Local Cafe Goes Green

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, Virginia Tourism Industry, and Virginia Hospitality & Tourism Association collaborated to create a new restaurant certification to gauge an establishment’s commitment to the environment, creatively titled “Virginia Green Restaurant Certified.”  While this is a self reviewing system, it starts the conversation on greening restaurant establishments.  (I won’t get into “what is green” and what isn’t in depth.  Let’s just say everyone has opportunities for improvement in lowering their environmental footprint, and doing that is greener.)

I took this opportunity to interview Jody Manor, Owner of Bittersweet Catering & Café; the first Virginia Green Certified Restaurant in Alexandria.  His path on lowering the café’s environmental footprint wasn’t a new revelation, but started when began working at the café at $5.00/hour as a line cook when he began noticing all of the waste in the commercial food production society.  Since buying the café in 1990 after working his way up “food chain”, Jody focused his attention inward in reducing waste such as rewarding customers for returning bags and using food scraps to make a new dishes; all while trying to keep the budget in line.

To keep costs in check, for example, when switching over to sugar cane, material based utensils, he offered these as an option to his catering customers; but he charged higher for the new “green” package.  Although  it’s now the standard in the café, it’s still an option in catering.  And while he has done cost effective changes in the café, such as switching out incandescent bulbs to more efficient fluorescent bulbs , “it is hard to be efficient” as a restaurant,  “doing good for the environment has to be cost effective,”  he said.

Jody notes that although implementing greener operating strategies and more local and organic foods has been an incremental change, he welcomes ideas and new products into the café.

“For example, the City of Alexandria would benefit by offering various work groups where businesses could share ideas and develop policies together with the City regulatory agencies, such as the Health Department,” Jody notes.

So back to the question why Bittersweet Café obtained a Virginia Green Certification…   He doesn’t like waste and “it’s the right thing to do.”

For more information on the Virginia Green initiatives, visit http://www.deq.state.va.us/p2/virginiagreen/.

Bobby Croghan, Owner of CROGS

bobby@crogs.biz

www.crogs.biz

Creating New from Existing

You no longer have to accept that a total new look has to come from new “everything!”  With a great interior design, an organization, building, or company, can renovate their association from existing elements.  Example:

370 L’Enfant Promenade

The Owner of CROGS utilized many elements of the existing design to bring the interior up to date and up to Level 5 Security level!

The existing flooring is the same.  Minor infill for new equipment.

The inserts of existing marble in the wall were infilled with wood veneer covered plywood.

The existing troffer ceiling? Was infilled with a modern material, 3Form, which took place of an aged, yellowed plastic.

Utilize what you have, and use it to your advantage.

Office Space Efficiency = Green Design

You many not think about it, but having a space efficient office does equate to a greener design.  Why is that?  Well, if you take up less space, you’re using less resources:  cooling energy, lighting energy, finish materials, possible building materials, and all of the embodied energy used to transport extra items to fill a larger space.  Wow, it’s that easy!

How do you design a more efficient office space?  How about utilizing spaces for multi-purpose use, such as an open pantry for office meetings?  What about outsourcing a virtual secretary to utilize that receptionist you never use?  Or how about adding storage up instead of below?

What’s the end result?  A space that is more cost efficient because you can have more people in a smaller space!  No, I’m not saying cramming people together, but be open to newer planning ideas.

“Celebrity” Product Designers = Not Green

@kathyireland @Nate_Berkus @MarthaStewart @gengreen @bromco @TaniyaNayak

I recently noted that several “tv” designers, such as Kathy Ireland, Martha Steward, Nate Berkus, no NOTHING about sustainability. MORE important, is WHY THEIR PRODUCTS COULD HAVE SUCH A GREAT IMPACT ON CONSUMER BUYING IF THEY UPPED THE ANTE ON CREATING MORE SUSTAINABLE DESIGN PRODUCTS.

KATHY IRELAND – FABRICS: Looking at all of your products on your website, the only item I found were curtains made of recycled content. That’s it. No certifications. No organic fabrics.

BATH PRODUCTS – Where are they made? China? Do you know what a carbon footprint is? What about utilizing recycled content?

What about your endorsed wallcoverings…where are they made? Are they made of vinyl? Do you know the impacts of vinyl? Probably not because on non of your product endorsements do you ever SAY..

WHERE THEY ARE MADE? WHY DO YOU ENDORSE THEM? WHAT ARE THEY MADE OF? WHAT ABOUT THE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY OF THE COMPANY THEY COME FROM? GIVE ME ANYTHING.

