[ Money in My Pocket? Yes, please! ]

Sometimes I think that “deals” or “offers” are too good to be true…and I usually am correct in my thinking. But this offer from EcoHouse Loan actually dispells my usual thinking. EcoHouse Loan is a program from INHP, a trusted nonprofit, the City of Indianapolis and the U.S. Department of Energy. It’s designed to help you afford upgrades on your hope that can ultimately save you money and help the environment. You simply go to EcoHouse.inhp.org to sign up for a free energy assessment of your home.…

[ An EcoHouse Loan…..Improve Your Home and Save Money ]

Did you know that the right home upgrades can equal money in your pocket! A furnace on the fritz or drafy windows can actually be leaking money from your home. EcoHouse, an INHP program, has the way to help. You can get a free energy assessment (a $650 value), discounts on Energy Star appliances and learn more about an affordable energy efficiency loan program, simply by visiting www.EcoHouse.inhp.org

Stop letting money slip away..visit the site today to learn more.

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[ Beer Powers a Brewery ]

Beer!  And now that we have your attention, check this out

http://news.yahoo.com/beer-help-power-alaska-brewery-084441380–finance.html…

[ 10 Ideas for 1Thing you can do in the New Year ]

If you are like me, you start every new year with a list of resolutions….and by the middle of January that list can be tossed in the trash!  Why not set yourself for success this year and pick just 1THING to shoot for…and have it be eco-friendly. Check out this list of 10 ideas you can do in this new year to reduce your carbon footprint. Don’t forget…it just takes 1Thing to make a big difference!

http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/responsible-living/stories/10-easy-green-new-years-resolutions-for-the-eco-slacker

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[ Congratulations to Fishers Junior High ]

Congratulations to the students at Fishers Junior High in Fishers, Ind. for winning an iPad for their school from the Indiana Office of Energy Development. Fishers Junior High was one of 30 schools around the state selected to participate in an Energy Action in Schools program, designed to teach the students about energy conservation.

During the program, a team of students patrolled the school ensuring that all classrooms were recycling, turning off lights and computers at the end of each school day and windows were closed when the heat or air conditioner were running.…

[ Green Tip for the 4th! ]

During the 4th of July, approximately 60 million barbecues are fired up across the U.S., consuming the same amount of energy it would take to power 20,000 homes for an entire year. This is a great time to consider ways to “green” your barbecue.

1.  Choose a cleaner-burning propane or electric grill over one powered by charcoal, which contributes more to poor air quality. Better yet, try a solar oven or stove that avoids emissions altogether.

2. Buy sustainable fish and hormone-free meat for the grill, or skip the meat and mix it up with locally grown veggies or fruit.…

[ Stichting Rootbox: Sustainable Design Through Collaboration, With or Without Wind Turbine ]

A hot pink wind turbine turned above one paddock at Shell Eco-marathon Europe this year; it was the stall of the team from Inholland University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands. The students, all studying aeronautical engineering, have designed a vehicle with a detachable rear end that can be changed in few minutes and converted to a wind-powered vehicle.

There’s no category for wind-powered cars in Shell Eco-marathon, but for the past five years, the Inholland students have been competing in an annual competition called Racing Aeolus, which will take place in August in Den Helder, the Netherlands.…

[ Turkey’s Celal Bayar Still Sun-Powered, With Smaller Panels ]

Students from Turkey’s Celal Bayar University’s EcoMagnesia team work on their solar electric vehicle, Tarzan II. Photo by Marianne Lavelle

Kağan Meijer of Celal Bayar University in Turkey explains the changes made to the vehicle to conform to new rules for Shell Eco-marathon Europe 2013. Celal Bayar’s car last year, Tarzan, had large over-hanging solar panels, but this year, the  solar panels needed to be smaller to be integrated into the body of the vehicle. (Related: “A Solar Car Inspired by Manisa’s Own Tarzan“)  Celal Bayar’s car is called Tarzan II, named for the first environmentalist of Turkey, “Tarzan” of Manisa,  whose real name was Ahmet Bedevi.…

[ Hungary’s Kecskemét College: Boosting Power, But Keeping Light ]

Hungary’s Kecskemét College had an amazing second-place run in last year’s Shell Eco-marathon Europe, and the team was determined to kick up its performance this year. The gasoline-powered engine is now 45 cubic centimeters, about a third larger than last year’s engine for the car, nicknamed Megameter, which achieved a performance of 2,695.5 kilometers per liter  (6,340.2 miles per gallon) last year. (One megameter is 1,000 kilometers.) But the vehicle is actually lighter, because of the use of titanium and other light materials and refinements made to the vehicle body.…

[ Aston University Plies the Power of Wood ]

Click to view slideshow.

What if you could pack and assemble a car like Ikea furniture? Students at Aston University aimed for lightweight portability and sustainability in the wood car they designed and built for Shell Eco-marathon Europe. Their project manager, Christian Mclening, explains the innovative plywood composite chassis and “flat-pack” design in the video below. In addition to using sustainably sourced wood, the car also is fueled by a hydrogen fuel cell so it has no emissions. The Aston students won the award for Eco-design in the 2012, and have modified the vehicle for this year’s competition, making it larger.…

[ Universidad Ceu Cardenal Herrera Takes Inspiration From Nature ]

IDEA CEU Team’s electric vehicle on the track. Photo courtesy of Shell Eco-marathon.

Dana and Lorena Ruisi of Universidad Cardenal Herrera’s Idea Ceu Team from Spain explain that their team took inspiration from nature for the shape of their car entered in Shell Eco-marathon Europe. Their vehicle is shaped like a rain drop. They believe falling rain is one of nature’s most efficient means of movement, and they  believe it will prove to be a very natural and efficient method of moving their electric and solar-powered car around the track.…