AEG seeks a highly organized, and experienced Sr. Director of Energy and Environment Systems to provide leadership, strategy and direction for the expansion of AEG Energy Services and the continual improvement of AEG 1EARTH, AEG’s comprehensive global energy and environmental programs. This senior role would be responsible for integrating energy conservation principles into the operational functions at AEG and to support the staff responsible for the sustainability vision and operating principles. The Sr. Director of Energy and Environment Systems will oversee communications with executive management, employees and business partners to increase the programs’ visibility and sphere of influence, as well as educate our employees globally to integrate energy efficiency into AEG’s core processes and decision-making. The position will report to the SVP, Business Services, and will manage a team out of Los Angeles responsible for AEG’s overall energy and environmental performance goals. AEG is the first in its industry with such programs and seeks a leader who has the experience and expertise to play an integral role in helping the organization continue to play a leadership role within the industry.
Essential Job Functions: The individual must possess the following knowledge, skills and abilities and be able to explain and demonstrate that he or she can perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation.
Manage and mentor personnel with sustainability responsibilities across the company including current sustainability staff of two personnel in Los Angeles
Develop strategy for continual improvement of AEG 1EARTH and AEG Energy Services programs including project road maps, maintaining and updating performance metrics,
Evaluate energy, water and waste conservation in facilities and operations including collection of relevant data, documenting findings and implementing solutions.
Identify relevant third-party standards to implement and pursue for both corporate sustainability and environmental building including LEED, ISO 14001, ISO 20121, Earth Check.
Effective in leading project teams for both tactical and strategic initiatives which include coordinating meetings, gathering requirements, creating and managing timelines, budgets, contracts, and overall quality execution.
Participate with other senior staff in strategic planning discussions.
Assist business leaders in identifying and prioritizing energy and environmental projects for funding.
Manage compilation of monthly, quarterly and annual reports that measure AEG’s energy and environmental performance and including data used in AEG’s Sustainability Report.
Develops project presentations to Executive Management that clearly communicate opportunities, objectives, and strategies.
In addition to performing the essential functions, this position may be required to perform a combination of the following supportive functions, with the percentage of time performing each function to be solely determined by Supervisor.
Ability to work collaboratively in a team to achieve a common mission.
Excellent written & verbal communication skills
Time management skills
Very effective organizational skills
Attention to detail with high-level of accuracy
Desired Skills & Experience
Requirements:
Bachelor's degree (BA/BS) in Business, Accounting, Finance or Environmental Engineering from four-year college or university, plus 10 years of experience,
MBA/Master's degree preferred; or equivalent combination of education and/or experience.
Minimum 10 years’ experience in the environmental field and/or sustainability stewardship.
LEED accreditation, Certified Environmental Systems Manager or other relevant certifications preferred.
Thorough understanding of energy and sustainability principles and best practices in facilities and corporate setting.
Experience within sports and entertainment facilities preferred.
Ability to communicate energy efficiency concepts succinctly and clearly to non-experts, including employees with widely divergent, non-technical backgrounds.
Big-picture, creative, strategic thinker with a positive "let's make it happen" attitude.
Demonstration of sound communication and relationship management skills.
Demonstrated success in managing, mentoring, training, and motivating staff.
Demonstrated analytic and quantitative skills to translate data into compelling business propositions and financial models.
Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.
Ability to perform assignments that are broad in nature, usually requiring originality and ingenuity.
Ability to be a team player and work effectively in a growing, dynamic fast paced service oriented environment subject to changing priorities, project deadlines and time constra
Company Description
AEG is one of the leading sports and entertainment presenters in the world. AEG, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Anschutz Company, owns or is affiliated with a collection of companies including facilities such as STAPLES Center (Los Angeles, CA), L.A. LIVE a sports, residential & entertainment district (Los Angeles, CA), Best Buy Theater (Times Square, New York), Sprint Center, (Kansas City), Rose Garden Arena (Portland, OR), Mercedes-Benz Arena (Shanghai, China), O2 World Hamburg, Allphones Arena (Sydney, Australia), Ericsson Globe arena (Stockholm, Sweden), O2 World arena (Berlin, Germany) and The O2 arena and entertainment district (London, England) all part of AEG's portfolio. AEG Sports, include franchises and properties such as the Los Angeles Kings (NHL), Los Angeles Galaxy and Houston Dynamo (MLS), two hockey franchises in Europe, the Amgen Tour of California cycling race and Bay to Breakers foot race. AEG Live, the company's live-entertainment division, the world's second largest concert promotion and touring companies is comprised of touring, festival, exhibition, broadcast, merchandise and special event divisions. AEG Global Partnerships, a division responsible for worldwide sales and servicing of sponsorships naming rights and other strategic partnerships. AEG Merchandising, a multi-faceted merchandising company. axsTicketing, a new entertainment platform serving as the company's primary consumer brand which will feature mobile service and video content service.
Driverless cars are coming to a street near you, and soon. “I think that genuine self-driving cars will be available within a decade and that they’ll be big game changers,” writes Kevin Drum, who’s been on a driverless-car kick lately. Or take it from Dan Gage, spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers: “That fully autonomous car of the future is not that far away.” Or just watch this:
Google has been testing driverless cars extensively. Nevada and California have passed legislation permitting them on the streets. Other states will soon follow suit. This is a near-future thing, not a sci-fi dream.
