Latest Articles

The Blair Pitch Project

Biz leaders urge Blair to act on climate A dozen of Britain’s top business chieftains have sent a letter to Prime Minister Tony Blair urging him to get on the ball in the fight against climate change. The heads of BP, Shell, HSBC Bank, and other major companies say global warming is a massive problem […]

Salmon and Denial-Ah

Federal judge calls Bush admin’s salmon plan fishy In a strongly worded opinion, U.S. District Judge James Redden yesterday ruled that the Bush administration’s salmon-protection plan for the Columbia and Snake rivers in the Northwest is “contrary to law” because it doesn’t take into account how dams affect the fish’s chances of recovery. This is […]

An Offer: They Can’t Dump E-Refuse

NYC considers tough e-waste bill One of the toughest electronic-waste bills in the U.S. was introduced in the New York City Council yesterday. It would require producers of electronic equipment like computers and televisions to collect and recycle those devices — that is, if they want to maintain selling rights within the city. City officials […]

The Left Knows What the Right’s Brands Are Doing

Green campaigners target corporations as way to effect change Environmental activists in the U.S., weary of battling with the largely unsympathetic Bush administration, have increasingly been targeting their efforts at other world power brokers — transnational corporations. Their success to date has been fueled by a sort of guerilla advertising — innocuously dubbed “market campaigns” […]

At Loggerheads

Mexico pressured to protect eco-activists after two murders last week International human-rights groups yesterday urged the Mexican government to take action to protect the lives of environmental activists who are carrying out anti-logging campaigns. The plea comes on the heels of an attack last week on longtime activist Albertano Penalosa, which resulted in the murders […]

Can a Brit survive in North America without a driver’s license?

In the rich mosaic of North American society, I stand rather forlornly on my own as a member of an oft-forgotten minority group: I am an adult male who can’t drive. I have a wheelie bad feeling about this. Photo: Andrew White. Catapulted into the overcrowded car culture of Vancouver, British Columbia, from the U.K. […]

Climate finally getting more notice in Senate with energy-bill amendments

The climate-change debate is beginning to move forward inside the Beltway — at a glacial pace relative to the rest of the industrialized world, of course, but these days even glaciers are moving at a discernable clip. Heat is on in Senate as climate starts getting more attention. As the energy bill goes through the […]

… heat, love, and understanding?

OK, I've worked at a weekly paper. I know how tough it is to put out annual summer guides and make them feel fresh. I mean, how many new things can you say about berrypicking and lighthouses?

But Seattle Weekly's latest issue gave me pause. They headlined their summer guide 50 Ways to Celebrate Global Warming.

All in good fun, I know. And I like good fun (I mean, look where I work). But I also know there are an awful lot of literal-minded readers out there. And now may not be the time to make this huge concern sound ... fun.

I'll lighten up now. Happy summer!

Inhofe v. Mooney

Chris Mooney has had a great deal of fun bashing Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) for his flat-earthism on climate change and his general antipathy toward environmental causes.

Now Chris has experienced the great honor of having his work directly cited -- though his name was changed to "alarmist writer" -- by the senator on the Senate floor. (Unsurprisingly, Inhofe takes passages out of context, distorts the plain meaning of words, and otherwise misrepresents the work.)

Congrats, Chris, you've hit the bigtime!

Scratched Cat Fever

Tigers in dangerous decline in India The accelerating disappearance of endangered Bengal tigers from India’s 28 tiger reserves has Indian officials and charismatic-megafauna enthusiasts the world over in a tizzy. Poaching of the country’s national animal has increased in recent years, as body parts ranging from pelts to, um, members have become valuable commodities in […]