Growing up and living on Long Island my whole life, one would think that I know my way around the city. Nowadays, I am always asked where to go in the city for food or where to go to grab a beer. My response is simply “I have no idea”. That is certainly changing lately as my colleagues here, who almost all live in the city, are rubbing off on me with their wealth of knowledge of the Big Apple. It has been amazing learning where to go for mid-day eats or finding a great place to grab a fine alcoholic beverage after work.

From time to time you read an article that reminds you of why we are doing what we are doing.  I felt the following article from The Economist did just that: http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2011/12/climate-change

abiogenesis - the primordial soup, the beginning, the point of conception, the study of how biological life arises from the inorganic matter through natural processes.

In my opinion, my existence into Urban Green Energy was a non-organic, yet natural occurrence that started out in California and somehow cosmically hurtled me to New York. New York is a completely foreign, yet frantically intense and vibrant place, bursting with life, yet crushingly oppressive. The energy in this city is electrifying like nothing else I have experienced.

Greenbuild was definitely one of the most impressive sustainable development events that I have ever attended. It was really exciting to be surrounded by so many people and organizations that catered to the green economy. Other than the large size of the conference, some aspects of Greenbuild that truly resonated with me was the energy of the people and their commitment to making a change.