The Petersberg Climate Dialogue took place near Bonn this week. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Mexican President Felipe Calderón brought together environment and climate ministers from 45 countries to “discuss what concrete steps should be taken” prior to the next UNFCCC “Conference of the Parties” (COP) in Cancún in December. Merkel said prior to these […]
In the latest edition of Foreign Policy Magazine, Robert Paarlberg writes about how despite high-profile campaigns to raise awareness of the benefits of growing food organically, the movement’s ethos of “…organic, local, and slow — is no recipe for saving the world’s hungry millions.” Instead, Paarlberg defends industrial farming as the method to ensure a […]
I would be remiss if I didn’t point you in the direction of this thoughtful and impassioned column today by Paul Krugman: Drilling, Disaster, Denial. Krugman is eloquent about our complacency. He attributes this, in part, to our many successes in fighting the visible manifestations of pollution: smog-enveloped cities, burning rivers, garbage barges, etc. He […]
Finally! See this from Juliet Eilperin at the WaPo and this from the “Boston Globe.” Plus, here’s the press release from the Department of the Interior. Interior Secretary Salazar said: “With this decision we are beginning a new direction in our Nation’s energy future, ushering in America’s first offshore wind energy facility and opening a […]
Foreign Policy Magazine offers two unique views of global food in its latest issue. In a feature called “The List”, FP‘s Annie Lowrey highlights five global “Food Fights” or disputes linked to food production, trade, safety or national pride. In a photo essay titled, “An Ode to Farming”, FP presents 27 “images of agriculture [from] […]
My head is spinning from the latest developments in the long-running soap opera of climate and energy legislation in the US Senate. Plus, I am finally reading How Democratic Is the American Constitution? and I’m even more depressed now than when I wrote this post, SPQR. Basically, we can never be a real democracy – you […]
I want to return to a theme expressed here a number of times: Carbon dioxide is not the only greenhouse gas with which we need to concern ourselves. The Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development (IGSD) reiterated this important message yesterday in this press release announcing their “Fast-Action Climate Mitigation Campaign.” What’s the pitch? “The […]
A previous post on this blog discussed a UN appeal for funds to combat the food crisis that continues to cripple Niger. Now the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the UN’s food agency, says it plans to step up aid to herders and shepherds in Niger and its eastern neighbor, Chad, after both countries […]
I mentioned this movie back in November here and thought it looked as if it were a great flick. I finally saw it last night on PBS and it was better than I thought it was going to be! It is fluent, fluid, funny, poignant, smart, hugely informative, and dead on the money in its […]
To borrow a catchphrase from Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, yes, we most certainly can eliminate coal-fired power plants. Knowing what we know, we know that we should, and sooner rather than later. I’ve decried the many harmful impacts of coal mining and burning to public health, communities and the environment here on numerous occasions. See […]
As European countries deal with the fourth day of disruptions and cancellations of flights due to the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano, Kenya is feeling the effects of the volcano is an unexpected way. Kenya, which exports roses, “…beans, sugar snap peas and other vegetables” to Europe, is finding its exportable crops in danger of […]
A story last week in the Washington Post gave me a jolt: Pentagon objections hold up Oregon wind farm. Two weeks prior to breaking ground on an 845-megawatt, $2 billion project in Oregon, the Department of Defense has blocked construction owing to concerns about radar. Two weeks! The project has been on the drawing boards […]
Among my grandmother’s many expressions, this was one of the better ones. I must’ve taken it very much to heart, as leftovers get eaten in our household and I’m pretty scrupulous about recycling. I’ve written here numerous times about waste management issues, including referencing my modest proposal for managing New York City’s 25,000 tons a […]
Here are some updates on the carbon-intensive Alberta tar sands projects. First, the FT’s “Energy Source” blog reports on recent analysis from Citigroup that says, among other things, “It is not a fuel source that sits naturally within a low carbon economy and is unlikely to be a strategic winner as climate regulation tightens, albeit […]
