“The further the spiritual evolution of mankind advances, the more certain it seems to me that the path to genuine religiosity does not lie through the fear of life, and the fear of death, and blind faith, but through striving after rational knowledge.” Albert Einstein, it seems may have been a huge inspiration to the people of Black Rock City at this year’s Burning Man festival. Almost a continuation from 2007’s ‘Green Man’ theme, 2009’s ‘Evolution’ theme philosophized about and demonstrated how we got to where we are, why we find ourselves in this state of ‘eco mania’ and what its part is in the overall evolution of man and our consciousness. If that sounds a bit full on, let me tell you, my mind is still boggling at some of the speakers and surrounding discussions. The vast array of sub topics surrounding this main topic of evolution is phenomenal, especially because it is so intrinsically connected with the age of environmentalism we find ourselves in today.

An idea of what kind of seminars and discussions you could wander in to at Burning Man this year (and indeed in many eco ‘conscious communities’ around the world):
Evolution in Action; Evolution of the Conscious Mind; and Conscious Community – an exploration of community outside belonging. Some of the eco oriented workshops included: Karma Chickens’ Power and Water Tour (learn the efficiencies of an experienced desert camp runs their grey water, shower, battery and solar power facilities); Black Rock Solar (shows you how to create your own alternative energy installation); Harvesting Rainwater and Grey water and the Eco-Fabulous Re-Fashion Show. There are also a lot of educational talks (Technomadic Lifestyle Workshop in which I learnt how to combine technology and travel to live and work on the road. Digital nomad-ism and location independent living – interesting tips!), healing workshops (Tai Chi Wake up, Didgeridoo & Sounding Bowl Shamanic Journey and Tool Reflection Meditation) and plenty of fun workshops/installations (Make Your own Hula Hoop, Sunscreen Station, Darwin Monkey Bar, Rock Star Spa Treatments and Giant Lego games.)

There were plenty of ideas to take away from this year’s festival. Education is the key to our evolution that is for sure; something I picked up on the plane ride leaving London in an article in The Times titled “Evolution is fact. End of story”. The journalist had interviewed Richard Dawkins, author of The God Delusion and The Greatest Show on Earth who discusses what is needed from each of us to evolve: ‘many people just don’t know what the facts are. They are simply uneducated. And that’s a fault of us as scientists for not going out there and communicating with them.” Given ‘40% of American believe that the world is less than 6,000 years old (according to Dawkins) its forums like Burning Man that can make this information accessible to the wider ‘uneducated’ world… I include myself in this as there is so much in the studied area of evolution (mind, body and spirit) that I’m yet to discover.

The big message to take away from Burning Man’s ‘Evolution’ theme was to be aware of our individual role in evolving human kind because essentially each action we take, particularly when it comes to looking after our environment, does count on a person to person basis. We are responsible for waking each other up to how we treat the planet and that’s best done leading by example as well as sharing our eco ideas and knowledge gained from others (be it at a festival in the desert or an internet blog site!)

All over the world water is fast becoming liquid gold; in so much as it is rarer and more valuable than ever. The earth could easily provide enough drinking water for every person on the planet, the problem is, not every person on the planet is capable or has the facilities to do this; though for most it’s a lack of motivation or ‘need’ to collect their own water. To find our own water takes research, energy and a little know how to set up a self-sufficient water system.  In the UK, the ease of turning on tap and the lack of apparent importance placed on water usage make it easy for us to take this life essential substance for granted.

In other places in the world, particularly those with dense populations and dry skies, water usage is an issue being aggressively addressed. Back home in Australia we were brought up with water restrictions every summer (no running through the sprinklers in the hot 40 degree Celsius midday sun, turn the tap off when brushing your teeth, share a bath, only water the garden on your neighbourhood’s dedicated day etc). The worth of water is, I’m learning, as high a priority here in urban California as it is in urban Australia. In the San Francisco library yesterday I picked up a copy of the first issue of the National Geographic sponsored ‘Water for Tomorrow’ magazine which focuses solely on California’s water ‘situation’. Just this February gone Governor Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought emergency in California predicting that as the result of both natural and manmade conditions it could be the longest drought that the state has ever known.

With a population growth of 9 million since their last drought and the alteration in rainfall patterns climate change is bringing, California finds itself in the midst of  major water crisis with farmers (or the feeders) feeling the brunt of it. The good news is it’s bringing about major efficiencies in technologies (farmers are shifting to lower value water intensive crops to higher value water efficient crops as well as improving their irrigation methods) and new legislations are being enacted to encourage water conserving in building systems as well as metering to measure individuals water usage.

According to Global Water Intel last year’s stats show London water costs us US $3.57 per cubic meter, in comparison to San Francisco who pays US $3.14. America’s water prices are indeed climbing due to shortages and they are doing something about it. The cost of water includes capital costs (maintaining the distribution system that brings water from source to you), upgrading and extending facilities, operating expenses, salaries of the water engineers and technicians… the list goes on. Basically there is a whole lot of set up and upkeep required to bring us the clear, liquid stuff. We rely so heavily on water yet seem to take it for granted… I know I do at least… until faced with the prospect of not being able to get any – to wash, to drink to cook with - then it’s a whole other kettle of... water!

