Sometimes we forget how awesome Edmonton is!!!  Our good friend and colleague Shafraaz Kaba has been on an adventure with his family for the past few years.  And we are not talking about a "stay-cation" or a relaxing trip to the Rockies.

The Kaba family has tirelessly and diligently been "Chasing Net-Zero" throughout the design and construction of their home and have been sharing their stories and discoveries along the way in person and on their blog chasingnetzero.blogspot.com .  We were happy to help where we could during the interior work, and always had a great time meeting the vast network of people Shafraaz had called on for some good ole' skill sharing and building.

The result has been an amazing home, dreamt up by a family, executed by an amazing team, and built by a community.

The highlight for us was when David Suzuki and his daughter Sarika spent the day at the Kaba house, learning all about the unique aspects of the homes systems, construction and finishes, while filming for their new show "the Suzuki Diaries".  They even donned safety glasses and work gloves, and with a nail gun in hand, helped finish off the second floor patio!! Amazing!

The Episode will air on CBC this week so be sure to check out the Suzuki Diaries website to see when it airs in your region, or watch it online!

(Reposted from Metro)

Yegwood throwing a launch party Dec. 17 at DaCapo Cafe for their new line of environmentally-friendly sunglasses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Edmonton entrepreneur Joey Hundert started his latest venture, he knew Yegwood (eco-friendly Wayfarer style shades) was a great idea, but he also knew he needed more than an event to spread the word. 

“The frames are all-natural woods, typically cut from one solid block of wood. We choose wood because it tells such a great story, whether it’s a recycled century-old abandoned bar, old maritime ships, or beetle-kill from B.C. This is visible in the constant grain patterns on our glasses, where the rings and sometimes even knots can be distinguished,” Hundert explains. 

While the concept is cool, it’s a mouthful to sell. So Hundert and his team got creative.

Relying on the old adage of a picture being worth a thousand words, the team decided to blend an event with a photo contest in order to test the market.

“We sponsored Sustainival, the eco-friendly carnival that took place at the Fringe Festival and that was our first public outing,” says Hundert. “People truly freaked out over our stuff. We held a photo contest at the Fringe and it sparked a huge wave of viral interest in our online story and story.”

In fact, over 30,000 people viewed the contest website during the 10 day festival.

The contest winner garnered over 500 votes alone.

That was enough evidence to get Hundert to organize a stand-alone event for the new line on Dec. 17 at DaCapo Cafe (8739 109 St.).

“We’re throwing a launch party to celebrate the new line of Yegwood sunglasses.”

In addition to being entertained by one of Edmonton’s most legendary DJ’s (Remo de Janeiro), Yegwood is hosting another photo contest where contestants sport one of the new pairs of shades, style it up, and get their photo snapped in a photo booth by a local pro.

The pics are then uploaded to Facebook and yegwood.com where people will vote for their favourite glam shot.

The winner walks away with a custom pair of wood frames worth over $400 and some cool art from Latitude 53. For more information, visit yegwood.com

Yegwood launch party is Dec. 17 at DaCapo Cafe

Hello everyone,

FOR ONE DAY ONLY, June 4th 2011 from noon-4pm you can see what was once impossible realized!

We <3 the Eco-Solar Home tour and are super excited that there are 9 sites to visit this year! And it's FREE!

These homes in the Edmonton area are showcasing:

solar electricity

solar water heating

geothermal heating

energy efficiency

combined heat and power

and 3 net-zero energy houses (!!!)

Come join us! We will be having fun, as we do, so come out and learn how we can ALL SAVE MONEY reducing OUR heating, electricity and water bills, and OUR environmental footprint.

Check out their web site at www.ecosolar.ca for all the details about the tour and the houses.  There is even a feature in Avenue Magizine this month about the tour!

We are very happy to be monitoring the Sustainable Building Symposium this year! We will be on site both in Edmonton and Calgary tracking things like energy, waste, and water to assist the Canada Green Building Council Alberta Chapter in their goal to reduce their environmental impact at their events!

Look for us at the SBS wearing our cool swank!