We’re chilling a bit here at Greenroofs.com with the whole family home for the holidays, and hope you are enjoying time with family and friends, too!

By the way, we’re keeping up our two fantastic weekly highlights through the end of the year:  The Tremco Headquarters as our Greenroof Project of the Week (GPW) profile and the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 Episode 3: Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino, Chicago Department of Aviation video (22:37).  Make sure to learn more about each if you haven’t already done so.

Amidst the cooking, eating, and playing with new Christmas toys, we’ve also got some catching up to do this week, and now’s a great time to do it.  In terms of blogging, I’ve been behind ever since Thanksgiving…we’ll also be adding a bit more projects and photos to the Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database, working on our December eNewsletter, and more…

A couple of reminders through the end of 2011:

Make sure to order your 2012 Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ 12 Month Wall Calendar…

…And, if you are considering advertising with us on Greenroofs.com, now’s the time!  We are offering a 20% discount now through December 31 for all new customers in The Greenroof Directory and banner advertising - existing customers will receive 10% off for upgrades.  If you’re in the business, you need to be listed in The Greenroof Directory!  Governments, non-profits, professional organizations, and universities are always listed for free.

No snow here in Atlanta this year, but I always long for it at Christmas having grown up in the Chicago area with one side of the grandparents in North Dakota.

Wherever you are – in the balmy tropics, a wintry wonderland, or somewhere in between, we hope everyone is able to relax a bit with some down time with your families, and we hope to hear from you in the New Year!

~ Season’s Greetings from our family to yours,

Linda V.

Have you seen our Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 Highlights Video yet?  It’s fast paced and fun, see:

We put together snippets of 10-15 seconds of all of our speakers – well almost all.  We didn’t include the ones we had previously included in our Trailer Video -namely Xianmin Wang, Lluis Recasens Pahí, and João Manuel Linck Feijó - for time reasons.  But you can still see them in the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011Trailer Video below:

So, watch the video and get a glimpse of what you would see in our virtual environment.  You still have about a week to register, all the way up until October 28th.  You’ll have access to the expo pavilions and can visit all the exhibitor and associate booths plus see our amazing speakers!

You’ll find the speaker presentations in two places:  The Rare Earth Auditorium, sponsored by Tremco, and the On Demand Auditorium.

The Rare Earth Auditorium is where you’ll find all the presentations that were scheduled live, including our four illustrious Keynote Speakers – Andrew Grant, Charlie Miller, Ed Snodgrass, and Ralph Velasquez – most with the live Q & A Sessions that followed the original playing.  You can still read all the commentary, too.  Here you’ll find:

The On Demand Auditorium hold the presentations for the speakers who were not scheduled live – although in effect, once a presentation played once, they were all on demand.

These include:

We’re very proud of our inaugural Virtual Summit and know you’ll be very pleased, too.  See the Speakers page and Agenda to learn all about each presenter and their presentation or panel session descriptions.

You still can’t beat the price for over 30 individual and panel sessions - only $49 or $25 for students & faculty and government professionals!

Happy Greening,

Linda V.

Our vision of producing and sharing the virtual experience to our industry with our inaugural Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 was successful, and we couldn’t have done it without the great support of many people, in particular our main patron, Rare Earth Sponsor TREMCO, along with Emerald Sponsor American Hydrotech.

Thanks again also to our Exhibitors Grant Associates, Green Living Technologies, Green Roof Blocks, GreenGrid Roofs, Green Roof Plants, ILD, J-DRain, and Roofmeadow – although the lifeblood of any conference is its speakers, the sponsors and exhibitors make it happen – none of this would have been possible without their financial support!

We are so proud to have put together the most amazing community of talented international speakers that you could have asked for – all leaders in their fields.  See the Speakers page and read all about them and their presentations.

Speaking of our Sponsors, Exhibitors, and Speakers, I’d like to stress that although the 2 live days have passed, the end of the Virtual Summit is on October 28 – if you missed out on September 27 & 28, you can still register until October 28!

You can’t beat the price of only $49 – or $25 for students/faculty/government professionals - to access all 32 of our great panel sessions, interviews, presentations, and live Q & A commentary plus see the latest from manufacturer/supplier and organization/government exhibitors.

Visit all of our truly unique and innovative areas within the virtual environment: the Rare Earth and On Demand Auditoriums, the Tremco Meeting Room, the Sky Terrace Networking Lounge, the Media Lounge, and the International, North American & Associates Pavilions at the Expo – did you know you can still chat with your fellow online attendees either in a public or private via video, audio, or text while logged in?

We’re putting together an awesome Highlights Video of our wonderful participants to give you a taste of what you are missing – look for it soon!  We hope to see you still in Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011!  Register here.

Love the Earth, Plant a Roof!

~ Linda V.

Greenroofs.com’s Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 is less than a week away!  We’re coming into the homestretch with our Virtual Summit and we certainly hope you will join us!

