May 2009 - Posts

• Airplanes to Use Biofuel?

  It’s no surprise that air travel contributes to global warming (currently about 3 percent of US total emissions), but scientists predict that these levels could triple by 2050. This statistic has prompted aircraft manufacturers and airlines like Boeing, Read More... Posted Sunday, May 31, 2009 9:48 AM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Issues, Transportation, News

• Global Humanitarian Forum Report: Global Warming Crisis Reaching "Catastrophic" Level

  A few days ago, we posted an article about the significant number of Americans who continue to deny the validity of global warming . The article generated a number of comments from individuals on both sides of the issue. A key element of the debate centered Read More... Posted Friday, May 29, 2009 10:08 AM by David | 7 Comments Filed under: Food and Drink, Health, Issues, News

• COP15: Hollywood Hits Copenhagen to Fight Climate Change

  Queen Elizabeth, aka Aussie actress Cate Blanchett, took a stand against climate change at the World Business Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen on Monday. ( See our original COP15 post ) A member of the Australian Conservation Foundation, the Benjamin Read More... Posted Thursday, May 28, 2009 1:27 PM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Celebrities, Energy, Health, Issues, News

• Yale Study: Ecosystems Can Recover in Decades

  The Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies (YSFES) found that polluted ecosystems can and do recover from damage well within decades if communities commit to restoring the ecosystem. After scrutinizing 240 independent studies on large-scale Read More... Posted Thursday, May 28, 2009 8:45 AM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Issues, News

• Why White Roofs Will Slow Global Warming

  Obama’s Nobel prize-winning green guru and US Secretary of Energy Dr. Steven Chu claims that painting your roof white can help reduce global warming significantly. Speaking yesterday from London prior to a conference on climate change, Dr. Chu said that Read More... Posted Wednesday, May 27, 2009 12:19 PM by Christie | 3 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Home and Garden, Issues, News

• Twitter for Trees: UNEP’s Countdown to World Environment Day, June 5

  June 5 marks World Environment Day, and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is celebrating this year’s event with the Twitter for Trees campaign. For every Twitter follower of UNEP and You between now and June 5, UNEP will plant one tree. Read More... Posted Wednesday, May 27, 2009 10:19 AM by Emily | 0 Comments Filed under: Energy, News

• Could Nuclear Waste Be a Future Energy Resource?

  Last week MIT hosted a panel of nuclear power industry experts to address nuclear waste recycling and disposal options. Considered by many analysts to be the chief barrier to building a new generation of nuclear power plants, the debate around what to Read More... Posted Wednesday, May 27, 2009 8:30 AM by Christie | 7 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Health, Issues, News

• COP15: World Business Leaders Must Set Example Against Climate Change

  In December, world leaders will converge on Copenhagen to hammer out a successor to the Kyoto protocol , which expires in 2012. Leading up to the new agreement governing global action on climate change, the World Business Summit on Climate Change kicked Read More... Posted Tuesday, May 26, 2009 10:16 AM by Christie | 1 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Issues, News

• U.S. Carbon Dioxide Emissions Fall by Greatest Margin in a Generation

  Some encouraging statistics emerged from U.S. environmental data recently, as carbon dioxide emissions related to energy use dropped 2.8 percent for the year 2008. If the estimate, released by the Energy Information Administration , is accurate, it would Read More... Posted Tuesday, May 26, 2009 9:27 AM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Health, Issues, Transportation, News

• Many Americans Still Refuse To Accept Global Warming As A Real Concern

  A joint report from Yale University and George Mason University, has shown that there is still significant resistance to the issue of global warming. The report (PDF) was recently highlighted on the website of the Center for American Progress , a liberal Read More... Posted Monday, May 25, 2009 4:26 PM by David | 8 Comments Filed under: Issues, News

• Copenhagen Climate Summit 2009: What is COP15?

