Going green is easier when you have extra green. Earlier today, Town Administrator Mel Kleckner received the green communities grant of $215,000 from the Department of Energy Resources (DOER).
Brookline was named a Green Community by the Governor in July, following an application process that ended in April. Brookline and 21 others were named this year, for a total of 74 others in Massachusetts.
This designation entitled the town to apply for grant funding from the DOER for projects such as LED street lights, a solar array assessment, and a manager and employee energy efficiency awareness program.
"In my conversations with Brookline residents, I have been impressed by their interest in and dedication to environmental issues," said Rep. Ed Coppinger in a press release. "I want to congratulate the Town of Brookline for being designated a Green Community. This impressive achievement reflects Brookline's attempts to make the town more environmentally friendly and will help spur awareness of the important environmental issues facing us today."
Department of Energy Resources (DOER) Commissioner Mark Sylvia today presented six of the state's newest Green Communities - Ayer, Bedford, Brookline, Carlisle, Tewksbury and Woburn - with over $1 million in awards to finance high-efficiency lighting, energy management systems and other clean energy projects.
"Across the Commonwealth, communities are demonstrating that clean energy investments make sense because they cut long-term energy costs, protect the environment and boost our local clean energy economy. We're proud to help them take these efforts to the next level," said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Richard K. Sullivan Jr., whose office includes DOER.
The Green Communities Act, which created DOER's Green Communities program, was cited by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) as a primary reason for ACEEE's recent ranking of Massachusetts as first in the nation its energy efficiency policies and programs, moving California out of the top spot for the first time since the ranking was first published four years ago.
ACEEE's October report pointed to the effectiveness of the Patrick-Murray Administration's integrated approach to creating jobs, helping clean energy businesses thrive, improving energy security and lowering energy costs, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
"This energy conservation grant will help the Town of Ayer save money on energy costs while reducing carbon emissions and protecting our environment. I'm proud to have been a supporter of the Green Communities Act, which has led to smart clean energy investment programs like this one, and am pleased to see Ayer get this funding," said Sen. Jamie Eldridge.
"I am delighted that the Patrick administration has provided communities across the Commonwealth with the opportunity to lower energy costs and consumption," said Sen. Susan Fargo.
"This Green Communities grant, which will allow the city to install energy efficient streetlights and lighting systems in public building, is great for Woburn," said Sen. Patricia Jehlen. "These essential projects, and others like them around the Commonwealth, increasing energy efficiency while saving our municipalities money."
Showing posts with label newspapers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label newspapers. Show all posts
Monday, 19 December 2011
Monday, 28 November 2011
Set decorators use decor to flesh out characters
Our rooms speak volumes about us — and set decorators for television shows specialize in knowing what they can say.
Using colors, accessories and telling details, set decorators help flesh out a character, whether it's a working-class stiff in a worn-in apartment or a wealthy doyenne in a slick salon.
For Los Angeles-based set decorator Lynda Burbank, "homey" means vegetable soup. "I love the soup palette of sage green, burnt orange and warm beige — these colors are very soothing and make people feel comfortable in the set," she says.
For the sitcom "Mike and Molly" on CBS, she packs her sets with details: "Mike's mom's house was a delight to do. I found a fabulous blue recliner with a drink holder where she spends a lot of time. She's surrounded by nail polish and various medications. Her house reflects that she reads a lot, mostly romance novels. She's Irish Catholic, so there are statues that reflect that. When the set first appeared, people came up to me and said it reminded them of their Aunt Sally in Wisconsin, and I was so pleased."
In one scene, Mike's mother's boyfriend Dennis was supposed to represent a cautionary warning to Mike about leading too solitary a life. Burbank put Dennis' personal kit from the Vietnam war on the dining room table, as if he'd been sitting and reliving his past. "Also a couple of shirts on the back of the door in plastic bags from the dry cleaners — so impersonal, so lonely," she recalls.
The room was only seen once, but it drove home a plot point: Mike realizes what might be in store for him if he doesn't take a chance on love, with Molly.
For the pilot of the CBS show "Two Broke Girls" (the show is currently decorated by Amy Feldman), Burbank worked with Glenda Rovello on the loft of a young, wealthy woman who has twin babies and not a clue about motherhood. "The set reflected that, with a lamp shaped like a gun, sharp-edged sculpture and other things that weren't child-friendly," Burbank said.
Clutter and collections of things give a room a "lived-in" look, says Archie D'Amico, set decorator for ABC's "Cougar Town." He also has worked on "Ugly Betty" and "NYPD Blue."
Set decorators have hundreds of prop houses and stores in Los Angeles or New York from which to shop. "Very often I'll need something tomorrow, if not sooner," says Laura Richarz, who has decorated sets on "Married with Children," ''Everybody Loves Chris" and "True Blood."
Richarz says she starts by trying to see the room "through the eyes of the characters that live there. What would happen on a daily basis in this set if it were a real home? Who uses it, how old are they, what's their means of support? Do they watch TV, do handcrafts?"
Beth Kushnik, set decorator on CBS' "The Good Wife," notes that while the main character's world was downsized after a divorce, "she still had a comfortable degree of wealth. Her apartment was created as if she'd hired a decorator to give her and her two teenagers a relaxed haven. I used lush fabrics, silk lamp shades and beautiful linens."
Using colors, accessories and telling details, set decorators help flesh out a character, whether it's a working-class stiff in a worn-in apartment or a wealthy doyenne in a slick salon.
