Climate Culture
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An exclusive with the artist behind Detroit’s new Robocop statue
An iron pour from Westbrook’s performance at the University of West Georgia’s Art Incend event in October 2008.Photo: Casey WestbrookImagine a 10-foot-high steel bong filled with industrial grade coke that spews fire like Mordor and reaches temperatures hot enough to turn your radiator into a pool of molten slag. In the background, dimly illuminated by […]
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Yo, Congress, you need to pony up $1B for global family planning
We’re surging toward a world population of 7 billion this year — and we still haven’t even made contraception available to everyone who wants it. The new “Million for a Billion” campaign aims to bridge that gap. Here’s a video to set the scene: Right now, 215 million women who want to avoid getting pregnant […]
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Family values for population hawks: adopting a foster child
Photo: jrodmanjrLast month, Lisa Hymas posted a list of eight things all of us can do about population. It was a great roundup (my favorite was No. 4), but I’d like to add an item: If you really want to be a parent — that is, if you’d like to help guide and shape and […]
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Ask Umbra on making yogurt at home, with or without electricity
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I bought a yogurt maker in Germany eight years ago that consists of a glass jar and a sturdy styrofoam container. It cost about $20, works wonderfully, and doesn’t require electricity. Why can’t I find a similar product in the U.S.? KatherineCupertino, CA DIY that’s easy to digest.Photo: […]
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Hey, enviros, greens, climate hawks — we all need to stand up for Planned Parenthood
A society is not sustainable if women don’t have basic control over their fertility. That’s just fundamental, a no-brainer. So the ongoing Republican assault war blitzkrieg on women’s reproductive rights and Planned Parenthood specifically should enrage anyone who cares about a sustainable future — and propel us off our asses. This isn’t just an attack […]
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Dear media: Quit the ‘manly vegan’ trend pieces
A “hegan” in his natural habitat?Photo: ekornblutEvery year or so, a media outlet has the shocking realization that — ready? — not all men eat meat. Gasp! First, there was the New York Times piece about vegan firefighters, which boils down to “Wait, how can burly dudes who put out fires eat anything other than […]
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Social network for mass transit almost redeems social networks
Photo: Sveter SveterMan, what did we do before we had smartphones to answer all of life’s questions? Wracking your brains to remember who played Chunk in “The Goonies”? You can haul out IMDB at the bar. Wondering where to go for dinner? There are apps to tell you the best place within walking distance of […]
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Ask Umbra Book Club: How coal lit a fire under human society
Bring in the chimney sweep!Photo: Thiophene GuyDearest readers, In our last book club conversation about Bill Bryson’s At Home: A Short History of Private Life, we discussed some of the sordid history of the food we eat. Now let’s turn our attention to the way we heat. Back in the Middle Ages, people were in […]
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Peter Calthorpe on why urbanism is the cheapest, smartest way to fight climate change
Peter Calthorpe.Cities may be the trendy topic du jour, but Peter Calthorpe has been talking about the benefits of urbanism since the 1970s. In 1993, he was one of the founders of the Congress for the New Urbanism, an influential national organization that promotes walkable, mixed-use, transit-rich development. Now Calthorpe has come out with a […]
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TreeShagger: 10 great green date ideas
Welcome to TreeShagger, our new column on green dating. If you’ve got green dating questions, send ’em our way! So Valentine’s Day came and went, and you’re in the doghouse since you couldn’t get a reservation at Olivebee’s Factory? Cheer up, smuckers! Lean in close for some non-obvious, mostly cheap green date ideas, many of […]