  If you haven’t heard about Copenhagen 2009, listen up. In December of this year, global minds will meet in Copenhagen to make an action plan to address climate change for when the Kyoto protocol expires in 2012. The conference will be the latest in the Read More... Posted Monday, May 25, 2009 10:31 AM by Christie | 6 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Food and Drink, Home and Garden, News

• Will The Next Great War Be Fought Over Water?

  The prospect of a war fought over water has loomed on the horizon for decades. But, for most people, a water war still sounds like something that could only happen in the distant future . That may change in a hurry, as we may be on the cusp of the first Read More... Posted Friday, May 22, 2009 10:12 AM by David | 2 Comments Filed under: Food and Drink, Health, Issues, News

• Desalination Plant May Solve California's Drinking Water Woes

  Water authorities in San Diego approved a $320 million desalination plant this week, a test move that optimists hope will put an end to the fragility of California’s drinking water infrastructure without causing imbalances in local ecosystems. The plant Read More... Posted Thursday, May 21, 2009 11:11 AM by David | 1 Comments Filed under: Food and Drink, Health, Home and Garden, Issues, News

• Great Apes threatened by Biofuel Plantation

  Even the creation of green energy isn’t without its dark side. While biofuel is seen as an alternate green energy fuel source, the act of acquiring through palm oil plantations seems to far outweigh its benefits. Large swathes of tropical rain forest Read More... Posted Wednesday, May 20, 2009 5:06 PM by David | 2 Comments Filed under: Energy, Issues, News

• Philanthro-Pitts: Brad Pitt and Family Donate $600K to Help Arena Meet Gold Standard for Green

  The new arena at Springfield, Missouri's Drury University will be a little greener thanks to an influx of green (money, that is) from the town's well-known Pitt family, which includes local businessman Doug Pitt and his brother Brad Pitt, of Brangelina Read More... Posted Wednesday, May 20, 2009 11:49 AM by Emily | 0 Comments Filed under: Energy, News

• Obama: Auto Emissions Must Get Down To 42 MPG By 2016

  Surrounded by auto workers and executives, President Barack Obama announced a new national emissions standard today, ending several weeks of speculation. The new standard is right in line with California’s, the nation’s most strict emissions standard. Read More... Posted Tuesday, May 19, 2009 2:29 PM by David | 2 Comments Filed under: Energy, Issues, Transportation, News

• Study: Pollution Can Change Your DNA in 3 Days

  We’ve known for a long time that breathing in polluted air can cause health problems, but a recent Italian study determined that just three days of exposure to polluted air can do damage to human DNA. The study followed DNA damage in 63 steel-foundry Read More... Posted Tuesday, May 19, 2009 9:01 AM by Christie | 1 Comments Filed under: Energy, News

• Twitter for Trees: June 5 World Environment Day

  The UNEP's (United Nations Environmental Programme) World Environment Day is just around the corner on June 5 - after recent enviro days like Earth Week, Earth Day and Bike Week, what's World Environment Day (WED) all about? The theme for WED 2009 is Read More... Posted Monday, May 18, 2009 9:37 AM by Christie | 1 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Food and Drink, Home and Garden, News

• Bike Week Finale: A Place to Vent Commuter Rage

  As Bike Week comes to a close, we hope you had a chance to reflect on why biking is better for you and the planet than driving your car. If there was any doubt about how much cars, gas and commuting suck, check out MyCommuteSucks.org where people from Read More... Posted Friday, May 15, 2009 3:13 PM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, News

• IEA Report: Are Gadgets the Anti Green?

  A report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) released on Wednesday claims that our addiction to electronics is contributing more to the energy crisis than previously understood. According to the IEA press release , the rising global demand for Read More... Posted Friday, May 15, 2009 10:54 AM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, News

• Obama Supports Organic Farming with $50 Million

  It's official. The United States government has finally put its money where its mouth is by backing organic farming. $50 million in federal funding has been set aside to teach sustainable farming skills like natural nutrient management, crop rotation Read More... Posted Thursday, May 14, 2009 12:37 PM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Food and Drink, Home and Garden, News

• Seed Bombs: Can Military Expertise Turn The Tide In The War On Global Warming?

