This week we want to recognize and applaud PGE. Does that seem surprising? Well, credit should go where credit is due, and PGE has done a good thing. In fact, they've done exactly what we asked them to do, which is to take a leadership role on addressing global warming. Here's how:

Yesterday CUB Staff Attorney Jason Eisdorfer spoke on a panel at the NW Energy Summit, a conference on energy issues generally throughout the region; the topic was regulation. He made the point that of the types of regulation possible (there are 4), the only one he wanted to talk about, the one that will be playing a dominant role in energy regulation for at least the next 100 years, is environmental regulation. Global warming has brought this particular issue to the forefront, and there it is likely to stay.

Peggy Fowler, chief executive of Portland General Electric, also spoke at the Energy Summit. She could have chosen a topic that didn't touch on global warming. She could have hemmed and hawed around, as so many businesspeople have done for decades: the science isn't certain; solutions would be too expensive; we don't have the tools, etc. Peggy didn't say any of that. Instead, she said, "Doing nothing is not an option."

From the DCJ:

Last year, the Regional Multiple Listing Service became the first MLS in the country to indicate "green certification" for realtors. Basically, it creates a searchable datatbase for realtors looking for "green properties."
"Only our Realtor-subscribers have the tools and knowledge to narrow down the more than 14,000 active listings in the Portland metro area and help buyers find their green home," RMLS CEO Beth Murphy said in a release.
Clearly, as the market expands for this sort of niche, the gatekeepers of real estate (aka realtors) will have to stay on top of all the emerging markets. Especially, here in oregon, the green market.

Realtors can also become green certified. What sort of rigorous training and education does a Realtor need in order to become 'green certified'?

Earth Advantage Inc. has a two day Sustainability Training for Accredited Real Estate Professionals course covering all aspects of Green Building after which you take a test to determine if you retained the information.

We can only hope it isn't open note?

Do you guys think Oregon is the epicenter of the green bubble?

Oregon's ...