 2004-2010 is going to grow 10 fold exponentially and we're goin to go from myself and my partner in the backroom of my rented apartment in Berkeley with a $16,000 budget and not getting a salary to a  $7 million budget and 50 employees across the state doing 300-500 installations a year. I didn't think about that at the beginning."

She continued, "what I thought was, I'm going to do something that I believe in and that I can be passionate about everyday."

On July 31, Grid Alternatives will be hosting a fundraising event called Solarathon, which is their annual "block party." Volunteers can raise money and participate in a solar installation. What a great way to learn about solar! Last year, volunteers installed 16 solar electric systems that will generate over $270,000 worth of clean, renewable power for low-income families over their lifespans. There are only a few spots left! I'd love to see more participants from the EcoTuesday community join us! Learn more about Solarathon.

Like many of you, I've been incredibly saddened by the environmental and social devastation that has taken place in our Gulf coast recently. Each day, thousands of gallons of oil are being pumped into the water, causing incredible harm to many ecosystems near and far. This catastrophe will continue to have a huge impact on the entire area that is still weak from Hurricane Katrina for many years to come. 

Here area a few things that you can do:

• Sign the Green For All petition: urge President Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to halt expanding offshore drilling and swiftly pass a comprehensive climate and energy bill.

• Watch the film "FUEL" on Netflix (the DVD will be released on June 22). This film documents the results of our addiction to oil.  Read Josh Tickell's message about the first screening in New Orleans where he has invited BP and its affiliates to attend.

• Learn more about the Gulf oil spill, the areas most affected and the long-term risks in this detailed graphic.

Please come to EcoTuesday to meet other like-minded professionals who are developing sustainable solutions that will work for people and the environment at the same time. By supporting one another through collaboration and exchanging resources, we can truly make a difference in how we do business in the future.

See you on May 25 in cities across the country!

We've had a couple of wonderful changes at EcoTuesday this month. We have a new Ambassador and two other Ambassadors are relocating to new cities! Read more about these changes and learn about what to expect in the coming months.

EcoTuesday and I were recently featured in a new book called Hot, Rich & Green (this is not necessarily how I would describe myself, but it's a catchy, fun and flattering title!), written by Rebecca Harrell Tickell (producer of FUEL). The book shares inspiring stories, formulas and advice from 50 entrepreneurial women who are following their passions and starting green businesses. Other women in this book include Mariel Hemingway (actress), Hunter Lovins (from the Natural Capitalism Solutions), Jennifer Boulden (founder of IdealBite) and Amy Smart (of the Environmental Media Association). I'm honored to be a part of this group of women. Become a fan on the book's Facebook page.

It's time to prepare for this month's EcoTuesday! Please join us on Tuesday, May 25 in cities across the country. Please RSVP. We hope that registering through Meetup is easy for you. There are two steps to registration: join your city's Group first, and then RSVP for this month's event. Make sure you do both steps!

See you in two weeks!

There are some great changes taking place at EcoTuesday right now!

First, I am bringing on a brand new Ambassador in San Francisco. After searching for the perfect person to co-lead with me each with, I found him! His name is Jesse Martinez. He's been helping out over the past few months and has been an incredible support. I have no doubt that he'll be warmly welcomed by the EcoTuesday community.

Also, toward the end of the year I will be transitioning from my Ambassador role and having my eye on new and innovative projectst that EcoTuesday can pursue. That means that someone would need to co-host and plan the monthly events in SF with Jesse. After I made this decision, I received an email from Ann Stovel, our Ambassador in Portland, who said that she was planning to move back to San Francisco. Ann and her co-Ambassador, Kevin, launched EcoTuesday in Portland earlier this year and have successfully created a thriving community (many thanks to Kevin for his valuable help! Kevin has moved on to other things and will no longer be an Ambassador in Portland). What great news! Ann will be a great addition to the SF EcoTuesday team!

That meant that the Portland EcoTuesday would be ending until replacement Ambassadors were found, which was unfortunate.

However, about two weeks later, Jennifer Gooding, one of our first Ambassadors (in Los Angeles), called me to tell me that she was planning to move to Portland. The only thing that she was sad about was leaving her role as an EcoTuesday Ambassador, she said. She'd read Ann's blog post about Portland needing a new Ambassador, and was excited about the opportunity. I am very grateful to Jennifer for sticking with me and EcoTuesday for all of these years. Jennifer has been steadfast in her care about bringing eco-minded businesspeople together in Los Angeles and she truly embodies what EcoTuesday is all about. I quickly connected Ann and Jennifer, and Jennifer will now be the new Ambassador in Portland - her new home! (Read Jennifer's blog about the transition.)

The Portland EcoTuesday will resume again in June. We're still looking for two new Ambassadors to replace Jennifer in Los Angeles, so if you or someone you know is interested in pursuing this great opportunity, please let us know!