  They sound like something that should inspire terror, but instead they are designed to protect the planet. Seed bombs, also known by the equally frightening name seed grenades, are non-military bombs that are designed to disperse vegetation over a large Read More... Posted Wednesday, May 13, 2009 9:50 AM by David | 3 Comments Filed under: Home and Garden, Issues, News

• Bike to Work Week: Tips for a Safe, Green Ride

  May is Bike Month, and Monday marked the kick-off of national Bike to Work Week. If you’ve ever thought about dropping the car keys in favor of a healthier, greener method of transportation this is the week to trade in your four wheeler for a two wheeler Read More... Posted Tuesday, May 12, 2009 9:44 AM by Christie | 0 Comments

• Re-skinning Gives Old Buildings New Life, Reduces Emissions up to 70%

  Here’s a statistic most people aren’t aware of: the largest percentage of urban greenhouse gas emissions come from the operation of residential and commercial buildings. Not cars, not garbage, not industry – buildings. With outdated insulation, heating, Read More... Posted Monday, May 11, 2009 10:30 AM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Home and Garden, News

• Study: Biodiesel gets a Boost from Styrofoam

  Can polystyrene packing peanuts really be used as biofuel? A recent study funded by the department of defence at Iowa State University has revealed that adding Styrofoam to biodiesel can generate more power in diesel engines. The study showed that dissolving Read More... Posted Friday, May 08, 2009 9:19 AM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, News

• Celebrate World Fair Trade Day with Sir Paul McCartney & Annie Lennox

  On Saturday May 9, World Fair Trade Day will celebrate its 60th birthday with a Big Bang. “Big Bang” is the celebration theme this year, which means everyone’s invited to "bang something (anything) with spoons, sticks, hands, fingers, friends, family, Read More... Posted Thursday, May 07, 2009 9:14 AM by Christie | 3 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Food and Drink, Home and Garden, News

• What Will It Take For People To Stop Buying Gas?

  It’s pretty clear that we, as a nation, need to reduce our reliance on gasoline. How can we accomplish this? One answer that frequently gets discussed is raising the price of gas (which would be accomplished by taxing it more heavily). In Europe, gas Read More... Posted Wednesday, May 06, 2009 10:25 AM by David | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Food and Drink, Transportation, News

• Green Gifts for Mother’s Day and the Earth

  If you’re stuck for Mother’s Day gift ideas this year we’ve found a great way to do good by your mom and Mother Nature. A program called HopeLine run by telecommunications giant Verizon collects out of date and no longer used cell phones, batteries and Read More... Posted Tuesday, May 05, 2009 8:55 AM by Christie | 0 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Food and Drink, Home and Garden, News

• Dispelling Bottled Water Myths

  Recently, several students at a California school became ill after drinking Aquafina bottled water , thrusting the issue of bottled water regulation into the spotlight. One investigator reported that the water the students drank seemed to contain a “bleach-like Read More... Posted Monday, May 04, 2009 10:33 AM by David | 2 Comments Filed under: Food and Drink, Health, News

• Which City Has the Worst Air in America?

  Every year, the American Lung Association releases a report on the quality of the air in the United States. Every year, the results are frightening. The 10th annual State of the Air report was released on April 29th and it contains bad news for more than Read More... Posted Friday, May 01, 2009 4:31 PM by David | 0 Comments Filed under: Health, News

• 10 Tips for Green Spring Cleaning

  Springtime has a way of inspiring us to fling open our doors and windows, clear out clutter and get down to the nitty gritty of cleaning house after a long winter. This spring, before you pull out your usual bucket of cleaning supplies, do a quick check Read More... Posted Friday, May 01, 2009 12:15 PM by Christie | 2 Comments Filed under: Business, Energy, Food and Drink, Home and Garden, News