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Video tours of the eco-pimped Real World: Hollywood house

In the midst of preparing for the launch of 250 hours of green programming for Discovery Planet Green, I got a call from my good friend Pete Griffin over at Think MTV.

"We have this idea to build a green house on the Real World," he told me. "Instead of creating a whole new green show, why not build it into one of the most watched programs on MTV?"

Can anyone say brilliant?

Well, we had a blast teaching the Hollywood cast a few things about saltwater pools, dual-flush toilets, low-flow showerheads, eco bedding, hybrid cars, and soy candles that double as body lube. They also got a kick that their pad was constructed in the building that once housed the I Love Lucy show. How about that for recycling?

Check out the video house tours below.

Global warming could mean disease and dehydration for pets

Maybe you've been wondering about how rapid climate destabilization will effect pets. No? Well, maybe you should. This article in the latest issue of City Tails magazine broke the story recently, and according to them, it's not just the long-hairs that face a sweaty future. All domestic animals will be facing off against more disease vectors than ever before. So, if you know someone who can't countenance any so-called "sacrifice" to do their part, just bring their beloved Fido into the frame. Why fight fair?

Umbra on hauling goods by bike

Hi Umbra, Love your column. I’m a daily bicycle commuter and coffee achiever. Here’s a cool mug and handlebar mount [for the reader who asked about transporting coffee]. Cheers, John Denver, Colo. Dearest John, Thank you. Take a look at the Soma coffee mount John suggests, everyone — it got rave reviews from beaucoup readers. […]

Live Earth is back, so get ready to rock

Mark your calendars for Oct. 5: Live Earth is back and ready to rock. Kevin Wall, founder of last summer’s international concert extravaganza, says that the October shows will be held on U.S. college campuses, and the focus will be on pushing the presidential candidates to address environmental issues. Locations, bands, and all other specifics […]

You can’t achieve the three goals of climate policy at once

I’ve been thinking about carbon policy lately (shocker, I know), prompted by recent interactions with Monica Prasad, Peter Barnes, and our own Sean Casten. The more I think about it, the more one of the central tensions becomes clear to me. Here are three goals for good climate legislation: Simplicity: The bill should not be […]

Congress investigating industry’s role in bisphenol-A health studies

Democrats in Congress are investigating the chemical industry’s influence in regulating the chemical bisphenol A, which is widely used in many plastic products and the lining of food cans. Over the years, plenty of evidence has surfaced that bisphenol A can potentially harm human health as it can mimic the effects of estrogen and has […]

Energy prices that tell the truth: the real presidential litmus test

Calling all greens: Barack Obama, battling to remain the front-runner in the Democratic presidential primary, this weekend took on the most sacred cow in American politics: cheap gas.

Campaigning in Indiana, Obama distanced himself from the gas tax "holiday" proposed by Sen. John McCain, saying it may not bring down prices and would require raising other taxes to pay for highway maintenance.

"The only way we're going to lower gas prices over the long term is if we start using less oil," Obama said in Anderson.

McCain pounced, saying through a campaign spokesman that "Americans need strong leadership that can deliver lower gas prices and a healthier economy, not Barack Obama's inexperience and indecision." Obama's Democratic rival, Sen. Hillary Clinton, did likewise, unveiling a new ad calling for suspension of the gasoline tax -- a proposal first advanced by McCain on April 15.

As U.S. political campaigns go, the contrast between McCain-Clinton's playing the gas-tax card and Obama's brave clarity couldn't be clearer.

Green-collar jobs are real

There's lots of buzz about green-collar jobs these days (sort of like blue-collar jobs, but with a sustainable edge) -- whether you're listening to Obama, McCain, or Clinton; Gregoire, Kulongoski, or Schwarzenegger.

You hear this kind of thing a lot: A study conducted by the RAND Corporation and the University of Tennessee found that producing 25 percent of all American energy fuel and electricity from renewables by the year 2025 would produce the following: "$700 billion of new economic activity, carbon emission reduction by 1 billion tons, and 5 million new jobs."

Fine and dandy, but, some might ask "where are those five million new jobs? When will we see them?" Some skeptics have begun to ask whether it's bordering on hype.

Big projections are just that - big projections. But there's nothing like local industry reporting 2000 new jobs here and 500 jobs there -- right in our neck of the woods -- and a steady stream of investment dollars to keep skeptics pondering the possibilities.

So, we're happy to report a real-live green-collar workforce is materializing in the Northwest, and it's likely the wave is just gathering strength. With more policy measures encouraging green-tech investments and training programs it could swell to something much bigger. Looking at Oregon's green-collar boom, Ted Sickinger of the Oregonian calls it a "small tsunami."

Some real numbers from Oregon and Washington:

Are you a vegetarian?

Tell us how you eat -- and then read an argument in favor of vegetarianism and heated reader responses.

Poll under the fold:

The thing you really never hear

This column from Newsweek editor Evan Thomas is largely a witless recitation of conventional wisdom, but it does raise one point I want to make. It seems to me that every mainstream media figure in the world is out there saying a) tackling global warming is going to be horrendously expensive, involving great sacrifice and […]