The Durable Human

Recycling Rocks the Empire State Building

As of last week, all the windows in the Empire State Building have been replaced…using the existing glass…repurposed right on site.  Please excuse the ellipses, but this is really exciting.

As Kevin Surace of Serious Materials tells it — Tony Malkin, owner of the New York City landmark, wanted to save money on his energy bills, but didn’t want to waste his existing glass and Kevin said, “I can do that.”

So there, in a temporary shop on the fifth floor, Kevin’s crew remade each of the building’s 6,500 windows, crafting them into a new product which is 400% more efficient than what was there before.

The windows are part of an energy-efficiency retrofit that will achieve the astounding feat of making the Empire State greener than 90% of other office buildings. Tony expects it will save him $4.4 million a year. 

Kevin Surace is a game-changer. He’s one of those rare individuals who give humans a good name because they’re so darn smart – not just in book learning (his degree is in Electrical Engineering Technology), but about how to influence other people to do what’s best for humanity at large.

As Inc. Magazine’s Entrepreneur of the Year, he was featured speaker at the 2010 Rochester Institute of Technology Entrepreneurs Conference, giving a rapt crowd his ten secrets for building a great company:

1. Identify a problem. Buildings and making the the stuff they’re built from generate 52% of the world output of carbon dioxide.

2. Provide great solutions. Since dual-pane glass is basically ineffective at reducing heat and cold transfer, Kevin’s company has come up with something better.

3. Recognition by peers is important. Kevin showed two videos of President Obama extolling the fact that Serious re-opened a shuttered factory and put hundreds of people back to work making energy efficient products.

4. Hire the right people for the job. Most of his come from Silicon Valley not from the building industry.

5. Have a vision for the next 5 to 10 years (at least) into the future.

6. Amazing client references help a lot.  3.5 million people visit the Empire State Building every year. My guess is Kevin will find some way to tell them about the windows.

7. Disruptive innovation. Stand up and knock over the table of existing practice.  Kevin believes nothing happens if no one takes risks.

8.  Disruptive marketing. Be there the moment the customer needs you. Monthly newsletters don’t cut it any more.  Own the online conversation about your product category.

9.  People notice when you’re nice. Smiling faces of people you put back to work: Priceless.

10. Don’t be afraid to change everything we know.

Depending on The Potomac

Water from the Potomac River supplies the entire Washington, DC area

If you live near the Nation’s Capital and don’t care whether the Potomac River runs dry, prepare to get very thirsty. That’s because the water for every person, business and industry in the area comes from that single source. 

Every day, a small number of intake dams near northern Virginia’s Great Falls National Park suck 400 million cubic gallons of water from the river.  But, if we aren’t careful, the thundering falls could go silent. 

According to Dr. E-an Zen, world authority on Potomac River geology, if the local population continues to grow and water usage is not managed wisely, demand will exceed supply and the Potomac could become “a series of semi-stagnant pools connected by trickles of water.”

Potomac water intake dam

There have been ominous signs of that trajectory. During the drought of 1999, for instance, water flow dropped dramatically, the river temperature increased and a large number of fish and other wildlife died. If local governments had asked people to use a little less water, the fish kill might have been averted. But, only Maryland issued an appeal for water conservation, while the state of Virginia refused. 

At least three fairly severe droughts have occured locally in the past five years.  According to Dr. Zen, “A couple of times we had droughts, the governors refused to declare emergencies because it’s not politically wise.”  He contends that states should at least “show some concern. Don’t say ‘We have plenty. Don’t worry’.”

The typical Washingtonian uses about 150 gallons of water every day. Dr. Zen tracked his own usage and found he consumes one-third of that amount and could easily cut back more.  Measuring water usage is a good way for everyone to become more water-aware, especially kids, Dr. Zen told The Durable Human in this video.  

Dr. E-an Zen

Keith Tomlinson, a fellow of the National Academy of Sciences and manager of northern Virginia’s Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, recently organized a walk and talk with Dr. Zen through Great Falls Park. Keith pointed out that the April 2010 issue of National Geographic Magazine is entirely devoted to worldwide water issues.  Blog Action Day focused on the topic this year and has many useful links.  

At the end of the sojourn, Dr. Zen was asked how long it will take for Washington to be in a full-blown water crisis.  He answered with only this question: “How fast do you think humans will change behavior?”