Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building

Whenever I arrive at a coffee shop or coworking space, the first thing I do is scope out the power outlets. Between a smartphone, laptop, and occasionally a tablet too, keeping my mobile office up and running requires quick access to power if my batteries get low. Unfortunately, outlets aren’t always available. The sun, however, is much easier to find. The Port Solar Charger from XD Design allows gadget geeks to turn any window into a power outlet – simply attach the circular disk, and anytime you’ve got sunlight you’ll be able to keep your devices charged.

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Post tags: "solar energy", alternative energy, backup power, clean tech, green gadgets, green tech, Port Solar Charger, renewable energy, solar charger, solar phone charger, Solar Power, window solar charger, XD Design

Although solar power’s return on investment has been debated endlessly, it now looks like the renewable energy source has finally become as cheap as buying off the grid – at least in some European countries. Renewable energy consulting firm Eclareon just released a report confirming that the price of solar power in Germany, Italy and Spain has finally reached what is referred to as “grid parity.” While grid parity has quite a few variables, it means that, over the course of the equipment’s lifetime, the total cost of installing solar panels is now on par with the costs associated with buying from the country’s grid system.

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Post tags: "solar energy", current news on solar energy, grid parity, grid parity in europe, home solar installation, renewable energy in europe, renewable energy news, solar panels, solar power costs, solar power installation

Google recently announced its biggest renewable energy purchase to date (and that’s saying something: the company has already invested $5 million in a German solar power plant and bought enough wind energy in Texas to power 170,000 US homes.) Just after Earth Day, Google announced a partnership with solar cell manufacturer SunPower Corporation that will establish a $250 million dollar fund to buy–and then lease–thousands of solar panels to American homeowners. Google and SunPower claim the initiative will allow Americans to access solar energy at “a cost that’s typically lower than their normal electricity bill.”

Google solar panels, Google solar leasing, SunPower solar panels, SunPower solar leasing, Google and SunPower, residential solar lease projects, rooftop solar leases

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Post tags: Google and SunPower, Google solar leasing, Google solar panels, residential solar lease projects, rooftop solar leases, SunPower solar leasing, SunPower solar panels

Somewhere between Yuma and Phoenix, Arizona on a desolate stretch of 2,400 acres of land, construction was just completed on the world’s largest fully-operational solar-power plant. Known as Agua Caliente, the renewable energy plant can generate 290 megawatts at peak capacity – which is enough to power 230,000 homes and is comparable to the energy output of the average coal-fired power plant. The power will be used by the San Francisco-based Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and it’s just one more step in California’s plan to source a third of its power from renewable sources.

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Post tags: "solar energy", Agua Caliente, Agua Caliente solar plant, Arizona solar plant, california renewable energy, california solar power, federally funded energy, federally funded renewable energy, federally funded solar power, first solar, green energy, Ivanpah solar, Ivanpah solar thermal energy, largest solar plant, midamerican solar, nrg energy, renewable energy, San Francisco solar power, Solar Power, world's largest solar plant

A Maryland-based energy company plans to build a gigantic tower that could tap solar and wind resources to generate 500 megawatts of energy. The Solar Wind Energy Tower is planned for a location on the Arizona-Mexico border, and it could be the second-tallest structure in the United States. The company plans to start construction by 2018.

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Post tags: "clean energy", "wind power", Energy skyscraper, Energy Tower, energy-producing tower, green technology, kinetic energy, Maryland clean energy company. Arizona energy tower, renewable energy, renewable energy sources, Solar Power, Solar Wind Energy Tower, wind turbines

Researchers at Northwestern University just unveiled a new solar cell that can be manufactured for less money using fewer harmful elements. Inorganic chemist Mercouri G. Kanatzidis and Robert P. H. Chang collaborated to create a perovskite crystal solar panel that replaces harmful lead with tin – a less expensive and more environmentally friendly material.

solar cell, sun, renewable energy, sky, clouds

northwestern university, solar cell, tin, renewable energy, solar energy

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Post tags: conflict mineral, East africa, lead, Mercouri G. Kanatzidis, nothwestern university, organometal trihalides, perovskite cell, photovoltaic cell, pv, renewable energy, Robert P. H. Chang, russia, silicon cell, tin

As President Obama makes his way to California to preach the gospel of solar power, his words have become action back home in Washington D.C. After years of waiting, the White House solar array is now fully installed and has been switched on. Finally, the most important house in the nation has a rooftop solar power plant that reduces dependence on fossil fuels and sets an example for the rest of us. Early in his presidency, clean energy advocates encouraged Obama to replace the White House solar panels that were removed during the Reagan administration. The White House finally agreed in October 2010, although work didn’t begin until August, 2013.

