Green roofs installations are down, what does it mean?

For the first time since they started keeping records, Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC) reported in 2014, among corporate members in North America, green roof installations were down 10%. What does it mean?
GRHC offers a few possible explanations as to why, after years of posting strong numbers according to their methodology, the industry suffered what appears to be a downswing:

-A few key federal subsidies ended last year;
-Private sector companies may be sitting on capital rather than investing them in building improvements.

I believe both of these could have contributed to the lower numbers. We should also remember a few other things:

-Not all firms in the industry are (or are required to be) GRHC members;
-Not all firms are willing (or have the time) to participate in the survey;

So what we've had in the past, and will continue to have, are data from a fraction of the projects. To know how many roofs were actually done, I would think more exhaustive research techniques might be necessary. Contacting medium suppliers, regardless of their affiliation, to see how many projects they are aware of. Plant suppliers are well. 

-And while we are chatting about publications, here are a couple from the academic realm. The first attempts to quantify how well mature green roofs retain water. Can they green roofs really be used for flood mitigation? The second focuses on a specific type of turfgrass used on green roofs and asks the question, how do you best take care of it?

Vegetable songs

So you love the piano and you love veggies, what if I told you it was possible to combine the two? 100 years ago Cliff Hess and Fred e. Ahlert released a song about beets and turnips. Scroll down on the far right side to see the score.

Hours and hours and hours of permaculture design!

Here's an entire permaculture design course by two pioneers. Start with this one and buckle down for the next umpteen hours...

Agriburbia in Missouri

If you know foraging, you know Wildman Steve Brill. Rarely do we get background on his life, here's a little bit. And check out his old school website!

-Remember that urban farm in Vancouver which shut down and then was taken over by a company to possibly grow marijuana?  Business in Vancouver has an update on the situation

-Agriburbia hits Columbia, Missouri with the construction of a new housing development with an urban farm as it's focal point.

-If you're an urban farmer in Baltimore, rejoice, there's a new 90% property tax break for urban farmers!

-Sydney, Australia is getting an urban farm. The Daily Telegraph doesn't like that at all!

DIY Raised Bed for urban agriculture

Here's a nifty way to take some of the work out of watering your garden, the self-watering raised bed! Complete with detailed instructions, this video is a great find!

GILA word of the week: Green roof + cool roof = cool-green roof!

Talk about smart. This social entrepreneur grows plants on vacant lots in the USA, which are harvested as dyes for garments, which are in turn woven by women in India.

-This is the first article about horticultural therapy, that I've read, detailing how it helps young people!

-Farmscape Gardens is the very definition of "under the radar". They maintain 400 gardens in California, but very few people outside the state (according to my unscientific poll!) have heard of them.

 -According to a new research paper by a team of Australians, just 40 seconds looking at nature can sharpen the mind. Last week seemed to be the time to drop hard core research, because a literature review revealed that despite almost 12,000 relevant studies there needs to be more emphasis focused on finding a direct relationship between food security, nutrition and urban agriculture.
And last, but not least, what would happen if you combined the features of a green roof and cool roof? You get the cool green roof and a total game changer.

The future of farming today

What will farming look like in the future? At Expo Milano, which kicked off last week, the architects at the US pavilion think vertical farming will be key. This year's Expo theme is "Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life". $60 million was raised to put the pavilion together!

-Dubai has a vision for 2020 and has set aside over half a billion dollars to green 12,000 hectares of land (which would be 8% of their total space) with landscaping and horticultural projects.

Quezon City signs incentives for green roofs and green walls

 
Quezon City, the Philippines largest city, recently approved tax discounts for residential, industrial or commercial buildings which install green roof or green walls! This makes it the first, and only municipality on Earth, to offer incentives for both green technologies!

Last week was filled with so many big news stories...

-In Montreal an organic farming initiative was launched to cultivate vacant land. The hope is by 2019 to have an operation "the size of 55 football fields"!

-Across the province in Quebec City the first rooftop farm on a homeless shelter began it's growing season. It will supply about 1/3 of its growing needs.

-In Wisconsin, the Aquaponics Innovation Center opened last week. With the help of $677,000 in federal funding, the "center will provide education and resources for economic and workforce development". If you're really interested in a career in aquaponics as a career, have a peek at this new job site.

-Yesterday was National Permaculture Day in Australia. I'll have a roundup later in the week on the best activities in Oz.

-A new agrihood is sprouting up in North Carolina on 230 acres of functioning farmland. The developers envision educational events for students, in addition to the working community farm.

-The vertical farming sector is growing every day. However for most people some of the most basic facts are hard to find out. For instance, how big is vertical farming or indoor farming worldwide? In China, according to one researcher, they grow 25% of their food indoors already!
How much does it cost to start a vertical farming operation? In South Korea at least we know it's roughly 10 times the cost of a standard, glass greenhouse.

Ball parks going green

Baseball season is underway and a new rooftop garden in Boston (planted with high school student's help!) has generated a lot of publicity.

But there are plenty of other ballparks embracing the latest in green technology. A new team in Tennessee has its own green roof and LEED certification to boot. And an IKEA in Copenhagen is getting in on the fun as well with it's green roof serving as a multi-purpose sport field

Of all the sports, soccer seems to be the trendsetter, as teams have adopted green roofing prominently in 2010 and 2012.

Community gardening job opportunity in the Artic!

Here's a truly unique opportunity in Inuvik and only one day left to apply!