NATE BERKUS – Your bedding is made in China…stuffed with polyester. Do you know what polyester is made of? Oil! Pillows, why not organic filling? We spend around 75% of our lives in bed, with our head on the pillow…DO YOU WANT TO SLEEP ON A PILLOW CONTAINING ALL OF THE CHEMICALS SEEPING INTO YOUR SKIN? I don’t. Feel free. Because when you sleep, you sweat, your skin pores open up…and then? The wetness reacts with the chemicals, and seep into your skin. Sound pleasant to you?

WHY AM I HARPING? These celebrities have such a GREAT OPPORTUNITY to provide those loving consumers great products to provide that not only could enhance the beauty of their home, BUT THE ENVIRONMENT AS WELL. Instead, they put their name on products that are made of crap just like the next label.

MARTHA STEWART – I’m not even going to lecture on the VOC content in the MDF manufactured furniture you sell. Why don’t you tell everyone that the MDF structure you use for furniture contains, like similar MDF products, contain the same chemicals used to embalm people when they die? Did you know that? Smell it, that’s death.

CONSUMERS, CELEBRITY ENDORSED ITEMS DO NOT EQUAL QUALITY, ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY PRODUCTS.

You all have great skills to be on television; NOW GET SKILLS TO GET A CONSULTANT ON MAKING YOUR PRODUCTS FIT INTO OUR ECO-SYSTEM!

Feel free to comment, call me, set up a round-table Skype conference. But don’t contact me without informed information. I CHALLENGE YOU TO PROVIDE BETTER PRODUCTS.

And Nate? I’ll come to Oprah, with all the celebrity designers, and inform you all of what sustainability is and why it’s important.

Reluctance To Sustainability Position

How Does An Organization Move Forward Without a Dedicated “Director of Sustainability?

From small design firms, to larger accounting firms, to a city designated positions, how does an entity move forward without a director of sustainability?  Whether it’s a paid or volunteer position, who is keeping track of how the entity is not only providing, but contributing a quality product or service to benefit society?  There is a reluctance in my community of Alexandria, VA to commit for hiring this type of city or department position.

This position needs to oversee ALL areas of the city; from city planning, health department, transportation, solid waste, etc.  True sustainability and efficiency isn’t contained in each department; they extend and have affect on one another.  I have been to many volunteer and paid committee meetings where there is a clear lack of understanding of how efforts by the single departments, affects another.  And this person shouldn’t be a volunteer!  A paid position ensures that the job is done thoroughly, transparently, accounted, and professionally.

ONE PERSON TO OVERSEE AND COMMUNICATE WOULD ACTUALLY EASE THE RESEARCH, MARKETING, CONTRACTING EFFORTS OF ALL DEPARTMENTS  = REDUCED COSTS OVERALL

References!

From Global Policy Innovations,  “At this early stage, the work is simple for sustainability directors, who can target inefficient government facilities for instant savings.” (Lisa Gulya, GPI, 25, April 2008) http://bit.ly/dl1246 (Visited 17, June 2010)

Cities with Sustainability Directors:  City of Portland (http://bit.ly/azGR3R), City of Philadelphia (http://bit.ly/cCZpD1), City of Cleveland (http://bit.ly/902R51,) City of St. Louis (http://bit.ly/a9Yttb.) AND MORE!

I would love to hear how your city is benefiting from having a dedicated Director of Sustainability!  @crogslc

Adaptation of Ideas

So, others have ideas, but adapting them to your area, is the best form of flattery, right? And also the best form of adapting ideas. Recently,the Port of Los Angeles is having the docked container vessels plug in to electricity to reduce their emissions when docking. Keep idle while maintaining on-board power, but reduce their emissions. What a great idea? Now, adaptation….Living in Alexandria where there are tons of tour buses during the tourist season…How can we make this a win, win situation?

Why don’t the tour buses hook up to electrical outlets in the market “tour bus only” locations? Have the electricity poles hooked up to clean energy producing electricity, then have the buses pay to utilize the power; like a big parking meter. Clean energy is being used, the City of Alexandria makes money from the meters, the riders are happy when they get on a cool bus. Makes sense right? So, City of Alexandria, are you listening?

This can also apply to idling school buses! http://epa.gov/cleanschoolbus/antiidling.htm

Original Tweet: Port of Los Angeles reduces emissions from container vessels docked. http://bit.ly/do6eR5

Welcome!

Welcome to the more lengthy side of CROGS. I’ll let my hair out, do some research, and approach topics longer than 140 characters. Some environmental topics relating to the corporate world and some to the residential market will be written about. So, come along, and let’s shout GREEN!