Senator Golden Honors Bay Ridge Food Co-op Coordinators

Last Thursday at the Bay Ridge Manor, Senator Marty Golden recognized residents of the neighborhood who performed exceptional community services in 2009. Among the honorees were David Marangio (right) and Larry Benner (middle), pictured here with Sen. Golden (left), coordinators of the Bay Ridge Food Co-op. They have been working tirelessly to start the co-op, which as of right now does not yet have a location. To learn more about the Bay Ridge Food Co-op — or food co-ops in general — visit their web site, follow their Twitter feed, or check them out on Facebook. 

Photo by Marc Hibsher

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Council on Environment of NYC Gets a Makeover

Upon hearing the name “Council on the Environment of New York City,” many people assume the organization is a city agency. Still others aren’t aware that this organization has been responsible for the city’s greenmarkets since the very first one opened in 1976.

Because of these problems, said spokesperson Amanda Gentile, the Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC) underwent an almost year-long re-branding process, working with its board, staff and pro-bono consultants, including the Harvards Business School Alumni Association. The end result: a new name, GrowNYC. 

The new logo, circular with the new name and a green apple in the middle, is surrounded by the words “Greenmarket,” “Garden,” “Teach” and “Recycle,” representing the organization’s programs. 

While the logo is new, GrowNYC’s mission will remain the same, which is to “give people the tools and the education and the resources to make New York City a more sustainable environment,” assistant director Julie Walsh told the Eagle in a previous interview. “It’s by the people, of the people, and for the people.”

GrowNYC has operated over 45 Greenmarkets city-wide — with 11 in Brooklyn — since the program began in 1976, with 11 in Brooklyn. The one at Borough Hall — one of the city’s oldest — celebrated its 25th anniversary last year. 

Executive director Marcel Van Ooyen said last year that this greenmarket “is an example of all that we’ve been able to accomplish,” and that it’s one of the most popular.

The Open Space Greening (OSG) program, founded in 1975, has helped neighborhoods build and sustain over 60 community gardens throughout the city, 26 in Brooklyn.

A relatively new program, the Office of Recycling Outreach and Education (OROE), started in 2006 sends representatives out into the boroughs to educate residents about the city’s curbside recycling program, encouraging them to take advantage of it.

“What we try to do is basically get people to understand the program,” said David Hurd, director of OROE, in December. “To debunk the classic myth [that recyclables don’t get recycled].”

GrowNYC has three different programs geared toward educating the city’s youth: Training Student Organizers (TSO), “Learn It, Grow It, Eat It” and Greenmarket Youth Education Project. Through TSO, students have built and demonstrated solar ovens, planted trees, removed invasive species and learned about New York City’s watershed.

In some cases, the presence of these youthmarkets has helped make neighborhoods safer. Walsh told about one particular youthmarket in a south Bronx neighborhood near a police surveillance tower. “Within two weeks of the market operating, [the police] were able to leave,” Walsh told the Eagle.

“We want people to engage in behaviors that will make a more sustainable city — behaviors that they will carry with them,” she continued. 

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Flatbush Students Win Award for Green Entrepreneurship

Two students from Magen David Yeshiva in Brooklyn, Isaac Lati, 16, and Morris Jaradeh, 17 — both of Flatbush — have been named winners of the 2009-2010 J. Morton Davis/Lander College for Men Student Entrepreneur of the Year Competition. They won for their invention “Winergy,” a turbine that captures hot air released by central air conditioner condenser units and recycles it back into the unit, thereby saving both homeowners and commercial building owners energy and money.

Lati and Jaradeh said they got their idea last year, when solar panels and wind turbines began to make headlines in the news. “We had an in-school entrepreneurship competition and we both absorbed what was going on during the economic crash,” Lati said.  “Right around the presidential election, a lot of discussions were taking place about alternate sources of energy. I looked around my home and I realized that the wasted air from the air conditioning unit could be used in a way that might prove practical.”

“In addition to their creativity and sound presentation, the team of Lati and Jaradeh zeroed in on an issue that is front and center in today’s world — green solutions for saving energy and money,” said Dr. Moshe Sokol, dean of Touro College’s Lander College for Men (LCM). “We were all impressed with their ingenuity and drive to create something that has the potential to benefit homeowners and businesses worldwide.”

Five teams of students were selected as finalists out of 31 submissions and invited to give oral presentations. The winners were chosen for their creativity, sound business plans, and oral presentations.  Prizes totaling $3,000 were awarded, with $1,500 going to the grand prize winners; $1,000 to the second place winners; and $500 to the third place winner. All five teams received plaques honoring their achievements.

Photo above, left to right: Dr. Moshe Sokol, Dean of LCM; Professor Larry Bellman, formerly of Touro College and the developer and inspiration for the contest; winner Morris Jaradeh; Dr. Ira Teich, assistant professor of marketing and management at LCM and director of this year’s competition; and winner Isaac Lati. Photo by James Musumeci

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Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream Opens Flagship Store in Greenpoint

This past Saturday, Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream (VLAIC), a Brooklyn-based ice cream company committed to minimizing its carbon footprint, opened its first storefront at 632 Manhattan Ave. in Greenpoint. VLAIC had previously operated out of ice cream trucks stationed around the city.

