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Sun Challenge, sailing for solar power everywhere

John Wilson and his son Ian will sail around the world in a 39-foot catamaran to raise awareness everywhere about the most pressing issue in the world today: the urgent need to shift to renewable resources. This ambitious circumnavigation is the first component of the Sun Challenge.

Sun Challenge refers to the ability of our sun to provide all of the renewable resources we need. Our sun provides more than 1000 times the energy we need. Direct solar energy from the sun can be converted into electricity with solar photovoltaic panels or heat with solar thermal panels. The sun also drives the weather patterns on earth that create wind power that can be harnessed with wind turbines. Sun power even drives the hydrologic cycle that makes rain and drives water power. So, our challenge in moving to renewable resources is about finding ways to harness this free renewable sun power and using it elusively to recycle the resources currently in use.

During the circumnavigation John and Ian will seek out and find the very best examples of people, organizations and communities using renewable resources today. The entire journey and all of the hopeful examples of people meeting the 'sun challenge' today will be captured in a monthly 25 minute television show entitled Sun Challenge that will be distributed free of charge over the Internet. At the end of the journey, a condensed version of the 25 minute episodes will be made available as a feature documentary film.

All of the proceeds from donations will go to the Sun Challenge: Funds for Change social business which supports communities that are taking on the sun challenge today and in the future by using renewable resources.


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Ontario could be blown away by Texas, with wind power Over the next several years Texas will develop more than 50,000 MW of Wind power. That is many times more than Ontario needs to replace coal and nuclear. Wind power alone could, in just a few years, power the entire province while making the developers of this energy source a handsome profit while at the same time eliminating carbon emissions and creating sustainable jobs for the long term. Read the story >>

HALLELUJAH: Organic gourmet food, fast and easy Hallelujah Organics completes a brand new state-of-the-art facility incorporating sustainable design features that fit with the organic nature of the products being produced. Read the story >>

8000 MW of solar in Ontario, taking out nuclear and coal Solar is set to replace coal, gas and nuclear in Ontario. Development progress so far significantly surpasses expectations of the government. In just six years Ontario could get all required energy from renewables. This is a challenge worthy of our best efforts. Read the story >>

Electric car blows away the gasoline powered competition Charge up this little Nissan (Datsun) electric in twenty minutes and this dragster will beat any of the gasoline powered competition, quietly, and clearly. Check out the documentary video. Read the story >>

Obama bets $5 billion on electric cars The heart and soul of the coming electric car are the battery systems. President Obama is investing more than $5 billion to see the United States lead the world in next generation battery technology that will power electric cars and the smart grid of the future using 100% renewable energy. Read the story >>

Ontario 100 percent powered by renewable energy in six years Using $108 billion in private capital funding Ontario is on track to be 100% powered by renewable energy. Projects and jobs are being created all over the province generating renewable electricity, jobs and profits. Read the story >>

Corporate Finance and Climate Protection: a Beneficial Alliance Corporate Finance and Climate Protection: a Beneficial Alliance, May 2010: At last an inspiring proposal that represents an attempt to redefine climate protection measures and to reset climate protection targets to accord with what is scientifically necessary and economically preferable. Photo credit: Wikimedia.org, Joachim Kohler Read the story >>

Documentary DVD: Fuel, Change Your Fuel...Change Your World The time has come to switch to 100% renewable energy. Find out why and how. See this documentary now. Read the story >>

10-10-10 for 350.org On 10/10/10, the Global Work Party, we'll start transforming our communities from the ground up. Through local climate action projects, we'll make our leaders wake up and lead on the climate crisis. It's a plan that may well break the logjam and get us moving. Will you join in? Read the story >>

Our Clean Energy Future: Robert F. Kennedy, Jr Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sees a future where the American entrepreneurial spirit drives a future in which the US is powered by 100% renewable energy. Read the story >>

Solar power policy that works Solar farming in Germany is leading the way towards 30% renewable energy in the country by 2020, well ahead of the mandated 20%. The critical policy driving this massive transition is a feed-in tariff created out of the renewable energy act. Read the story >>

Solar Energy as a Replacement for Fossil Fuel Replacing fossil fuels changes the world as we know it. Transportation looks poised to make the transition to 100% solar energy quite possible given the effectiveness of hybrid electric technology that is in wide spread production. Key building blocks for this transition include a potentially large electric grid infrastructure upgrade of the scale comparable to the interstate highway system in the US 50 years ago. Storage technology is ready in the form of pumped storage hydro power. Concentrating solar may help bring down the cost per watt. Rooftop solar may be the political glue that holds it all together by empowering political autonomy. Get ready for some clean air and a sustainable world. Read the story >>

