Climate Culture

Stop breathing! You’re putting us into debt

Starting next week, everything you eat, breathe, use, and touch will put you further in debt to the planet. Each year, humans consume more resources than the planet can produce, putting us into "ecological debt" to the planet. 

Unlike monetary debt, this over-budget spending can't be forgiven or wiped away. 

7 billion: What to expect when you’re expanding — a special series

The population will hit 7 billion on Halloween, according to the U.N. Who knew those goons with the black helicopters had such a macabre sense of humor?

Here's what we can do with all the tires after the carpocalypse

In the post-peak-oil, post-automotive world, we'll have to do something while we're huddled around our campfires in Bartertown. And we'll need to do something with the parts of our now-useless vehicles. Sure, we'll have to build shelters with the metal carapaces, and we'll need some of that tire rubber for shoes and things. But there […]

Swimming pools don’t have to be insults to the planet

Swimming pools — so awesome and fun, but so not actually good for the environment in any way. But KB Custom Pools, a pool company in Texas, has a sorta-kinda-more-like-a-real-body-of-water alternative. Their Eco-Smart pools match the topography of your backyard, use a filtration system that doesn't require harsh chemicals, and can be heated using solar panels. Gizmodo goes so far as to say it's positively lake-like (minus, of course, the mucky bottom and the fish).

 

World population could just keep on expanding, says expert

"Leading demographers, including those at the United Nations and the U.S. Census Bureau, are projecting that world population will peak at 9.5 billion to 10 billion later this century and then gradually decline as poorer countries develop. But what if those projections are too optimistic?"

Can smartphones serve as birth control? [VIDEO]

This amusing Indian ad suggests that smartphones can bring down birthrates. If you're having 3G fun, why bother with old-fashioned amorous pursuits?

Got trash? Put a kitten in it.

The Etsy shop Atomic Attic makes upcycled pet beds and feeding trays out of old suitcases and vintage electronics, thus making use of a cat's natural tendency to sit on any damn thing you happen to have lying around. My dog wouldn't fit in a suitcase — maybe a steamer trunk — but I love […]

Critical List: Coal companies lavish cash on Boehner; how to stick it to hungry deer

Boehner's got his hands all sooty with coal money.

Uh, guys? Maybe we should check up on the safety of  nuclear plants? Kthx. XOXO, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

California chose solar PV projects over solar thermal projects because the latter use more water.

 

The largest outdoor green wall in North America

Why just have a green roof when you can have a green wall? This 3,000-square-foot wall, which fronts a public library in a suburb of Vancouver, Canada, was installed by green wall company Green Over Grey. It consists of over 10,000 plants in over 120 species.

Rick Perry stumbles and mumbles as he tries to defend abstinence education [VIDEO]

"Abstinence works." That's Rick Perry's response to a question about why Texas is sticking with abstinence-only education despite its high teen pregnancy rate.