I happen to share Drum’s enthusiasm for driverless cars, and want to use it to make a larger point about social change.
Widgets and systems
Let’s think about the distinction between widgets (pieces of technology) and systems (the cultural, economic, and infrastructural systems in which technologies are embedded).
When it comes to sustainability, as with many other things, we find it easiest to think in terms of widgets. The first step is always to swap them out for better widgets. If we want to use less electricity, we swap our dishwashers and furnaces for more efficient ones. If we want to transition from coal, we swap out coal plants for natural gas plants or wind farms. If we want our homes to consume fewer resources, we stick solar panels on the roof and chicken coops out back. And if we want to use less oil for transportation, we swap out gasoline cars for cars that run on something else.
The virtue of widget-swapping is that widgets can be compared on an apples-to-apples basis. They share a common set of parameters, are embedded in the same systems, so they can be put on the same scales, as it were. We can compare power plants in terms of dollars per kilowatt hour, cars in terms of miles per gallon, appliances in terms of sticker prices.
These kinds of comparisons usually show that the more sustainable widget (electric cars, renewable energy, low-flow toilets) is more expensive. One reason is that the benefits of more sustainable widgets — less CO2, or cleaner air, or more efficient resource use — often “don’t count” in market competition. Carbon emissions, for instance, are free right now, so if you spend more money for power generated with less carbon, you are, within the context of our current power system, wasting money.
It is much more difficult to compare alternative systems. It’s difficult to envision different systems — different patterns of habit and behavior, different markets, different infrastructure. And if we can imagine them, it’s difficult to compare their net costs and benefits to that of the status quo. They represent different ways of valuing things, so it’s difficult to weigh them against a common metric. (I’m trying to avoid the term “paradigm shift,” as I don’t want to be part of debasing Thomas Kuhn’s useful notion.) Suffice to say, system change can be nonlinear.
Most of all, it’s difficult to see a path from here to there, from the systems in place to new systems. We know how to swap out a widget for another widget. But how do we drive intentional systemic change?
Take, for instance, transportation systems. What will happen if regular cars are switched out for driverless cars?
In the beginning, driverless…ness will likely be an option in some cars, sold as a safety measure or a way for older or visually impaired people (like this dude) to be able to drive. That’s what Alex Tabarrok says here and I mostly agree. That will be the foot in the door.
But adopting driverless cars could mean much more than just substituting a new, better-performing widget in place of an old one, especially if we act with some foresight and thoughtfulness. Let’s ponder what sorts of systemic changes might be possible (emphasis on might).
• When cars can rely on foolproof sensing and robot precision, they can drive much closer to one another, and at steadier speeds. That alone will double or even triple the capacity of existing roads and help reduce traffic jams. If existing roads are able to accommodate more traffic, it reduces the need for new roads.
• With human error out of the picture, cars won’t need to be so heavy. Right now we drive around in huge steel tanks, up-armored to protect against high-speed collision from any angle. With collisions minimized or eliminated, cars can be made from far lighter materials, reducing stress on roads and resource consumption.
• Felix Salmon speculates that, with a combination of increased road capacity and lighter vehicles, it may become more resource-efficient for people to travel by car than by rail, eliminating the need for public rail transport. I don’t quite buy that, but it’s intriguing.
• When cars are much lighter, it will be easier to move them using electricity. And when you switch out an internal combustion (or hybrid) engine for simple electric motors on each wheel, you save another huge chunk of weight, further increasing electric range.
• Once most cars are electric, large-scale electric-charging infrastructure will become more cost-effective. It is already possible to charge an electric car without a plug, through induction. Imagine if induction-based charging were ubiquitous, in parking lots, on curbs, even in the roads themselves. Smart electric cars would be charged continuously, ambiently, just by being in an urban area or at a rest stop. Goodbye, range anxiety.
• Once most cars are electric, the top cause of urban air pollution would be eliminated. Urban air quality — and thus urban public health — will increase exponentially. There will be fewer work and school days lost to illness.
• If there’s a fleet of shared driverless vehicles available, and a car can drive itself to you whenever you need one, there will be no need to own a car. Why lug it around? Now, think about the last time you drove around in an American suburb. Imagine if all those houses didn’t need garages. What could all the extra space be used for? Think about all the gasoline and insurance and maintenance money involved in car ownership replaced by a simple, cheap subscription fee to a car service. What would all the saved money be used for?
• Privately owned vehicles are in use about 10 percent of the time and spend about 90 percent of their time parked, useless, taking up space. Cars that are shared could be in use almost continuously. Imagine if every adult American owned 10 percent of a car rather than 100 percent of one. That’s 90 percent less demand for cars! (Not exactly, but you know what I mean.) More sharing = less resource use.
• Today the average American spends about 100 hours a year commuting, and there is nothing more soul-crushing than driving in traffic. Imagine having all those hours back. The car is driving, so you’re reading, sending email, calling clients, surfing the internet. You’re working. What would it mean to you to have 100 more hours a year? What would it mean to U.S. economic productivity to have billions of additional work hours every year? What would be the net health and psychological effects of all that reduced stress?
