Spring Flowers by Uberto via Flickr

Well, today is the last day of Winter here in the Northern Hemisphere and tomorrow we will be welcoming Spring. Depending on where you live, you may or may not be ready to welcome Spring, but either way I figured I’d give you a few green tips to help you gear up for a bio-friendly Spring.

Note: Most of these tips were inspired by some really cool people I follow on Twitter:

1) First off, how about some spring cleaning?! I know, it’s not exactly what you were looking forward to, me either, but it’s something you are going to need to get done.

Before you run out and buy a lot of “cleaning supplies”, check out this video and article on cleaning green from my Twitter pal, Rich Massingham:

Now, hopefully you don’t have any mold in your home, but if you have any areas of your home that are particularly susceptible to mold, here are a few simple tips on “How to Keep Mold Away From Your Home” that should fit right in to the rest of your spring cleaning routine.

2) Right in line with spring cleaning is getting rid of unneeded items such as clothes, toys and other misc “junk” you have that has just been cluttering up your house. Almost everyone has stuff they have tucked away for a rainy day…that may not ever come.

If need some tips on what to do with the stuff you are getting rid of, check out these eco-living tips from my good friend, Nan or check out one of my favorite posts from Chris at MoreMinimal.com on “How to Break Free from Aspirational Clutter“.

3) Next is some spring planting. I was chatting with Barbara, because she happened to tweet that she was going out to turn the compost. She mentioned she was going to include some edibles into her landscape this Spring, including some edible flowers, but her main emphasis was on her compost being an important part of her spring garden.

That reminded me of a post from Mike aka CanarsieBK about breaking down and composting his fire escape garden. Just think of it like the new Phoenix, being born again from the ashes of the old Phoenix.

Once you’ve got your compost going, move onto your spring planting. For those of you who need a little vegetable garden help, check in with gardening great, Alison Kerr from Loving Nature’s Garden.

4) If you aren’t going to do any outdoor gardening, you might want to consider getting some indoor plants or even planting some herbs indoors. Here’s a great post from Angie about futuristic plant growing design concepts, which might give you some new ideas.  If definitely gave me a few!

However, if you read all of this and still don’t want to get your hands dirty, then maybe an indoor AeroGarden would be right for you. There’s nothing like adding fresh herbs and vegetables to your home-cooked meals.

I’m sure there are many different things you can do and there are definitely many other people out there that have wonderful ideas. These are just a few simple ones that should get you started.

Oh yeah, and don’t forget to get outside and enjoy Spring. It’s no fun if you can’t get out and enjoy it, right?! As my friend Derek says, “All Work and No Play Makes Dad a Glum Chum“. (Moms too!)

So, what are your plans to gear up for a bio-friendly Spring? Do you have anything you do in preparation for Spring?

St. Patrick’s Day is only a few weeks away, so I wanted to lay out ahead of time some of the common (and not so common) “green” things associated with St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick is known as the patron saint of Ireland. But, St. Patrick’s Day is not just a commonly observed Irish holiday anymore, countries and individuals across the globe, whether Irish or not, celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th, the anniversary of his death. To the Irish it is considered as a religious or holy day and has been for over 1000 years.

Even though St. Patrick’s Day falls during the Christian season of Lent (which prohibits the consumption of meat on Fridays and Ash Wednesday), those prohibitions were often waived so Irish families would traditionally celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with large evening feasts filled with bacon and cabbage.

Over the years more and more commercialism set it and today’s St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are commonly associated with many things green:

1) Most people consider Corned Beef and Cabbage (green) to be the traditional “Irish meal” for St. Patrick’s Day. But like I mentioned above, bacon and cabbage was actually the meal of choice when it came to Irish families. So even though many of you may have Corned Beef and Cabbage, if you are looking for tradition on this St. Patrick’s Day – Bacon and Cabbage it is.

2) Don’t forget to chase that traditional Irish meal with a good, green beer. There are many different beers to choose from and it depends on whether you want a beer made in a “green” or environmentally-friendly manner or a beer that is green in color.

If you are looking for a beer that is green in color, how about making your own? Here’s a quick video to show you how you can make your own green beer:

If you are looking for an environmentally-friendly “green” beer, here are a couple of options: Goose Island’s Green Line Pale Ale or Samuel Smith’s Organic Lager or Ale. And if you want some tips on what to look for when buying a “green” beer, you can check out this beer buying guide. Buying local is also a great way to make a greener beer choice.

3) Leprechauns are considered as a sort-of Irish fairy. They are often portrayed as small men with green hats and clothes and commonly associated with rainbows and pots of gold.  Leprechauns are the “self-appointed guardians of ancient treasure (left by the Danes when they marauded through Ireland), burying it in crocks or pots.” But, a word of warning….if you see one, don’t take your eye off him, because Leprechauns can vanish in an instant.