Watch our short, fun, trailer here (under 3 minutes):

Last week I highlighted international professionals from Germany, Mexico, Canada, Chile, and the U.S., and here is the remaining line-up of wonderful, talented speakers at our inaugural online event, also from countries around the world:

Wolfgang Ansel, Germany: The Director of the International Green Roof Association (IGRA) will present  ”Green Roof Policies – An International Review of Current Practices and Future Trends.”

Caroline Menetre, USA:  The landscape designer, graphic designer, environmental horticulturist, and contributing editor on Greenroofs.com will introduce the “The Vertical Garden – from Nature to Cities – An Interview” with Patrick Blanc.

Matthew Dillon, Australia: The Vice President of GreenRoofs Australasia and member of World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN) will present “GreenRoofs in Australasia.”

João Manuel Linck Feijó, Brazil: The principal of Ecotelhado, Director of ATVBrasil, and World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN) board member will present  ”The Work of ATVBrasil.”

Lluis Recasens Pahí, Spain: The Professor of Horticulture at the Institut d´Horticultura i Jardineria de Reus will present “Sustainability in Plant Production.”

Dr. Clayton Rugh, USA: The botanist and biologist and Manager & Technical Director of Xero Flor America will present “One Decade of Ultralight Green Roof Proof-of-Concept on Ford’s Dearborn Truck Plant.”

John Shepley, USA: The engineer, co-founder of Emory Knoll Farms, founding board member of the Baltimore Biodiesel Cooperative, chairman of the Chesapeake Sustainable Business Alliance and contributing editor on Greenroofs.com will present “Sustainability at a Small Business: Emory Knoll Farms.“

Linda Velazquez, ASLA Associate, LEED AP, GRP, USA: The founder, publisher & editor of Greenroofs.com and principal of Sky Gardens Design will co-present the “2011 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design” with Haven Kiers.

Remember, Government professionals and faculty/students have the special discounted rate of only $25 – that’s for both days plus the 30 days archived on-demand through October 28, 2011.  Other professionals are offered the $49 registration rate.

If you haven’t yet, register today!  Please help us spread the world – tell your colleagues, Twitter followers, Facebook fans, newsletter subscribers, and LinkedIn connections to register here.

I think there’s plenty of room in our relatively close-knit greenroof and wall community to explore new information technologies together and not feel threatened by competition – don’t you?  In fact, don’t you agree we should celebrate each other’s innovations?

This is the social media event of the year!  We need to support each other and continue to find ways to collaborate and share information.  We’re thrilled with the many features we have up our sleeves, and we hope you will be, too.

See you next week!

~ Linda V.

Last week I told you about our Keynote Speakers for the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 - Andrew Grant, Charlie Miller, Ed Snodgrass and Ralph Velasquez –  awesome thinkers, designers, trend setters, eco-luminaries all of them!  And among others, we have French botanist and modern green wall pioneer Patrick Blanc, whom I’m interviewing this afternoon in Chicago…

See the GGW Virtual Summit Speakers page and Agenda to learn all about each presenter and their presentations or the panel sessions.

Speaking of our panel sessions, we have seven very distinct, innovative, and important collaborations that you are sure to enjoy and learn from personal experiences of movers and shakers in their respective fields from international non-profit, private and university level to U.S state, city, and borough level to professional association, private enterprise, and corporate experiences.

Click on the photos or titles to learn more about each scheduled time slot on the Agenda and each individual - they all have live Question & Answer sessions afterwards, so don’t miss them to pick their brains on how they are succeeding in greening our roofs and walls:

“Biodiversity and Greenroofs” above left to right: Christine Thuring (Moderator), Nathalie Baumann, Dusty Gedge, and Gary Grant discuss original research and unique experiences, from field work upwards to bigger picture perspectives, as well as corresponding experiences with legislation on urban nature conservation.

Christine is moderating the panel on “Biodiversity and Green Roofs” where she also speaks about her research on plant community development and ecological processes on extensive green roofs with time.  Nathalie speaks about “Green Roofs / Natural Roofs = Biodiverse Habitats and Ecological Compensation in Urban Space: 15 Years of Experience in Switzerland.”  Dusty speaks about “Designing and Working for Biodiversity on Green Roofs for Over 10 Years.”  And Gary speaks about “My First Biodiverse Green Roof in 1992, Considerations for Planning and Design and Some Thoughts on the Future.”

“Greenroofs & Walls for Educational & Social Equity in the Bronx” above left to right: Robert Bieder (Moderator), Jon Beuttler, Jess Dannhauser, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., Javier Lopez, New York State Senator Gustavo Rivera, and Steve Ritz.  Fueled by a passionate and committed Bronx Borough President, Ruben Diaz Jr., it is common knowledge that the Bronx is leading NYC in embracing green technologies and the green economy. To wit, the policies and educational initiatives underway in and of the Bronx are making dramatic strides in the quality of life and opportunities for all residents with concentric benefits and ripples felt citywide, statewide and nationally.

This panel featuring: a State Senator, noted business leader, NYC project manager, health care manager, social service providers and a dedicated educator speaks to triple bottom line benefits, impacts and the uses of green roofs, green walls, and urban agriculture as highly replicable, critical components to creating and leveraging social equity and economic and educational opportunities in challenging times.