• Driverless cars are equipped with sensors to avoid other cars, bikes, and pedestrians. So, as Drum says, there will be fewer bike and pedestrian road deaths — eventually, perhaps, close to none. If cars are simple and light and unobtrusive (just a plastic shell and motors for each wheel), and they’re smart/aware, they will be much more amenable to moving around amidst human beings. That means that many city surfaces will be multiple-use, with pedestrians, bikes, and electric vehicles mingling freely. It would be a much more dynamic, organic mode of interaction than the current, rigid streets vs. bike lanes vs. sidewalks set-up.
• If cars are smart — i.e., filled with sensors and connected to the internet — they will all be aware of one another, aware of traffic conditions, aware of available parking spots. That means no more driving around aimlessly, looking for parking, an activity that accounts for around 30 percent of traffic in U.S. business districts.
• If cars are smart, they will be able to customize to each user. Wave your subscription card and the carshare system remembers you — it starts the music you like, establishes the interior temperature you favor, calls up your email and favorite websites on its screens, suggests nearby restaurants you might like. It is your car, nay, your rolling office/den, albeit only temporarily.
• If cars are smart, they will be able to create carpools, on the fly, for those willing to save a little money by sharing rides. All cars will know where all other cars and all car requests are at any given time; they will be able to communicate and coordinate to consolidate as many riders as possible as efficiently as possible. Carpooling will become the default: a dynamic, just-in-time form of public transportation.
• If cars are accessed via subscription, it will be trivially easy to charge user fees that can replace gas taxes as a source of funding for infrastructure maintenance. It will be perfectly equitable: everyone will pay for roads exactly to the extent they use them, automatically.
Anyway, that’s just scratching the surface. (I wrote about all this stuff in an old American Prospect piece I still remember fondly.) It leaves us with two big questions.
How much to pay, how fast to drive
First, how much would it cost a city to build a transportation system like that — fleets of smart, lightweight electric vehicles, available on demand to subscribers — and would it be worth it? Questions like this are incredibly difficult to answer. How to quantify all those changes in behavior, public health, road capacity, productivity, land use … any attempt to predict all of that and tally it up with a definitive number is just this side of a wild guess. Worse, the costs are usually easier to predict and quantify than the benefits, especially the second- and third-order benefits, so conventional cost-benefit analysis is almost always biased against ambitious, long-term systemic change.
Ultimately, in my humble opinion anyway, the question of whether to pursue a new system, whether it’s transportation, electricity, water, whatever, cannot be settled by economic models. We just don’t know enough about the future, or about systemic change, to achieve that kind of precision — we end up with outcomes that reflect the assumptions we feed in. In the end, it comes down to values: what kind of society and culture we want, what kind of people we want to be, what we owe future generations.
Those are the kinds of questions that people who benefit from the status quo don’t want you to ask. They can tolerate some limited widget-swapping, but systemic change scares them to their bones. So they would very much like to restrict everyone to widget comparisons: Solar electricity is more per kWh than coal electricity. Electric cars are more expensive than gasoline cars. An acre of regenerative agriculture produces lower yield than an acre of industrial ag. They want narrow, intra-system comparisons, not broad comparisons of other possible systems.
The second big question is, assuming we want a new system, how do we get from here to there? How do we build a system like that? System change often appears impossible because of the complex, nested chicken-and-egg problems: Which comes first, the electric cars or the charging infrastructure? You can make smart electric cars much lighter if they’re sharing the road with other smart electric cars, but what about now, when they’re sharing the road with armored behemoths? How do you transition from a gas tax to a user fee when half the cars are smart electrics and half dumb internal combustions? How do you get the public to demand things they don’t yet know could exist? And how do you justify the costs, when the larger systemic benefits of the new order are not yet manifest?
It can seem intractable. And yet we desperately need systemic change. It won’t be enough to plop wind farms down in the same system coal plants operate in, or electric cars in the same system gas cars operate in, or rooftop solar panels in the same suburbs we’re building today. We need to figure out how to use widgets — and policy, and activism, and behavioral science, and every other tool in the toolbox — to accelerate social change in the direction of sustainability.
I don’t have any simple answer or grand conclusions here, but I do think it’s worth keeping in mind the tension between widget thinking and systems thinking. It may be that, sometimes, widgets that are more sustainable on some metric or other actually have the effect of further entrenching unsustainable systems. (Lots of people are going to say just that about electric cars, and yell at me for enthusing about them.) It may be that, sometimes, widgets that are less sustainable on some metric do more to drive systemic change. (Arguably natural gas plants are doing this by killing coal in America.)
I think driverless cars could be such a lever for systemic change in transportation systems, just as I think distributed renewable energy and smart grids will eventually be such a lever for power systems. But how can that system change be accelerated? That’s the question of the 21st century.
