RSVP now for the Dream in Green Green is Glam event on Saturday, October 20 at The Setai.

I hear there will be a green raffle!

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Our friends over at Dream in Green have started a fundraising campaign. For such a new non-profit, they have accomplished a great deal, including the kick-off of the Green Schools Challenge. This organization is educating the public and our youth about carbon emissions and providing a format to improve. Help them help more people!

Donate to Dream in Green

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Our future is in their hands - and that makes me feel great. Yesterday I had the privilege of attending the kick-off for Dream in Green’s (DIG) Green Schools Challenge at MAST Academy. As Nicholas Gunia of DIG said at the end of the presentation, "it’s only fitting that the science magnet school for Miami-Dade County kick off this project." And what a great job they did.

The presentation was done entirely by students - The Power Rangers. Broken into teams such as the Energy Awareness Team, Energy Management Team, Public Relations Committee, and Research & Development, you can probably already tell that these guys are organized.

In fact, they’ve already measured the temperature of every room in the school (over a two week period), and the average temperature came up at 21 degrees Celsius (69.8 F). They’ve also identified leaks and cracks where A/C goes out and warm air comes in.

The students made a comment that a comfortable temperature is 25 C (77 F), and that it is ridiculous that everyone needs to come to school with sweaters and jackets in Florida. And it’s true! As seen in this picture, most of the students were bundled up!

Raising the temperature in the classrooms, recycling boxes in the classrooms, shutting off the lights in the cafeteria when not in use, and holding an Energy Awareness Week (including a wear green day) are some of the no-cost measures that the students plan to implement.

They are also seeking funding for their larger projects such as tree plantings, butterfly gardens, solar water heaters, window tinting, wind power, and desiccants - which was a brand new word to me.

These kids, led by Principal Tom Fisher and Solar Energy Professor Dr. Wafa Khalil, are on the right track and should be an inspiration to us all. If you’d like to make a donation towards their efforts, contact Co-Founder & Executive Director of Dream in Green, Nicholas Gunia.

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On Friday, I attended the launch party for a new non-profit organization, Dream in Green. It was held at the new Karu restaurant and Y (bar). During this inaugural celebration, Dream in Green was also kicking off their first project, Green Schools Challenge.

From their press release:

Dream in Green, Miami’s new non-profit organization dedicated to promoting conservation, environmental sustainability and renewable energy, launched the “Green Schools Challenge” at Miami’s first zero carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions event, where the organization offset nearly 10,000 pounds of CO2 with 7,000 kilowatt hours of solar power credits. The Green Schools Challenge was developed in partnership with the City of Miami and seeks to involve K-12 students in energy conservation, waste reduction and recycling and offsetting greenhouse gas emissions.

I’m very excited about Dream in Green in general, and especially about the Green Schools Challenge. MAST Academy and Palmetto Senior High School have already signed up. These schools will work with Dream in Green to eco-ize their schools and educate their students on enviro-concepts. Simple concepts such as turning off lights when a room is not in use, and shutting down computers and printers in the afternoons will be implemented. Trees will be planted and the opportunity for classroom-related projects are endless.

This inaugural event was touted as Miami’s first carbon neutral event. We’ve talked about carbon neutrality here before. There are multiple ways of attacking this. Dream in Green purchased credits from Sterling Planet. With this purchase, they basically purchased local, Florida generated solar power to offset the carbon created by the event.

For more information: Dream in Green (website), Green Schools Challenge (pdf)

Thoughts on Karu & Y

Karu & Y have been holding invitation only events through August and September to prepare for their official October 10 public opening. We arrived from I-95, and were shocked to cross over actual tracks and see this incredible building that seemed like an oasis. On the eco-side of things, I was impressed that they had the dual flush toilets installed and motion-water sensors to both turn on and off the water faucets (normally it just turns the faucet on, leaving the off up to a timer). On the downside, it was way too cold in there. For more on the location, visit All Purpose Dark’s review of the Karu & Y. 

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