By Nick Chambers •
October 30, 2009
Touring bands are notorious for their environmental footprints, but more and more the bands and their fans are taking steps to make the activity less damaging.
When it comes to music, the Beatles—fueled by my parents’ large collection of vinyl—dominated most of my early life. The White Album is like my musical comfort food; it’s what I go back to when I need to feel rooted. But in terms of the music that has influenced and shaped much of my adult life, there is no band more important than Phish.
By Rhishja Larson •
October 29, 2009
Today the Center for Biological Diversity announced that the winner of its third annual Rubber Dodo Award is Michael Winer, portfolio manager for Third Avenue Management, LLC (”TAREX”).
The Center for Biological Diversity awards the Rubber Dodo each year to the person who has contributed the most to driving endangered species extinct. Winer was selected this year for his leadership role in Third Avenue Management, LLC (”TAREX”), a giant real-estate investment firm responsible for unsustainable sprawl in California and Florida - and the driving force behind the proposed destruction of Tejon Ranch with a luxury development known as Tejon Mountain Village.
Last year’s recipient was former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
By John Ivanko •
October 28, 2009
Life, Money and Illuision is not about the magical arts or wizardry, though it does demystify money and Wall Street’s greedy aspirations abetted by the global push for more growth and consumption (and jobs).
Life, Money and Illuision: Living on Earth as if we want to stay (New Society, 2009) by Mike Nickerson is a driving tome that reconciles how our economy operates in relationship to the ecological and social systems on which we all depend.
In this second revised edition of Life, Money and Illusion, Nickerson explains that “Life” refers to the biological processes by which living things maintain themselves over time. “Money” represents our economic ideology that claims that as long as the volume of money changing hands increases, all will be well. “Illusion” refers to the fact that these two perspectives are directly opposed in terms of how they would solve current problems.
As one might imagine, a book of this stature and ambition — if providing meaningful analysis and argumentation (which it does superbly) — is not a cursory or a casual read. Running 448 pages, Life, Money and Illusion is meticulously fashioned in easy-to-understand language that makes Nickerson’s arguments and ideas both compelling and provocative. It draws from numerous fields, including ecology, psychology, philosophy, mathematics, and, of course, economics.
By Rhishja Larson •
October 28, 2009
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has awarded 6 grants totaling $800,000 to determine the cause and stop the spread of deadly white-nose syndrome that has killed over a million bats in the Northeast.
Six grants have been awarded through the USFWS Preventing Extinction program for research to determine the cause, find a cure, and stop the spread of deadly white-nose syndrome in bats. Since its discovery in 2006, white-nose syndrome (WNS) has killed more than a million bats of six species in nine states - and biologists warn this is most devastating wildlife health crisis to face North America in the last 100 years.
By Rhishja Larson •
October 23, 2009
Now that the polar bear is about to receive over 128 million acres of critical habitat designation, the state of Alaska is taking legal action to challenge the decision.
Following the announcement that threatened polar bears are set to receive over 128 million acres of critical habitat designation, Alaska Governor Sean Parnell and Attorney General Dan Sullivan responded by taking legal action against federal protection of polar bears.
By Zachary Shahan •
October 23, 2009
Naked bicyclists, folding bikes, balloon bikes, and more — enjoy this bicycle photo tour of Barcelona.
The third B in a row, Barcelona is next on this list of great bicycle cities (right ahead of Basel, Switzerland and Bogota, Columbia). As a dense city with a wonderful climate, Barcelona is naturally a wonderful place for bicyclists. However, a lot has been done to make it more so. The biggest carrot encouraging bicycling, by far, is Barcelona’s relatively new bike sharing program — Bicing. This is perhaps the best or second best bike sharing program in the world. It is one of a new generation of sophisticated, smart bike sharing programs. Read more about it on page 2.
Beyond Bicing, the city is also working on creating new bicycling routes and bike parking and it hosts fun Bike Week celebrations every year in May. Also, it has been creating better infrastructure for bicyclists due to so many more people bicycling within the past few years. It is transforming itself into a truly world-leading bicycle city.
By Govind Singh •
October 22, 2009
File Photo: Hillary Clinton and the Indian Environment Minister in New Delhi
..and then takes a U-Turn the very next day!
In a reported letter to the Prime Minister of India, Mr. Jairam Ramesh, the Indian Environment Minister proposed a radical shift in India’s stand on climate change–away from its national position on climate negotiations–which India has backed since 1990 and which was defended robustly even in UN talks in Bangkok earlier this month.
Minutes after the news spread, political parties sitting in the opposition were quick to respond. Within the next few hours, the Environment Minister issued a clarifying statement for national media and the entire Nation!
By Govind Singh •
October 18, 2009
Chaired by President M. Nasheed, the Government of Maldives recently concluded the world’s first ever underwater cabinet meeting. The small island nation of Maldives will perhaps be the first country to go under water, if predictions based on climate change models come true.
The underwater meeting was called to raise this concern and put pressure on the West to act NOW, and for a fair deal at COP in Copenhagen this December. A day after the event, extensively covered by the media (View on: CNN | BBC), the Government of India has announced the setting up of a National institute for long-term research on climate change.
By John Ivanko •
October 15, 2009
I don’t know about you, but I’m getting fed up with buying things that break or wear out way before they should. Warranties – from both manufacturers and retailers — seem to be getting shorter and more limited than ever, as if durability is an afterthought.
But I don’t want to support the landfill economy. I want to support the restoration economy and, when I need to purchase things, support companies that care about the planet the way I do. Some of these companies break from this planned obsolescence mentality and profit obsession, companies like REI, or Recreation Equipment, Inc., where your love of the outdoors actually pays dividends to you, as a customer-member of the cooperative enterprise.
REI, the nation’s largest consumer cooperative, got its start in 1938 when a bunch of climbing buddies got together to buy some gear to explore the great outdoors. They support people, their community and the environment on which their enterprise is based. And they guarantee that their products last and perform as expected.
A couple years ago, for example, I purchased a pair of sandals from REI. After limited use, my sandals had an ankle strap that broke. The brand is well known and adventure proven: Teva. Since I live in a four-season climate, they should have lasted longer than they did. Walking into the REI retail store in a much older pair of Tevas I wore when traveling to South America, I talked briefly with a salesperson in REI shoe department who found a replacement pair of a different model for me in minutes. No hassle. No runaround. Try that at a big box retailer or chain.
By Nick Chambers •
October 12, 2009
Legendary Italian carmaker, Pininfarina, may yet have some surprises up its sleeves. Even with recent financial difficulties, Pininfarina’s CEO, Silvio Pietro Angori, told Italian newspaper, Il Sole 24, that the company’s Bluecar electric car venture with french investor Vincent Bollore is not simply a concept car and still on track for a 2011 market debut.
By Joe Walsh •
October 10, 2009
Time-traveling to 2010 reveals how some of Washington’s worst-kept secrets will catch up with President Obama and cripple his climate agenda.