Join S&D Coffee, Inc., a leader in the food service industry. Since 1927, we've provided commercial customers with a full line of specialty coffees, teas and juices, and given our employees ample opportunity for personal and professional achievement. As we grow, so can your future! We are currently seeking a highly motivated individual to join our team as:
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Environmental Systems Program Manager
Concord, NC
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This position will be responsible for:
•Support the development of an Environmental Management System; plan and coordinate all aspects of implementation
•Monitor and track progress against goals
•Regularly communicate with Environmental Management team on challenges and opportunities toward goals
•Drive continuous improvement and best practice adoption
•Complete annual environmental audits
•Capture success stories for CSR publishing and to support new business acquisition (for RFPs)
•Research and evaluate opportunities to reduce energy, water, or waste usage
•Conduct feasibility and ROI assessments on new opportunities
•Support LEAFS team and help guide and coordinate company-wide waste reduction initiatives
•Stay abreast of trends and emerging issues in environmental management
Requirements
•Bachelor’s Degree in environmental management or related field is preferred
•At least 2+ years of experience in a manufacturing environment and direct experience with Environmental Management Systems is highly desired
•A strong personal interest in environmental and sustainability issues
•Excellent analytical skills with demonstrable ability to conduct ROI assessments
•Strong written and oral communication skills
•Ability to collaborate effectively with employees at all levels, customers and suppliers
•Must be proficient in Word and Excel
•Ability to work proactively and independently
S&D offers a competitive compensation package and an excellent benefits program.
For confidential consideration, please send your resume to careers@sndcoffee.com or Fax: 800-230-7559. In order to comply with government recordkeeping requirements, please go to www.sndcoffee.com/about/careers.asp and send us a completed Self Identification Survey along with your resume/application.
S&D Coffee, Inc. is an Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer.
Position Description: The successful candidate for this position will play a key role in the growth of Pennsylvania’s “green jobs†and energy efficiency workforce. Under the supervision of Performance System Development’s (PSD) Program Manager, this position will work in a dynamic team environment on the delivery of residential energy efficiency (EE) programs in Pennsylvania. As the Program Coordinator for PSD, you will work closely with a group of highly skilled professionals to manage program communications, provide participant support, oversee project submissions, analyze data and develop and deliver reports on program goals and energy savings. Day-to-day responsibilities include:
• Coordinate resources and schedules program activities
• Identify and develop relationships with diverse program stakeholders, including raters, contractors, builders, trade allies, consumers, utility staff
• Provide program and technical expertise to both energy professionals (raters, builders, and contractors) and consumers
• Schedule, plan and coordinate the delivery of building science and program trainings for raters. contractors, builders, trade groups and consumers with varying levels of experience and knowledge
• Review project submittals in order to verify compliance with program policies and procedures
• Evaluate energy savings calculations and project specifications, and manage records in program database
• Analyze data, track energy savings and report on progress toward goals
• Manage client relationships and communications through the development of written and oral program reports and client-communications
This position is based in Northwestern Pennsylvania at PSD’s Meadville office, with regional travel up to 20% of the time, and occasional overnight travel required.
Minimum Requirements: Bachelor’s Degree or the equivalent in training and experience; 1-3 years related experience. Must have strong interpersonal skills and the ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with people inside and outside of the company; and strong verbal and written communication skills, and the ability to communicate technical concepts to non-technical audiences. Must be able to work independently and in a team setting, and have demonstrated the ability to take initiative as opportunities present themselves to meet business needs. Must have strong computer skills using MS Office, Excel and complex databases; and have demonstrated the ability to use technical resources at an advanced level.
Preferred: Advanced degree in engineering or environmental science, 3+ years experience with utility programs, energy efficiency work, construction, or HVAC experience. Certifications: RESNET, NAHB, BPI and LEED. Familiarity with building science, building energy modeling, blower doors, infrared cameras and other diagnostic tools.
Salary: Negotiable depending upon experience and qualifications.
Benefits: Health Insurance, Life Insurance, 401K savings plan, paid holidays, paid vacation, flexible spending accounts, and Health Savings Accounts.
Apply to: please provide a cover letter and resume; reference
Job # GB-2
Company Overview:
Performance Systems Development (PSD) focuses on the development and delivery of creative and powerful solutions for energy efficiency (EE) programs and professionals. Our company provides a whole-systems approach to EE strategies through our work on advancing energy policies, designing and delivering cost-effective EE programs, and building software tools to improve data tracking and reporting. Our core business efforts span three major areas: 1) the design and development of award-winning software platforms for energy simulation & building benchmarking; 2) workforce development and industry training; and 3) the delivery of high-impact EE programs for utilities, state agencies, and other organizations throughout the U.S.
PSD strives to create a diverse workplace. We highly encourage qualified applicants regardless of age, color, disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, or sexual orientation to apply for this position.
About Build It Green
Build It Green is a professional non-profit membership organization whose mission is to promote healthy, energy- and resource-efficient buildings in California. Supported by a solid foundation of outreach and education, Build It Green connects consumers and building professionals with tools and technical expertise to build quality green buildings. Build It Green fosters collaboration with key stakeholder groups to accelerate the adoption of green building practices, policies and programs. For more information, visit www.builditgreen.org.
