and organic alternatives from companies like Seventh Gen- goal of 500 miles. Today’s evolving bicycle designs include
eration offer detailed labels. Conscious shoppers are reading folding models for commuters and a range of trailers, carri-
them as they look for plant-based ingredients and essential ers and attachments for those who want to start shopping by
oils, instead of chemicals. bike and bring the kids.
People can even make their own household cleaners,
such as distilled white vinegar and water to clean windows, Contact: U.S. Department of Energy, FuelEconomy.gov; East
or baking soda, lemon juice and salt to scrub grout. These Coast Greenway, Greenway.org; The San Francisco Bay Trail
are safe for even the most sensitive family members.
Project,
BayTrail.abag.ca.gov.
Contact: Natural Products Association, NaturalProductsAs-
Green Investing
soc.org; Skin Deep,
CosmeticsDatabase.com.
Jack Uldrich, the author of Green Investing: A Guide to Mak-
ing Money through Environment-Friendly Stocks, says that,
Efficient Autos and Going Car-Free
despite the recession, “I still think cleantech is an outstand-
The car market has taken a serious hit from the economy, hy- ing long-term investment trend.” Still, he cautions that green
brids included. But while even the popular Toyota Prius saw stocks should only comprise 5 percent to 10 percent of an
sales drop 44 percent between December 2007 and Decem- investor’s portfolio. Why? He notes that renewable energy
ber 2008, environmentally friendly vehicles are the declared investments are particularly subject to outside forces, such as
future of the auto industry. government investment, the availability of strong credit avail-
This year’s North American International Auto Show able to fund solar panels and other energy systems, and the
in Detroit was all about electric models, from the Cadillac rise and fall of gasoline prices.
Converj, a more luxurious version of the Chevy Volt, to the But venture capitalists are still flocking to clean tech-
Toyota FT-EV city car, expected in showrooms in 2012. Hy- nology ventures such as eSolar Inc., the nation’s first solar
brid cars combine the gas engine with an electric motor and tower energy facility, in Pasadena, California, backed by the
utilize a car’s braking energy, making them both more fuel investment firm Idealab. Ernst & Young reported that invest-
efficient and less polluting. In the government’s 2009 Fuel ments in cleantech startups jumped 73 percent in the second
Economy Guide, the Honda’s Civic Hybrid was cited as a quarter last year. Paul Deninger, vice president of the invest-
leader among compact cars, delivering 40 miles per gallon in ment bank Jefferies & Company, notes that the most exciting
the city/45 mpg on the highway. Among midsized cars, the opportunities may actually occur in the process of managing
Prius tops the list with 48/45 mpg; in the SUV class, Ford’s current energy use “by happenstance, being green, rather
Escape Hybrid gets a solid 34/31 mpg. than [in] managing the carbon footprint directly.”
Because they can cost $2,000-plus more than gas-pow- Matthew Patsky, a partner of the green fund group Win-
ered cars, hybrids are a tough sell at the moment. Several slow Management, observes that in the future, fossil fuel sup-
federal tax credits designed to ease the transition to hybrid, plies will inevitably be supplanted by clean energy like solar,
electric and other fuel-efficient vehicles, like diesels, have wind and geothermal. “Renewable energy, green building,
come and gone, the latest called Cash for Clunkers—a fed- mass transit, improving efficiency…” Patsky concludes, “It’s
eral stimulus program that offered up to $4,500 to anyone got to win.”
who traded an old gas-guzzler for a new, more fuel-efficient
car. The discussion has many people seriously rethinking Contact: Green Century Capital Management, Inc., Green-
their transportation options. Century.com; Pax World Funds, PaxWorld.com; Winslow
At the same time, the American Public Transportation Management Company,
WinslowGreen.com.
Association reported a 4 percent increase in public transpor-
tation ridership last year—bringing it to its highest level in 52 Natural Awakenings readers across the country are among
years. Bicycle sales are picking up, too. In the first quarter of those already investing in a greener future—whether switch-
2009, U.S. bicycle sales surpassed car sales. ing to organic snacks and energy-efficient light bulbs, sup-
Rising interest in bicycle riding has led many cities to porting local green businesses or bicycling to work. Collec-
open bike lanes. National efforts to create safe paths for bike tively, these incremental changes are beginning to add up
riders include the East Coast Greenway, a 3,000-mile traf- and the markets are responding.
fic-free trail system between Canada and Florida that’s 21
percent complete. The San Francisco Bay Trail has devel- Brita Belli is the editor of E/The Environmental Magazine
oped 300 miles of shoreline trails for bikers, hikers and other and the author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Renewable
outdoor enthusiasts over the past 20 years, with an eventual Energy for Your Home. Connect at
Brita@emagazine.com.
October 2009
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