Latest Articles

Smog can kill, says report

Short-term exposure to smog is clearly linked to premature deaths, a National Academy of Sciences report has concluded. Some Bush administration officials have claimed that the link between ground-level ozone and health is, well, hazy: when the U.S. EPA was determining acceptable air standards for ozone last month, officials in the Office of Management and […]

It’s happening, reports The New York Sun

Is the U.S. on the brink of food rationing? Possibly. Reports The New York Sun: Major retailers in New York, in areas of New England, and on the West Coast are limiting purchases of flour, rice, and cooking oil as demand outstrips supply. It’s hard to know what to make of the report, though. The […]

Michael Dell offers a glimpse of an unannounced product

Michael Dell is on stage now, going over the importance of IT for sustainability and the many worth initiatives Dell has undertaken — all of which you can read about on Dell’s site. The one newsworthy bit was the presentation of what he calls, with a distinct lack of poetry, "the unannounced product." It is […]

College grads hit the green job market — here’s what they’ll find

Photo: fluffbreat Another Earth Day has come around, and that means college graduations are just a few weeks away. Soon-to-be alumni throughout the nation are dusting off résumés, poring over job listings, and then moving back into their old bedrooms at home “for a little while.” I predict a progression of messages from dear old […]

Walt Disney Co. gets into nature

The Walt Disney Company has announced a new film division that will focus on nature documentaries. The creatively named Disneynature will aim to produce two films every year starting in 2009, hoping to catch the interest of some of the viewers who flocked to Warner Bros.’ March of the Penguins and the Discovery Channel/BBC series […]

New Sundance doc tells the story of the TXU coal fight in Texas

I finally got around to watching my preview copy of Fighting Goliath: Texas Coal Wars, the new short documentary from Robert Redford’s Sundance outfit. It’s about the battle over the 12 coal plants proposed for Texas by TXU in 2007. A couple things that I thought were quite well done: Environmentalists play virtually no role […]

Monsanto CEO applies for sainthood

I’m watching the CEO of Monsanto, Hugh Grant, talk about how his company is a boon to sustainability. They’re focused on reducing the footprint of agriculture and feeding the world’s hungry — especially poor African women. Oh, and also they’re dedicated to reducing water use. All the farmers that use their seeds love them, and […]

Most Americans don’t believe global warming will pose a threat to them

A new series of Pew polls shows public concern for climate change is out of sync with the science:

Environment Day? Triage Day? The holiday needs more than a new name

Affection for our planet is misdirected and unrequited. We need to focus on saving ourselves.

I have a new piece in Salon: "Let's dump 'Earth' Day." It is supposed to be mostly humorous. Or mostly serious. Anyway, the subject of renaming Earth Day has been on my mind for a while.

An excerpt:

An interview with Vinod Khosla

Adam Lashinsky interviews Vinod Khosla. I liveblog. VK’s four major investment areas: oil, coal, efficiency, and materials. AL: India finance minister called biofuels a crime against humanity. What up? VK: Food-based ethanol isn’t the big driver of food prices. Regardless, biofuels don’t have to be food-based. AL: But you’ve invested in food-based ethanol. VK: Only […]