Latest Articles

How to build a prefab high-rise

Prefab houses are pretty awesome. Dense living is definitely awesome. And Sustainable Living Innovations is getting the prefab peanut butter in the density chocolate, designing modular high-rise buildings that unfold like cootie catchers. This video shows how it works. The result is a block of modern, open-plan apartments that is LEED Silver certified, and maybe […]

USDA moves to let Monsanto perform its own environmental impact studies on GMOs

“Everything looks A-OK. What a surprise!”Last August, Federal Judge Jeffrey White issued a stinging rebuke to the USDA for its process on approving new genetically modified seeds. He ruled that the agency’s practice of “deregulating” novel seed varieties without first performing an environmental impact study violated the National Environmental Policy Act. The target of Judge […]

Cape Wind approved: The U.S. could have offshore wind this year

The nation's first offshore wind farm could start construction as early as this fall. The Cape Wind project got final approval for its operating plans today, after ten years of opposition and permitting headaches. Michael Bromwich, last seen terrifying Rachel Maddow on the subject of deepwater drilling, said that the wind farm "will accelerate interest […]

This Earth Week: Taking America Back From the Polluters

Last weekend, I was proud to join the likes of former Vice President Al Gore and EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson as a keynote speaker at Power Shift 2011. There was an incredible energy; more than 10,000 young leaders gathered in Washington, D.C., to work towards two common goals – a cleaner future and a just […]

Google invests $100 million in giant Oregon wind farm

Google is helping to create economies of scale for clean energy.Photo: T.J.Another day, another $100 million invested in clean energy. Google has been on a green tech investment roll of late. Last week, the search giant put $168 million into BrightSource Energy’s 370-megawatt solar thermal power plant, currently the world’s largest solar project, which is […]

Why the Supreme Court should let states sue the country’s biggest carbon polluters

This post was coauthored by Matt Pawa. He and I represent the land conservation trusts in American Electric Power vs. Connecticut. Today, the Supreme Court hears oral argument in American Electric Power vs. Connecticut — a case in which six states and other plaintiffs are trying to put emissions limits on America’s five largest greenhouse-gas […]

Opponents of climate bill far outspent environmentalists, according to Climate Shift data

The data suggest opponents of climate legislation far outspent environmentalists during debate over the bill in 2009 and 2010: 8-to-1 on lobbying in 2009 4-to 1 (or more) on advertising in 2009 8-to-1 in donations to candidates and Congress members in 2010 cycle 10-to-1 on independent election expenditures in 2010 I am basing those numbers […]

Choosing a school? Here are the most bike-friendly universities

College acceptance letters should be piling up right about now, and the League of American Bicyclists has put out a list of the country's most bike-friendly universities. Here's the top 12 (the ones they rated Platinum, Gold, or Silver): Platinum: Stanford University Gold: University of California, Davis University of California, Santa Barbara Silver: California State, […]

Rachel Maddow helps us all feel more informed, terrified about deepwater drilling

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.10775076&w=425&h=350&fv=launch%3D42485182%26amp%3Bwidth%3D400%26amp%3Bheight%3D320] Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Here's Rachel Maddow last week, having a conversation with an anthropomorphic personification of human malevolence known as Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement director Michael Bromwich. (Seriously, the dude is grim. Does the Bureau not have a magical […]

Resilient Tokyo: commuters learn to love the bike

There’s more of this in Tokyo these days.Photo: Byron Kidd Shortly after last month’s disastrous earthquake and tsunami in Japan, we posted a dispatch from Tokyo by Bike blogger Byron Kidd (@tokyobybike) about how more people were biking to work in the quake’s aftermath. Today, The New York Times has a story about how the […]