Solarpunk Urbanism

In this video we dive into a tiny forest that was created in one of the hottest climates in the US (South Texas) using the Miyawaki tiny forest method.

This project emphasizes the importance of plants not as some candy-ass "pretty" bullshit, but as vital pieces of infrastructure that are essential to bettering the human quality of life and reducing the effects of excess heat, drought and flooding.

On land that was once totally barren and next to a large urban road, a tiny forest has been rated using native plants as infrastructure. Pioneer species as well as slower-growing secondary successional species were installed in 2023 to mitigate flooding, mitigate the effects of the urban heat island (created by the surrounding concrete and asphalt), and provide habitat for beneficial insects and birds.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/20437303

This is Akkudoktor's (Andreas Schmitz) home energy management and optimization system. Some people will know Andreas by his YouTube channel @akkudoktor in which he discusses DYI home energy systems. That channel was born out of a frustration how technical hurdles were obstructing the energy transition in Germany. Among other things, Andreas showed that one can build a home battery with a fraction of the cost of commercial systems - provided that one has engineering knowledge - and he is a control engineer.

So, because just before, I did post a link to the evcc project, I should explain what are the differences between evcc and Akkudoktor's EOS:

evcc is mainly concerned with charging electrical vehicles (EVs) from home solar or dynamically priced power from the grid.

• it is set up to be easy to use with phone interfaces etc.
• it already supports a wide range of hardware
• it is competatively mature
• it is limited in optimization capabilities
• it is written in Go language

Akkudoktor EOS has the top priority of high level optimization - getting the most bang out of each buck

• it is a rather new project in alpha stage. So, it might be more interesting for people looking to contribute - or scratch their own itch.
• it tries to optimize home photovoltaics, home batteries, heat pumps, grey water heat pumps, other heating and manageable devices, and the remaining household demand
• electrical vehicles are supported (and currently, they are an important economical use case because batteries are still expensive and the only other large type of consumers are heat pumps).
• Such an optimization is complex because it requires predicting renewable generation (both in the home and as wind power from the grid), electric power price prediction (if dynamic or day/night prices are used), and also the individual consumption (which could depend on the forecasted weather, time of the day, day of the week, or time of the year). Things like the insulation of the house modify the impact of the weather. Also, usage pattern of components such as heat pump or battery csn have influence in their life time. So that's a complex optimization problem.
• And a good optimization also requires sufficient input data. This also needs to observe data privacy aspects (I guess you don't want to give a burglar info on when nobody is at home)
• The targeted integration is via Home Assistant, or HA.

Oh, last not least, there is also a (mostly German-language) forum on home energy systems which is also used to discuss the software:

https://www.akkudoktor.net/

Cheap, lightweight hydroponics systems that use material recycled from plastic bottles reduce the "heat island" effect and can be installed on just about any kind of structure - even those that could never support the weight of a conventional green roof.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/28342571

A decade of organizing has turned trash-strewn lots into edible parks. Now Boston is expanding food forests as part of its climate action plan.

“Edible forests” are popping up in Boston. Scattered across the city, once-empty lots have been overtaken by fruit trees and berry-filled bushes. Open to the public, they are forage-friendly pockets in the urban grid.

archived (Wayback Machine)

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/28179218

Despite federal roadblocks, an ambitious agroforestry program is feeding people, cleaning the air, and helping offset climate change.

archived (Wayback Machine)

At just 200 m^2 tiny forests in urban areas are planted in heavily-amended soils all at once (multiple levels of canopy and groundcover). The result is forests that are mature in 10 years instead of 100.

cross-posted from: https://beehaw.org/post/22050883

As Spain takes a breath after yet another brutal summer heatwave, with temperatures above 40C in many parts of the country, the residents of the sherry-making town of Jerez de la Frontera have come up with a novel way to keep the streets cool.

Green canopies of grapevines festoon the town, reducing street-level temperatures by as much as 8C. “We’re planting vines in the old city because we hope that in two or three years we’ll be able to brag that this has put an end to stifling temperatures,” said Jesús Rodríguez, president of Los Emparrados, a group of residents who aim to beautify and green the city’s streets.

For decades the local sherry producers have kept their wineries cool with emparrados (vine arbours) but now the practice has been extended to a cluster of streets in the old town.

Not only are vines part of the essence of Jerez, they also have several advantages over trees. They need to be watered only in the first two years and they are deciduous, letting in the winter sun between November and March. Within three years of planting they will form a complete canopy over a narrow street.

Just a single vine stem growing up the side of a house can offer a lot of shade. In the sherry houses, where this has been the practice for more than 60 years, the leaves from a single vine form a canopy of 60 sq metres.

The variety chosen is Vitis riparia, cultivated to produce few grapes, avoiding streets made sticky by fallen fruit.

archived (Wayback Machine)

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/34920468

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/50353146

https://mastodon.social/@JasonThorne/115083776485545892

The only thing better than a protected bike lane, is a protected bike lane with artworks by local artists! The new Lansdowne Avenue cycle track murals are looking good.

Shoutout to Street Art Toronto, Cycle Toronto and the City of Toronto Cycling and Pedestrian Projects Unit #BikeTooter