“The Portland Ecoroof Program: A Cross-section of the Green Roof Movement in Portland, Oregon” above left to right: Tom Liptan, Matt Burlin, Amy Chomowicz, Casey Cunningham, and Alice Meyers.  The Portland Ecoroof Program started in 1996 when a city employee constructed an experimental ecoroof on his garage.  From this small start, the program has grown and as of July 2011 there are over 420 green roofs of varying sizes, on all types of buildings, from multi-story apartment complexes and commercial buildings to humble sheds, kiosks, and garages.  These green roofs cover nearly 30 acres of Portland rooftops (extensive and intensive roofs).

The Portland Ecoroof Program consists of technical support, incentives, education, policies, and research.  The program is incentive-based rather than regulatory, and the city’s policies reflect this approach.  This presentation provides an overview of how these program elements work with the private sector and general public to sustain the green roof movement in Portland.

“Vertical Agriculture: A Global Movement Starts Locally, from Walls & Roofs to Table” above  left to right: George Irwin (Moderator), U.S. Congressman Tom Reed, and Tom Ferraro.  Urban agriculture is on the rise globally – up the walls and on rooftops.  Fresh, local crops benefit the entire community for many reasons.

U.S. Congressman Tom Reed from the 29th district of New York, Tom Ferraro, CEO of Foodlink – a national network of 200 food banks – and George Irwin, CEO of Green Living Technologies International (GLTi), provide interactive conversation and commentary concerning the impact of education, economics and opportunity around local food production with green walls and roofs.  Rochester-based GLTi started in New York City and has since grown nationally and internationally through education and collaborative hands-on projects with local youth, the underprivileged and disadvantaged in New York and Los Angeles and with business partnerships in Santiago, Dubai, and beyond to include their Food Factory and more.

“Wind. Water. Heat. Grow. Greenroofs.” above left to right: Dr. Bill Retzlaff, David Aponte, Kevin Songer, and Joe Webb.  Greenroofs are impacted by wind, water and heat on an unrelenting basis.  Through wind trials and real hurricane survival stories in Houston, TX, Jacksonville, FL, Edwardsville, IL, and Puerto Rico, we have met those challenges and will discuss various projects’ responses and successes to Hurricanes Ike and (any others?).  Drought, hot winds, and unseasonable 100° days can also quickly desiccate or kill greenroof plants.

Dr. Bill Retzlaff moderates discussing wind studies and plant trials for greenroofs at SIUE. Joe Webb talks about his project which endured 110 to 120 mph winds and 11” of rain in 24 hours and shares water mapping and Living Building Challenge Water requirements.  Kevin Songer talks about the Outdoor Turbine Hurricane Simulator at the University of Florida, water conservation through ‘nature-based irrigation design,’ and the importance of biodiversity.  David Aponte speaks to his experience of engineering and designing greenroofs with the correct growing media and plants in hurricane-prone, sub-tropical Puerto Rico.

“Greenroofs: Wind & Fire” Panel above  left to right: Kelly Luckett, Mike Ennis, and Jim Kirby.  No longer can the green roof be deleted from a project due to failure to comply with the fire code.  After three years in the making from members of Single Ply Roofing Industry in cooperation with Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC), we now have a green roof design guide for minimizing the risk of fire on green roofs.  The securing of a place in mainstream construction through the International Code Council (ICC) has resulted in a milestone for the North American green roof movement. Fire concerns are only half of the code story as the wind design guide is still progressing through the ANSI process – we must overcome both the wind and the fire obstacle.

Kelly Luckett, President of Green Roof Blocks, moderates and shares his experiences representing GRHC with the consensus based ANSI/SPRI VF-1 and RP-14 standards.  Jim Kirby, NRCA’s AED, Technical Communications, provides NRCA commentary about building codes, vegetative roofs and RP-14.  Mike Ennis, Technical Director for SPRI, speaks to SPRI’s leadership leadership in the development of fire and wind standards and experience in the building code arena.

And, because the panel sessions weren’t stirring enough, we’ve ended with the “Green Roofs Without the Hype” Panel above left to right: Patrick Carey, Dr. Robert Berghage, Charlie Miller, and Ed Snodgrass.  Here are four people with the knowledge to speak frankly about the current state of affairs in green roofing.  This panel focuses on the designation and evaluation of expertise, appropriate background and training, roadblocks to research and education, design origination and control, chain of custody issues, installation, and the residential market.

We hope you join us for this very interactive virtual experience – think film festival meets 2-day webinar and online expo extravaganza!

Pre-register or learn more by visiting:  virtual.greenroofs.com.  Don’t forget to pre-register by this Friday, September 9 for the discounted Early Bird rate of only $49 ($25 for students/faculty and government professionals).

Brought to you by Greenroofs.com, we’d like to thank to our Virtual Summit Sponsors TREMCO (Rare Earth) and American Hydrotech (Emerald) and our Exhibitors and Media Partners – make sure to visit them at the Expo Pavilions.