The business began two years ago by brothers Ben and Peter Van Leeuwen and Laura O'Neill, Ben's wife, from testing recipes in their Greenpoint home. O'Neill told the Eagle last year, "We always wanted to have a smaller impact on the environment," explaining that they keep the trucks stationary, use fresh, local and organic ingredients whenever possible, and make the ice cream from hormone-free fresh milk and cream from farms in upstate New York.

Also minimizing VLAIC's environmental impact are the disposable goods used, which are made from 100 percent renewable resources. The cups and napkins are Bagasse, a fiber made from sugar cane husk; and the drink cups, spoons and straws are made from corn husks.

The freezers in the ice cream trucks are plate freezers and charge overnight, meaning they don't need to be plugged in every day. "We just have a very small generator to run the lights and cash register," said O'Neill. "This means our trucks are nice and quiet and not burning unnecessary fuel all day."

Check out VLAIC's Twitter feed for daily updates of truck locations.

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Sustainable Flatbush to Host Energy Forum

Sustainable Flatbush and its partners will host a Neighborhood Energy Forum on Saturday, March 20, 2010, at the Brooklyn College Student Center, 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. At this event homeowners, tenant organizations, landlords, and building managers will learn what they need to get started with major energy efficiency projects — from energy audits to weatherization to solar-electric, for both large multi-family buildings and one- to four-family homes.

“Inefficiency drives up energy costs, contributes to air pollution — almost 80% of New York City’s greenhouse gas emissions are produced by buildings — and hurts everybody, especially low-income people. That is why Sustainable Flatbush is organizing this event, to help residential building stakeholders raise the money they need for major energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy projects, and for neighbors to share resources and best practices,” said Anne Pope, executive director of Sustainable Flatbush.

Event partners so far include National Grid, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), ConEd, and Flatbush Development Corporation.

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Coney Island Wonder Wheel Is Going Solar

This summer the Coney Island Wonder Wheel will be getting 32 solar panels, reports the Daily News. The panels will generate enough power to light bulbs on the ride’s 16 cars, which were removed for safety reasons in the 1980s. A battery will store energy for not-so-sunny days, according to the News, which also reports that if all goes well this summer, more solar panels could be installed the following year, powering the entire ride off solar energy.

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Green Mountain Energy Offers Alternative for Brooklyn Customers

A grassroots approach isn’t generally something you would associate with big companies or with an energy provider.

But since Green Mountain Energy company — the leading provider of clean energy in the nation — launched in New York last summer, its employees have been using exactly such an approach, visiting greenmarkets and fairs, and educating potential customers.

Through a partnership with Con Edison, Green Mountain opened its New York service territory last August, becoming the only energy services company dedicated to clean power in the region, said John Holtz, director of East Region Markets. Started in Vermont, the company, is now headquartered in and serves Texas, as well as Oregon and New Jersey.

Holtz and Green Mountain’s other New York employees visit greenmarkets throughout the city, introducing the company to residents, and also educating them about the fact that they have a choice of who they can buy their electricity from. Many people don’t know they have a choice, Holtz noted.

Con Edison customers can simply visit www.greenmountain.com/newyork or call toll free, (877) 216-GMEC (4632) to switch energy services companies. The bill will still come from Con Edison, but the electricity will come from Green Mountain.

In Brooklyn, Green Mountain has had a regular presence in the greenmarkets at Borough Hall, Grand Army Plaza and Fort Greene.

Greenmarkets “are a perfect place for us to be,” Holtz said, “because we’re selling a product, we’re selling a service, but we’re also selling a movement.”

Representatives — including a “Super Earth” mascot (pictured above) — set up a booth at September’s “Green Brooklyn … Green City” fair, hosted by the Council on the Environment of New York City, and Green Mountain will also co-sponsor this fall’s Atlantic Antic.

He explained that residential customers have the option between two electricity products: “Pollution Free” and “100% Wind.” The difference between the two is that the Pollution Free product delivers electricity made from local sources — 10 percent wind power from turbines upstate and 90 percent hydropower from small local dams. The 100% Wind product comes from wind turbines across the country: in Pennsylvania, Texas, Oklahoma and Oregon.

Purchasing Green Mountain Energy can have a substantial impact on the environment. According to data supplied by the company, an average New York City household using 100% Wind for one year can offset nearly 8,000 pounds of carbon dioxide. This is the equivalent of not taking 2,000-plus cab rides, or recycling almost 20,000 aluminum cans.

Holtz says that though purchasing electricity through Green Mountain is slightly more expensive than through an energy service company producing power from coal (approximately $10 more a month), he hasn’t encountered resistance. “I’m very pleased with the reception we’ve gotten here.”

Brooklyn has been especially enthusiastic: Green Mountain’s very first New York customer was a Park Slope resident. Convivium Osteria Restaurant in Park Slope purchased electricity through Green Mountain, as did the Sephardic Home for the Aged in Bensonhurst. Archstone, a leading developer of multi-family housing, purchased electricity for its 12 New York City properties, one in Brooklyn Heights.

“We wish we had started earlier,” said Michelle Pulixi, owner of Convivium Osteria. She said she started purchasing electricity from Green Mountain about a month ago. “We are an environmentally conscious business … we’re just doing it to have a clear conscience.”

“We have big hopes for New York,” said Holtz. “New Yorkers are very conscious of the environmental issue.”

Photo by Mary Frost

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