http://www.TheSolarVillage.com Learn how to live a more sustainable lifestyle. We make it easy with resources that include documentary videos, books, articles, web sites and news. When you are looking for detailed information and experience implementing solar, wind, green roofing, straw bale, organic agriculture, and emerging electric/hybrid cars, then this is the place to be. Join us now. en-us Copyright 2012 John Wilson http://www.TheSolarVillage.com/rss/ Thu, 23 May 2013 13:23:12 EST http://www.thesolarvillage.com/images/solarvillagemain3.jpg http://www.TheSolarVillage.com The growth in wind energy since 2003 in the United States provides clear evidence for what Canada might have achieved during the same period, or could over the coming decade if we were smart. For a measly $120 billion, or say about $10 billion a year for the next ten years, we could, in Canada be powered 100% by renewable energy, earning strong and sustained profits for more than twenty years. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=569 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=569 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:00:00 EST Free energy is hard to come by these days. Taking advantage of it makes a whole lot of sense as a way to save money, create more comfort, and preserve the planet for our children. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=567 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=567 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Thu, 18 Apr 2013 08:00:00 EST "None of the world's top industrial sectors would be profitable if they were paying their full freight. None!" according to a UN sponsored report, says David Roberts on Grist. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=568 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=568 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Thu, 18 Apr 2013 08:00:00 EST Solar charge your phone or tablet for free at your local coffee shop. Today PowerBarr annouced a feedback, support and funding event. You are invited to Evergreen Brick Works to try out PowerBarr Beta with a free solar charge for your phone or tablet on April 15th at 7pm. This is a fund raising event with a goal of $5,000 to help build the next generation of PowerBarr and extend the network of charging locations. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=563 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=563 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 10 Apr 2013 08:00:00 EST As the number of stories in the news that portend doom and gloom increases, it makes more and more sense to dig into some of the ways more and more people are fighting back. Permaculture has much to teach us about how to live a better life. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=558 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=558 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Mon, 18 Mar 2013 08:00:00 EST Help the people of Binga create new self-sufficient sustainable buildings as a part of a new Eco-Village. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=553 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=553 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Tue, 12 Mar 2013 08:00:00 EST Germany has the strongest economy in Europe with large scale industrial production that leads the world. At the same time this, the most advanced industrial power in the world, is operating increasingly on renewable energy. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=545 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=545 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Fri, 22 Feb 2013 08:00:00 EST Research shows that as of 2011 renewable energy is cheaper than gas or coal in Australia. Undoubtedly the gas and coal companies will be trying to prevent this type of research from becoming known for other regions like Asia, Europe, North America, South America and Africa. More than likely it is already true or soon will be. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=539 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=539 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Mon, 11 Feb 2013 08:00:00 EST Solar makes economic sense despite the lack of a carbon/pollution tax and despite the trillions of dollars in subsidies that have been given to oil, coal, gas, nuclear and transportation over the last fifty plus years. Yet, despite oil, coal, gas, nuclear and transportation industries passing on the true costs to tax payers like you and me for the past fifty years, solar power still makes economic sense in competition with and against the perpetrators of the greatest crimes against humanity, that results from the use of fossil and nuclear energy. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=530 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=530 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 06 Feb 2013 08:00:00 EST Builders without Borders to build a prototype straw bale home, the first ever in Haiti. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=524 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=524 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Sun, 20 Jan 2013 08:00:00 EST Imagine a world filled with solar powered vehicles. Smell the fresh clean air. Listen to the quiet hum of electric motors. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=523 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=523 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Thu, 17 Jan 2013 08:00:00 EST Check out the Open iPub version of Sun Rise. This book explains in simple terms, how we all can start using solar energy, wind power, breathing walls, straw bale home construction techniques, passive solar design, smart windows, green roofs, and composting - today! http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=522 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=522 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 16 Jan 2013 08:00:00 EST Leading green power provider provides financing to accelerate solar energy project development in Ontario Canada. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=509 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=509 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 12 Dec 2012 08:00:00 EST Think all solar thermal systems are the same. Think again. Imagine using a solar thermal hot water heating system for both your domestic hot water AND your heating. What is especially cool about this option is that radiant hot water heating systems can operate at lower temperatures than domestic hot water, allowing the system to have an impact in a wider variety of weather conditions. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=494 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=494 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Sat, 24 Nov 2012 08:00:00 EST By design Germany will be producing 80% of the countries energy from renewable sources by 2050. Already 25% of its power comes from renewable energy sources including solar, wind and biomas. