Tag Archives: environment

Tell a Story, an Environmental Story

I’m sure there’s a story behind this mess.

Storytellng can shape a culture. That’s a powerful statement. It is a statement that reminds and reassures me why I created this website. I created it to tell the stories of the people making an impact on the environmental field. There isn’t a thorough understanding of what environmental professionals do or how they live their life. Those outside the field barely have a surficial understanding of what we do. I wasn’t thinking about culture when I started; I just wanted to give environmental professionals a place to tell their stories. If I’m influencing the culture, well that’s pretty cool. Continue reading →

“The Power of Habit” Applied to Healthy Facilities

One story in The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, by Charles Duhigg, opened my eyes to how much of my work over the past 15 years has been trying to break a habit loop.That is the story of former Alcoa CEO, Paul O’Neill, who improved the entire company focusing only on the keystone habit of safe work practices. I’ve been doing something similar in my job without understanding the science behind it.

The Power of Habit is bestseller is about how our lives, work, and social patterns are driven by habits. Duhigg describes how we can change bad habits and use good ones to our advantage. There is a lot of value in this book, both professionally and personally.

Continue reading →

Environment of Snowbird: A Deep Commitment to Environmental Stewardship

Most ski resorts promote some level of environmental conservation. They typically promote the basics – water and energy conservation and climate change. But they might not be going that deep or wide with their environmental commitment. Not Snowbird. Snowbird’s commitment goes way beyond the basic talking points. For starters, they have an impressive Director of Sustainability & Water Resources, Hilary Arens. I met with Hilary Arens at the iconic Cliff Lodge at the base of Snowbird Resort in the Wasatch Mountains outside of Salt Lake City, UT to talk about Snowbird’s environmental commitment and projects. Continue reading →

Environment of Big Sky Resort: Water, Snow Making and Land Use

Big Sky Resort in Montana is aptly named. The views from the top of Lone Mountain are breathtaking. Stepping off the tram onto the top of Lone Mountain, soaking in the view, and then skiing down the mountain is an experience I’d recommend to every skier or boarder. The combination of a beautiful location in the mountains, a semi-arid climate, and a growing town within the greater Yellowstone ecosystem presents several environmental challenges. Two that immediately came to mind for me are water use and land use and development. Sure enough, I came across interesting things happening in both areas. Let’s take a look at the environment of Big Sky. Continue reading →

Contamination, Where Are You?

One of the themes I convey through my work is that environmental compliance isn’t only for tree huggers and protecting the environment. It’s about protecting yourself from hazardous exposures. First from direct exposure while working with and around hazardous materials. Second from exposures to contaminated air, water, and land. When the conversation turns to people’s own health and safety or the contamination of their favorite fishing hole, their interest picks up. Then they want to know, “How do I find out where all the contamination is located?” So, contamination, where are you? Continue reading →

GABF Media Experience: The Good, The Bad and The D’Oh!

The 2018 Great American Beer Festival was the first time I attended the GABF as part of the beer media. I wrote a series of articles for the fest on the “environment of beer.” Throughout it all I had good experiences, found a couple of things that didn’t work, and made an audio mistake that ruined my video. Here’s my breakdown of the GABF media experience: the good, the bad and the D’Oh!. Continue reading →

Environment and Sustainability of the Great American Beer Fest and Colorado Convention Center

Photo © Brewers Association

Every fall, hundreds of brewers, thousands of beers, and thousands of attendees visit the Colorado Convention Center in Denver for a 3-day competition and celebration of beer. It’s the Great American Beer Fest. What you might not know is the connection between brewing quality beer and taking care of the environment. For example, you can’t drink good beer without good water. As part of my Environment of Beer series, here’s a look at the environmental initiatives of the Festival and the host convention center. If you’re attending the Fest and see a guy asking and writing about the environment of beer, stop and say, Hi. It’s probably me. Cheers. Continue reading →

Guide to Drinking the Best Alcohol for the Environment

What’s the best alcohol for the environment? Beer, wine, whisky, vodka, cider? Unfortunately, there isn’t one easy answer. But there is a path to drink a more environmentally friendly booze. I’ll show you that path by presenting the factors that make your favorite drink more or less earth-friendly. There’s a plethora of information here, including the debate between bottles and cans. This is your guide to drinking the best alcohol for the environment.

Here’s the path to drinking the best alcohol for the environment. Continue reading →

Torg Brewery: A Passion for Good Beer from an Environmental Background

Torg (Old Norse) – town square or plaza, a traditional space for community gatherings.

In a time when breweries are pushing the envelope, creating and redefining beer styles with flavors, high alcohol content, dryness, sweetness, etc., I was intrigued by Torg Brewery, who brews good approachable craft beer. You can see it in their mission statement. Most breweries have a story and/or a mission, but most of them don’t state it so eloquently.

With a focus on creating that perfect balance between malt and hops to craft a truly friendly, quaffable beer, it is Torg Brewery’s pleasure to serve our patrons the rich complexity and marvelous flavors that water, grain, hops, and yeast combine to create. Continue reading →

Bridger Brewing: Environmental Background, Beer, Art, and GABF

There is often a connection between good craft beer and the environment. It can be supporting causes, reducing energy and water, or waste reduction through recycling and composting. For Bridger Brewing in Bozeman, MT it began with an environmental professional who turned his passion for good beer into a great brewery. But that wasn’t the first or even second thing that attracted me to their brew pub near the campus of Montana State University. Continue reading →

The National Environmental Professional

The people, places, and thoughts that make up the environmental professional lifestyle