The car can be charged the same way you plug in your cell, simply plug into a socket and voila, you’re charged and ready to go. The car can travel around two hundred miles on a single charge, an astounding 300 miles has been recorded though on a single charge. The range all depends on driving conditions.

This little machine also boasts zero emissions and can be powered by one hundred percent renewable energy. Many have generated their own “fuel” for these electric cars by incorporating solar panels into their yard to power up their roadsters. Sounds simple enough right? Sure beats buying gas at three dollars a gallon.

Although electric, the performance and design of this car has not been compromised. Its peak torque begins at 0 rpm and stays powerful at 14,000 rpm. It also reaches freeway speeds in a few seconds, tops. It also includes a battery box that’s both functional and structural, air ducts that double as energy-absorbing zones, and a high-performance AC motor that can run forwards and backwards.

The Tesla Roadster features a sleek design, luxurious interior, and an engine beneath the hood that any car lover could and will appreciate. The car can be selected in a variety of colors ranging from “Fusion Red” to “Thunder Gray”. The interior comes in standard, premium, executive, and executive plus carbon fiber. Essentially, the car’s interior can be upgraded to the luxury of your choice. The Tesla Roadster also features a minimalist design that focuses on a lighter weight vehicle to optimize efficiency and energy use.

To wrap it up this car has the safety features we would expect on any other vehicle and then some, including some amazing Yokohama tires that guarantee a safe drive.

Tesla Roadsters are available now. Go get your hands on one!

A recycled wooden table, made from old fence posts, for example is a process that all of us can identify as recycling at its best. Yes, it’s made out of wood but what kind of wood? Are virgin trees being cut down to bring you this table? These are the questions we need to be asking.

Bamboo is becoming more prevalent on a daily basis in furniture stores. Bamboo is an underutilized material that is surprisingly strong and plentiful in comparison to your standard wood.

We’ve seen some pretty creative pieces of eco friendly furniture as of lately that we’re very impressed with. Recycled railroad track parts yield beautiful side tables. Railroad track wood, even 100 years old, has been used as table tops, creating a distressed and vintage look as well as being beautifully sustainable. Reclaimed lumber is becoming increasingly popular with furniture designers and everything from old barn wood, to any other type of building has been discovered in furniture pieces.

Beyond the recycled pieces we’ve come across we’re also amazed by the new materials being used to create furniture pieces today. New types of plywood containing less, or no harmful chemicals are being seen, particularly popular is bamboo plywood which is becoming more available to vendors and designers in many areas.

Next time you’re strolling through a furniture store, ask yourself how that beautiful table got there and make sure to invest in an eco friendly one. You never know, nowadays eco friendly furniture is so beautifully disguised these days you might not be able to tell the difference!

With the way electric rates are rising, the average monthly energy payment could double every 13 years.  A solar electric system will hedge against these future rate increases. Every kilowatt hour that is produced through a solar system is one in which will not have to be paid to the utility company.  A solar electric system literally spins your meter backwards.

Here is the best thing about an investment in a solar system: the government pays for almost 50%.  The rebate in California currently covers 15% and the Federal Government gives you a 30% investment tax credit on the remaining cost. Not a bad deal!

So, a solar system reduces or eliminates your electric bill, hedges against future rate increases, may increase the value of your home and the government pays for almost half of the investment.  Going green is great for your wallet, but the environmental impact is just an amazing bonus.

Dave Gersz is the President of HelioNation.com. You can reach him at daveg@HelioNation.com.

The homes are not only sustainable with solar electric, passive solar heating, hydronic in-floor heating, wind power, rain collection systems, and other features, but the weeHouses also have other appeals. WeeHouses are affordable, high quality, provided with quick delivery, simple, efficiently designed, and flexible. This all makes the average environmentalist more than just a “wee-bit” excited.

The WeeHouses are also modern and sleek looking with streamlined design. They feature bamboo or pine floors and walls, modern green appliances, and energy efficient lighting. The kitchen cabinetry is provided by Ikea. The houses also have large glass windows to render an expansive view of the nature surrounding, and seem very spacious due to their modern design. The houses come in studio size, one bedroom, or two bedroom. Modifications such as porches, patios, and stacking of units can also be made. Additionally, these houses can be plopped just about anywhere including a rooftop, an empty lot, or even a tundra.

