Climate Culture

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  • Our favorite green mustaches

    For years, scientists have pondered the mysterious but persistent connection between ecological wisdom and the follicular phenomenon that is the mustache. Is it the ‘stache that produces the wisdom? Or does the wisdom push its bearer toward the ‘stache? Early research focused on Amory Lovins, the efficiency guru who pioneered the green ‘stache in the […]

    Grist staff Culture

  • Should Kuba have a puppy?

    Who could say no to this face?Ken WardKuba, 10, has waged a brilliant campaign. Unfortunately, I’m the target. Who can say no to a puppy? It’s … Grinch-like. My parents managed the trick, but that’s because my Dad was raised on a farm and Grandpa Ken, on my Mom’s side, trained hunting dogs — so […]

    Ken Ward Culture

  • Ask Umbra on livestock and water

    Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, Why is it eating less beef can save water? In addition, if we skip meat to save water, will that affect our health? Besides beef, what other food or drinks use a lot of water to produce and process? Thanks!Jocey A. Dearest Jocey, Wow, you meat-eaters sure […]

    Ask Umbra® Culture

  • Climate-news poem: Blank(enship) verse edition

    Here at Grist, we occasionally visit Twitter and see pure poetry — and we’re far from alone in that. Earlier this week, colleagues suggested that the lyrical, insightful tweets of Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship might in fact be better read as haikus. Let’s give it a shot, paraphrasing ever-so-slightly where we must. Cash 4 […]

    Katharine Wroth Culture

  • Disposable-bag restrictions around the U.S. and the world

    Seattle voters will decide on Aug. 18 whether to impose a 20-cent fee on all paper and plastic bags from grocery, drug, and convenience stores. But it’s not the first U.S. city to restrict disposable bags — nor even the first in Washington state. In Edmonds, Wash., north of Seattle, the city council voted in […]

    Vanessa Kerr Culture

  • Controversy heats up over Seattle’s proposed disposable bag fee

    Image: Tom Twigg/Grist UPDATED: 11 Aug 2009 When the Seattle City Council voted last summer to impose a 20-cent fee on paper and plastic bags, the Progressive Bag Affiliates (PBA) of the American Chemistry Council immediately sprang to action to block the move. The fee would have taken effect January 1, 2009, but the Coalition […]

    Claire Thompson Culture

  • Youth find new ways to fight climate change from the ground up

    Timothy DenHerder-Thomas (left) and fellow “solutionaries.”Photo: Summer of Solutions blogFossils like Washington Post columnist George Will may think that “the Mall does not reverberate with youthful clamors about carbon.” But that’s because a growing number of young people are engaged in less-visible efforts at the grassroots level. It’s not their parents’ activism — with all […]

    Claire Thompson Culture

  • Heath Ledger harpoons whaling, and more

    Photo: Howie Berlin via FlickrNo jokerOscar-worthy performances and a waltzing Matilda definitely make the list of 10 things we love about you, Heath Ledger. Now we’re adding your grimm music video and devotion to animal rights.            

    Sarah van Schagen Culture

  • Simple summer salads for staying cool and well-nourished

    It’s getting hot in here ….It’s happening again. It’s gotten so damn hot that I fear the heat of the stove. I want to be at the beach, tubing down a river, napping in a hammock under a big shade tree. The problem is I still get hungry. Convenience foods abound to solve that problem […]

    April McGreger Culture

  • ‘The Great Squeeze’ joins long list of doomsaying eco-films

    Our planet’s supply of safe drinking water is rapidly diminishing. We have reached peak oil (according to some experts). The polar ice caps are melting, causing sea levels to rise and threatening coastal areas and island nations everywhere. The Great Squeeze, a documentary by director Christophe Fauchere (of 2007’s film Energy Crossroads), is full of […]

    Claire Thompson Culture