Energy Autonomy: THE 4th REVOLUTION Sun, wind, hydro and geothermal energy are natural sources of renewable energy accessible to everyone all over the world. They are renewable, free and available forever. Knowledge about the possibilities of renewable energy will ignite an international movement and take the absolutely necessary energy transition. We need a quickly enlightening medium that conveys this knowledge in a comprehensible and compact format. This can be provided by a great documentary video. Check it out... Read the story >>

Energy is the economy Allowing oil to drive our global economic system makes no sense. Recessions driven by dramatic swings in oil prices are insane. Horrific disasters like the BP oil well spewing death into the Gulf of Mexico and beyond are insane. Oil reserves are being depleted faster than new reserves are being found. Oil will run out in the next forty years. The only answer is a switch to solar energy as a sustainable way to drive our economic system. We know this will work. Read the story >>

Add $100 monthly to pay the real price of energy Add 10 cents/kW to your electricity bill, roughly $100/month, to account for your carbon and other polluting emissions. Given that you can pay green electricity retailers like Bullfrog Power just $30/month extra for carbon free electricity, green energy looks like quite a bargain, especially for our children. Read the story >>

Solar pays off the mortgage Solar power pays well in Ontario. You could pay off your mortgage by putting solar on your house. Read the story >>

Oil spill disaster covers Ontario The only answer to the world's worst oil spill disaster is to act decisively to prevent it from every happening again. Read the story >>

Community Energy Partnerships Program (CEPP) - Applying to CEPP Developing a successful and profitable renewable energy project on the Ontario FIT and MicroFIT requires planning. Learn what steps you should be taking to plan your solar, wind, hydro / water, biogas / biomass / landfill gas project. Read the story >>

BOOK: Solar Trillions "The clean energy economy will provide the largest wealth-building opportunities in history. The world will spend $382 trillion in energy over the next 40 years and every aspect of this industry is up for grabs: from generation and transportation to storage and use." - Tony Seba, Author, Solar Trillions Read the story >>

What creates a successful feed-in tariff? "Feed-in tariffs are the world's single, most successful policy for the rapid development of renewable energy." Read the story >>

Reinventing fire, roadmap to renewable energy The US economy can use whole system thinking and integrative design to free itself from fossil fuels. The idea is to have business and profit lead the way. Read the story >>

Solar house is a power plant Your house can be a power plant. The sun that falls each day is enough to supply not only the energy requirements of your home but also can produce excess. With a feed-in tariff (FIT) like the one in Ontario Canada you could be generating profits with your solar house. Find out how. Read the story >>

Natural Life Network for the iPhone Put this web site in your pocket with our new iPhone app. Includes videos worth $10. Put the power of renewable energy in the palm of your hand. Get instant access to the news, events, tools and videos you need to understand how renewable energy is transforming our world. Learn how it all works to change everything right now. Read the story >>

Green Energy Act Finance Forum, Community Power Financing Tom Rand makes the point that the FIT/MicroFIT basically creates a new asset class. Essentially it is a government backed bond at a rate of around 10-12%. Learn how this can be so and what the opportunities are for you and your community in Ontario. Photo Credit: Cardiff Council Flat Holm Project team, Wikimedia.org. Read the story >>

MUST SEE VIDEO: Renewable energy makes so much sense with feed-in tariff (FIT) Your home and your community could be powered by 100% renewable energy in the next five to ten years. Find out exactly how in this extraordinary documentary video. Read the story >>

Solar powered spacecraft Solar powered ion engine has more thrust than traditional rockets. The Dawn mission exploring the asteroid belt is using this technology. Read the story >>

Electric yacht conversion Long before the Chevy Volt sees the light of day Electric Yachts has been powering sailboats with electric motor technology. No more fumes. No more fuel bills. Fits where the old diesel/gas engine used to sit. Batteries store inexpensive electricity for hours of motoring in and out of harbour to get the sails up. Batteries are charged while sailing as the water pressure drives the propeller to rotate turning the electric motor into a generator. Solar and wind turbines can be used to charge the batteries. A small generator can then be used to extend the range of the electric, again, much like the future Chevy Volt. Read the story >>

