Latest Articles

Are FBI informants prodding people into committing ‘eco-terrorism’?

This is not a particularly new subject, but: When exactly does an informant cross the line into entrapment? As readers of my obsessive "eco-terror" blogging know, the big indictment brought recently against 11 people crucially turned on participants that were "persuaded" to act as informants. A closer look at an ongoing case in California that […]

What will a conservative Canada look like?

While we were busy fretting about eco-terrorists, Canada went and had itself an e-lection.

Newly elected Conservative PM Stephen Harper is a likely Bush ally, says CNN, and aims to "move beyond the Kyoto debate by establishing different environmental controls." Meanwhile, the BBC doesn't pussyfoot: "[he] is known to be hostile to gay marriage and the Kyoto Protocol on climate change."

Sigh. On the other hand, the CBC reports that Harper "believe[s] it's better to light one candle than to promise a million light bulbs." So maybe he's into conservation after all.

Bill Ford axes a third of his workers, hailed as hero

Despite TIME's fellatial cover story and Wall Street's predictably giddy reaction, it is not in fact good news that Ford Motor Co. is going to sack 30,000 employees. CEO Bill Ford doesn't deserve the lion's share of the blame for this, since the decline has been going on for decades, but it nonetheless seems a little macabre to treat him like a hero. And upper management at Ford deserves a hell of a lot more contempt and pink slips than they seem to be receiving.

Anyway, I was brewing up a long post about all this, but over on Sciencegate, Paul Tullis did it for me. So go read what he said. Particularly this:

Concept gym floats on the Hudson River.

In response to the "silly question" asked of Umbra about human-powered gyms, alert reader Erin B. directed us to architectural visionary Mitchell Joaquim.

Enter the Human-Powered River Gym For New York City, the name of which gives all the basic information about it, the pictures of which are worth a thousand words. Or at least the 167 words of this post.

As writes Joachim:

This training protocol will exploit the inherent disequilibrium of floatation devices.  Often the average urbanite exercising at the gym performs controlled repetitive single plane movements using industrial fitness equipment.  All of this energy is summarily dissipated and ultimately exhausted for the sake of a single individual's wellbeing.  Other potentials exist to harness this vast human expenditure of caloric energy.

Translation: Running on the treadmill is boring and pointless. Exercising in a pod in the middle of the Hudson River is awesome!

The concept for this water-purifying, commuter-hauling, calorie-burning bundle of clean energy won third place in New York Magazine's Create a Gym competition.

New column offers advice to eco-job-seekers

As director of program development at The Environmental Careers Organization, Kevin Doyle knows a thing or two about job searching. In a new column for Grist, he'll explore the green job market and offer advice to eco-job seekers looking to jump-start their careers.

Remake a Living: Green job prospects for 2006

Here we are in the first month of a whole new year. If you're like me, you've already broken most of the champagne-fueled resolutions you made on New Year's Eve. At least, you think you made some resolutions, and you're pretty sure you broke them. The whole night was a little foggy, and anyway that was way back in 2005. But if one of your promises was to get a job this year in an environmental field, you may be in luck.

I recently reviewed the 2006 environmental-activist job market with senior leaders from major nonprofits like the Natural Resources Defense Council, professional associations like the Land Trust Alliance, and activist-training programs like Green Corps. I asked about hiring trends in comparison with 2005, and about specific job titles and skills that are in special demand. Here's what those in the know had to say.

The Fries Have It

Boston diner gets its heat from used veggie oil Restaurant owner Don Levy geared up for this year’s chilly Boston winter by getting rid of his furnace. Wait, it’s not as batty as it sounds: Levy replaced his old heating system with a boiler that runs on 100 percent vegetable oil — a readily available […]

F’d Troops

Whistle-blower says Halliburton supplied foul water to troops in Iraq Former employees of a subsidiary of Halliburton, the big military-services contractor once helmed by Vice President Dick Cheney, say the company exposed thousands of American troops and Iraqi civilians to sewage-laced water. Testifying yesterday before Senate Democrats, whistle-blower and water-quality expert Ben Carter said he […]

Kid Tested, Mother Appalled

Bush admin to accept pesticide testing on humans, and in some cases kids Enviros, public-interest groups, members of Congress, and even some government scientists are criticizing soon-to-be-released U.S. EPA rules on pesticide testing on humans. The regulations — leaked in advance of their formal unveiling, which could happen as soon as this week — would […]

Nice Work

A look at green job prospects for 2006 Can’t face another year chained to the same old desk or stuck in the same old cube? Itching to start a new career in an environmental field? Fortunately for you, Kevin Doyle of the Environmental Careers Organization knows a thing or two about job searching. He assesses […]

The Royalty Wee

Taxpayers have been getting screwed on oil and gas royalties A three-month New York Times investigation has uncovered a complex tale of oil and gas royalties, price discrepancies, accounting chicanery, and lax enforcement. But at its heart, it’s the same old story: The Bush administration is essentially helping energy companies screw taxpayers. The American people […]