Jefferies To Host Clean Technology Conference In New York City

Jefferies just announced that they’ll be hosting the 5th Clean Technology Conference in New York City on June 5, 2008.

The conference will feature presentations from 60 public and private firms that address issues such as global energy, keeping our water supply clean and security issues, just to name a few. Companies represented there are involved with biofuels, energy efficiency, energy infrastructure, energy storage, geothermal power, industrial biotechnology, smart grid technologies, solar power, wind power, water power and water treatment.

Jeff Lipton, Managing Director and Head of North American CleanTech Investment Banking said:

“As oil prices continue their ascent, driven by growing demand from India and China and ongoing depreciation of the U.S. dollar, we are seeing heightened investor interest in non-fossil-fuel-based energy sources, the 5th Global Clean Technology Conference brings investors together with some of the most innovative companies developing alternative sources of energy — creating new opportunities both for investors and presenting companies.”

For more information on the upcoming Clean Technology Conference, please visit Jefferies.com

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Eco Friendly Products For The Home

Eco friendly products for the home are being increasingly sold every day. We, as consumers, need to be aware of what’s really going on when it comes to purchasing such items. The label “eco friendly” is one that is ripe for abuse. People who want to buy “green” products need to be aware that not all vendors of so-called green products are really living up to their promise to deliver environmentally friendly merchandise that can be used in the average household.

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Organic Mattresses

Organic mattresses are gaining in popularity as people become more aware of eco-friendly options on household items. Organic mattresses sound great in theory, but you have to pay close attention when you’re considering purchasing one. Organic mattresses need to live up to several key points, or their purchase just isn’t worth the money.

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Iceland’s Eco-Friendly Goal Falls Short In 2008

Iceland had a very bold plan for 2008. They had said they wanted fully 10% of all government owned cars to be fueled by eco-friendly fuels, but in reality, they fell well short of the goal at 1.5% by year’s end.

According to the government’s goal, 20 percent of state-run vehicles should be powered by eco-friendly fuel by 2010 and 35 percent by 2012, Fréttabladid reports.

Only one company that is owned by the state comes close to achieving this goal. At Pósturinn, the national postal service, ten out of 126 vehicles are eco-friendly, around eight percent.

“It is unfortunately far too common that the government makes lofty goals, especially on environment issues, but when the time comes to execute them they end up not having much in the bank,” said Bergur Sigurdsson, managing director of the NGO Landvernd, the Icelandic Environment Association.

This is the case with many current political initiatives. The ideas are their, but the will to get them done seems weak. 2020 is approaching relatively fast, and Iceland is a long way away from their stated cuts of greenhouse gas emissions.

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Eco Friendly Retaining Walls

Millenia Wall Solutions has just debuted their eco-friendly retaining wall at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) National Green Building Conference, now taking place at the Sheraton New Orleans in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The Millenia Wall units are made out of 100% recycled materials and reduce the overall environmental impact of retaining walls by 55 percent.

Paul Forsberg, president, Millenia Wall Solutions said:
“We use 100 percent recycled, pre-consumer polymeric resin materials in all our Millenia wall products. These materials are inert and do not interact with the soil, and our products themselves are recyclable. In addition, because they are lightweight, it takes far less energy to transport Millenia wall units.”

Currently, many retaining walls are made of concrete. Concrete is made up of cement which is very labor intensive and creates large amounts of carbon dioxide which is a culprit in global warming. It’s expected that alternative methods for creating retaining walls will become more popular, especially in developing countries.

Millenia is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. To find out more about their products and services, please visit Millenia Walls

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States Dumping Local Barriers To Eco-Friendly Homes

States are getting on the green act. For years, homeowners have faced restrictions from their local governments that prevent them from making their homes more eco-friendly. Since the year 2005, eight states have changed laws to remove barriers to building eco-friendly homes.

Some new laws say homeowners groups can’t ban such technology. Others say local governments can’t enforce rules that significantly raise the cost of installing eco-friendly energy systems.

“If you’re going to have local governments and condo associations saying, ‘Solar panels are ugly,’ that’s a real stumbling block,” says state Democratic Rep. Karen May, a sponsor of a “solar rights bill” pending in Illinois.