See you online on September 27 & 28, 2011!

~ Linda V.

Hopefully you’ve heard by now that on August 23 and 24 Greenroofs.com is hosting the first:

PEOPLE: Creative thinkers, innovators, and trailblazers sharing project-focused organic “vegitecture”

PROJECTS: International icons of sustainability:  early successes + current & visionary profiles of excellence in design

DESIGN: Proven standards of diverse green technologies + dynamic and cutting edge designs for greening the planet with building integrated greenery:  bioclimatic, biodiversity, biomimicry & chic sustainability

We are so excited so be venturing into the virtual arena!  This is the first virtual conference and expo experience specifically designed for the greenroof and greenwall industry … and really, who better than Greenroofs.com – the greenroof industry resource portal?  With all the domestic and international travelling that we do, we always have a blast seeing our friends and colleagues and listening to amazing people sharing stories and experiences about important and equally astounding projects.

So why not offer a similar experience that’s available to the whole world on a grand, yet affordable, scale?  You have to admit, the Internet is the great equalizer, and the 6Connex platform we selected is huge on the Social Collaboration Network (SCN) component, so you can participate live in many ways at the comfort of your computer/laptop/iPad.

Interact in real time by:

* Watching highlighted presentations and join in for live Q & A sessions;
* Visiting exhibitor booth reps in both the International Pavilion and the North American Pavilion using video/audio and/or text;
* Chatting with friends using the SCN – choose a private one on one chat or have up to four people on video, or join a public chat;
* Meeting new colleagues using the SCN – just introduce yourself and invite a new colleague to start a new chat!
* Swapping your Virtual Badge at any time to request additional information from a vendor!

We’ve lined up some awesome keynotes, at right, and favorite expert speakers doing individual presentations as well as several panel sessions – and look for all of Greenroofs.com’s Contributing Editors here, too!

Another cool aspect is that in addition to your admission on both August 23 and 24, you can continue coming back as often as you want for the next 30 days, when all the presentations, panel sessions, and Expo Pavilion booths will be available archived on demand!  You certainly can’t beat that for the very low prices below – make sure to get your discount:

Registration fee is $99 for the 2 live days plus 30 days of archived content, with the following discounts:

* $49 equals a 50% discount for Early Bird Registration (which ends on August 10, 2011) and for participating non-profit organizations, professional association members, and government entities;

* $25 for students/faculty and government professionals;

* Free to accredited media.  See details here.

We open up Pre-Registration tonight at midnight, July 20, 2011. Pre-Register by August 10, 2011 and receive the 50% off Early Bird Registration rate AND qualify to win an Apple iPad2!  Actually, we’re giving away two iPad2’s.

See the official Rules & Regulations here, but basically, we’ll choose one random winner from the Early Bird Registrations and one from attendees who have been the most active using the SCN, including visiting our very important sponsor and exhibitor booths at the Expo Pavilions!  Swipe your Virtual Badge at each exhibitor booth you visit to increase your chances.

Speaking of sponsors, we’re very happy to have TREMCO on board as our top dog, the Rare Earth Sponsor!

We’re just starting to encourage sponsor and exhibitor participation, and many opportunities exist at very affordable pricing.  If you’re interested – and if you’re a manufacturer, supplier, or provider of professional services within our industry you should be – just contact Aramis for a Sponsor/Exhibitor Prospectus at: virtual@greenroofs.com.  Setting up your booth is pretty easy, and we’ll handle everything.

Are you an industry related non-profit, professional association, or government entity promoting greenroofs & walls?  You can exhibit for free in the Expo’s “Associates Pavilion!”  Associates’ booths are not manned live, but are available on demand to inform visitors of everything these very important organizations do.  Find out what they are doing by downloading their videos, PDF’s, website info and more.

AND, as a participating Associate, you can offer your membership/readers/constituents 50% off the $99 Registration Fee, too.  Contact me for an Associates Prospectus at: Linda@greenroofs.com.

Are you a member of the media?  One representative per company can register for free, see all the presentations, visit all the Expo Pavilion booths, and join in the SCN activities in the Media Lounge.  This is specifically for the media to hang out and for exhibitors, speakers and attendees to visit, too.  You can post info about your company, interview/chat with people, and blog away.  Just let me know if you’re interested.

Stay up to date with our social media sites where you can help us get the word out:

Follow us on our Twitter page and we encourage you to tweet to your followers using our event hashtag, #virtualsummit2011.

Visit our LinkedIn Event page and share the event info with your connections and networks.

Like our Facebook page and help us promote it to your fans.

Subscribe to our YouTube GreenroofsTV Channel.

And, feel free to visit our Downloads page with Event Banner Ads for you to post and share, too.

I’ll be blogging a lot in the next few weeks telling you more about our fantastic speakers and the various features of the Virtual Summit, and how you can specifically make the most of your virtual experience here with what to expect, tips, and best practices.  Visit the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 website here.