4) Shamrocks (otherwise known as white clovers) are associated with good luck, especially those ever-elusive four-leaf clovers. The white clover, on its own, was regarded by the early Celts of Wales as a good luck charm against evil spirits. So if you are looking for some good luck this St. Patrick’s Day, maybe a white clover is the way to go.

Don’t forget to check out those leaves though, as they traditionally symbolize: one for faith, two for hope, three for love and four for luck.

5) The Chicago River being dyed green. Started way back in 1962, dyeing the Chicago River has become as much a tradition for St. Patrick’s Day as eating Corned Beef and Cabbage (oops, I mean Bacon and Cabbage). The first year 100 pounds of dye was used and the river stayed green for an entire week. The next year they only used 50 pounds of dye and the river stayed green for 3 days. The year after that they settled on 25 pounds and that kept the river green for the entire day.

In 1966, environmentalists accused the city of polluting the river with the dye it was using. After a number of trials, a new compound made of vegetable dyes was created and is the dye that is still used today. If you are interested, you can also read the whole story on how they started greening the Chicago River.

For those of you who will be in Chicago this year, they will be turning the river green starting at 10:45am on March 13th.

Check out this time-lapse video showing the greening of the Chicago River:

Now, of course, you also should keep in mind basic environmental green activities like recycling, eating your “greens” and keeping all things in moderation when you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day this year. What’s your favorite green (color or environmental) way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?

With more people becoming aware of their actual impact on the environment, we have begun to see major strides being taken by individuals, businesses, buildings and even governments to lower their environmental footprint. One of the ways to do that is net-zero energy buildings.

It’s not just about “going green” or getting LEED certification anymore (although I’d recommend both). These days, people want to get their homes and businesses completely off the grid. It’s about generating more energy than you need or use. Just like you need to burn more calories than you eat in order to lose weight, same goes for energy conservation. Generate more renewable energy than your building uses and you’ll save money and break the unhealthy bond between you and your utility provider.

One great example of a net-zero energy building is the Boutique Hotel Stadthalle in Vienna, which features these as part of their self-sustaining charm:

• Its solar panel wall can heat up enough hot water for the entire hotel.
• Rainwater is collected on the roof and used to water the roof-top gardens and grounds, as well as being utilized to flush the toilets.
• Electricity is provided by a photovoltaic solar power plant and three wind turbines.
• Drinking water is vitalized by natural stones.

But I digress….what’s really exciting is the fact that the first net-zero energy public school is scheduled to open this year in Warren County, Kentucky.

The Warren County Public School System is no stranger to saving energy though. They received the 2009 Andromeda Star of Energy Efficiency Award for their ongoing commitment to reducing energy in their schools while at the same time educating their students on the benefits of energy efficiency. Their accomplishments included saving more than $4 million in energy savings over the prior 4 years, 28% reduction in energy usage, Energy Star ratings on fourteen buildings and more.

Now, in collaboration with CMTA, (a leader in engineering energy-efficient, green and highly sustainable buildings and schools) and the LEED Accredited Professionals from Sherman Carter Barnhart, Warren County is gearing up to have the first zero energy public school in the United States - Richardsville Elementary School.

Some of the key features in this zero energy public school include: insulated concrete form wall construction, geothermal HVAC with CO2 monitoring, daylighting through light shelves and Solatubes®, compact two-story design with reduced building volume, thin roof-adhered thin film photovoltaic system, energy-efficient lighting, reduced plug loads for computers, reduced energy use in the kitchen, solar water heating, bioswales, etc.

As you can see in this design, the school has been laid out so it can reap the most rewards from renewable energy sources such as the sun and wind. (School images courtesy of Sherman Carter Barnhart Architects)

With the renewable energy sources on site, Richardsville Elementary will produce enough energy every year to cover 100% of its estimated energy usage. Additionally, they expect the new building will reduce energy consumption by 75%.

But remember, this zero energy school isn’t just about the building, it’s about the students too. They want their students learning about how energy works, how to be more energy-efficient and more.

So…laptops are recharged in the “solar hallway” where students can actually see how much energy is being received from the solar panels. The “geothermal hallway” has colored pipes and temperature gauges. In the “water conservation hallway” students can see how much rainwater has been collected and used to flush toilets in the school’s restrooms. The “recycling hallway” shows students how they are doing at recycling around the school. They even have a weather station out on the patio, which they plan to incorporate into math and science studies.

It’s pretty cool when you think about it. I definitely look forward to seeing this net-zero energy public school once construction is completed and its on its way to being completely off the grid! If you are interested, you can follow the construction of the school via the Warren County Public Schools’ website.

Do you have a school near you, maybe your kids’ school, that is taking measures towards being more energy-efficient and working on educating its students on how to so the same? Contact your state school board, maybe there is a net-zero energy school on its way in your area.