Latest Articles
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Sunstein Watch: What progressives expect from OIRA
Dear Cass: As you know, we picked a spat with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) last week over Randy Lutter’s supposedly temporary detail appointment to your office. It’s not the first time we’ve criticized the workings of OIRA, and almost certainly won’t be the last. I’ve spoken to a number of people in […]
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Yes Men (almost) stage global takeover in Copenhagen
The Hopenhagen Globe looms above City Hall SquarePhoto: Matthew McDermott vic flickrThe Yes Men, merry climate pranksters, had been oddly quiet of late. Strange, since we are now deep into week one of the Copenhagen climate talks. But the activist group broke its silence today when members posing as reps from the Coca Cola company […]
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Why should policymakers, investors, and businesspeople care about youth in Copenhagen?
Of the estimated 20,000 people converging on the U.N. climate conference this week and next, half of them are expected to be under the age of 30. My colleague in Copenhagen, Kristina Haddad, reports, “I observed that many in the crowds of people were young. Most were wearing t-shirts or passing out flyers that essentially […]
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Is Wal-Mart the future of local food?
Local food gets the Wal-Mart treatment. One of the most important historic developments in the food economy is embodied in this statistic: in 1900, 40 percent of every dollar spent on food went to the farmer or rancher while the rest was split between inputs and distribution. Now? 7 cents on the dollar goes to […]
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Climate activists blitz media in Copenhagen
Ricken Patel, executive director of the international activist group Avaaz.org.Photo: Jonathan HiskesCOPENHAGEN — If I’m delayed in the Copenhagen Bella Center by one more crowd of earnest chanters, or a dude in a funny costume, or the 800 people who feel compelled to stop in the middle of busy hallways to snap pictures of each […]
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Chipotle Challenge: time to back up ‘food with integrity’
Don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Editor’s note: Trace the history of the food on your plate, and you’re likely to find worker abuse. Creating a truly fair food system will be a massive challenge–and not without conflicts. In the spirit of airing those conflicts with the hope of moving forward, we present a […]
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This year, have a Slow Christmas
This post originally appeared on SlowChristmas.org. Recently I have begun to wonder. Just when did Christmas go from this: to this? USB Warmer Seat Cushion The world is a fast place, filled with stuff, so I guess it makes sense that Christmas would reflect that. The […]
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A chat with Earl Blumenauer about his ‘carbon audit’ of the U.S. tax code
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.)Tucked away in the frantically assembled and hastily passed bailout bill of Sept. 2008 was a little-noticed provision that would empower the National Academy of Sciences to do a “carbon audit” of the U.S. tax code, scoring tax provisions according to their impact on the national carbon footprint. But the audit — […]
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Myth vs. reality on the Copenhagen climate summit
Co-written by Rebecca Lefton, a Researcher for Progressive Media, and Daniel J. Weiss, a Senior Fellow and Director Climate Strategy at the Center for American Progress. Myth #1: Copenhagen is already a failure. Instead of a binding agreement we’ll end up with a political deal that gets us nowhere. Reality: We are on schedule at […]
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The Climate Post: Throngs enter Copenhagen’s climate gates
First Things First: President Obama last week shifted the date he will visit the Copenhagen climate talks from Dec. 9 to Dec. 18, the last and most consequential day. Three days into the 15th U.N.-sponsored Conference of Parties, this otherwise mundane fact carries the most symbolism. Whatever happens, whatever has already been settled or is […]