The virtual platform will never replace the meet and greet or the wonderful tours aspect of physical conferences, but it’s a great, inexpensive, and fun way to connect and interact with far-flung associates from around the world!  And come on, people, video chatting is becoming the way of the world!

See you on August 23rd!

~ Linda V.

Depending on your level of interest in such things, it may or may not be hard to fathom, but did you know that it’s estimated the average American per capita fuel cost is a staggering:

$17.40 for one day…
$121.80 for one week…
$500.00 for one month?  [As of February 11, 2011]

Two leading environmental advocates are teaming up to commemorate the first anniversary of the Gulf Oil Spill and preview the 2011 Earth Day celebrations with a Day Without Oil gathering to promote reduced use of fossil fuels:

~ Day Without Oil is a grass-roots project that wants us to imagine one day without oil.  You can participate by signing the pledge to:  Refrain from using gasoline or other fossil fuels for one day, and donating the value of one day’s oil consumption – $17.40 to an environmental organization on the front lines.  Funds donated go directly to your selected organization.

~ One of the recommended organizations, DC Greenworks is the Washington, D.C. region’s preeminent greenroof advocate and educator (also known as a one stop shop for green roof consultation, design, and installation).  And, they “help resolve urban environmental and economic problems by fostering local enterprise, job training, and community stewardship, especially in underserved communities in the Washington, D.C. area.”

This year, they have partnered with Day Without Oil and are co-hosting a reception to promote environmental stewardship on this first anniversary of the BP disaster and worst oil spill in our history. 

Where are they holding the event?  On a greenroof, of course!

Specifics:

“Don’t Be Crude”: Day Without Oil Reception
 
Thursday, April 14, 2011
6:00 – 8:00 PM
1454 Belmont St NW
Washington, DC 20009

Suggested donation:  $17.40
RSVP: Katherine Sawyer
Kathy@dcgreenworks.org; 202.518.6195

 The “Don’t Be Crude” event will be held at the greenroof built by DC Greenworks at City Overlook, the home of the Board Chair, Gail Montplaisir.

“Our hope is that this event will raise awareness and action by environmentally concerned citizens about our need to reduce dependence on oil and enhance our work in the region.” ~ Gail Montplaisir

 

The Day Without Oil  project was created by Provincetown, Massachusetts, artist Jay Critchley, who estimates that the average American uses the equivalent of three gallons of petroleum per day, which includes cleanup costs and subsidies.

“While this day’s focus is on oil, it’s also about our personal obligation to change our behavior and help to create stricter energy policies to combat global warming but inspire and support global change. Let’s begin the transition to renewable energy and a healthy planet.” ~ Jay Critchley

Download the DC Greenworks invitation here.  If you live in the D.C. area, appreciate the need to reduce our dependency on oil and want to socialize with like-minded people on top of a lovely greenroof, this event is something to consider!  If not, you can partner with Day Without Oil and create your own.  Visit their website to learn more, see some videos and read the blog.

Happy Greening with Less Oil!

~ Linda V.

Tomorrow at 8:30 PM, local time – anywhere and everywhere –  on Saturday, March 26th, 2011, lights will switch off around the globe for Earth Hour and people will commit to actions for our Earth that go beyond the hour…

“Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turned their lights off for one hour to take a stand against climate change.  Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries/territories participating.” ~ Earth Hour

Earth Hour is organized by the World Wildlife Federation (WWF).  With almost 5 million supporters and a global network in over 100 countries/territories, it’s one of the world’s largest and most respected independent conservation organizations. WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the Earth’s natural environment and build a future where people live in harmony with nature.

On Saturday March 27, 2010 Earth Hour had its largest support ever.  A record 128 countries and territories joined the global display of climate action, and iconic structures and landmarks from Asia to Europe and Africa to the Americas switched their lights off.   People across the world from all walks of life came together in celebration and contemplation of the one thing we all have in common – our planet.

This year, the Hungarian International Airport in Budapest will switch off an entire airstrip for Earth Hour at 8.30pm on Saturday night in a symbolic display of its commitment to go beyond the hour.  What are you doing?

For 2011 the organization is asking for us to go ”beyond the hour” and take action to make our world a better place by sharing your act with the world.  Greenroofs.com has been doing this for four years now – it’s really just a show of solidarity to reinforce our commitment to sustainability at the global level, but it surely has a deeper meaning – but do we really get it?

For me, Earth Hour is a collective beam of hope (albeit darkened!) yet akin to the unfurling leaves and buds that signify the eternal springtime of life.  It’s kind of the harbringer of Earth Month, which is April (OK, I don’t know if it’s really called Earth Month, but it should be).

Because Earth Hour is observed on a Saturday every year, it’s pretty easy to “go dark” for all of one hour – in the past, Aramis and I have entertained ourselves by leaving the house, turning off all the lights and going to see a movie – hey, they’re going to have the electricity on anyway, but we don’t have to, right?; doing various activities via candle light – grilling and sipping wine outside on the deck; playing card games; and more recently actually discussing the larger picture of the urgency to switch to sustainable means of energy for every day electricity needs and beyond (OK, with wine in hand).  And we blacken out parts of the Homepage, too.  We all know we need to take some action to curb climate change and become less dependant on Earth-depleting energy sources – this is a yearly reminder.

