Goodbye 2-by-6 studs with fiberglass insulation, vapor barrier and a lot of screws, nails, pounding — and seeping of air between the many joints. Say hello to SIPs.

Today's green, energy-efficient and sustainably-built house can be framed entirely with SIPs — Structural Insulated Panels — which are a foot-thick sandwich of polystyrene foam between layers of oriented strand board, a product that costs a little more than lumber but which cuts building time and pays for itself in saved energy bills.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski will attend Oregon Business magazine's celebration of its first annual 100 Best Green Companies to Work For in Oregon. The event will be June 1 at the Gerding Theater in Portland. "We are honored to have the governor help us recognize the importance of green ethics in the workplace," says Oregon Business Editor Robin Doussard. "And grateful for his enduring commitment to making Oregon one of the greenest states in the country."

The 100 Best Green Companies were selected based on sustainable practices sections from the 100 Best survey process, completed by 372 employers last fall. Participation in the 100 Best survey is voluntary and free of charge. Companies had to employ at least 15 Oregon workers at the time of taking the survey.

Employee survey For the 2009 survey nearly 30,000 Oregon workers rated satisfaction and importance in five statements related to sustainable practices.

The Spirit of Green

Locally, Southern Oregon University is doing its’ part to prepare students for Green Jobs through their Sustainability Leadership Program. Last week I had the opportunity to attend the Sustainability Leadership Symposium, at SOU. Students from Steve Schein’s Sustainability Leadership course, gave presentations on wide range of topics including; Carbon Management, Renewable Energy, Green Building, Ecological Literacy, Sustainability in Education, and Corporate Social Responsibility.

Currently the United States Congress, under the leadership of Chairman Henry Waxman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Chairman Edward Markey of the Energy and Environment Subcommittee, is working on the details of the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (ACES). ACES is promoted as a comprehensive approach to America's energy policy. It charts a course towards a clean energy economy. The American Solar Energy Society (ASES) commends the committees' work. Unfortunately, the bill as rewritten misses the mark.

Sustainability is defined as a way of development that does not compromise the capacity of future generations for living in this planet. On the other hand, Web 2.0 is the new technological generation based on user communities, social networks, blogs, wikis, and applications that encourage dynamic participation. Following those criteria, sustainability 2.0 profits from collaboration and collective intelligence empowered by new technologies and social networks to find that balance in development.

“Just about everyone knows by now that we have to start living within our means, and the planet’s. This expo will be a great place to learn ways to do that.”- Jeff Golden of www.immensepossibilities.com

April 28, 2009 – With the momentous 40th anniversary of Earth Day just behind us, “going green” is clearly going mainstream. More people than ever want to be involved, to help themselves, their community and our country.

The US Senate just scrapped a plan to exempt stimulus projects from environmental review, and Oregon Wild supporters should take a bow.

The Barrasso amendment would have exempted stimulus projects from environmental reviews. When most Americans heard the US Senate would be debating stimulus legislation last week, they most likely expected to hear about plans for green jobs and getting the US economy back on track.  When Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) heard the news, he had the bright idea to try and use the stimulus plan to attack America's bedrock environmental laws.