Talk about conservation with little action Talk about conservation should be about setting goals and achieving them. Why couldn't Ontario reduce energy consumption of all fuel types by 30%? Read the story >>

$300 billion in subsidies for oil, gas, coal and nuclear Renewable energy actually costs less than oil, gas, coal and nuclear. Take a look at subsidies and the cost to future generations of our insane use of oil, gas, coal and nuclear. Read the story >>

Renewable biogas, makes money, reduces carbon emissions and is available on demand Toronto, Ontario may lead the world towards a future where 100% renewable energy is proven viable. Newly announced biogas facilities will provide the equivalent of 100 megawatts of renewable energy. Read the story >>

Electric cars solve renewable energy challenge Electric cars will be integrated with renewable energy to provide the required storage to resolve the intermittent nature challenge of renewables. Study shows just 20% of vehicles need be electric to support 100% renewables. Read the story >>

VIDEO: KICK the Fossil Fuel Habit Need an inspiring look at how we could switch the entire world to 100% renewable energy and make a profit? Want to understand the future of energy? Check out this book and video trailer by Tom Rand, called Kick the Fossil Fuel Habit, 10 Clean Technologies to Save Our World. Read the story >>

Queen's University study, solar enough for entire province Building on rocky, barren, un-farmable land could produce 90 Gigawatts of electricity, pretty much enough to shut down every nuclear plant in the US. Certainly, there is more than enough solar to power the province of Ontario when combined with wind, hydro, and biomass. Read the story >>

Ravina solar house project revelations The Ravina Project is a privately funded green energy research project in Toronto Canada. Using their own resources this group has turned their home into a science experiment. They want to provide power generation data for the public and do green power research. The group fervently hopes that access to their data will be a factor in giving people the confidence to press forward with their own green power projects. Read the story >>

Green Economics 101: Wonderful vs. Wacky Building a green economy versus the wacky world of green energy appears to be a case of willful ignorance. Read the story >>

Video: Triple digit oil prices coming soon Jeff Rubin presents a world about to get a lot smaller. As the economy comes out of recession it can be expected that the price of oil will again hit the triple digits. This will again trigger another economic recession which will again limit demand for oil. Ultimately demand and carbon pricing will drive oil past the triple digits. This will make local economies the only sensible solution driven by green technologies. The transition may be a painful one if we don't plan for it or it may be the greatest opportunity in history. We must decide what we want to do about it in the next 12 to 15 months. Read the story >>

Terrified? Inspired? Ontario makes $15 billion investment in renewable energy Ontario has embarked upon an historic path towards economic and energy sustainability. Citizens of this large province have now invested $15 billion in renewable energy projects that will be built and put into production over the next couple years. In the process we will create over 20,000 jobs, clean up our air a bit, and set the stage for higher electricity prices. Terrify you a bit? Worried about paying $5/month more for your electricity? How did this happen and what does it all mean for you? Read the story >>

Solar power that works when the sun goes down Concentrated solar power (CSP) is poised to be a critical component, when combined with solar photovoltaic (PV), wind, hydro and other forms of solar to provide all the energy we need for a sustainable future. CSP provides the critical storage capability for 7 by 24 operation, complementing hydro as a base load solution in a renewable energy powered world. Read the story >>

Truth becomes a revolutionary act: Living without limits is a lie The truth will set you free. Read the story >>

Green energy, pay more, costs less? Have you ever wondered why renewable energy costs more? Are fossil fuel sources subsidized more? Does nuclear get some kind of special treatment? Are the environmental costs to future generations included? What form of energy do we really pay more for? Read the story >>

Profiting from Ontario MicroFIT: One of the first residential solar houses Need a step-by-step guide that explains how to put solar panels on your house? Want an unbiased owners perspective? Are you wondering how much it will cost, where to get the financing and how much you'll profit? Check what may be the best and most comprehensive web site focussed on the owners perspective of putting solar panels on your roof. Read the story >>

Mongolia goes green, what about us? Kiva uses microfinance to support green innovation in Mongolia. Fuel for heating is a major cause of pollution throughout the world. The cost of fuel, as it rises, impacts the poorest the most. Read the story >>

Green house emissions pie, energy use pie, easy as pie What is the recipe for sustainability pie? Read the story >>

Bloom Energy, bloomin weird What is all this fuss over Bloom Energy? Read the story >>