About the Position
The Systems & Operations Analyst will report directly to Senior Information Systems Manager. The position is a role that requires the ability to manage many different ongoing tasks and processes with the following primary responsibilities:
1. Analyze data from multiple systems, identify anomalies, and design and propose solutions for improvements
2. Participate in issue analysis and resolution
3. Gather requirements from both internal and external subject matter experts
4. Develop high-quality design documents and business requirements within a scheduled timeframe with minimal direct supervision
5. Support internal employees with salesforce.com platform
6. Contribute to process improvement activities
7. Build and maintain positive relationships with customers and internal staff
8. Manage tasks to meet the assigned project dates
Minimum Qualifications
1. Bachelor Degree in Information Systems (or related degree) with at 1 or more years working experience
2. Demonstrate excellent analysis and problem solving skills
3. Knowledge of Data Models and RDBMS (SQL) is required
4. Knowledge of Java programming language and SQL
5. Knowledge of web technologies (HTML, JavaScript, and CSS)
6. U.S. Citizen or Green Card holder only
Additional Qualifications
1. Minor in Computer Science
2. Knowledge of Salesforce.com CRM & Force.com platform
Qualities
1. Excellent writing and verbal skills
2. Strong organizational and problemâ€solving skills.
3. Well-developed verbal and written communication skills.
4. Demonstrated experience in customer service and customer issue resolution.
Compensation
Salary will range from $60,000 to $65,000 depending on qualifications and experience. Build It Green offers a competitive benefits package that includes medical, dental and vision insurance; partial employer matching 403(b) retirement plan; paid holidays; and paid annual leave.
To Apply
To apply for this position, electronically submit an application that includes your cover letter, resume, references to Jobs[at]BuildItGreen[dot]org. Please type Job Code — Systems & Operations Analyst in the subject line of your email.
Please submit all required application materials by Friday, November 2, 2012. Applications will be screened for qualifications, experience, and all required application elements. Not all applicants who meet the minimum qualifications will be offered an interview.
Build It Green is an Equal Opportunity Employer and strives to reflect the diverse community it serves. Applicants who contribute to this diversity are strongly encouraged to apply.
Erik Shepard Farmer Mark Shepard sees perennials such as chestnuts and apples as a way to diversify his crops and protect the soil.
“Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias,” said farmer and author Wendell Berry.
Or, if you’re Mark Shepard, plant chestnuts. For Shepard, the owner of New Forest Farm and a farming consultant, the long-lived perennial trees are a central feature in the ideal farm landscape. Annuals — i.e. corn, soybeans, and many other vegetables that have to be planted and harvested every year — are labor-intensive and come with steep environmental costs such as erosion, soil degradation, and nutrient runoff. So permaculturists like Shepard see planting fruit and nut trees and other perennials — which only need to be planted once, and then, once mature, continue to produce year after year — as a key to sustainable food systems. His 106-acre farm in southwestern Wisconsin is filled with hazelnuts, chestnuts, pine nuts, currants, berries, apples, and much more.
Shepard calls his approach “restoration agriculture” (that’s also the name of his recently published book), and his hope is to mimic nature as much as possible to produce high-quality crops while restoring the health and fertility of the land.
“There are two problems with agriculture — even organic agriculture,” said Shepard recently on the phone. “You are either trying to keep something alive that wants to die, or you are trying to kill something that wants to stay alive.”
Using a method he fondly calls “STUN” — sheer, total, utter neglect — Shepard propagates varieties of fruit and nut trees that produce edibles early and often, and continue to thrive in an agriculture system that, once planted, mostly gets ignored until it’s time to harvest. If the plants can’t naturally stand up against the vagaries of disease, pests, and weather, Shepard yanks them out. The resilient ones are bred and planted.
Instead of endless rows of industrially managed corn and soybeans, Shepard utilizes a permaculture technique known as the keyline system to create a series of berms and swales — glorified drain ditches, really — to capture and retain rainwater. From above, the miles of swales feeding hundreds of thousands of thirsty trees and other perennial crops look like mythic crop circles.
The berms and swales on Shepard’s farm capture and retain rain water, and look like crop circles from above.
Agroforestry — a broad term to describe ways in which forests and forest management are combined with agriculture — is key in understanding Shepard’s system.
“The trees are the producers of the staple crops,” says Shepard. “Chestnuts are nutritionally equivalent to brown rice and similar to corn. Hazelnuts have three times the oil-per-kernel weight and a similar protein profile [as] soybeans. Plus we have the nutshells, which can be burned in a pellet stove or gasified to generate electricity.”
Shepard uses the oak savannah ecosystem — which covered much of the Midwest prior to European settlement — as an ecological model for his farm. Beside larger fruit and nut trees, like apple, mulberry, and pine nut, he grows shrubs like nanking cherry and hazelnut. Berry patches border the forest while other edibles — asparagus, winter squash, or green peppers — fill in the alleys between each row of trees in an agroforestry practice that’s referred to as “alley cropping.”
“We used to grow all kinds of annual produce but we are doing less and less of that now since our woody crops [fruit and nut perennials] started producing. When we first began, we were relying on the alley crops for cash flow but [we’re] now moving more toward grazing,” says Shepard.
Chestnuts.
Multi-species grazing on silvopasture — the intentional combination of livestock, forage, and trees on grass — now plays an essential part in the operation. Cattle and pigs eat the grass under the trees as well as whatever fruits and nuts that are not harvested for market sales or the on-farm cidery where apples and other fruits are pressed, fermented, and sold as hard cider. Because the livestock, nuts, and fruits are integrated into the same plot, they complement each other, much like the parts of a forest do, rather than competing for space, nutrients, water, etc.
