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Chatting with Al Gore and Jim Hightower at Netroots Nation

Our partners at ReGeneration.org were able to snag a few quick interviews with notable Netroots Nation attendees Al Gore and former Texas Agriculture Commissioner, author, radio host, and activist Jim Hightower. Here’s what Gore had to say about why climate and environment action should be a bipartisan effort: And here’s Hightower on what should be […]

A big addition to the Western Climate Initiative

Ontario officially joins the Western Climate Initiative as a full partner. Sweet.

Some Americans may not fully realize the significance of this. So for my fellow Yankees (and with apologies to readers north of the border) ... Ontario is the California of Canada in the sense that it has more people and economic activity than any other province. On the other hand, Ontario is the Michigan of Canada in the sense that it has a huge auto manufacturing base. And yet Ontario is also the New York of Canada in the sense that it is the seat of the country's biggest city, major banks, and cultural headquarters. And finally, Ontario is the Washington, D.C. of Canada in the sense that it is home to the nation's capitol.

So it's a big deal.

Ontario adds nearly 12.9 million people to the Western Climate Initiative. In combination with British Columbia, Manitoba, and Quebec -- already members of WCI -- nearly 80 percent of Canada is now under a hard carbon cap. In political terms, this means that prime minister Stephen Harper and the province of Alberta (the Texas of Canada) will now have to go off and play by themselves. It's a giant poke in the eye to Canada's lax federal leadership on climate change.

And it's terrific news for the WCI states too. Ontario has a GDP comparable to the combined economies of Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Utah. And it means that the WCI is now home to nearly 85 million North Americans.

New McCain ad blames Obama for rising gas prices

GOP presidential candidate John McCain released a new television ad today, “Pump,” which puts the blame for rising gas prices on Democrat Barack Obama. “Who can you thank for rising prices at the pump?” the ad asks, as a photo of Obama appears on screen, and a crowd shouts, “Obama, Obama!” “One man knows we […]

LCV endorses Democratic candidate Barack Obama

The League of Conservation Voters announced today that they’re endorsing Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, citing the freshman senator’s policies on climate change and clean energy. “When you look specifically at the twin challenges of cutting global warming pollution and moving toward a clean energy future, on those issues Barack Obama has the most comprehensive […]

League of Conservation Voters endorses Obama for president

The League of Conservation Voters announced today that they’re endorsing Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, citing the freshman senator’s policies on climate change and clean energy. “When you look specifically at the twin challenges of cutting global warming pollution and moving toward a clean energy future, on those issues Barack Obama has the most comprehensive […]

French downplay years-old uranium leak at nuclear plant

A uranium leak was discovered on Friday in an underground pipe at a nuclear fuel plant in France. Authorities said the leak was probably a few years old, but insisted it really isn’t all that bad since groundwater apparently wasn’t contaminated and the uranium leak was relatively small. However, the reassurances were not quite as […]

Event planners announce location, greening plans for next year’s conference

Near the end of this year’s Netroots Nation, event planners announced that next year’s gathering will be held in Pittsburgh, Pa., a spot selected for its green merits. One of the main reasons is that Pittsburgh has the first and largest LEED gold-certified convention center in the country. “We have a goal of making 2009 […]

Grist talks to San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom about greening the city

San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom stopped by Netroots Nation on Sunday to introduce Van Jones, and he also talked to the crowd about some of the green accomplishments his city has been able to make so far. Newsom has proposed the toughest building standards in the country, and in November 2008 he was planning to […]

Green jobs advocate calls on web activists to lead the call for a new, green economy

Van Jones. Van Jones delivered the final keynote address at Netroots Nation today, stopping in Austin to talk about green jobs and the political prospects for addressing both the energy and climate woes of the country. The message from the netroots, he said, should be clear: “We cannot drill and burn our way out of […]

Al Gore on Meet the Press

Following his blockbuster speech on Thursday and his appearance at Netroots Nation yesterday, Al Gore was on Meet the Press today to talk about his new proposal. It was … painful. First off, Tom Brokaw’s questions were, almost without exception, awful. Just awful. They reflected the most brain dead, ill-informed D.C. conventional wisdom you can […]