“Climate change is the greatest human induced crisis facing our world today.  It is totally indiscriminate of race, culture, class, nationality or religious belief.  It affects every living organism on the planet – including all of us.” ~ Archbishop Emeritus Tutu

 It’s not all doom and gloom, either - Earth Hour has also created some fun activities to raise awareness at all age levels and so the the whole family can get involved, like creating a latern for Earth Hour and a kids’ game where you turn out as many lights as possible as quickly as you can.

The point is to remember to become more aware of our actions and switch off your lights for Earth Hour!  Rally your friends and family and make it a night to remember.  Make one single action representing the start of your personal journey of commitment to a more sustainable Earth.  So how else can you support it?  Click below to find out:

Earth Hour is asking us to consider what else we can do to make a difference, after the lights go back on.  Whatever you do, this is just one thing we can do to continue the dialogue.  Learn more by watching the awesome video below:

Happy Earth Hour 2011! ~ Linda and Aramis V.

Our daughter, Anjuli Velazquez, has been writing, filming and editing our “This Week in Review” video since August, 2010 and each week you can expect to learn What’s New here on Greenroofs.com.   She’s become quite popular, and we thought it would be a great idea to start posting her transcript, too, to make things easier to research.  Click on the photo below to see the video, or here.  Enjoy!

-  Hello, I’m Anjuli Velazquez and welcome to This Week in Review for March 18th, 2011 on GreenroofsTV.

- Project of the Week

-  Our Project of the Week is The Department Store, Stephen Marr Hair Salon Greenwall built in 2009 in Takapuna, New Zealand.  In 2010 The Department Store was named top retail concept store in the world by Monocle magazine.  One of the centerpieces of the store is the lush interior greenwall on the top floor.  The double-sided greenwall, designed and installed by Natural Habitats Landscapes, is New Zealand’s first interior greenwall.  The wall is 10 meters long by 2 meters high and boasts well over 1,000 individual plants.  It divides the upper level, promoting unique spaces that can be used for presentations like fashion shows.  The building has had skylights installed to ensure the wall is given as much natural light as possible, and so the use of supplementary man-made lighting is kept at a minimum.  This greenwall is an original and breathtaking piece of artwork, but also offers some incredible environmental benefits, like: increased thermal insulation to buildings, noise dampening, and creating cleaner and better quality air, which means healthier buildings and people.  From a commercial perspective, the greenwall increases the building’s value and has also been found to raise employee productivity.

-  To learn more about The Department Store, Stephen Marr Hair Salon Greenwall, click on our project of the week photo on our homepage.

-  “What’s New”

-  Check out Linda’s latest Sky Gardens Blog posts about the New Zealand greenwall, and the “CitiesAlive 2011 Call for Paper and Poster Abstracts.”  Green Roofs for Healthy Cities is pleased to be working with the City of Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society as co-hosts for CitiesAlive, the 9th Annual Green Roof & Wall Conference to be held later this year in Philadelphia from November 29th to December 3rd.  GRHC says they’re looking for papers that display novel ideas on taking a green approach to storm water management through the use of green infrastructure, indoor greening and residential green infrastructure.  All applications are due by April 15th, and for more information you can visit this blog post and/or e-mail Luna Ghose at lghose@greenroofs.org.

-  Do you think green walls can’t survive in the cold; they don’t look good in the winter, they are only viable in the south or indoors… well, think again!  Contributing Editor George Irwin writes about Winter Interest with Green Walls in his latest column and shows some pretty interesting photos of various looks.

-  Advertiser Press Release: Irrigation Water Technologies America, Inc. recently signed an exclusive agreement with Australia-based Irrigation Water Technologies to manufacture and distribute the revolutionary water conserving KISSS product in North America.

-  Green Roof Jobs:  Joy Kuebler Landscape Architect is seeking resumes for a Landscape Architect/Designer with 5-6 years experience for their busy Buffalo, NY office, so make sure to check this job and many others in JobLinks if you’re looking to work in our industry!

-  “Upcoming Events”

-  March 18th – 27th: is the WMG Water Harvesting Certification in Phoenix, Arizona.

-  March 22nd: is the 2011 Green Roof Technology Workshop in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

-  March 23rd – 27th: is the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show in San Mateo, California.

-  March 24th – 27th: is a Green Roofs for Healthy Cities – Green Roof Boot Camp in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

-  March 25th – 26th: is the GreenScaped Buildings Spring Open House in San Diego, California.

-  March 25th – 27th: is the Better Living Show – Home, Garden & Lifestyle in Portland, Oregon.

-  And don’t forget that on Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 8:30 PM (local time, wherever you are), lights will switch off around the globe for Earth Hour and people will commit to actions that go beyond the hour.  With Earth Hour almost upon us, the organization’s thoughts, as well as ours, are with the people of Japan during this incredibly challenging and sad time for their country.