For Los Angeles-based set decorator Lynda Burbank, "homey" means vegetable soup. "I love the soup palette of sage green, burnt orange and warm beige — these colors are very soothing and make people feel comfortable in the set," she says.
For the sitcom "Mike and Molly" on CBS, she packs her sets with details: "Mike's mom's house was a delight to do. I found a fabulous blue recliner with a drink holder where she spends a lot of time. She's surrounded by nail polish and various medications. Her house reflects that she reads a lot, mostly romance novels. She's Irish Catholic, so there are statues that reflect that. When the set first appeared, people came up to me and said it reminded them of their Aunt Sally in Wisconsin, and I was so pleased."
In one scene, Mike's mother's boyfriend Dennis was supposed to represent a cautionary warning to Mike about leading too solitary a life. Burbank put Dennis' personal kit from the Vietnam war on the dining room table, as if he'd been sitting and reliving his past. "Also a couple of shirts on the back of the door in plastic bags from the dry cleaners — so impersonal, so lonely," she recalls.
The room was only seen once, but it drove home a plot point: Mike realizes what might be in store for him if he doesn't take a chance on love, with Molly.
For the pilot of the CBS show "Two Broke Girls" (the show is currently decorated by Amy Feldman), Burbank worked with Glenda Rovello on the loft of a young, wealthy woman who has twin babies and not a clue about motherhood. "The set reflected that, with a lamp shaped like a gun, sharp-edged sculpture and other things that weren't child-friendly," Burbank said.
Clutter and collections of things give a room a "lived-in" look, says Archie D'Amico, set decorator for ABC's "Cougar Town." He also has worked on "Ugly Betty" and "NYPD Blue."
Set decorators have hundreds of prop houses and stores in Los Angeles or New York from which to shop. "Very often I'll need something tomorrow, if not sooner," says Laura Richarz, who has decorated sets on "Married with Children," ''Everybody Loves Chris" and "True Blood."
Richarz says she starts by trying to see the room "through the eyes of the characters that live there. What would happen on a daily basis in this set if it were a real home? Who uses it, how old are they, what's their means of support? Do they watch TV, do handcrafts?"
Beth Kushnik, set decorator on CBS' "The Good Wife," notes that while the main character's world was downsized after a divorce, "she still had a comfortable degree of wealth. Her apartment was created as if she'd hired a decorator to give her and her two teenagers a relaxed haven. I used lush fabrics, silk lamp shades and beautiful linens."
Wednesday, 19 October 2011
America Recycles Day at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
You can help Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and its efforts to promote sustainability by bringing your recyclables to the Zoo on Sunday, November 13, in celebration of America Recycles Day.
Everyone is invited to get in the conservation spirit and drop off select recyclables at the Zoo in exchange for one free admission with the purchase of a regular admission.
Eligible recyclables include aluminum cans, newspapers, catalogs, junk mail, office paper, inkjet and toner cartridges and cell phones and accessories. Free document shredding presented by Shredding Network will be available until 2 p.m. with a limit of five bags/boxes.
Visitors also can bring used athletic shoes, running shoes and sneakers of any brand for the Nike Reuse-A-Shoe program. No shoes containing metal, cleats, dress shoes or sandals will be accepted.
Proceeds from aluminum cans collected will benefit elephant ecology research and conservation efforts in southern Africa.
America Recycles Day also features exhibitors who promote other aspects of “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle,” backyard compost bins will be available for sale through the Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District and a rain barrel workshop will be held (pre-registration required for workshop).
The Zoo can help you make every day a recycle day. Compact fluorescent light bulbs, cell phones, batteries and accessories and ink jet and toner cartridges can be dropped off any day at the recycling station in the Zoo’s Exhibit Hall. Newspapers, magazines, junk mail and shredded paper (bagged) can be deposited in the yellow and green Abitibi-Bowater Paper Retriever bins in the rear of the Hippo Parking Lot behind The RainForest.
Northeast Ohio’s most-visited year-round attraction, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission is $11 per person, $8 for kids ages 2 to 11 and free for children younger than 2 and Zoo members. Parking is free.
Everyone is invited to get in the conservation spirit and drop off select recyclables at the Zoo in exchange for one free admission with the purchase of a regular admission.
Eligible recyclables include aluminum cans, newspapers, catalogs, junk mail, office paper, inkjet and toner cartridges and cell phones and accessories. Free document shredding presented by Shredding Network will be available until 2 p.m. with a limit of five bags/boxes.
Visitors also can bring used athletic shoes, running shoes and sneakers of any brand for the Nike Reuse-A-Shoe program. No shoes containing metal, cleats, dress shoes or sandals will be accepted.
Proceeds from aluminum cans collected will benefit elephant ecology research and conservation efforts in southern Africa.
America Recycles Day also features exhibitors who promote other aspects of “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle,” backyard compost bins will be available for sale through the Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District and a rain barrel workshop will be held (pre-registration required for workshop).
The Zoo can help you make every day a recycle day. Compact fluorescent light bulbs, cell phones, batteries and accessories and ink jet and toner cartridges can be dropped off any day at the recycling station in the Zoo’s Exhibit Hall. Newspapers, magazines, junk mail and shredded paper (bagged) can be deposited in the yellow and green Abitibi-Bowater Paper Retriever bins in the rear of the Hippo Parking Lot behind The RainForest.
Northeast Ohio’s most-visited year-round attraction, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission is $11 per person, $8 for kids ages 2 to 11 and free for children younger than 2 and Zoo members. Parking is free.
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