While New Forest Farm is still trying to perfect its system, Shepard believes the farm can support up to 100 cattle, 200 hogs, 200 sheep, and thousands of turkeys and chickens. Raising animals in this way has the potential to revolutionize food systems that are dependent on feeding corn, soybeans, and other grain-based feeds to animals in confinement.
“We’ve generated numbers that show our system is capable of out-yielding corn by 30 percent on calories per acre,” says Shepard. “And as far as nutrition per acre, it’s off the charts. Then throw in the fact that the whole system is perennial — we don’t have any more planting costs, maintenance costs are minimal, no pest or disease control, no [fertilizer] inputs.”
As animal feed costs are rising because of the record droughts in the Midwest, Shepard stands to do really well raising livestock this way. He gives his large animals a little grain with vitamin supplements (his steer gets only three cups of grain a day, whereas conventionally raised steers need as much as 25 pounds of grain feed a day). Shepard plans to quadruple the number of animals on his farm next year.
Erik ShepardThe animals on Shepard’s farm graze the alleys between the trees and shrubs.
The idea, eventually, is to have cattle, chickens, hogs, sheep, and turkeys in a leader-follower system — all of the animals will be kept in small paddocks and moved frequently to aggressively trample-graze the alleys between trees and shrubs.
Due to this year’s drought, Shepard’s apples were nonexistent and the chestnuts and hazelnuts were way down. But the farm has a large variety of crops that produce at different times and thrive in multiple climatic conditions. He believes this approach will be crucial for farmers facing the unpredictable, potentially destructive weather of the future. “This summer was the driest on record in our part of Wisconsin and we had the finest cattle and hogs we’ve ever had,” he says.
Introduction:
Highly-motivated; likes challenge; collaborative; committed to delivering high quality work… Did we describe you? Read on…
Southern California Edison is one of the nation’s largest investor-owned electric utilities. We are an industry leader that is designing new and innovative ways to meet our customer’s needs. We are looking for highly motivated individuals who enjoy the challenge of working on key industry changing projects. We need your good ideas and your contributions to remain a leader in this industry.
Abou IT:
The role of IT goes beyond the traditional Information Technology “service providerâ€. Many of the innovative ideas and projects that shape the company’s future and move SCE forward are dependent on technology. IT employees are at the heart of these projects, collaborating, designing and executing technology solutions that are transforming our industry.
Position Overview:
The successful candidate will report to the IT Power System Controls Advanced application group. Typical responsibilities will include: providing Subject Matter Expertise to the operations and maintenance teams for the configuration and tuning of SCADA, Power System Network Model, and Power System Applications; leading maintenance teams to support real-time applications and tools used by control center operation; working closely with vendors to resolve application issues, and with various engineer groups to implement modifications and additions to reflect changes in the power system; leading maintenance teams to develop, test, deploy and maintain custom application in the Energy Management System (EMS); performing consultation on complex technical issues with EMS advanced applications; leading the evaluation, development and implementation of the new, enhancement, upgrade or replacement of in the area of advanced applications; directly interfacing and/or collaborating with client to develop solutions and facilitate cooperation between departments; maintaining a safety conscious work environment by following Edison safety protocols and safe work practices; and performing other responsibilities and duties as assigned.
Job Requirements:
•Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Information Management or a related discipline or an equivalent combination of education, training and experience.
•Must possess 5 or more years of experience with state estimation and contingency analysis.
•Typically possesses eight or more years of engineering experience in the electrical utility industry.
•Experience in the field of Power Systems modeling for the electric utility industry.
•Experience with Energy Management System advanced applications (State Estimation and Contingency Analysis) and Voltage Stability Analysis tools, GE PSLF.
•Knowledge of Distribution Management System, Outage Management System and GIS applications, Substation Automation, and Distribution Automation.
•Knowledge of system control and protection schemes of electrical transmission and distribution grid.
•Knowledge and working experience in the implementation of enterprise software systems.
•Demonstrated experience as technical lead overseeing a cross functional project team or work group.
•Must demonstrate the ability to integrate work across relevant areas, develop the business and services to enhance customer satisfaction and productivity, manage risks appropriately, manage information, and provide exceptional service to internal and external customers.
•Must demonstrate effective resource and project planning, decision making, results delivery, team building, and the ability to stay current with relevant technology and innovation.
•Must demonstrate strong ethics, influence and negotiation, leadership, interpersonal skills, communication, and the ability to effectively manage stress and engage in continuous learning.
•Demonstrated ability to follow Edison safety protocols and safe work practices.
Preferences:
•Master’s degree in Power System Engineering, Computer Science, Information Management or equivalent.
•Understanding of the current and emerging Smart Grid standards (IEC61970, 61968, 61850, NIST, etc.)
•Understanding of the NERC CIP and NERC Reliability requirements.
•Experience in the integration of large scale implementation of Energy Management System, Distribution Management System, Outage Management System, Substation Automation, Distribution Automation, etc.
•Professional Engineer (PE) License in Electrical Engineering.
