Latest Articles

Do monopolies undermine the environment?

For many skeptics of the environmental benefits of market economies, the fear of monopoly control over natural resources is one of their greatest concerns. The reality is actually much more complicated; here's why.

Drill now, save never

The NYT has an editorial today critiquing the "Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act" the Senate is set to debate today.

The bill's stated purpose is to reduce fuel prices. But while the gulf may hold enough natural gas to affect the price of that commodity, the same cannot be said of oil. No matter where it looks, a country that consumes one-quarter of the world's oil supply while holding only 3 percent of the reserves will never be able to drill its way to lower oil prices, much less oil independence.

There's some opposition within the Senate:

A thorough job search reveals skills in high demand

As director of program development at The Environmental Careers Organization, Kevin Doyle knows a thing or two about job searching. In this recurring column for Grist, he explores the green job market and offers advice to eco-job-seekers looking to jumpstart their careers.

Is it hot out there, or is it just me? Lately, I've been hearing from employers who can't find the talent they need and more than a few lucky job seekers who have multiple offers. Are these just random anecdotes, or is the environmental job market heating up along with the summer thermometer?

In an effort to track down the story (and spend some paid time surfing the 'net), my crackerjack research staff devoted a day to searching government, nonprofit, "green business," and consulting websites for job postings. Here's what we found:

Wildfires are raging — why isn’t concern about climate change?

Earlier this month, Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert delivered a provocative Los Angeles Times op-ed explaining why the public is more scared of terrorism than global warming. Gilbert’s basic premise was that human beings are conditioned by evolution to react most strongly to situations that have certain characteristics: they must be personal (have a face or […]

Vicious circle

Records are falling all around in California.

A heat wave has been setting record temperatures. And then on Monday, California set a record for all-time peak electricity usage. From the NYT:

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ordered state agencies to reduce electricity consumption by 25 percent, acting on a prediction from the state's power grid managers that demand would peak at 52,000 megawatts, a mark they had not expected to reach until 2011. Demand peaked at 50,270 megawatts at 2:44 p.m. Pacific time, breaking the record of 49,036 megawatts set last Friday.

More heat = more electricity usage.
More electricity usage = more carbon emissions.
More carbon emissions = ... you get the idea.

Maybe I’m Amazoned at the Way I Really Need You

Drought could turn Amazon into desert, researchers warn The Amazon rainforest — soon to be called The Artist Formerly Known as the Amazon Rainforest, and then just some weird little symbol — appears to be undergoing a second year of drought, and that has researchers seriously alarmed. Starting in 2002, scientists at the Woods Hole […]

Soycott

Big soy companies pledge not to source from recently deforested Amazon Now for some Amazon news that won’t make you want to slit your wrists: Soy producers operating in Brazil — including U.S. agribiz giants Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland — announced yesterday that they will put a two-year stop to buying soybeans grown in […]

Long-Haired Freaky People Need Apply

Green job market heating up After hearing from environment-related employers struggling to fill open positions and green job-seekers receiving multiple offers, Kevin Doyle of the Environmental Careers Organization decided to do some job searching of his own. An examination of job postings at government agencies, nonprofits, green businesses, and environmental consulting firms in the U.S. […]

‘Cane Do Spirit

Hurricane researchers unite in call to curb coastal development The media has made much of the disagreement among hurricane researchers about the effects of global warming on storm strength. So much, in fact, that it’s starting to annoy the hurricane researchers. Yesterday, 10 prominent experts in the field — who have disagreed among themselves about […]

Reps Gone Wild

House approves new wilderness areas in California, Oregon, and Idaho The U.S. House yesterday unanimously approved bills that would create over 1,000 square miles of new wilderness areas and protect 47 miles of rivers in California, Oregon, and Idaho. A bill to ban drilling in New Mexico’s Valle Vidal also passed. All of the bills […]