Welcome to our first edition for the year.
In this edition, we discuss the results of the Copenhagen climate change conference in Copenhagen – an Autopsy. Coleen has come on board to share some of her down-to-earth wisdom in Dollars and Sense. Shari Emami discusses the fashion industry embracing the green message in Fashion Designers Going Green. The Scary Gardener stumbles her way through planting seeds and planning her new veggie garden. With the Copenhagen climate change conference at least acknowledging the need for action on climate change we discuss Enhanced Geothermal Systems as a viable alternative for energy production in Geothermal Energy – Hot, Steamy and Green. Liz from Feng Shui Living tells us all about The Year of the Tiger. With New Year’s resolutions almost always destined to fail, one of our readers has sought our help to keep hers, read Sally’s Resolution to see how. Last but not least, our dear friend Mad Meg the Web Witch tells us about the Wheel of the Year and the pagans’ recognition of the planet and the season’s importance to our life on earth.
** News Flash **
Opportunity - Sydney Australia
The New South Wales Government is looking for a family to volunteer to live rent free in a so called 'smart home' in Sydney for a year.
The home is in the old Olympic Village in Newington and is powered by rooftop solar panels and a fuel cell that converts natural gas into electricity.
The family will be testing the latest energy and water saving technology in a real world environment. They will also be supplied with an electric car, an 'organic' LED TV, and technology that will enable the family to turn lights and appliances on and off from an iphone or laptop.
They are looking for a family with children as they use technology differently to adults and will likely test the technology to it's limits.
The Minister for Energy, John Robertson says the family will be asked to write about their experiences.
"We need someone who can blog."
"We'll probably need a family who's got a good sense of humour and plenty of patience, because not everything we test in the house we know is going to work perfectly every time."
The family will be selected in April or May and will move into the house for approximately 12-months from June or July this year.
All rent and utilites will be covered during the trial but before you start worring about 'big brother', the only monitoring will be such things as energy and water use.
This is the first time in Australia such a trial has been conducted.
The Manager of Intelligent Networks Adrian Clark says the trial will help identify the savings that can be made using new environmently conscious technology.
"Time will tell as we do the trial, that's why we're doing a lot of monitoring, but we believe there will be significant savings from the types of appliances in the house," he says.
Interested families can apply through www.tenderlink.com/energy