-  “In the News”

-  Kathleen E. Carey of the Delaware County Daily Times reports on “Green LEEDs to platinum: SAP America earns distinction for utilizing environmental sources for newest building.”  The Newtown Square campus of SAP America Inc. in Delaware County is holding one of the highest environmentally sustainable distinctions in the world with its new Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum level construction.  Just some of the features that have led to its LEED Platinum certification are: its entry to the building – the passageway features a floor comprised of recycled materials, including seashells and pieces of crushed bottles and glass; glass panels surrounding the building with the goal of directing 90 percent of daylight to reach 75 percent of the employees; underneath the floors are tubes that transfer the natural temperature of the Earth which is generated from the 10 geothermal wells in the rear of the property to the inside of the building; and a rooftop garden that spans more than 1 acre which features lavender, rosemary, sedum and butterfly bushes.

-  Katie Kosier of Care2.com talks about “Removing Barriers to Green Building.”  With the help of Philadelphia based Re:Vision Architecture, Pennsylvania’s largest electric and natural gas utility company, PECO, installed a 45,000-square-foot vegetated green roof on its headquarters in central Philadelphia.  It’s the largest in urban Pennsylvania and the roof absorbs more than 1.5 million gallons of rainwater runoff annually, it reduces air temperature in the summer and  it also provides a beautiful habitat for wildlife.  Principle Scott Kelly of RVA, says “For us, it’s about removing barriers to green building.”  You can find more information about the PECO Greenroof in our International Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database by typing in Project ID number 851.

-  To learn more about these stories and new ones posted daily, go to our In the News or newslinks section of our website.

-  Have something you think we should know about and post on our website?  You can send us your green articles, videos and images to editor@greenroofs.com.

-  Stay up-to-date with what’s going on at greenroofs.com by subscribing to our greenroofsTV channel on YouTube, following us on Twitter, liking us on Facebook and being a member of our network on LinkedIn.

-  By the way, did you know that now you can watch YouTube videos just like this one on DirecTV?  That’s fun!

-  Still haven’t picked up one of our 2011 Greenroofs & Walls of the World 12 Month Wall Calendar yet?  Go to greenroofs.com/calendar.htm and order some today!  Thanks to George Irwin for this great photo!

-  This has been This Week in Review for March 18th, 2011 on GreenroofsTV.  I’m Anjuli Velazquez and I’ll see you next week!

*This week’s episode is sponsored by The Greenroof Directory, brought to you by Greenroofs.com.*

Did we miss something?  We’d love to hear from you!

~ Linda V.

We all know that airports occupy and consume huge areas of land mass, destroying ecosystems and creating massive urban heat islands of impermeable, hot surfaces.  Take, for example, the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) shown below -notice how the highest temperatures, shown in red, are the roof surfaces of the ATL terminal and concourses, followed by runways, parking and cargo areas:

You may remember that back in 2005 I wrote the paper “European Airport Greenroofs – A Potential Model for North America,” which looked at impacts of using a greenroof within airports as well as some of the potential barriers to greenroofs.  I highlighted three massive and highly successful examples of greenroofs in place at the Amsterdam, Zürich, and Frankfurt International Airports.

At the time, only one greenroof had been installed at aviation facilities within the U.S. or Canada - at the King County International Airport Terminal Building (2003).  The FAA and others had been hesitant given wildlife management issues, in particular the real threat of bird strikes.

Since then, many additional greenroofs have been constructed at airports worldwide with, not surprisingly, the City of Chicago leading the pack as part of their O’Hare Modernization Program (OMP).

I had the pleasure of revisiting the issue last week at the Atlanta Aero Club at the beautiful Capital City Club in downtown Atlanta, where I was invited to give a short 5-minute presentation for their bi-monthly luncheon by the Club’s President, Steve Champness.

Steve and his better half, Nancy Petroline, (both pilots) are friends of ours and felt the mixture of my passion for greenroofs and the very important fact that the President of Delta Air Lines, Ed Bastian, was the Keynote Speaker was prime for me to address greenroofs as sustainable design at airports here.  Plus, the President of Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, Joe Lombardo, was also on hand and both airline leaders received awards to celebrate their unique and important contributions to the airline industry.

“The Atlanta Aero Club is dedicated to providing a forum for matters affecting aviation in the Atlanta area, both commercial and general; recognizing and awarding those making the greatest contribution to furthering aviation in the Atlanta area; communicating and disseminating information affecting aviation; and promoting all aviation and recognizing its importance to the metropolitan area and to the State of Georgia.”

It was great to hear Ed Bastian again, and he shared his own passion for Delta Air Lines as a successful company coming through restructuring as well as a firmly dedicated hometown company (the number 1 employer here in Atlanta), highly invested in both its customers and employees.  In fact, last month Delta marked 70 years in Atlanta with a celebration for employees and partners, and a $1.4 billion profit profit sharing payout was distributed on February 14.

