Latest Articles

Global weirding, East Coast snow storms, and Vancouver’s snow shortage

The other day someone made the cleverest quip: “Hey Al Gore, how do you like your global warming now that it’s snowing and snow is cold, Al Gore?” If only someone had made such a comment on the internet, or possibly Twitter; then I could link to it. Do such comments deserve serious responses? No. […]

How our food system is destroying the nation’s most important fishery

To understand our impact on nature, there is truth in the saying, “everything is connected.” Few situations illustrate this concept as dramatically as the agricultural wastes from the Midwest that contribute so seriously to the aquatic dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico. Human activities and natural phenomena occurring on land masses combine to impact […]

Economics cage match: Stavins’ minimalism vs. Houser’s full-court press

Whenever I criticize economists I get yelled at by economists because I’m no economist and what do I know. So I’m trying a different approach: I’m going to compare and contrast two economic perspectives on climate/energy policy. See if you can guess which one I prefer! Textbook economics Representing what he calls the “textbook economics […]

On Valentine’s Day, say ‘I love you’ with a doughnut brunch

Now that’s a hole lot of love. All photos by April McGreger I’m no fan of the hyped-up consumerist, romantic fantasy of Valentine’s Day. But I won’t stand between you, your chocolate, and your special friend. Forget the box of candy from the drugstore; I’m promoting Valentine’s Day as a chance to spread a little […]

Job losses push need for energy bill

America’s urgent need for new job creation may be the driver that pushes the Senate to pass a jobs and energy bill this year. After the loss of 8.4 million jobs in the current Great Recession, Congress is searching desperately for any means to create new jobs. Unemployment vs. deficit “conundrum” As former Treasury Secretary […]

Policy fixes to unleash clean energy, part 2

In part 1, I outlined five questions that ought to be answered before we have any conversation about energy policy reform. Here is my answer to the first question: What are the primary existing regulatory barriers to the deployment of cleaner energy? They are legion. But they can be lumped into three broad categories: utility […]

CBS Evening News report on antibiotics in livestock, part 1

Update: Catch the preview and part 2 here. Here is part 1 of the Katie Couric’s CBS Evening News report on antibiotic use in livestock. She pulled no punches. This first segment focused on poultry processing facilities in Batesville, Ark. and drug-resistant MRSA. As in the preview, Couric explicitly discussed the possibility of transmitting disease […]

San Francisco commits $150 million to green homes

Monday night I was having drinks in downtown San Francisco with some seriously smart people — top-level IBM scientists and strategists involved in Big Blue’s Smarter Planet initiative.  Given the room’s collective interest in creating smart electrical grids, smart water systems, advanced electric car batteries and other green technologies, the talk naturally turned to how […]

Ask Umbra’s Change Agent: Hannah Salwen

What would you do with half? Half the house, half the lattes, half the TV watching, half the Tweets, half the email checking? More importantly, what would you do with the other half — the extra space, funds, and time? Dearests, meet 17-year-old Atlanta Girls’ School junior Hannah Salwen (you may have read about her […]

10 races to watch in 2010

  California House race, 19th Congressional District Richard Pombo is back!  He antagonized environmentalists as chair of the House Resources Committee (he even removed the word “Natural” from the committee’s name) until 2006, when he got beat by a renewable-energy booster. For his comeback attempt, he’s carpetbagging from the 11th Congressional District, site of his […]