Welcome, Jesse!

Congrats, Ann & Jennifer!

I'm very happy to announce that we have some wonderful changes in store for you!

Starting this month, all participants will RSVP for their local events using Meetup, an easy to use registration system. Here's how it works: find your local EcoTuesday Group listed on our Events page and then click on your city. You will then be directed to a Meetup page that features your local area. Create a short profile to become a member of your group, which takes only a minute. Your name and photo will then appear on the Member page for your city and will also appear under the event when you RSVP. Here are a few other features that will prove beneficial to your networking endeavors:

- Everyone in the EcoTuesday Group for your city can read what you're passionate about or what you're working on.
- You can see a list of all of the other Members in your local area.
- You can email people directly, before and after the monthly event.
- Your local Ambassador can easily send messages to the entire group to let you know more information about the speaker, special info about the event, and more.

Please - go to the EcoTuesday Events page, find your local group, become a member of that group and RSVP for your city's event today!

Joel Makower of Greener World Media spoke at EcoTuesday in February, right after hosting two successful "State of Green Business" conferences in San Francisco and Chicago in the weeks prior. It was our Three Year Anniversary, and Joel was a fantastic addition to the celebration.

Joel started out by explaining that there are really two "green economies."

"We don't really have one green economy. We have a couple of green economies. First, there's the green economy of big businesses, such as the GEs, PGEs, and the Nike's. These are the companies that are going through huge fundamental changes in some very exciting ways. Along with them are the VCs and the big dollars going into a few smaller companies, such as Tesla and Bloom Energy. These are big companies with big dollars, or smaller companies with big ambitions."

He continued, "the other green economy is everyone else. It's full of small emerging companies or companies that aren't necessarily green businesses in the sense of offering green travel services, making a green building material, or offering green energy. They've been developed by people who have thoughtfulness around their business and want to run their businesses similar to how they run their lives. Those aren't the ones that get as much attention, and it's a bit challenging. There are a lot of exciting things happening within this green economy."

While Joel is hopeful about what's ahead in business, he is also concerned that innovation is "happening much too slowly."

"Everyday we look at stories that come through GreenBiz.com and see examples of companies that are integrating environmental thinking into their operations and doing it in a way that aligns with their missions, with their product, in some sense, of their business value. Whether its increased profits or decreased costs, etc. This isn't a new story. There's been this confluence that's making this come to the fore and all of these actions are necessary."

"We're seeing this convergence of energy, information, building and vehicle technologies coming together to create this smart world that will start to tranform things in fundamental ways over the next generation. People in those businesses are in the middle of a revolution that they probably don't see. It will be greener technology, better, cooler technology that will allow us to do a number of things we can't do today."
Joel believes that change occurs with the right mix of money, policy, and technology. "The business community is critical to all three of those things," he stated.

Despite these exciting advances in all of these industries, the rate at which change is happening is not happening quickly enough.

"The political climate isn't contributing to big shifts in the environment, food security, job growth and economic development. We're still seeing this as a fight. Why isn't there a sense of urgency here? Why aren't people taking to the streets around climate change and the lack of energy policy? Why isn't this seen as a great abandonment of leadership? I'm concerned that there's this great appetite for green, but there's not an appetite for change."

Joel ended with a "challenge" to the audience to inspire them to act. "I challenge you to understand what it takes to make change."

We are very excited for this month’s event!  We are honored to have Pamela Gordon, the founder and president of Technology Forecasters, Inc., as our March speaker. TFI is a consultancy that helps high-tech companies reduce environmental impact and profit from doing so. She is also the author of Lean and Green: Profit for Your Workplace and the Environment. 

Gordon will discuss with us how to be “Lean and Green” to reduce corporate environmental footprints, share tips and pitfalls for creating and executing “Lean and Green” roadmaps, as well as outline a strategy to enlist the support of even the non-environmental executives.  In addition, she'll provide examples of mid-sized high-tech companies becoming Lean and Green. With Pamela’s wisdom, you can go from taking baby steps to leaping into innovative and substantive footprint reduction.

 
Gordon is a popular keynote speaker--having presented at high-tech conferences in Canada, Israel, Mexico, Taiwan, and the US. Her insights on environmental sustainability and the electronics industry have appeared in nearly 500 articles, she has been interviewed on numerous television and radio programs, and she guest lectures at several California universities.
 
Click for Pamela’s full bio and and learn more about Technology Forecasters, Inc.
 
Please join us on Tuesday, March 23rd at The Box SF from 6:30 to 9 pm. Register online before (it's free) or it's $10 at the door. See you there!

We're starting a new feature in the EcoTuesday newsletter - EcoTuesday Success Stories - and we want you to be included!