Sierra Club Green Home

Electronics go out of style faster than clothes these days. Americans throw out more than 350,000 cell phones and 130,000 computers every day, according to Time Magazine. E-waste piles up and often gets shipped to poor countries where it causes serious environmental and health problems. Fortunately, there are companies like 2nd Solutions which use smelting to extract recyclable elements from electronics. In this video, Michael Pittman from 2nd Solutions shows Sierra Club Green Home how it works. (Photo by JohnMuk, Flickr)

Carbon Fund is a nonprofit that offers carbon offset options for individuals, businesses, and organizations who want to reduce their carbon footprint. When you buy carbon offsets from Carbon Fund, you sponsor one of their projects to counteract global warming. These projects range from a providing hydroelectric power to a in India to reforestation in Louisiana, as well as awareness campaigns. (Image courtesy of Carbonfund.org Foundation)

Maybe an electric vehicle, biodiesel engine, or hybrid car is out of reach right now, but you can still drive your current car in the most fuel-efficient manner possible (for your wallet’s sake as much as the environment’s). Sierra Club Green Home learned some fuel efficiency tips from Ford at this month’s auto show in Detroit, and we’re only too happy to pass these along. (Photo courtesy of Ford)

Hybrid cars and 100% electric vehicles are set to be the stars of Ford’s next generation of cars. Sierra Club Green Home drivers, meet the Focus Electric, the Fusion Plug-In, and the C-MAX Hybrid! These cars vary in range and energy source, but all promise to make alternative energy cars more practical and fun in 2013. (Photo courtesy of Ford)

Have you ever wondered how an electric vehicle works, or how car companies can use more environmentally friendly materials? Ford sustainability expert John Viera has spent his entire career working on everything from fuel efficiency improvements in vehicles to sustainability initiatives for manufacturing facilities, and is excited to talk shop with Sierra Club Green Home readers. (Photo courtesy of Ford)

From cameras and cell phones to watches and eggbeaters, we use batteries every day in all sorts of household products. It’s hard to imagine life without them, but can the environment live with them? (Photo by EvelynGiggles, Flickr)

CODA is more than a car company. These self-described “hippies of the car industry” are on a mission to get an electric car in every garage in the United States. They do their part by creating a more affordable, practical electric vehicle (EV), and by raising awareness of the EV option. Next month, CODA will release their four-door sedan with two battery options: 125 miles per charge, or 150 miles per charge. (Photo courtesy of CODA)

SAN FRANCISCO — Waste management company Recology has hit a milestone: 1 million tons of composted materials in San Francisco. What’s more, Thanksgiving is the biggest food week of the year, and Recology is calling for all scraps to be composted. Read more about the company’s many programs, including art, education, and falcons. UPDATED: Take a video tour of its facilities.

Panasonic Eco Technology Center (PETEC) is an unusual recycling facility in many ways. Since it started operations in 2001, PETEC has recycled more than 8 million units of appliances. Take a look at how it does so and why Japan’s unique recycling law has helped PETEC earn its sucess.

Japan is known for being high tech, and thanks to companies such as Panasonic, its high tech is going green. Take a look at Panasonic’s eco innovations for the smart home of the future and the smart city the company plans to complete by 2013. (Illustration courtesy of Panasonic)