Solar Power: Learning from Plants Scientific American magazine is reporting on new insight into how plants can convert sunlight into energy with 95% efficiency. Read the story >>

Michigan Solar House Visiting villages throughout Germany, especially Freiburg, has been inspirational to say the least. I lived in Europe for a month each year (September) in 2006, 2007 and 2008, and had a good chance to study what the Germans and Danes are doing regarding solar, geothermal, hydro power, and wind energy. Driving all through Bavaria in particular blew my mind on our first trip. I have been a renewable energy advocate since the mid-1970s. Moving to northern Michigan in 1976 and living off the land taught me a lot about sustainability, but I still had a lot to learn. These trips provided that education for me. Read the story >>

Apple iPad: World's greenest computer? Check out the power adapter on the iPad. I know most people are oooing and ahhhing over the LED display, the light weight, iBook reader and the ability to run pretty much all of 140,000 iPhone Apps. Big deal. So I can read my books, do most of my work, listen to my music, watch TV, movies, facebook, email, chat, msn, write documents, do spreadsheets, surf the web and from anywhere with wi-fi/G3. Nothing new with all those features. Back to the power adapter. Read the story >>

Electric Wind: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind You must read this book! I've just finished reading the most inspiring true story about a boy from Malawi, Africa, who defies all the odds, survives horrific famine and terrible poverty that denies almost all opportunities, and builds a wind turbine that provides a glimmer of the light that will provide a beacon of hope through the ages. This boy, the author of this remarkable book, is William Kamkwamba. Read the story >>

Canadian solar revolution Five years ago, having come back from Freiburg Germany, the solar capital of Europe, I was inspired by their zero emissions solar PV manufacturing facility there, feed-in tariff driven investment opportunities available to the general public, community owned wind farms, and solar PV on almost every other building I looked at, both residential and commercial. Read the story >>

Sustainable Energy: Without the Hot Air Read this book for free online to understand the numbers behind sustainable energy issues. Read the story >>

Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis Our economic systems are a choice and idea that must change now. In order to create a sustainable world for our children we must now make the choice to change our organizing principles in support of people and a sustainable world for all. Economics must be put in the service of making the world a sustainable, peaceful, equitable community for all. Read the story >>

Here Comes the Sun: Solar Energy Revolution, Investment Opportunity and Social Change Economically, socially and scientifically the only way to avoid disaster is a global switch to 100% renewable energy. Only this can realistically address the challenge. Only with renewable energy is the reserve and growing demand problem resolved, and yes sufficient free supply is available, with more than 1000 times more renewable energy reaching earth from the sun (and available equitably and locally everywhere in the form of solar, geothermal, biomass and wind). Read the story >>

Consume less, buy nothing We want legally binding limits on carbon emissions now! Read the story >>

Aquaponics: A sustainable way to grow food The Aquaponics Guide Book by Bevan Suits has a powerful subtitle, Read the story >>

Powering a Green Planet Wind, water and solar technologies can provide 100 percent of the world's energy, eliminating all fossil fuels. Read the story >>

We will power the world with 100% renewable energy by 2030 How can we possibly convert to 100% renewables in the next 20 years? Jacobson and Delucchi say we'll need 3.8 million large wind turbines, 89,000 300-megawatt solar plants, 490,000 tidal turbines, 1.7 billion rooftop photovoltaic systems, and 900 hydroelectric plants. Read the story >>

Best of Sustainable Living: Documentaries Featuring the best of Wilson Natural Home, The Solar Village and Hope for a Change documentary videos produced by John Wilson. Read the story >>

MicroFIT: Green rush in Ontario, save the economy and the planet Investing in solar in Ontario today could be a very lucrative investment at 80.2 cents/kW. At that rate, with a good sized solar PV (photovoltaic) installation on your roof, you could be looking at a return on your investment within ten years or less given the improving efficiencies and cost of the technology. As of October 1, 2009 you can submit your start to the feed-in tariff contracting process. Start now and the system will save your pending information until you are ready to submit. Read the story >>

What makes a good city? Design it for poor people. Cities are for all people. Public places are where all can share in the good of the city. A cities public space should make all the people that live in the city happy. Making people happy requires that they have dignity, are treated equally, and have hope. That is what Enrique Penalosa did as mayor in Bogota Columbia. Read the story >>

