Latest Articles
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Watch CBS this Saturday for breaking electric-car news
I was just interviewed by CBS for a possible story on plug-in hybrids on Monday. You should tune in to CBS evening news Saturday for the first coverage of what I believe is a major advance in plug-ins -- a car I test drove a few weeks back and will be free to write about here Monday.
The New York Times will probably be doing a print story on the car Sunday, which I'll link to. Then CBS may do another story, which is where I would come in. This hybrid technology will be rolled out in a retrofitted car at the Detroit auto show.
I think this is a big deal. Basically the company figured out how to design a practical, affordable plug-in hybrid without a breakthrough in battery technology!! Stay tuned.
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World’s largest banks ranked on their climate commitment
The world’s banks are starting to recognize the threat of climate change, but could certainly do more, says a new report from Ceres, a coalition of investors and green groups pushing corporate sustainability. The group ranked 40 of the world’s largest publicly traded banks on their green (the climate kind, not the money kind). Some […]
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Cargill’s well-connected fertilizer unit wows Wall Street, dumps on Florida
As I wrote last week, the real winners in the ethanol boom aren’t corn growers or even ethanol makers (though the latter will do just fine). Rather, it’s the companies that make the inputs needed for growing vast quantities of corn. Photo: iStockphoto Monsanto, the world’s dominant producer of genetically modified seed traits as well […]
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White House will save paper by putting federal budget online
Instead of printing 3,000 copies of its 2,200-page budget, the White House has elected to put the gigantic tome online. “This step will save nearly 20 tons of paper, or roughly 480 trees,” says White House Budget Director Jim Nussle, who estimates that bringing the budget presentation into the new millennium will save nearly a […]
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Australia will phase out plastic bags
Following in China’s footsteps, Australian Environment Minister Peter Garrett has announced a goal to phase out plastic bags in the country by the end of 2008.
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Energy stocks are looking attractive
The following essay is a guest post by Kari Manlove, fellows assistant at the Center for American Progress.
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CNNmoney.com just released a summary outlook on the solar, wind, biofuel (mainly ethanol), and efficiency industry financial sectors. The two looking most optimistic are wind and efficiency, and thus both sectors are overflowing with opportunity.According to one investment portfolio manager, efficiency investments are reliable and essentially fundamental. In his words, investing in efficiency is like putting your money on the arms dealer in a war or conflict -- no matter which side wins (or which sector), the arms dealer simply can't lose.
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Still time to vote for Gristmill in 2008 Weblog Awards
You didn’t know Gristmill was a candidate for something? Right, and I suppose next you’ll tell me that you were paying attention to some other voting thing-y going on. Well, chill. There’s still time to elect Gristmill as the Best Tropical Topical Blog in the 2008 Weblog Awards. But only until tomorrow night, Friday, Jan. […]
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A food writer looks back at 2007, from supermarket monstrosities to organic-garden epiphanies
While I peeled the apples for Apple Brown Betty recently (see recipe below), I had time to think about the food-related highs and lows of the past year. What was my most disconcerting food experience of 2007? Three interactions with the industrial food system vie for first place. We’re holding out for grape-sized apples. Photo: […]
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Iditarod sled dog race forced to change starting point
The famous Iditarod sled dog race is undergoing permanent changes as organizers cope with urban sprawl and a warming climate. For the ceremonial start to the competition on Mar. 1, racers will travel 11 miles instead of the traditional 18 miles. The race itself will kick off Mar. 2 from Willow, Alaska, 30 miles north […]