No one is keeping official stats, but reports indicate that more people are trying to install eco-friendly improvements, and are running into snags from the usual places.

Now states are hustling to change the rules, because they are under federally imposed guidelines to upgrade a percentage of residences to greener setups.

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Natural Care By Danny Seo

Natural Care By Danny Seo is a new line of eco-friendly mattresses by Simmons. Natural Care by Danny Seo will be sold nationwide at JC Penney’s.

“As interest in sustainable products has grown, so has the need for a ‘green’ mattress that is accessible for the majority of consumers. There is no reason that ‘green’ mattresses should be a niche product when there is huge consumer support for environmentally friendly products,” said Danny Seo. “I hear from my readers and viewers that they want to invest in a ‘green’ mattress, but want to purchase it from a brand name they trust. Thanks to Simmons, sustainable and renewable bedding products are now readily available providing consumers the opportunity to experience a Natural Care® mattress and discover the benefits of a luxurious, eco-friendly sleep environment.”

“We conducted a significant amount of research on sustainable and renewable foams and fabrics when designing the Natural Care® line and took special care to select materials that would promote the best possible sleep experience for the consumer, while providing the added benefit of being environmentally friendly,” said Tim Oakhill, Simmons’ executive vice president of marketing. “Today, sustainable living is an option for everyone, and the availability of the Simmons Natural Care® line at JCPenney represents our combined efforts to make an eco-friendly mattress available to consumers at a smart price.”

The mattresses will have a hefty price tag of $1,599 and up. The new eco-friendly collection will bear JCPenney’s “Simply Green” mark, which is JCPenney’s own designation that should assist customers in making environmentally conscious purchases.

For more information about the Natural Care by Danny Seo line: Natural Care Bed.

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List Of Fair Trade Products

Fair Trade products are products that are traded by giving the producer opportunities when they have a disadvantage economically. Fair trade offers these growers a fair price for the product they’ve produced.

Fair Trade products prove that greater justice in the world trading is quite possible. This helps achieve justice in world trading. The concept encourages a safe and healthy working environment for all workers, promotes good environmental practices from trading partners, citing responsibility for the methods of production. Pricing for fair trade products varies and is many times determined through talking and participation taking into account regional and/or local economies. Fair trade gives equal work and pay to both men and women.

These types of products have certification put on the product package to show that it is a fair trade product. This system helps consumers easily identify products that meet the fair trade standards. The International Fair Trade Certification Mark have the word FAIRTRADE on it to make it easily recognizable. The Fair Trade Certified Mark for United Sates and Canada is a person holding two bowls.
It’s in black and white and identified with “Fair Trade Certified.”

Some foods that Fair Trade Certified include beer and ale, biscuits, cake and brownies, cereals, chocolate, chutneys and preserves, cocoa, coffee, cotton, dried fruit, flowers, fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, herbs and spices, honey, hot chocolate, ice cream, juice and soft drinks, nuts and nut oil, quinoa, rice, spirits, sugar, sweets, syrup, tea and herbal tea, wine, and yogurt - just to mention a few.
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Sustainable Interior Design

Sustainable design is also known as green design, eco-design and design for the environment. This type of designing must comply with the principles of economic, social and ecological sustainability. The trend towards sustainable interior design is growing very fast within diverse fields such as architecture, landscape architecture, as well as urban design and planning.

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Green Tech Getting Huge Investments

It should come as no surprise just how popular green technology is becoming. And it’s no wonder why. With people becoming more focused on building a renewable and sustainable future, changes to how companies do business become inevitable. Kleiner-Perkins, the famed technology investment company has announced their plans to pump $700 million into green technology startups.

The $500 million later-stage fund, called Green Growth, is a departure for Kleiner Perkins, which has traditionally invested in early-stage companies.

But John Denniston, the Kleiner Perkins partner who is co-managing the fund, said the firm now gets more than one business plan a day involving green technologies, and he expects that number to increase as oil prices rise and demand increases for products that can help slow global warming.

“We’re seeing a great opportunity to build large, high-impact global companies,” Denniston said.

The scope of the opportunities involved in green tech are becoming obvious to everyone. Investments in green tech companies has blossomed into over $2.7 billion in 2007.

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