Phil Houtz's Blog (31)

This week I will make a concerted effort to follow and contribute to Julie Smith of Lifewater International who is currently in Uganda teaching water sanitation. I'm setting aside some of my lunch money as part of a "significant sacrifice." Continue

When Royal Bank of Canada launched its wide-ranging corporate social responsibility program they wanted to make a mark in an area that was being underserved - water preservation. At the time there were many climate change initiatives, as well as projects to reduce waste streams or conserve natural resources. Not so many projects were attempting to raise awareness about water security and have a lasting impact. Continue

In 2020 my wife and I are celebrating our anniversary in the mountains above Big Sur at a resort where all the "rooms" are white canvas yurts. All power at the resort is renewable, 30% wind, 10% composted biofuel and 60% solar. Continue

I'm not an engineer, but I think a simple thermoelectric device could be installed on my motorcycle exhaust that would deliver enough power from waste heat to run my onboard GPS system. Continue

Most energy experts agree that there will not be a single solution for sustainable energy. Rather there will be a complex combination of solutions that are adapted and refined over time. Continue

I'm eating eggplant parmesan with organic vegetables grown by the 4th and 5th grade students of Serra School and sold to raise funds for new activity equipment. The cheese comes from a local dairy goat farm that also rents goats to hillside residents for weed abatement. Continue

Because I'm racing to catch up, my Action here is to create a design proposal for the Eastside neighborhood of the city of Ventura. This section of town consists largely of tract homes mixed with some agriculture and strip malls. Unlike the Downtown area there is no…

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According to an issue paper by the California Food and Justice Coalition, local growers are being left out of wh***sale markets because they cannot compete against the much larger "factory farms." Continue

In 2020 I am a visiting lecturer in Creative Writing at UC Santa Barbara teaching a class called "Writing for a Change" which focuses on interactive pervasive fiction. This is a new artform that layers fictional narratives, including classic novels and plays, over real life. Continue

My first instinct was to shadow Derek Lomas of Playpower because he is focused on social change through gaming. But he hasn't been active on Twitter since he had a child in 2009. Go figure. Continue

Ethan Zuckerman writes "Infrastructure can beget infrastructure (By building mobile phone infrastructure, we may be building power infrastructure for Africa.)"… Continue