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James Hansen’s recent post on climate change

James Hansen recently posted a new letter on climate change called “Tell Barack Obama the Truth — The Whole Truth” [PDF] on his website. In it, he lays out many of his ideas on how to avert climate catastrophe, and I will cherry-pick a few quotes here: A carbon cap that slows emissions of CO2 […]

Giant mob protests Brazil crackdown on illegal logging

A mob of some 3,000 people trashed a government office in Paragominas, Brazil, on Monday to protest the government’s crackdown on illegal logging. Environment Minister Carlos Minc says the riot will not deter anti-logging efforts. sources:

Vilsack out; Peterson and Herseth Sandlin square off

Until very recently, speculation around who would take the top spot at Obama’s USDA centered on former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack, a champion of both genetically modified seed technology and farm-subsidy reform. But now Vilsack’s out of the running, the Des Moines Register reports. Evidently, a petition from the Organic Consumers Association helped sink his […]

Nokia is greenest electronics company, says Greenpeace

In its 10th Guide to Green Electronics, Greenpeace deems Nokia the greenest company, followed by Samsung, Sony Ericsson, and Toshiba. But, says Greenpeace, neither those companies nor most of their techie brethren are supporting global efforts to cut greenhouse-gas emissions or making much headway on cutting their own.

Obama’s new director of domestic policy on a progressive energy agenda

Obama’s new director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, Melody Barnes, is likely to focus a lot of her work on health care and education. But she’s also written a bit about what a progressive president should do on energy. While she was the executive vice president for policy at the Center for American […]

Hansen wants the skeptics thrown in jail–Did James Hansen really want to try the climate skeptics?

(Part of the How to Talk to a Climate Skeptic guide)   Objection: In his June 23, 2008 testimony before the United States Congress, James Hansen called for the punishment of climate change skeptics for “crimes against humanity.” This is a mockery of free speech, the antithesis of scientific investigation, and a clear indication that […]

Carmakers hope to head off lithium shortages

According to this article from the BBC, production of hybrid and electric cars may be stifled by a shortage of lithium at some point in the next decade. Mitsubishi’s general manager in La Paz, Eichi Maeyama, said: The demand for lithium won’t double but increase by five times. There is plenty of lithium out there, […]

Vast majority of feds’ flex-fuel cars still run on straight gasoline

The federal government has poured billions of dollars into building up a fleet of 112,000 flex-fuel vehicles capable of running on an ethanol blend — but the attempt to move away from fossil fuels has so far largely failed, as 92 percent of the vehicles still run on straight gasoline.

Umbra on rainforest-protection gifts

Dear Umbra, This year for Christmas, I want to buy hectares of rainforest for some of my in-laws instead of the usual gift items that may end up in someone’s closet and forgotten, if not regifted. How do organizations that protect rainforests in this way operate, and how do I know a high percentage of […]

The real truth about stabilizing at 350 ppm

To James Hansen (and his fellow 350 ppm-ers): You make a compelling case we must ultimately return atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide to 350 parts per million to avoid catastrophic climate impacts. But you have made an uncompelling case about how President-elect Obama should go about achieving 350 ppm in your new draft essay "Tell […]