A few months ago, I took a look at the difference micro solar systems were making for people in the developing world: a small system that provides enough energy to charge a light and a cell phone can change these people’s standard of living immensely. As you might imagine, companies like Barefoot Power aren’t the... Read More...
The latest six cartoons… (see full stock of previous ‘Cartoon guide to biodiversity loss’ compendia here). – Filed under: biodiversity, cartoon, climate change, conservation, economics, environmental policy, logging
More and more New Zealanders are looking to adopt babies from overseas, largely due to falling domestic adoption opportunities. Read more...
The UN World Population Ageing 2009 Document. Read more...
Electronic waste (or e-waste) presents a number of challenges: its growth, its toxicity, unethical approaches to recycling… the list goes on. And while it’s a big issue in the United States, it’s not limited to us: the rest of the world is also trying to figure out what to do with all of those discarded... Read More...
There is a great deal of controversy about the wisdom of diverting a significant percentage of the US corn crop into the production of ethanol to fuel cars. Something like 25-30% of the crop will probably be used this way in 2011 which sounds alarming in the face of global food supply issues that have... Read More...
The struggles of families and businesses over the past seven years are linked directly to high profits for oil companies due to high energy price volatility. A new report from the Center for American Progress finds that families and businesses are exposed to massive price swings for the vast majority of their [...]
Climate Progress is now on Facebook. Help build our community of people like you who are passionate about climate and energy issues — “like” us and pass the word onto your network of friends and colleagues.
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Even the most die-hard supporter of our current personal transportation infrastructure (essentially, roads and bridges designed for cars) will likely admit that bicycling (and walking) has some fundamental benefits: a very low environmental footprint, a lot of saved money for those using bikes for at least some of their transportation (though just how much savings... Read More...
Parts of West Texas, Oklahoma and adjoining states are suffering from a drought that rivals the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. Some scientists say this is a kind of “global weirding” heralding climate change.
Were it not for the Biblical flooding of the Mississippi River and, well, Biblical whirlwinds slamming the Midwest, the “hellish” side of [...]
I gotta admit, I’m something of a lazy gardener. I will always seek out the easiest way to plant vegetables and grow my own food. But I have some good excuses, too: I don’t like tilling soil because it disrupts the soil life, and why would I spend all that time weeding when I can... Read More...
Solar power may be cheaper than electricity generated by fossil fuels and nuclear reactors within three to five years because of innovations, said Mark M. Little, the global research director for General Electric Co. (GE)
Of course, being cheaper than new nuclear isn’t hard when cost curves are moving in opposite direction (see “Does nuclear power [...]
By Janet Larsen Cancer is now the leading cause of death in China. Chinese Ministry of Health data implicate cancer in close to a quarter of all deaths countrywide. As is common with many countries as they industrialize, the usual plagues of poverty — infectious diseases and high infant mortality — have given way to... Read More...
Last week I had the honor of meeting Dr. Jason Clay, Vice President of the World Wildlife Fund. We were on the same panel at CropLife America’s second annual National Policy Conference. Jason got the opportunity to promote his main project which is influencing major commercial entities in the food chain to promote intensification of agriculture... Read More...
While we all may sing about “peanuts and Cracker Jack” during the seventh inning stretch, when we head to the food vendors at baseball parks, we’re more likely to go for hot dogs, burgers, bratwurst, etc. Unless you’re vegetarian, of course… and, in that case, you may just assume you’re going to go hungry during... Read More...
The pension’s minister in Britain is trying to convince the nation that 59 is not “old”. Read more...
I meant to get this out yesterday, but was too hamstrung with other commitments. Now the media circus has beat me to the punch. Despite the lateness (in news-time) of my post, my familiarity with the analysis and the people involved gives me a unique insight, I believe. So a couple of months ago, Fangliang He and [...]
This post doubles as a Conservation Classic and a new take on an old concept. It’s new in the sense that it updates what we believe is an advance on a major milestone in conservation biology, even though some of the add-on concepts themselves have been around for a while. First, the classic. The ‘evil [...]
I’m just heading home after a very inspiring workshop organised by Fangliang He at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China (I’m writing this from the Qantas Club in the Hong Kong airport). Before I proceed to regale you with the salient details of the ‘International Symposium for Biodiversity and Theoretical Ecology‘, I am compelled to [...]
New Zealand has been ranked the 6th best country in the world to be a mother according to the Save the Children Fund’s 2011 Mother's Index. Read more...
Another ‘hot’ essay by Bill Laurance recently published online by Yale Environment 360 (a publication of the Yale University School of Forestry & Environmental Studies). Bill asked me to relay it on ConservationBytes.com, so here it is in full: – Much attention has been paid to how global warming is affecting the world’s polar regions and glaciers. But [...]