These “weeHomes” now include Energy Kits from The Fusion Companies that keep you completely off the grid and eco-friendly. Included in these energy kits are solar panels, roof mounting hardware, battery backup bank, combiner, breaker, inverters, and more.

Along with being off the grid, these prefab houses don’t break the bank; the homes can be 2,000 square feet for only around 125 dollars per square foot. Starting at only 79,000 for a studio, these homes promise a great future for sustainable building. As well as the pre-made houses, Alchemy Architects also builds sustainable custom homes. All that’s needed to own a weeHouse is a foundation and a septic tank and voila, the house of your sustainable dreams is built.

http://weehouse.com/index.html

This grass house is “ground breaking” in more than one sense. The flighty wing shape structure which protrudes from the earth in a somewhat spherical way, is aerodynamic to the 100 mile winds at Cooper Point. Muenning’s masterpiece is powered entirely by solar provided by the many panels across the rooftop amongst the garden.

This project was created by architect Mickey Muenning, a 74 year-old architect clearly determined to take sustainable design to a new standard. Muenning consulted with botanists, geographers, and architects before he started building. Even the windows and doors are strategically placed beneath the sod roof to expand upon the naturally beautiful view of the California coastline .

The building process paralleled the environmentally conscious nature of the finished structure. During construction, botanists researched the building site and noted areas containing endangered plants, these were preserved to refrain from disturbing the natural landscape.

The overall look and feel of Muenning’s dream “green house” seems to be something from exactly that, a dream turned reality.

• Chief Sustainability Officer
• Environmental Engineer
• Environmental Lawyer
• Climatologist or Environmental Meteorologist
• Renewable Energy Manager
• Environmental Specialist or Scientist
• Senior Urban Planner
• Commercial and Industrial Designer
• Conservation Scientist
• Senior Hydrologist

These green jobs offer promising benefits. For example, an environmental attorney on average makes 145,000 dollars a year. Environmental engineers make anywhere from 40,000 to 130,000 and beyond. With figures like these, professionals are becoming increasingly interested in pursuing environmentally conscious careers.

The realm of green jobs is expanding at an unprecedented rate. While jobs in San Diego have been on the decline, green jobs have been increasing rapidly, almost double the rate of the average decline in other professions. It is therefore no surprise that the professional world is quickly becoming more sustainable than ever before. San Diego has recently been announced as one of the nation’s top ten largest centers for green careers. The metropolitan area of San Diego alone carries approximately 12,000 eco-friendly positions.

A “green collar job” is, according to the United Nations Environment Program, “work in agricultural, manufacturing, research and development (R&D), administrative, and service activities that contribute(s) substantially to preserving or restoring environmental quality. Specifically, but not exclusively, this includes jobs that help to protect ecosystems and biodiversity, reduce energy, materials, and water consumption through high efficiency strategies, de-carbonize the economy, and minimize or altogether avoid generation of all forms of waste and pollution.” Here’s a list of some of the many opportunities within the realm of “green jobs”:

Environmental Consultants

Environmental/Biological Systems Engineers

Green Building Architects

Holistic Passive Solar Building Designers

Solar/Wind Energy Engineers and Installers

Green Vehicle Engineers

Environmental Activist

Solar Water Heater Plumbers

Drought Resistant Landscaper

Organic Farming

Recycling Operations

Electricians

Other Links

These websites are good resources for those seeking green collar jobs. If a green collar job interests you please return to the site within a few days and check out our Green Job Classifieds.

• http://jobs.cleanedge.com/
• http://www.greenjobs.net/
• http://jobs.greenbiz.com/
• http://www.sustainlane.com/green-jobs

The courses are available in cooperation with the San Diego Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America. San Diego State University is also partnering with Globally Green Energy Consortium. The certificates are each specified to its particular area and has a number of courses. For example, for one to obtain a professional certificate from San Diego State University in Green Building Construction, one must take five courses including Fundamentals of Green Building Design, Building Green Buildings- The Contractor’s Perspective, and three other similar classes. Once the individual passes the courses required, the certificate is given. Sounds easy enough? To make it more convenient to obtain such a certificate, the university offers these certificates online.

The courses are taught by industry experts and the online courses are accessible to each student twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. The certification program was first offered during the Spring semester of 2008.

With these certificates, growing government environmental regulations, and the growth of green jobs in San Diego, San Diego State University’s leadership in the area of green jobs through online courses such as these provides the momentum and urge to other universities to follow its lead.