Regarding investments, Delta’s plan is to allocate more than $2 billion in enhanced global products, services and airport facilities through 2013.  In addition to improving Sky Clubs and upgrading its domestic fleet, Delta will offer full flat-bed seats on more than 100 widebody aircraft, feature personal, in-seat entertainment for both BusinessElite and Economy class customers on all widebody flights, and complete new terminal facilities for international customers at its two largest global gateways – Atlanta and New York-JFK.

I was excited to speak to the approximate 150 members and guests of the Atlanta Aero Club, who were mostly pilots.  Although I’m not a pilot, many of you who have been following me for years know that greenroofs is my second career ~ in January, 1996 I went back to school and received a Bachelor’s of Landscape Architecture from The University of Georgia in 2000 ~ while flying internationally as a flight attendant for Delta Air Lines (which I still do, at a minimum).  I feel very fortunate to be able to combine my two careers – so you can see my particular interest in greening our airport roofs!

After some additional research and feedback, I began to add to the list of aviation profiles we have listed in The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database.  Here’s the scoop:

We know that Chicago has led the way in North America in greenroof implementation for the past decade, including its airports.  Above is an an aerial photo with ”Urban Heat Island Priority Tiers” superimposed which identify hot spots at the O’Hare International Airport (ORD) while showing current and proposed greenroofs here.

Although Frankfurt International Airport (FRA) has a combined coverage of over 500,000 sf, the largest individual continuous greenroof at any airport in the world is found on the 4-acre FedEx Main Sort Building at O’Hare.

Located next to an active runway, the 174,442 sf roof was installed in May of last year and is just one of four buildings with vegetated roofs comprising the massive FedEx Cargo Relocation Project, totaling about 190,000 ft.

O’Hare also boasts the first FAA Control Tower in the U.S. with a greenroof, so we must be feeling pretty good about constructing them now at airports, now, don’t you think?  According to the Chicago Department of Aviation, there is currently 229,355 sf of green roof space at O’Hare International Airport, with an additional 108,816 sf proposed at the United Airlines Cargo Facility (as of February, 2011).

Chicago’s Midway Airport (MDW) currently has 3,179 sf of greenroof space on the parking garage, with another 17,640 sf of greenroof proposed for the Consolidated Rental Car Facility.  To learn more about Chicago’s greening initiatives at airports, see their Airports Going Green website (where you can even see PowerPoint presentations of the last two annual Airports Going Green Conferences), the Sustainable Airport Manual, and visit the Chicago Department of Aviation’s FlyChicago.com website.

In the U.S., we now have at least 17 airport area greenroofs totaling almost 300,000 sf, and Chicago’s not the only government leader, either.   Take Portland Oregon (PDX), above, for example, the U.S. Army and Air Force, and Heritage Flight, below:

And Canada has at least 3 totaling about 3,000 sf, an intensive greenroof (below) and extensive greenroof at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) – not to mention their stunning greenwall at YVR Canada Line Station 4- and an extensive greenroof at Toronto International (YYZ):

Here are some other cool living roofs atop airport buildings found internationally:

See what we have by searching The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database by selecting “Aviation” under Building Type > Application Type – if you want to define it, select a county, city, etc.

Does this mean that’s all there is?  Of course not.  This Projects Database is a living research document and because it’s community driven, we reply on everyone to help us keep it up to date.  In fact, I have seen airport greenroofs myself at Narita International in Japan (NRT), Madrid (MAD), and Paris’ Charles de Gaulle (CDG) – (see a couple of photos below) – that aren’t included because I don’t have enough info.

And I know there’s more at Paris’ Orly International Airport (ORY), Bordeaux (BOD), Stuttgart (STR), Münich (MUC), Bremen (BRE) and Düsseldorf (DUS), with many others planned or on the boards.  So, I’d like to ask our greenroof community to please send in your photos and info on greenroofs across the world and I’ll share the profiles for all to see, like Jörg Breuning, of Green Roof Service, has been doing for years – see below Fire Brigade at Stuttgart International Airport:

Because of time constraints, I couldn’t get into key design considerations with regard to the correct site selection of growing media and plants, but just touched on the importance of having a multi-disciplinary team on the Airport Wildlife Landscape Management team.  Here’s my updated version of the “An Overview of Greenroofs at Airports: Greening Rooftops as Sustainable Design” Power Point which I presented last week to the Atlanta Aero Club: 

And since I wasn’t limited to just five minutes, I added a few more slides of examples, plus ended with a couple about combining photovoltaics with greenroofs – hey, if we’re going to be sustainable, we may as well go all the way!

I’d like to give Steve Champness another big Thankyou! for offering Greenroofs.com and me this great opportunity to introduce vegetated roofs to many, and encourage sustainable design with greenroofs (and walls) at our public, private, and military airports worldwide.  We need more leaders such as the City of Chicago, the City of Portland, OR, and others to continue to push building integrated greenery forward.

It’s easy to understand how Atlanta’s largest urban heat island, Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, can be significantly mitigated by incorporating living, breathing, greenroofs.  Maybe Hotlanta won’t be so hot any more with some local support, strategic planning, and government and corporate visionaries.

Count me in for local support here in The ATL!

~ Linda V.