Comments:
•Relocation may apply to this position
•Candidates for this position must be legally authorized to work directly as employees for any employer in the United States without visa sponsorship.
•If you are interested in this position, please submit your resume in confidence by visiting www.edisonjobs.com.
•Edison International and Southern California Edison reserve the right to close or cancel a posting at any time.
•Edison International is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE).
•SCE provides access and opportunities to those with disabilities; please let us know if you require an accommodation for this appointment.
Southern California Edison, an Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, serves a population of nearly 14 million via 4.9 million customer accounts in a 50,000-square-mile service area within Central, Coastal and Southern California. Join the utility leader that is safely delivering reliable, affordable electricity to our customers for over 125 years.
Introduction:
Highly-motivated; likes challenge; collaborative; committed to delivering high quality work… Did we describe you? Read on…
Southern California Edison is one of the nation’s largest investor-owned electric utilities. We are an industry leader that is designing new and innovative ways to meet our customer’s needs. We are looking for highly motivated individuals who enjoy the challenge of working on key industry changing projects. We need your good ideas and your contributions to remain a leader in this industry.
About IT:
The role of IT goes beyond the traditional Information Technology “service providerâ€. Many of the innovative ideas and projects that shape the company’s future and move SCE forward are dependent on technology. IT employees are at the heart of these projects, collaborating, designing and executing technology solutions that are transforming our industry.
Position Overview:
The successful candidate will be responsible for managing the end to end systems implementation of the SAP Talent Management suites, including Compensation Management, Learning Solutions, Performance Management, Personnel Development, and Succession Planning for SCE, EMG and EIX, and work directly with clients at all levels in the HR Operating Unit. Typical responsibilities will include: supporting all system aspects for performance planning, compensation planning, succession planning, and training; act as the liaison between the users and the technical teams as well as providing updates to all levels of management; lead all required enhancements for the
Talent Management suites; evaluate and support all future system/project enhancements; manage assigned initiatives and prepare business cases, project plans, forecasts and budgets. Maintaining a safety conscious work environment by following Edison safety protocols and safe work practices; and performing other responsibilities and duties as assigned.
Job Requirements:
•Bachelor Degree in Information Systems or related field or an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience.
•Must possess five or more years of experience in full life-cycle implementations, project management, and cost benefit analysis in SAP Talent Management.
•Must have experience configuring SAP HCM Talent Management suite, and to support business activities, such as performance and compensation planning, succession planning, and training.
•Typically possesses 12 or more years of experience defining system requirements, project scope, and performing cost benefit analysis.
•Demonstrated experience in project lifecycle methodology including: design, development/configuration, testing, and deployment.
•Demonstrated experience monitoring and reporting transactional activities and disposition of errors.
•Demonstrated knowledge of and experience with two or more HR disciplines (i.e., personnel development, Compensation, etc…).
•Demonstrated experience in identifying cross functional strategic impacts from a business, as well as, system perspective.
•Must have excellent oral and written communication skills, and be customer focused, to understand and appropriately respond to clients’ business needs, and facilitate the presentation of recommendations.
•Must demonstrate the ability to interface effectively and collaborate with clients, peers, partners, architecture, vendors, and management to develop solutions and ensure stakeholder buy-in.
•Demonstrated ability to accurately analyze & interpret information to make sound decisions under pressure.
•Must demonstrate the ability to take initiative and accountability for achieving results.
•Must be proficient in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
•Must demonstrate the ability to integrate work across relevant areas, develop the business and services to enhance customer satisfaction and productivity, manage risks appropriately, manage information, and provide exceptional service to internal and external customers.
•Must demonstrate effective resource and project planning, decision making, results delivery, team building, and the ability to stay current with relevant technology and innovation.
•Must demonstrate strong ethics, influence and negotiation, leadership, interpersonal skills, communication, and the ability to effectively manage stress and engage in continuous learning.
•Proficient in Crystal Reports and Microsoft Access.
•Demonstrated ability to follow Edison safety protocols and safe work practices.
Comments:
•Candidates for this position must be legally authorized to work directly as employees for any employer in the United States without visa sponsorship.
•If you are interested in this position, please submit your resume in confidence by visiting www.edisonjobs.com.
•Edison International and Southern California Edison reserve the right to close or cancel a posting at any time.
•Edison International is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE).
•SCE provides access and opportunities to those with disabilities; please let us know if you require an accommodation for this appointment.
Southern California Edison, an Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, serves a population of nearly 14 million via 4.9 million customer accounts in a 50,000-square-mile service area within Central, Coastal and Southern California. Join the utility leader that is safely delivering reliable, affordable electricity to our customers for over 125 years.
We seek a highly organized professional to join our Chain of Custody (CoC) Certification Services team. This is a full-time office position working closely with a dedicated team of certification professionals. You will need to be detail-oriented, able to work alone and in groups, be a great communicator (written and oral) and have excellent time management, analytical and decision-making skills.
SUMMARY
The Chain of Custody Technical Associate position entails interpretation and implementation of standards, review and quality control of audit reports, prompt and professional customer service, and administrative support to field auditors and colleagues on all aspects of the certification programs within defined project responsibilities. The position also entails occasional auditing.
