Latest Articles

Why don’t larger solar power markets have lower prices?

This is part of a series on distributed renewable energy posted to Grist. It originally appeared on Energy Self-Reliant States, a resource of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance’s New Rules Project. Before the holidays we posted a chart illustrating the average cost of solar by state, highlighting Minnesota’s claim to the most expensive solar PV in […]

Industrial ag once again demanding free pass to crap in your backyard

What do vast polluting chicken factories on the Chesapeake Bay and genetically modified alfalfa have in common? In both cases, industrial agriculture is freely admitting that it needs to trash its neighbors and surrounding ecosystems to thrive.

Global investment in green energy hit record in 2010

Venture capitalists, corporations, and governments worldwide pouring $243 billion into wind farms, solar power, electric cars, and other technologies.

Are Australia's floods the revenge of Gaia?

Australia's experiencing record sea surface temperatures, which are associated with heavy rains. But is it climate change? Also: CROCODILES!

Why a clean energy standard is smart policy and smart politics in 2011

Last year, the Senate stiff-armed every important clean energy idea that crossed its path. Cap and trade. Oil drilling reform. Even a clean energy bank. This was more than a one-year or one Congress set back. It has created a growing perception that energy reform is legislative poison. With fewer clean energy advocates in the […]

'Superstreets' work smarter, not wider

Is there a way to accommodate a growing population and its continued need to drive without ending up in a scenario where we all live in the median of a 120-lane highway? Researchers at North Carolina State University found that the U-turn-based intersections of "superstreets" allow better traffic flow, fewer accidents, and potentially more pedestrian safety, without expanding the size of the road.

The danger of a two-year delay in EPA climate rules

A proposal to delay EPA climate rules for two years is being pushed by Sen. Jay Rockefeller and Rep. Shelley Moore Capito. Obama must veto such a bill if it reaches his desk.

Renewable energy standards: less effective, more costly, but politically preferred to cap-and-trade?

It is ironic that while cap-and-trade is dead in the Senate, support has emerged for an approach that would be both less effective and more costly.

I talk population and 7 billion on Green Patriot Radio

This week I got the chance to talk about my recent post "2011: The year we’ll hit 7 billion" on Green Patriot Radio with host David Steinman.

Join a sewing club to save clothes from the landfill

Hit up a sewing club to stitch, socialize, and mend your tattered duds. It's for the earth!