Climate Culture
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Bike Curious in Rhode Island (video)
Bike Curious? You’re not alone. Between 2000 and 2009 there was a 43% increase in bicycle commuting in the US. But in Amsterdam they’re doing it more. More than 85% of Amsterdam residents ride their bikes at least once a week.* Are we missing out? Watch Professor Chris Menton as he travels his morning commute […]
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You may be bike-curious if …
earlblumenauer.comInterested in experimenting with the more than 45 million other Americans out there trying it? Exhausted by this nation’s tedious affair with one type of transport? Wondering if you might like spinning your wheels the other way? Then, you may be bike-curious, says Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer. This Portland politician is pedaling bi-opportunities left and right: […]
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Ask Umbra on keyboard cleaners, automatic composters, and book club
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I work in an office that is fairly environmentally conscious. However, we have a coworker who religiously sprays keyboard cleaner. How do I confront my coworker without sounding like an eco-turd? I’m just not thrilled about becoming infertile or dying. Suffocating in Seattle A. Dearest Suffocating, Is […]
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The ‘femivore’: New breed of feminist, or frontier throwback?
Playing chicken: Mad Men über-hausfrau Betty Draper and Bay Area poultry farmer Alexis Koefoed. Koefoed photo: Bart NagelHave locavores and feminists — factions that a few years ago, some bloggers believed to be fundamentally at odds — become allies? That’s what Peggy Orenstein suggests in her essay, “The Femivore’s Dilemma,” for today’s New York Times […]
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Home Star gets a hearing
Home Star: Creates jobs! Slashes energy use! Saves money! All of that was said yesterday and more, during a hearing in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The Congressional Research Service, the Department of Energy, and a collection of business, utility, and state advocates all testified yesterday along those lines. Home Star is a […]
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12 things you should never put in your mouth [SLIDESHOW]
You cannot imagine the stuff that passes for food. Lucky for you, we have found ample photographic evidence. You may not want to view this on a full stomach.
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Ask Umbra’s pearls of wisdom on sleeping
Dearest readers, Yawn. Goodness me, I could use a nap — perhaps a nice long eight-hour nap to celebrate National Sleep Awareness Week and prep for Daylight Saving Time starting on Sunday (don’t forget to spring forward!). While I go catch a few z’s, enjoy my troll through the archives to snag slumber-related suggestions. Got […]
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Streetfilms: Fixing the car-centric city [video]
“Fixing the Great Mistake” is a new Streetfilms series that examines what went wrong in the early part of the 20th Century, when our cities began catering to the automobile, and how those decisions continue to affect our lives today. In this episode, Transportation Alternatives director Paul Steely White shows how planning for cars drastically […]
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McMansion modular
Remember when modular homes were going to be part of the “green” future? In the post-Dwell, post-postmodern architecture era, pre-fab was going to be cheap, green, hot and hip. Yes, finally, an antidote to McMansions and an affordable alternative to ballooning home prices. As if that were not enough, these stylish boxes were set to […]
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How many Venezuelan soldiers does it take to change a lightbulb?
An entire army, apparently. El Presidente of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, put in big orders for energy efficiency when he commanded the country’s lightbulbs get swapped for CFLs. Why the power play? A drought of hydropower has the nation in energy crisis and the military armed with efficient lightbulbs, laying waste to every wasteful incandescent in […]
