“Pick a Day, Commute Another Way.” That’s the theme of this week’s Massachusetts Car-Free Week, when the state joins over 1,000 cities in 40 countries around the world to encourage motorists to leave their cars at home and try bicycling, walking, public transit, carpooling, or vanpooling to work. With transportation as the state’s largest and…
Sep 18
2013
2013
Apr 4
2013
2013
CLF Ventures to Offer Food Hub Webinar
CLF Ventures is working with Wholesome Wave Foundation to offer a complimentary webinar about the Food Safety Modernization Act and implications for food hub operators. The food hub work with Wholesome Wave continues CLF Ventures’ efforts to build capacity and develop resources for sustainable food organizations in New England. Proposed FDA Food Safety Modernization Act Requirements…
Mar 27
2013
2013
Local Farms Need Local Markets
Local food is all the rage, but how do you affordably and conveniently get that food from the local farm to the local table? It’s a question a lot of people are asking — and one we at CLF Ventures (CLFV) are working to answer. CLFV explored some emerging models that seek to connect small…
Feb 27
2013
2013
Financing a Growing Appetite for Sustainable Food
CLF and CLF Ventures couldn’t be more excited about the opportunities for innovation in financing that build our regional food system. We’re working to foster greater investment in the innovations that will transform our communities, make us more self-sufficient and resilient to climate change, and build a sector that will sustain us over the long…
Jan 11
2013
2013
You Say ‘Food Waste,’ I Say ‘Renewable Energy’: New DEP Regs Create Pathway for Anaerobic Digestion
Burying our garbage in landfills is a waste of resources, but it’s also a convenient way to get rid of stuff we don’t need or want. If there were clear alternatives to trashing our resources, would we use them? The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) believes the answer is yes. The DEP has finalized…
Dec 3
2012
2012
Nanotechnology: The Potential to Make Every Industry Sustainable
With every innovation in the 20th century, one pattern stands out: where technology advances, a rise in public concern follows. From HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey to wireless devices, new technology gives rise to new questions and new concerns. This is certainly true of nanotechnology – a topic on which I’ve written extensively, and which has been the subject of vigorous debate.
Sep 19
2012
2012
Smooth Sailing with Clean Diesel
In 2011, CLF Ventures, the strategy-consulting arm of CLF, received a grant from the EPA to help two New England fishing/whale watching vessels replace the aging, inefficient engines on their vessels with cleaner-burning, more efficient four-stroke diesel engines. In this video, Captain Brad Cook of the Atlantic Queen II and Captain Chris Charos of Captain’s…
Aug 28
2012
2012
Generating Clean Energy and Efficiency Across Massachusetts
How does a community balance the potential costs of siting clean energy projects with the economic benefits they provide? What are the local economic realities of hosting distributed clean energy generation facilities and energy efficiency projects in a community? CLF Ventures explored these questions and others in a recent webinar we co-sponsored with the Massachusetts…
Aug 16
2012
2012
Another Move Forward for Urban Agriculture
Warren (where I live) has become the first municipality in the state of Rhode Island to lease town-owned land to a farmer. The Warren Town Council unanimously agreed to lease two acres of land at the Community Farm and Gardens to Bleu Grijalva, founder and executive director of New Urban Farmers. The New Urban Farmers…
Jul 12
2012
2012
The Promise of Urban Agriculture: New Growing Green Report
I am excited to share with you the news that today CLF and CLF Ventures released a report that, for the first time, details the economic development potential for urban agriculture in Greater Boston, assesses its environmental and health co-benefits, and examines current market and policy barriers to expanded food production in Greater Boston. The report‘s findings confirm that urban agriculture can play an important role in creating a more livable, carbon resilient, healthier, economically vibrant, and environmentally sustainable city—if we put smart policies in place and encourage market development for Boston grown foods.