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Renewables trump fossil fuels for first time ever
Last year investors poured $187 billion into electricity from renewable sources (wind, sun, biomass, etc.), versus $157 billion for fossil fuels, calculates Bloomberg New Energy Finance. “The progress of renewables has been nothing short of remarkable,” United Nations Environment Program Executive Secretary Achim Steiner said in an interview. “You have record investment in the midst of […]
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Renewables in the U.S.: Growing fast, but not fast enough
Last month, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) released the “2010 Renewable Energy Data Book” [PDF], which is a cornucopia of charts, facts, and figures on energy use in the U.S. The top-line conclusion for climate hawks is familiar: Renewable energy is growing rapidly, but not rapidly enough; it remains a small fraction of overall […]
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India could boycott Olympics over Dow Chemical sponsorship
The Olympics is supposed to be all about fellowship and camaraderie, but the London Olympics Committee might have cozied up to the wrong crowd. Dow Chemicals is set to sponsor the wrap that will cover the Olympic Stadium, and as a result of the company's involvement, the Indian Olympic Association could boycott the Games altogether. […]
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After-school EV club is so much cooler than yearbook
In Kansas City, Mo., high school students enrolled in the after-school program Minddrive are building an electric car. They meet three times every two weeks. They started with a decade-old Reynard Champ Car, and have turned it into an electric vehicle that will drive from Jacksonville, Fla., to San Diego, Calif., over their spring break. […]
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Uganda’s electric car is super cute
Meet the Kiira. It was built in Uganda, from parts mostly sourced in Uganda. It's a triumph of "African Science," a phrase that reminds this reporter of "gay parking," but whatever. And it is adoooooooorable. The Kiira is a two-seater that can go 50 miles on a charge, with a top speed of around 60 […]
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Google phases out clean energy R&D in favor of deployment
Cross-posted from Climate Progress. Buried at the bottom of an innocuous “spring cleaning” post on Google’s blog yesterday, the internet giant made a very important announcement: It will stop funding its Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal (RE<C) initiative. But that’s not the whole story. And if you believe the headlines — “Google Abandons Renewable Energy […]
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Your TV is an even bigger piggy than you are
There are two grand traditions to observe on Thanksgiving: eating a whole bunch and watching a whole bunch of football on TV. And in terms of energy use, it turns out your TV is much more of glutton than you are. The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance has been working to sell consumers on energy-efficient TVs […]
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The few, the proud, the green: U.S. Marines pursue clean energy and efficiency
IN SEPTEMBER 2010, a company of U.S. Marines entered Sangin District, an area in Afghanistan’s Helmand province that had seen some of the most intense, protracted fighting of the war. Their mission was to relieve British forces and launch an aggressive effort to clear and calm the area, which was, as the military is wont […]
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Report: Homeownership is keeping unemployment high
The U.S. is suffering crushing unemployment, yet workers can't move to where the jobs are because they are trapped in underwater mortgages, explains a new report from Brookings. This, it turns out, is the ultimate fate of the "ownership society" that our government has been pushing for so long through Fannie, Freddy, and tax policy: […]
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Walmart’s promised green product rankings fall off the radar
In 2009, Walmart created a stir when it announced that it would develop a Sustainability Index to assess the environmental impacts of every item on its shelves and provide an easy rating system to help shoppers make greener choices. CEO Mike Duke described [PDF] the index as “a simple tool that informs consumers about the […]
