Case Study: Greening America's Capitals

With numerous foot pathways, bike paths bridges and tunnels, Reston is truly a haven for pedestrians. After the Metro opened a Silver Line in 2014, cars almost became an unnecessary item for the residents of Reston. On top of its pedestrian friendliness and traffic safety, Reston is a place filled with parks, wildflower meadows and wooded areas. With recreational areas of more than fifteen hundred acres (including golf courses, public pools, bridle paths, and tennis courts) 23 educational institutions of all levels and a state-of-the-art medical complex, it’s no wonder that CNN Money Magazine ranked Reston as the 7th best place to live in

I have spent copious amounts of time in communities stricken with low socioeconomic statuses, less fortunate than the usual neighborhoods I see in Pikesville. The experiences has engrained a strong moral compass into me, leading me to have a solid goal; of beautifying and bettering areas of destitute.

“It is hard to focus when you are worried about getting knocked out by ceiling tiles,” said student Keith Ogua.”

Environmentalism has become a great concern in all sectors of business, evidenced by the recent jump in energy prices, and empirical data provided by several different environmental and scientific agencies. The Hotel industry is no different, in fact, it would benefit greatly from the recent push for all businesses and business sectors to "Go Green." Yet, the industry has long resisted the changes, and is only recently catching up to other industries that have converted their operations to have greener strategies.

Over the last several decades Kansas City leaders have taken great pride in their efforts to build a world class city. In fact, Kansas City residents passed an $800 million general obligation bond referendum to address issues of deferred maintenance and capital improvements. Mayor Sly James celebrated the passage of this referendum by stating: “These are the things to which a world-class city commits”. Kansas City’s commitment to similar investments has been illustrious, but the beneficiaries were few. Those that have benefited most are corporations and domestic travelers. Kansas City's revitalization investments are costly for all residents, whether rich or poor. This era of ongoing investment began in 1989 with the ‘Clever Plan’ to redevelop

Bill Nye stated, “Climate change is happening, humans are causing it, and I think this is perhaps the most serious environmental issue facing us.” Humans are not only causing the climate change that Nye mentioned, but are also destroying the environment by wasting resources. The world has a serious problem that, if not dealt with right away, will lead to environmental catastrophe. However some people may ignore this warning from Nye and use the argument that the United States doesn’t need to worry about the environment because more pressing matters exist. In today’s world everyone uses energy and resources to meet their daily needs, but some of it is wasted unintentionally. The American government and its citizens have the responsibility to reduce this waste.

For my Sustainability Project, I decided to volunteer for an organization called Mountains to Sound Greenway. The Mountains to Sound Greenway encompasses approximately 1.5 million acres of both private and public land, stretching from the shores and beaches of Seattle, though farms, communities, and forest to the peak of the Cascades and then out to Central Washington’s beautiful pine forests and fields. This landscape provides places for outdoor recreation, education, to explore nature and wildlife, for working forests and local agricultural production, all while embracing vibrant urban areas with strong economies. The organization’s main goal is to lead and inspire action towards conserving and enhancing this

While the plan appears to be thorough and complete, this very characteristic may also prove to be a weakness. As sustainable technologies and even planning methodologies improve, a plan as cohesive as the current Portland Plan may leave little breathing room to accommodate the integration of future improvements without large investments and comprehensive re-planning. In addition, plans as comprehensive as this one is tend to leave less room for the creative expression, which adds diversity and charm to the cities neighborhoods. In terms of raw efficiency, the choice to make this plan a joint effort between the city government and the citizens themselves, though a noble cause, can cause each step to take much longer, and even the delay of the project in its entirety due to the volatility of entire populations. One final risk of the plan, is the risk associated with time. As any program needs money to continue on, people must continue to vote for the Portland Plan’s various programs over the years in order for them to maintain funding, so that they may continue bringing about the sustainable Portland as exists within the plan. The plan is to take place over 25-years, over the course of which any number of variables may change. The issue is things may change over the course of those 25-years, that could cause people to lose support for the plans various programs. Likewise, over

Capitol Green Cleaning is a cleaning company located in Gaithersburg, Maryland. They have been serving the Northern Virginia and Maryland areas since 2005. Capitol Green Cleaning offers coupons and discount vouchers at their customers’ disposal. Clients are not compelled to anything as they do not have any contracts to sign. Cleaning service estimates are free. What makes this cleaning enterprise distinctive is that they are also providing handyman and home repairs.

