Latest Articles

A fast-and-furious weeknight skillet dinner

In Tom’s Kitchen, Grist’s food editor discusses some of the quick-and-easy things he gets up to in, well, his kitchen. Forgive him for the lame iPhone photography. —————— Last night, I wanted something fast and simple for dinner–that also tasted really good. I hadn’t been grocery shopping for a while, and nothing much is coming […]

Silicon Valley investors place bets on sustainable ag

I attended an agriculture conference this week at the Four Seasons in Palo Alto. There were no pickup trucks in the BMW-packed parking lot, and few farmers with dirt under their fingernails could be found milling about the sleek hotel lobby. But the place was swarming with venture capitalists from some of Silicon Valley’s marquee […]

Whoops: Energy Star approves gas-powered alarm clock

This (ahem) “space heater” earned a government Energy Star rating.Photo: Government Accountability OfficeWell this is embarrassing: Federal monitors granted the Energy Star stamp of approval to a number of bogus appliances, including a gas-powered alarm clock and an electric space heater with a feather duster taped to it. The Government Accountability Office submitted the fake […]

Reminder: the U.S. already has cap-and-trade–in the Northeast

Update below The Center for American Progress offers a reminder that we already have a cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions up and running in the U.S.— it’s called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, it operates in 10 northeastern states, and it works fairly well, according to CAP’s new review. Bradford Plumer rounded up the details […]

Blanche Lincoln’s dismal school lunch bill passes committee

What will 6 cents change in this picture?“‘No machines until you get your lunch!’ an aide yells, trying to keep students from the bank of vending machines at the back of the cafeteria ringing with the siren call of Pop-Tarts and Cool Ranch Doritos.–From “Schools’ Toughest Test: Cooking,” by Kim Severson, The New York Times, […]

Van Jones: Clean energy “will be increasingly safe political ground for both parties”

Van JonesIn part one of our interview, Van Jones discussed the evolution of his values, the controversy that’s surrounded him over the past year, and his ongoing commitment to “love-based politics.” Here, in part two, we turn to the road forward: the policies and projects he is working on for the next year. Along with […]

HFCS study authors defend work against attacks

Photo: BoekeMarion Nestle, along with other nutritionists have joined the Corn Refiners Association in criticizing the recent Princeton study on High Fructose Corn Syrup. Indeed the very title of Nestle’s post on the subject — “HFCS makes rats fat?” — seems to question the well-established practice of using rats to test hypotheses regarding human nutrition. […]

Witnessing the White House garden’s winter bounty

In “Chewing the Scenery,” we round up interesting food-related videos from around the Web. ————- The White House has released a new video documenting the drama of Snowmaggedon … and the White House garden: Despite two feet of snow, the White House garden managed to produce an impressive amount of lettuce, spinach, turnips, arugula, and […]

Earth Out of Sync – Rising Temperatures Throwing off Seasonal Timing

This piece was written by my colleague Janet Larsen at the Earth Policy Institute. A newly hatched chick waits with hungry mouth agape for a parent to deliver its first meal. A crocus peaks up through the snow. Rivers flow swiftly as ice breaks up and snows melt. Sleepy mammals emerge from hibernation, and early […]

Sen. Tom Udall: “My goal would be to get 10 Republicans on the climate bill”

  Sen. Tom UdallPhoto: Center for American Progress Action FundLike his cousin Mark, Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) spent 10 years in the House of Representatives before being elected to the Senate in 2008. Like his legendary father Stewart (the former interior secretary who passed away last week), he has always had a keen interest in […]