Primary Responsibilities:
Review audit reports from SCS auditors, worldwide, for general oversight and quality control;
Acquire proficiency in Chain of Custody requirements and an ability to communicate them effectively to clients, auditors, and other program staff;
Aid in the development of internal procedures and guidelines and external communication materials;
Support the Quality and Compliance Manager as well as the Director in training of, and day-to-day communication with auditors;
Conduct Chain of Custody audits, occasionally. (Auditing is a minor but important aspect of this position);
Other duties as assigned, pertaining to the development of the program globally.
Minimum Qualifications:
Minimum B.S. or B.A. degree; in Natural Resources or a related field;
Complete fluency in English and work (or school) experience that involves professional written communication;
Strong organization and prioritization skills
Proficient with business software including Outlook, Word, Excel and database management;
Strong customer service and teamwork orientation;
Initiative, good judgment, and ability to work independently under pressure in a changing environment; and
Must be able to work regular business hours, five days per week in Emeryville office.
Additional Preferred Skills:
An interest in quality management systems, 3rd party
certification, forest conservation, and the missions of SCS and FSC will be a plus;
Knowledge of German, Spanish or Portuguese;
Experience in or knowledge of wood or paper product manufacturing industry.
ABOUT SCIENTIFIC CERTIFICATION SYSTEMS (SCS):
Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) is a for-profit, internationally recognized third-party certifier of environmental and food safety claims. SCS program areas include: forestry, fisheries, flower production, sustainable agriculture, pesticide residue free and organic food certification, food safety inspection and certification, environmental claims certification, green building product certification, electric power environmental performance, and more.
The Chain of Custody Services Program is accredited to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) schemes. These Chain of Custody standards provide a system for tracking certified wood from the forest, through each stage of production and distribution, to the point of sale. Chain of Custody enables responsible procurement by providing a system for companies to trade in products deriving from well-managed forests and other responsible sources. Our CoC team manages a portfolio of more than 2600 clients around the world covering a great diversity of wood and paper products and industries.
GCL Solar Energy, Inc./San Francisco, CA (Financial District)
TRANSMISSION/POWER SYSTEMS ENGINEER
GCL Solar Energy, Inc., is a worldwide solar power company (i.e., IPP) headquartered in San Francisco, CA. It is a subsidiary of GCL-Poly Ltd, a premier solar photovoltaic (PV) company, the world's largest Poly-silicon/wafer manufacturer, and has a market capitalization of over $5 Billion. This North American power development business, located in San Francisco, CA, currently has an opening for a Transmission Engineer to support the EPC and Business Development team by performing power transmission planning and design work.
Responsibilities:
• Provide AC and DC electrical engineering support in the design of utility-scale solar power plant projects
o AC and DC components, confirming code compliance, performing technical research, and preparing complete permit submittal drawing packages, bills of materials, site electrical safety plans, and commissioning/O&M plans
o Represent the electrical engineering design on the AC side of the inverter (protection and control, transformation, switchyards, cabling, gen-tie, POI, etc.)
o Utilize strong knowledge of transformers (and inverters), relay and AC disconnect specifications, AC grounding design, and wire sizing/derating practices to assist in the selection of hardware for PV power plants
• Act as liaison with internal and business partners on transmission related matters
• Review PPAs from a technical, electrical, interconnection and transmission perspective
• Manage GIA process
o Complete GIAs
o Review and validate cost and other responsibilities identified in GIA’s
• Engage in technical discussions with power systems engineers on the utility side
• Stay abreast of congestion management practices and the transmission grid within area of responsibility
• Gather and review of input data and system modeling assumptions necessary for load flow analyses and the interpretation & communication of results
• Perform production cost modeling and load flow analyses (using Powerworld / PSSE / MUST, or other load flow programs) for the various regional electric power markets in the U.S.
• Run optimization models to forecast congestion and analyze results to determine congestion drivers
• Analyze and evaluate complex energy transactions to ensure all relevant transmission related operational issues are identified and communicated prior to implementation
• Assist engineering team in developing strategy for optimizing asset utilization
Required Qualifications:
• BSEE required
• 3 years’ experience in the power industry
• Must understand load flow analysis, LMP determination and market rules
• Thorough knowledge of underlying principles of power transmission system, power flow analysis, government regulations & tariffs and economic & financial principles
• Thorough knowledge of data sources for regional load flow analyses, transmission line data, generator data and load data.
• Well-versed in all applicable U.S. electrical codes (NEC, UL, IEEE, NFPA 70E, etc.)
• Strong knowledge base and design skills in relay, protection, and grounding design, typical utility SCADA requirements, and capable of generating detailed communications wiring diagrams
• Must demonstrate strong engineering, design, and communication skills, and an ability to work in a dynamic team environment to think outside the box and solve traditional problems in new ways, including consideration of creative cost-reduction ideas and strategies
• Must be self-motivated, extremely thorough, have excellent organizational skills and professional integrity
• Must be able to balance multiple projects while working under tight deadlines
• Must communicate effectively in both written and verbal mediums, to internal and external team members
GCL Solar Energy, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer.
AEG/Los Angeles, CA (Greater Los Angeles Area)
Build It Greenq/Oakland, CA