San Francisco is widely known to be one of the most environmentally progressive cities in the world and does indeed present that way in many cases. You walk down just about any street in the city and you’ll see signs of its eco friendly qualifications. There’s the ‘three person ride share’ lane on the highways going into the business districts, the ‘trees for the city’ signs on trees planted in aid of the campaign, recycle bins everywhere you go (from the cinema to the library), ‘share the road’ signs to encourage communion of cyclists and motorists on the roads, service businesses such as car washes and drycleaners advertising their eco credentials, organic fair-trade café’s galore and certainly less petrol guzzling SUV’s on the road than anywhere else in the country. Yes, if there were any city in the world that could call themselves ‘green’ it’s this one. Or so I thought…

I read an article the other day in the San Francisco Chronicle about how the national standard for energy saving of buildings, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), is not performing as it should and that developers are using it to move projects through the system faster as well as charge higher rents. Though it rewards energy-efficient buildings that have features like low-flow water fixtures, bike storage, nontoxic paints and solar power, a new study has found that 25% of new buildings approved do not save as much energy as expected and most don’t monitor their energy use at all.

The good news is the national eco buildings standard LEED is improving with legislations being set in place to make owners of new buildings more accountable for their operations by requiring them to provide the first five years of utility bills in order to receive certification. But energy experts say there is a long way to go and the standards should be stricter. For a leading green city that has a history of setting the bar for radical and progressive ideas (think gay and women’s rights) one hopes the standards will be made tighter as soon as possible so that they will be embraced by other eco aspiring cities.

It's one of, if not THE, world's most valuable resources. We use it to make and create everything we use or do or consume – we’re made of it for goodness sake! But how often, as individuals, do we consider how much water we use each day.

10 gallons or 38 litres is what I used in 8 days in the desert. Most of this was for drinking, dishes, dinner and teeth brushing. I quiver to think of how much I wasted on long showers and washing dishes under a running tap back in London. Consider for a second the amount of water it takes for your local café to make you a hot mocha and sandwich – water you say? Think preparation (water used to make the bread, wash the lettuce and filter through the coffee machine) and cleaning.

Basically we use a lot of it – too much in fact. The United Nations World Water Assessment Programme, recently stated “that urgent action is needed if we are to avoid a global water crisis.” Whether we see it directly (through turning on the tap) or indirectly (via the products and services we use daily) it’s time to lower our individual usage.

Here are a few tips to help you water down.

In the home:
•    Turn the tap off  to save 7 litres per minute
•    Install low-flow shower head (according to Water for Tomorrow showering accounts for 17% of a household’s indoor water use)
•    Replace your toilet with a dual-flush, low flow model to half your toilet water waste
•    Wash fruit and veg over a bowl in the sink and reuse to water plants in the garden
•    Clean dishes in a sink of soapy water and rinse afterwards rather than keeping the tap running
•    Fix leaking taps (60 drops per minute is equal to approximately 730 litres lost per month)

In the garden:
•    Spread organic mulch around plants and trees to help the soil retain moisture so that you don’t need to water so often
•    Install a computer based irrigation system which gets data from the web and combines it with information collected by ground sensors to provide precision watering for your garden.
•    Choose native plants that are the most drought-resistant – even in parts of the UK that get plenty of water you can eradicate the need to water the garden at all.

Passivhaus (or passive house in English) is the voluntary standard for energy efficiency in buildings. The concept of a passive house was conceived by two German professors in the late 80s and has developed into a leading eco building phenomenon.

Ultra low energy usage is required for houses to be cooled and heated if the standards are followed. Two of the standards include not using more than 15kWh per year in heating and cooling energy, and total energy consumption (energy for heating, hot water and electricity) must be less than 42kWh per year.

To achieve these standards some pretty major design and construction features are required. To help with this great feat the Economical Passive Houses Working Group has created the 'Passivhaus Planning Package' (PHPP) which uses computer simulations to highlight the techniques and technologies required and how they work in combination.

Passive solar design, super insulation, advanced window technology, air tightness, heat recovery ventilation, space heating, high-efficiency electrical appliances and compact fluorescent lamps are some of the technologies the PHPP incorporates.

Other than saving on using the dirty energy of fossil fuels like oil the benefits of passive houses over conventional buildings include fresher, cleaner, less dry internal air, more space due to the lack of radiators, equal temperature rooms and equal temperate walls (i.e. the outer walls are not colder than inside ones).

Passive houses are being built all over the world. In the UK new houses build under the Passive House standard use 77% less energy for space heating than comparative homes built under the UK Building Regulations. In Germany the careful design and success of passive houses has led to them being the same cost to construct as normal buildings, meaning they are accessible to all.

Passive houses are a step in the right direction and it is great to see that 20,000 have been built across the world since the standard was developed. However, ZEBs (or zero energy buildings), which are building that create all the energy it requires to function through the use of onsite renewable energy technologies like photovoltaic solar panel, will hopefully start to be as accessible as passive houses in the near future.

If you would like to learn more about passive houses in the UK visit Passive House Solutions website. This company specialises in building passive houses using the PHPP design.