I imagined myself sipping a glass of champagne before jetting off to Paris for the day… That was me, in awe of the champagne bar at St. Pancras International in the heart of London. Actually, I was in awe of everything at St. Pancras- the 30 foot bronze sculpture of a couple saying their goodbyes… [Read more…]
Everyone, or nearly everyone, will spend a few moments reflecting on the close of the first decade of the 21st Century before beginning the next decade with a an awe inspiring hangover. We, here in the land of green opportunity, are no different. Let us review the events of the past decade in all their… [Read more…]
Here’s an opportunity (or three) for Silicon Valley – small, self contained solar generation. As the rain fell in San José on Christmas Eve I learned about Sara Ruto, an entrepreneurial woman living in a remote Kenyan village. Ms. Ruto would walk two miles on dirt paths and take a 3 hour motorcycle taxi ride… [Read more…]
November 28, 2010 by shilohballard
In Utrecht, the network of bike paths was incredible, comprehensive, seemingly unending and…pretty. By pretty, I don’t just mean scenic. I mean that the paving material used was aesthetically pleasing. It was brick and/or some sort of cobblestone, something that adds personality to a city while making the riding/walking experience enjoyable and interesting. Function AND… [Read more…]
It’s barely 36 hours after the polls closed in California’s November election, and less than 72 hours after the San Francisco Giants put the finishing touches on the World Series. What do these two disparate events have in common? Texas and California’s right to self determination. The Texas Rangers, whose previous owner, former President Bush, made… [Read more…]
Just in time for Halloween the pod people have arrived in San José - except these folks come with the Podcar and are not interested in eating your brain. San José’s city hall is home to a three day conference on the latest in personal rapid transit (PRT). Touting podcars as the latest in green, fast… [Read more…]
October 19, 2010 by shilohballard
A few months ago, I blogged about electric vehicles. I wrote that they promise to help move us in a more sustainable direction but that ultimately, biking is where it’s at. Little did I know that just a few months later I would be riding an electric bike around Rotterdam as a part of a… [Read more…]
October 10, 2010 by shilohballard
In the US, garages are akin to storage units, providing a safe haven for holiday decorations, photo albums, camping gear and that bike you manage to ride very infrequently. In Amsterdam, garages are used to park cars. How does this happen? In Amsterdam the Dutch do not allow people to buy a parking… [Read more…]
September 5, 2010 by shilohballard
New IPO foreign correspondent Shiloh Ballard gives us an update to her cycling mission in the Netherlands. On the way to Utrecht from Amsterdam, the first thing I noticed about bikes was the bike parking. I saw a double decker parking structure and was shocked. That was just the beginning. There were full blown parking… [Read more…]
August 23, 2010 by shilohballard
by Shiloh Ballard Tuesday night I pulled into my garage, got out of “my” car and plugged it in to the wall. This sounds like a seemingly mundane action but I found it to be more special than I had anticipated. I felt a new kind of freedom, and had I exclaimed anything, it would… [Read more…]
January 3, 2011 by thenewipo
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