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Post tags: Barack Obama solar energy, Climate Change, renewable energy, solar panels on the White House, White House on Climate Change, White House solar array, white house solar panels, White House solar power

Most of the time we rely on governments or large companies to help us make the shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy, but one community in Spain took matters into its own hands and created a collective to build a 20-kW solar plant right in their own town. Building a community renewable energy resource – like Huerta Solar Amigos de la Tierra in Sistane, Spain – is one option that ordinary citizens in Spain have explored in an effort to go green, but consumers in Spain don’t have to stop there. People can also purchase green energy through energy collectives, which buy renewable energy at an affordable rate from traditional power utilities, giving citizens of Spain the group power to make real change in their communities.

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Post tags: community green energy, community renewable energy, green energy, renewable energy, Spain community green energy, Spain community green living, Spain community renewable energy, Spain community renewable energy projects, Spain community solar, Spain community solar power, Spain community solar projects, Spain community wind, Spain community wind power, Spain energy, Spain energy collectives, Spain purchasing energy

Bloomberg Philanthropies just invested $5 million to bring the popular solar-powered Little Sun lamp to communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. Designed by off-grid light to communities that currently rely on dangerous kerosene lamps. Thanks to the investment, the solar lamps will be available for less than the cost of kerosene in these communities.

green design, eco design, sustainable design, solar lamp, Little Sun, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Olafur Eliasson, Frederick Ottesen, Off the grid lighting

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Post tags: Bloomberg Philanthropies, eco design, frederick ottesen, green design, little sun, off the grid lighting, Olafur Eliasson, solar lamp, sustainable design

A new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that solar energy could become the biggest generator of electricity worldwide by 2050 if the right policies are put in place. The paper, entitled Energy Technology Perspectives 2014 – Harnessing Electricity’s Potential, says that a combination of solar photovoltaics and concentrated solar thermal is likely to provide 26 percent of global generation with the overall share of renewables reaching 65 percent and energy efficiency reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent.

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Post tags: "clean energy", "wind power", Climate Change, coal, Electricity, fossil fuels, global warming, IEA, International Energy Agency, oil, renewables, solar

Read the rest of SmileSolar Watch: One Hour of Sunlight Provides Three Months of Battery Life

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Post tags: eco-friendly watches, Q&Q Solar Smile Watches, Q&Q Solar Watches, Q&Q Watches, Sight Unseen exhibition, solar powered gadgets, solar-powered watches

One of the largest multi-family apartment complex solar thermal and solar photovoltaic projects of the decade was just completed in California. Los Angeles-based solar company ReGreen retrofitted 34 apartment complexes across the state for real estate company Goldrich & Kest Industries. The three megawatts of installed solar capacity include 1,200 Heliodyne solar thermal panels and 1,664 ecoSolargy solar PV panels.

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Post tags: alternative energy, apartment, California, California solar, Goldrich and Krest, largest apartments in US with solar, massive solar complex in California, ReGreen, renewable energy, solar, solar pv, solar thermal

The Port Solar Charger Turns Any Window into a Power Outlet for Your Mobile Gadgets

Brad Pitt’s “Make It Right” Transforms Historic School into LEED Platinum Affordable Housing

Solar Power is Now as Cheap as Buying From the Grid – in Europe

Google Invests $100 Million to Make Solar Panels More Affordable for American Homeowners

Solar Roadways Unveils Super Strong Solar Panels for Roads in Prototypical Parking Lot

Tiny Floating SAFE+ Tsunami Shelters Double as Karaoke Booths in Non-Emergencies

The World’s Largest Fully-Operational Solar Plant Opens in Arizona

Massive Solar Wind Energy Tower Proposed for the U.S.-Mexico Border

Solar Cell Breakthrough Replaces Harmful Lead With Less Expensive Tin

Sand Babel: Solar-Powered Twisting Skyscrapers 3D-Printed with Desert Sands

White House Solar Panels Fire Up for the First Time Since Jimmy Carter Left

Individuals in Spain Turn to Community Collectives for Renewable Energy

Beautiful Electree Mini is a Bonsai Tree-Shaped Solar Charger for Your Smartphone

Adjustable Shutters Allow for Optimal Daylighting in Portugal’s Miramar House

Bloomberg Invests $5 Million to Bring the Little Sun Solar Lamp to Sub-Saharan Africa

Baltimore’s Solar-Powered Water Wheel Can Devour 50,000 Pounds of Harbor Trash Every Day

Report: Solar Power Could be the World’s Top Energy Source by 2050

Volvo’s Stunning Pure Tension Pavilion is a Lightweight Sun-Powered Charging Station

SmileSolar Watch: One Hour of Sunlight Provides Three Months of Battery Life

Massive Multi-Family Apartment Complex Solar Installation Completed in California