NY loves to play it big. The Jacob Jarvits Convention Center in Manhatten is already the biggest convention center in NY. Now it’s trying to be the greenest, with a green roof that will collect and absorb about 6.8 million gallons of rainfall annually. Additionally the roof will reduce heating and colling costs for the building with it’s five layers; root barrier, drain mat, water-retaining fleece material, XeroTerr growing medium (soil) and the vegetated mat. The Xero Flor Green Roof System was developed in Germany.

Do you know about Matt and his dancing travel adventures? His is a fun story of finding himself through travel, being silly and following his passions. Not a bad way to go. Prepare to be happy. If you’re brave, do your own happy dance!

This is good stuff. Designers at Ecovative are creating packaging that grows itself from fungi, mimics nature and is completely recyclable. According to the founder, they are just one small part of the overall solution. We need biological solutions to replace our dependence on synthetic materials, recycling and waste. In what he calls the restorative economy, we design for re-usability so as to not waste energy and nutrients of our precious planet.

This story speaks to me of the gift of aliveness that young children model so well. Mary Stafford writes about the many spontaneous gifts from her daughter to others, often strangers. Her daughter gives with absolute trust, openness and spontaneity. I would love to reclaim the gift of knowing and giving. Maybe she can be my guide.

More good news for solar. There were over 100GW of solar energy installed in 2012. That’s a big number that seems to be on the verge of growing much faster. Solar might overtake wind for the first time this next year. Truthfully, 100GW is a small number compared to the huge global energy demand and supply, but finally solar has come into it’s own, in large part due to lower costs and growing interest in “green” energy. Go Solar!

The small country of Bhutan continues to lead on many environmental fronts. They are carbon neutral and food secure, 95% of their citizens have access to clean water and electricity, and the country is 50% forested. Now, they are moving to become completely organic for their food production. If all that wasn’t enough, they base their economy on happiness, not GDP. Seems that Bhutan has a lot to teach the rest of the world. Are we listening?

What’s your good news?