Live Green Toronto

---

	Go Green with the Grinch and win prizes! The Grinch Who Stole Christmas! The Musical is coming to Toronto just in time for the holidays, and everyone in the Toronto area is invited to help make the Grinch's wish for a greener/less wasteful holiday season come true. Submit a video that shows how you’re greening your holidays — show as many green holiday ideas as you can fit in a 60 second clip or a few activities in detail — and you could win great prizes! Enter and vote for your favourites!
	Home Energy Help program helps those in need save energy and money Home Energy Help is a new program offering free home improvements to those in need. Qualified residents can get help with energy efficiency improvements such as new insulation, furnace upgrades, low-flow toilets, power bars, compact fluorescent light bulbs and more. The program is the result of a collaboration between the City of Toronto, Toronto Hydro Electric System and Enbridge Gas Distribution. Learn more about Home Energy Help.
	Get your Live Green Toronto Membership Card and save more than money! When you show your Live Green Toronto Membership Card at participating businesses, you’ll be eligible for exclusive offers or discounts on a wide range of environmentally friendly products and services in categories such as Home, Family, Food, Specialty, Travel, Fun, Wellness and Style. With the number of participating businesses growing every day, there are more reasons than ever to get your free card. Learn more and sign up today.
	Dig out your old lights… the Festive Light Exchange is back! For every two strings of old inefficient incandescent lights you drop off at a Toronto Hydro Festive Light Exchange event this year, you’ll take home a free LED string of lights. LED lights use up to 90 per cent less electricity than incandescent lights, produce almost no heat, generate more light and last longer. Exchange old lights for LED lights at any one of these Festive Light Exchange events.
	ClimateSpark: Be part of the next climate breakthrough! Do you have a great business idea for saving the climate? Do you have intelligence you want to share? The ClimateSpark Challenge is your chance to help discover new ideas and shape them into successful climate solutions. ClimateSpark presented by Toronto Atmospheric Fund, is an online competition that uses the power of social networks to solicit, develop and unleash business ideas that can help reduce our climate impact.
	Bike Boxes help make cycling safer Toronto’s first bike boxes were recently installed at the intersection of two of the city’s most popular bicycle lanes at Harbord Street-Hoskin Ave and St. George Street. Designed to make cycling safer, a bike box is a pavement marking that provides cyclists with a waiting area in front of cars at red lights. Bike boxes can help prevent conflicts between motorists turning right and cyclists travelling straight. In total, five bike boxes will be installed along the Harbord/Hoskin Ave.and College St. bicycle lanes this fall. Learn more about Toronto’s new bike boxes.
	Help Shape the Future of Electric Vehicles The City of Toronto is looking at ways to incorporate electric vehicles into its sustainable transportation plan. Before we can adopt this new technology, there are a variety of things to consider – from the number and location of charging stations, to the impact on our electricity grid and the need for EV-friendly policies. Tell the City what you think we should consider. Share your thoughts by posting a comment on-line. Comments will be used to propose an electric vehicles strategy to City Council in 2011. .
	BIXI Toronto reaches membership goal With 1,000 members signed up for BIXI Toronto, the City has reached a key milestone in the creation of a bike share system. When BIXI begins in 2011, Torontonians and visitors will have access to 1,000 bicycles via 80 fully automated and conveniently located BIXI stations in the downtown, with potential to expand in future years. Operating like an extension of the public transit system, the bikes are intended for one-way trips of less than 30 minutes and will be able to be picked up and dropped off by members at BIXI stations in the city, 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week.
	Student-led Public Good Initiative offers pro bono consulting to non-profits The Public Good Initiative is a student-led project that pairs students from the University of Toronto’s School of Public Policy and Governance (SPPG) with community organizations that can benefit from their pro bono consulting services. The goal is to blend the unique attributes and voluntary ethos of the students with the needs of public benefit organizations in and around Toronto. Students work closely with small and large non-profit organizations active in various policy areas, ranging from health to education to environmental issues. Interested non-profits may contact the PGI Coordinators.

Live Green News is published periodically by Live Green Toronto program staff in the City of Toronto Environment Office.