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=496 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=496 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Sat, 17 Nov 2012 08:00:00 EST Check out the people of Scotland and their plan to get to 100% renewable energy by 2020. They've already made it to 35% renewables as of 2011. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=497 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=497 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Sat, 17 Nov 2012 08:00:00 EST This modern off-the-grid solar home in the Colorado Rockies demonstrates the beauty and elegance of intelligent design that combines efficiency with renewable energy systems to create a comfortable and inexpensive lifestyle. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=495 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=495 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 14 Nov 2012 08:00:00 EST Cruising down the coast of California would be a good experience in an electric car. How might that work you might ask if the maximum distance your electric car can go on a charge is 300 miles for the Tesla Model S pure electric car? Also, what good would it do if the pollution was simply shifted from the tailpipe to coal or gas plants? http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=492 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=492 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Tue, 16 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST Does the source of fuel matter when we consider our energy choices? Fuel from the Sun is free and essentially unlimited. What does an unlimited fuel source mean for our future? Are the resources used to make solar panels the next determining factor for energy choices? http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=491 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=491 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Mon, 15 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST Dean Kamen is the prolific inventor of the electric vehicle called Segway. More recently he has been working hard to create a machine that can turn even the most contaminated liquid into clean drinking water. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=489 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=489 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Fri, 12 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST German renewable generation now exceeds generation from hard coal and generation from nuclear. Total renewable generation was less than brown coal in 2011. However, at last year's pace of growth, renewable generation may exceed that from brown coal by 2015. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=488 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=488 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 03 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST Maybe the world is changing all around us and we simply haven't noticed. All we need to do, perhaps, is take one small step, and then keep doing that. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=485 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=485 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Mon, 01 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST Did you know that more than $114 billion dollars will subsidize the oil industry in North America over the next ten years? Why do we allow our taxes to increase the already massive profits these companies make while also causing catastrophic consequences for our environment and human health? http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=486 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=486 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Mon, 01 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST According to a new report by Deutsche Bank "the cost of electricity from small PV systems in Germany is in some cases already below retail rates". That means the smaller solar systems are reaching that point where the electricity they generate costs less than that from the grid, a point called "grid parity", a point at which people would be crazy not to switch. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=487 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=487 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Mon, 01 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST This article describes the recent construction and addition of a 1.25 KW Uni-Solar thin-film laminate photovoltaic system. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=484 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=484 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Tue, 25 Sep 2012 08:00:00 EST A new report out of Europe confirms what is intuitively obvious. Renewable forms of energy cost less. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=483 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=483 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Fri, 14 Sep 2012 08:00:00 EST The title of this article is based on a sentence from an article written by Bill McKibben in the most recent issue of Rolling Stones magazine (the link is at the end of this posting). We really are running out of excuses for inaction. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=476 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=476 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Tue, 24 Jul 2012 08:00:00 EST Ontario has re-opened the microFIT program for solar panels. Now a company is offering to put the panels on your house for free and pay you for having them, based on a 20 year contract with the Ontario Government. This is real, it works, and you will be making a big difference in the fight against climate change. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=475 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=475 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Thu, 19 Jul 2012 08:00:00 EST Having saved hundreds of dollars and largely eliminated any pollution, our new Chevy Volt electric (with a backup gasoline generator) car, is proving to be insanely great. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=473 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=473 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 27 Jun 2012 08:00:00 EST Check out this new ebook from Real Goods Solar. It has some good information that debunks common myths about solar power. http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=474 http://www.thesolarvillage.com/index.cfm?page=News&tab=News&app=News&news=474 john.wilson@thesolarvillage.com (The Solar Village) Wed, 27 Jun 2012 08:00:00 EST