Finished my 3rd MOOC, and moving to renewable Energy in Washington, DC

As the title of the post says, I’ve completed my 3rd MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) (with distinction!). This one was  Climate Literacy: Navigating Climate Change Conversations on Coursera (@Coursera). I took it because I wanted to better understand the data that supports my interest in environmental stewardship in healthcare (#GreenHC), and prepare to represent Kaiser Permanente at CleanMed Europe (@CleanMedEurope) and it was extremely helpful. The course will repeat beginning September 30, 2013.

There were two assignments required in the class. I wrote two blog posts based on what I learned in putting together my first assignment ( see: Now Reading: Changing plant and cherry tree behavior in Washington, DC due to climate change | Ted Eytan, MD and Now Analyzing: Temperature and snowfall data for Washington, DC, Implications for Health | Ted Eytan, MD
). Bottom line, we are seeing changes in our environment today that will transform our health.

My second assignment was an investigation about renewable energy certificates and how they relate to carbon offsets. In Washington, DC, which is the #1 city in the United States in terms of renewable kilowatts purchased, residents have the option to convert to wind power for their electricity.

So, I’ve joined my employer Kaiser Permanente:

Kaiser Permanente facilities in the Mid-Atlantic region are also leading the way in sustainability with clean wind-energy power through the purchase of Green-e certified renewable energy credits (RECs). This deal will match 100 percent of expected annual electricity use by all of Kaiser Permanente’s Maryland and District of Columbia facilities for two years starting in 2012, thus avoiding an estimated 51,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions each year. (see: ‎xnet.kp.org/newscenter/aboutkp/green/docs/kp-climate-energy-factsheet-2013.pdf)

..and converted to wind power for my residential electricity. Everything I’ve learned on this topic is in the document below.

Purchasing Renewable Energy Credits in Washington, DC USA – Climate Literacy: Navigating Climate Change Conversations from Ted Eytan

If you’re going to CleanMed Europe, drop me a line, I’ll be presenting a great poster chronicling our journey to include the health of our planet in our work to support Total Health.

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Ted Eytan, MD