When Philadelphia received a mandate from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1997 to improve its combined sewer system, the initial solution wasn’t so great. The plan called for replacing old pipes, building more tunnels—using manmade constructions to better handle stormwater. Streets would be dug up, improvements would be made mostly underground and waterway restoration
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Collin O’Mara’s first two years as the secretary of energy and the environment have given the state of Delaware some serious sustainability bragging rights. Thanks to its youngest appointed cabinet member (he was appointed in 2009 when he was 29 years old), the state now supports green building and energy efficiency programs, the first statewide
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Photo Credit: Chris Crisman / Crisman Photo As the end-of-day bell resonates through the halls of Philadelphia’s high schools, the members of EVX Team close their books and pop the hood of a car. But rather than your typical tune up, the team of students from the Academy for Automotive and Mechanical Engineering in West
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Like other influential movements, the Delaware Valley Green Building Council started informally. And like America’s origin story, the seeds of the DVGBC were sown in Carpenters’ Hall.
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Every August, I head up to Maine for vacation. My dad lives on Harpswell peninsula, just south of Brunswick, and my girlfriend’s family stays at an inn on the beach in Scarborough, 10 miles south of Portland. This year, I ditched the car and plane for the train and bicycle. The original plan was to
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I never thought I would voluntarily shorten my summer vacation. Sure, I was excited to start my freshman year at Penn, but my plan was to enjoy a long, leisurely vacation in Maine. But at the beginning of the summer, while browsing my new school’s website, a pre-orientation program caught my eye: PennGreen. The five-day
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Each year the Collaborative provides more than 30 service grants to nonprofits. The grants provide organizations with the predevelopment design services necessary to getting their projects off the ground. Below are four of the latest projects from the Collaborative, all offering a unique vision for improving a community.
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Do you ever wonder about napkins? I’m Tyler the Trash Guy, so I think about them constantly. Napkins are almost universally perceived as cost-free items that can be liberally obtained in any quantity, without question. Why do you need napkins? Do you spill food at every sitting? (Do people think I’m dirty for denying them
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Behind a rowhome on Catharine Street, in South Philadelphia’s Bella Vista neighborhood, is a haven for young artists. What was formerly a backyard used for trash storage and HVAC equipment is now a pocket garden for children.
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Thirty years ago, South Philadelphia’s Dickinson Square Park was a mess. “Cans were throughout the whole park. Dog poop was absolutely everywhere. It was a dump,” says Ron Cohen, former president of Friends of Dickinson Square. Cohen has had a third-floor view of the park since his family moved into their apartment in the 1980s.
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