As long as we are an automobile driven society, no real hope for true sustainability exists, however, I am hopeful that the pace of technological innovation, government underwriting, and public perception will help make some impact to trend toward a sustainable future. In my constant quest to attempt to make my personal lifestyle as well as my projects more sustainable, I am very curious to see both the viability and the impact of all the crazy gadgets and information currently coming to market. My real question is how much is marketing to take advantage of the current sustainability perception vs. financially viable. I am hopeful the current trends and momentum really do create some game changing innovation for real sustainability.
With that being said, I am always intrigued by the options developers have for carbon footprint reduction with minimal time and costs when they design a new project. This week alone I circumstantially ran across a few different products that piqued my interest that I am interested to see the reality of their implementation and actual viability, such as:
– Solar/Wind Powered street lamps from right here near out home base, manufactured in Muncie, IN. www.vat-group.eu.
– Electric vehicle charging stations – http://coulombtech.com/
– Measurement of impact at the carbon footprint calculator
It will be interesting to me to check these out in 3 – 5 years, and see what their impact is and if they are still viable sources for continued sustainability.
Mixed Use Development 