Climate Politics
All Stories
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World War CO2
Feds, states, and interest groups face off in court over carbon dioxide An epic environmental case got a day in court on Friday, as a coalition of 12 states, several cities, and 13 nonprofit organizations squared off against the federal government, 11 states, and 19 industry groups before a panel of three judges in a […]
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The Full Altamonty
Pombo questioned on wind-power conflict of interest Ah, they grow up so fast! You can tell that wind energy has joined the ranks of mature industries — it’s now got its very own scandal over accusations of improper influence peddling. Aides to Rep. Richard Pombo (R-Calif.), it seems, sent a letter to Interior Department officials […]
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Johnson Blocking
Democratic Senators stall confirmation of new EPA head When President Bush chose 24-year U.S. EPA veteran, scientist, and all-around mild-mannered dude Stephen Johnson to head the agency, observers expected no controversy. But Johnson’s ongoing confirmation hearings are proving them wrong. It seems those pesky Democrats can always find something to complain about — like, um, […]
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An interview with New York Times columnist and “geo-green” advocate Thomas Friedman
Thomas Friedman.Photo: Greg MartinAs the green movement fends off accusations of impotence, Thomas Friedman has hatched an idea that could make a man out of environmentalism. In January, the three-time Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for The New York Times debuted his “geo-green” strategy, a powerful proposal for reframing America’s quest for energy independence to appeal to […]
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Civil-rights, suffrage activists didn’t give up, and neither should environmentalists
This piece is adapted from a speech given before the Alliance for Global Sustainability last month at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Mass. The full speech — “Reflections on Sustainability and Universities and Whether Environmentalism Has Died” — can be found here. Are the reapers quitting too soon? The environmental community is in […]
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Enviros recruit Lakoff for reframing project, but concerns mount that he might abandon them
George Lakoff may be the new darling of the Democratic Party, but how sweet is he on the environmental movement? George Lakoff. Photo: Bonnie Azab Powell, U.C. Berkeley. A onetime adviser to Howard Dean, who hails him as “one of the most influential political thinkers of the progressive movement,” Lakoff is author of the election-year […]
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Ban of the Cave Bug
High court to decide whether to hear challenge to Endangered Species Act The fate of the Endangered Species Act may rest in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court, if they decide in coming weeks to hear a case from a Texas man hoping to remove development restrictions on his land. Revoking the ESA protection […]
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Oil Together Now
Bipartisan coalition presses Bush to get behind oil-use reduction Lambasting U.S. oil addiction: It’s not just for America-hating radical homosexual vegetarian Schiavo-killing eco-terrorists anymore! A growing bipartisan coalition is arguing that U.S. dependence on foreign oil is a serious national security threat. Today, a letter signed by 26 former national-security officials from both Republican and […]
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Four environmental funders join the debate over the movement’s future
When Michael Shellenberger and Ted Nordhaus delivered the talk that has everyone talking, they chose an influential audience: environmental grantmakers. Although the now (in)famous pair focused on mainstream advocacy organizations in their discussion of the death of environmentalism, others have contended that new thinking by the folks who write the checks is key to revitalizing […]
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Conquered in Concord
New Hampshire Senate approves stricter mercury rules than feds At risk of getting stuck with a number of toxic mercury hotspots under the Bush administration’s new mercury cap-and-trade rule, New Hampshire’s Senate approved a bill yesterday to adopt rules more stringent than the feds’ and to ban the state’s two coal-fired power plants from trading […]