Chris Turner Geography of Hope Video With a mix of front-line reporting, analysis and passionate argument, Chris Turner pieces together the glimmers of optimism amid the gloom and the solutions already at work around the world, from Canada Read the story >>

Wind could power China in 20 years Environmental scientists from the U.S. and China estimate that wind power alone could meet China's projected electricity needs for 2030 using wind turbines installed over a combined area nearly the size of Manitoba. Read the story >>

Green Homes - Video Tour Eight Green homes were featured on a Prince Edward County Green Homes Tour organized by the County Sustainability Group as part of the 2009 Sustainable Living Symposium at Loyalist College in Belleville. Read the story >>

Don Ross Green Home Learn how Don started using green electricity from Bullfrog Power, then paid for a solar PV system by eliminating a second car. Read the story >>

How much does it cost to install solar on an average US house? Have you ever wondered what it would cost to install enough solar power for your entire house? Read the story >>

The Solar Industry Gains Ground At a time of economic pain and planetary peril, a renewable global powerhouse takes shape. Just when we need it most. Read the story >>

Documentary showing: Best of Sustainable Living Showcased will be the "Best of" selections from three documentary videos that John Wilson has produced over the last few years showing a progression from what we as individuals can do, to what we can do in our communities and finally showing how we can change our country and through that the world at large. Each short documentary will be introduced by John Wilson who will also take a few questions after each showing. Read the story >>

National Geographic: Plugging into the Sun Solar energy is the most abundant on earth. There is many times more energy from the sun than we need. With a little tweaking of our economic systems, as we've done in the past for oil, solar will be the clean renewable energy of the future. Read the story >>

Pollution tax? It's already here Does the soon to be harmonized provincial sales tax that will soon apply an 8% additional tax on gasoline already create a pollution tax? Read the story >>

Our government should tax fossil fuels If the goal is to reduce burning of fossil fuels, then the most efficient and effective way to do that is: raise the price of fossil fuels. Read the story >>

Sustainable home workshop: An owners perspective John WIlson will present his popular sustainable living workshop that explains the process he used to create a "Natural dream" home. Presented on location, about an hour north of Toronto, at their Natural Home, in the beautiful Hockley Valley. Read the story >>

SunFest 2009: Solar, straw bale, sustainble house tour Learn about how you can start using solar and wind power today, off or on-the-grid. Find out about the advantages of straw bale construction. See all of the ideas you can use for being more efficient. See how it all works. Ask questions about any concerns you have. Read the story >>

Invest in Solar Power with the Green Energy Act The time to invest in solar photovoltaic panels is now in Ontario. Get ready to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the Green Energy Act to add solar panels to your house or commercial building. Read the story >>

Incentives to Go Green Leading companies recognize that social, environmental, economic and ethical factors directly affect their business strategy and success. As sustainability becomes an integral part of the executive agenda, organizations need to find the right balance between generating profits and reducing the impact of operations on people and the environment. Read the story >>

Hybrid Transportation: From Hype to Hit 1.3 million hybrid vehicles have been sold in the U.S. since 1999. 2,000+ hybrid buses are in use in cities including New York, Philadelphia, Minneapolis, Ann Arbor and Washington, providing 25-35% improvement in fuel efficiency and up to a 90% reduction in soot pollutants. Read the story >>

Generate Income with Solar Power You can generate income with solar power. Find out exactly how from someone who has done it. Read the story >>

Plugging Ontario into a Green Future Plugging Ontario Into A Green Future lays out an action plan for achieving Minister Smitherman's goal of enhancing the contributions of renewable energy,conservation and distributed generation and shows how doing so will assist Ontario in meeting its climate targets and create new green jobs. According to the OPA, the Ontario government must decide early in 2009 whether to rebuild or replace the Pickering B nuclear station scheduled to come offline in 2013. A similar decision about the Bruce B nuclear station must be made within the mandate of this government as well. 2 However, by framing these two decisions as either rebuild or replace nuclear stations, the OPA has failed to consider the option of expanding renewable energy beyond the minimum in the supply mix directive. Instead, the OPA has given the government an unpalatable choice: rebuild old reactors at high cost and high risk or build new nuclear plants by 2020. Both options increase fossil generation until reactors are refurbished r built, resulting in the risk of higher greenhouse gas emissions. Read the story >>

Upgraded Solar Power and Green Roof Added 1.2kW solar array that doubles as an awning. Also, check out the now thriving green roof. Read the story >>