Climate Technology
All Stories
-
The iPhone is the new Prius
Ditch the car and get a bike, a transit farecard, and a smartphone.Photo: NoktonCross-posted from Shareable. Two years ago, my California driver’s license expired. Living in Chicago at the time, where the smart resident uses bikes or public transit to avoid traffic, I hadn’t found a compelling reason to get behind the wheel of our […]
-
U.S. finally catching up to rest of world on solar
In the U.S., solar photovoltaic (PV) panels are, somewhat unexpectedly, suddenly the belle of the renewable energy ball — and their dance card is wide open. There is now more solar PV capacity planned for the immediate future than any other renewable you can name. Wind, solar thermal, geothermal — it's like they all showed […]
-
Saudi Arabia scrambling to get off own oil, build 5 gigawatts of solar power by 2020
What do you do when you're basically a giant welfare state whose stability depends on keeping the money tap open, yet your population is set to double and your electricity consumption to triple by 2032? If you're Saudi Arabia, the answer is build renewable energy as fast as you can. The first volley is a […]
-
A conversation with Bill Gates on climate and clean energy [VIDEO]
This morning, Bill Gates, Microsoft chairman and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, talked with Climate Solutions Board Co-chair Jabe Blumenthal about climate change and innovations in clean energy. Watch the video here and read the transcript below — or just catch the highlights. Watch the video Afterward, KC Golden of Climate Solutions […]
-
Want local communities to support wind? Put them in charge
Let’s turn NIMBYs into YIMBYs.Photo: Eddie CodelThis post originally appeared on Energy Self-Reliant States, a resource of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance’s New Rules Project. Last month, Grist’s Jess Zimmerman noted sarcastically that “Money is a miracle cure for ‘wind turbine syndrome.'” It is. And environmental advocates frustrated by the (spurious?) health and aesthetic complaints raised […]
-
Green buildings can now eat smog for breakfast
The aluminum giant Alcoa has designed a building panel that cleans both itself and the nearby air. The secret to this feat is titanium dioxide, the same compound that allows sunscreen to block the sun. In this application, when the sun hits a coat of titanium dioxide, the compound begins spewing electrons. According to Alcoa, […]
-
Airships may be the key to a greener, steampunkier future
Steampunk enthusiasts rejoice: The skies may soon be full of airships. Dirigibles are the low-carbon way of shipping goods long distances, according to a recent article in Scientific American. No word on whether it's greener to wear aviator goggles, petticoats, and button boots while flying them, but let's just go ahead and assume the answer is […]
-
Toyota to make all Prius hybrids plug-in by 2014
This is how the century-long dominance of gas-powered vehicles ends: not with a bang, but with a widget. By 2014, the world's best-selling hybrid vehicle will have plug-in capability, standard, which means every trip up to 14 miles will be all-electric, all the time. This move to plug-in-standard vehicles is a harbinger of a future […]
-
Daylight-mimicking LEDs save power, might reduce symptoms of Alzheimer’s
All the cool kids know that CFLs are merely a bridge technology — and now students at Drexel University have a grant to enhance their successor, which are household lights comprised of light emitting diodes. LEDs aren’t new tech — they’re already used in your monitor, television, Christmas tree, throwies, etc. They're super efficient, plus […]
-
Baddest-ass hybrid in the world to become a reality
Jaguar has announced plans to build a hybrid-electric supercar that goes from 0 to 60 in three seconds — proving once again that green cars aren't just better for the environment; they're also substantially more bad-ass than the belching, muck-fueled dinosaurs they replace. The C-X75 will have an ultralight carbon-fiber chassis and an all-electric range […]