Perhaps the most definitive example of New Urbanism has been DPZ's project, Kentlands, a 352-acre community in Gaithersburg, Maryland begun in 1990. An oasis of good planning in a sea of suburbia, it is not only a model of Traditional Neighborhood Design (TND) but also the predecessor to many other such neighborhoods developed within CSD areas. In Kentlands, much like Seaside, the Citizens' Assembly runs a recreation center and provides for common maintenance of public areas. Civic buildings and shopping in mixed-use buildings are within walking distance of the development's six architecturally distinct neighborhoods. This compact design reduces auto traffic significantly, allows children to go about their daily business without requiring a mother chauffeur and puts workplaces near their employees.5

This topic is very significant because over the past several decades, urban and neighborhood planners have strayed away from green spaces throughout their projects. Green spaces encourage interaction among citizens as well as improving the environment in the vicinity. In this divisive political climate, it is almost necessary to provide areas where families and individuals can come together and enjoy a less stressful environment.

This case study examines the experience of a freshly promoted sales person to be a Sales Manager at an international high-tech flower supply company called Color-Tech Green House International. The company grew to become one of the biggest companies in the Western hemisphere. It has various main branches in U.S. cities such as Phoenix, Arizona; San Diego, California; and Columbia, South Carolina. Furthermore, it had agreements to distribute its region-specific and seasonal plants in northern cities to expand its sales to a wider customer base (Booth & Cates, 2012).

Architecture is vital function for all parts of society. Without architects people would have to rethink how they enter buildings, fearing roofs caving in or structural beams giving out. The rigor of an architect’s training leaves these possibilities and worries an unlikely prospect, not considered in the day to day in a person’s events. Architects make both functional and beautiful structures that are appealing to the eye, as well as useful to the world. The world wouldn’t be able to live in functional cities without the qualities of the architect’s skills. The world would have to worry about a door frame falling on their heads as they walk through the door for their daily workday, into the building that houses their jobs, their pay based on the efficiencies of the buildings layouts. Hopefully a person office is the one in the corner with the view, built to capture the sights outside the window and the prestige of the position, all thought of and created by an architect. Architects have an extremely specialized task to perform. They have to make sure that a building is stable in all conditions and useful and also that it looks appealing to senses, capturing the light at dawn, changing with the light at dusk. Architects do great things and create even greater things, often unnoticed, but worthy of mention. Architects also have very fun creative jobs where they can go to a rigorous job and make sure everything is going as planned and the building will meet the needs

Cities are amazing and wonderful place for people. More than half the world’s people live, work, rest and play in urban communities, and it is estimated that by the year 2030, three out of five people will call a city home. While cities bring human beings together and make a family for us, the rapid and unprecedented population growth has also brought some serious problems and challenges, including environmental degradation (air, water quality), loss of natural resources and habitats, decreasing of species diversity, and increased human risks associated with heat, noise, pollution and crowding. That means most children are growing up in environments with increasing pollution, intense heat and less access to diverse green spaces. Given these challenges, there is a critical need to find ways to reduce health risks and maximize opportunities for well-being in all urban communities. Urban green space has a natural ability to filter pollution from the air and reduce local air and ground temperature. Urban green spaces — from trees and parkettes to green roofs and large natural spaces — generally

In this review I have discussed Aulisio’s article that is “Green libraries are more than just a buildings”. Aulisio (2013) is an assistant professor in the Weinberg Memorial Library. He is the Evening Supervisor and Public Service Librarian. Author earned his BA from Bloomsburg University, his MS from Drexel and his MLA from the University of Pennsylvania. In this article, the author argues that a green library is something more than just the architecture. I agree with the author in the context of definition in which the author said that green library as any library that promotes sustainability through education, operation and outreach.