Climate Technology

Honda ditches Accord hybrid

Honda is ditching the Accord Hybrid because it discovered that … are you sitting down? … people who buy hybrids like good gas mileage.

Are the two inextricably linked?

The G8 wants to “decouple economic growth from energy use.” Is that possible? That’s the central question of out times, I guess. Walden Belloon thinks not: The only effective response to climate change is to radically reduce economic growth rates and consumption levels, particularly in the North, and in the very near future. The climate […]

How scary …

… is this picture?

Holy $%#!

The Big Three automakers might just dodge the bullet again. Amazing.

A couple of podcasts for your commuting pleasure

I've run across these shows in the past couple days, and thought fellow Gristmill readers might like to hear them too. The first is Science Friday's "Hour One" from last week. There is a segment on carbon sequestration, which I have yet to form an opinion on, and also one on generating hydrogen. The second, which I'm actually listening to as we speak, is about the economic benefits of "going green." Apparently being environmentally conscious is a smart business move! Go figure. The podcast comes from a series called "TED Talks" and the show can be downloaded here.

Enjoy!

Company presentation offers glimpse of life on the other side

Have you ever wanted to be a fly on the wall at a top-level corporate meeting just to see what really goes on behind closed doors? Consider this nifty PowerPoint presentation your ticket in.

It turns out chlorine companies talk about Oceana in their meetings as much as Oceana talks about them. The Chlorine Institute held a meeting a few months back where one of the companies gave a formal presentation about being "In the 'Crosshairs' of an Environmental NGO."

Their presentation looks an awful lot like our presentations -- outlining all of our tactics to stop seafood contamination, which to them are challenges they need to overcome. It's nice to know that ERCO has realized Oceana's in it for the long haul.

My favorite slide? "Essential survival tactics."

… but doesn’t let governments off the hook

So I'm a sucker. I can't walk by a newsstand where a magazine features a pair of innocent green cotyledons sprouting from a bed of industrial factories. It's this week's issue of The Economist, and what's inside the "Cleaning Up" issue is as alluring as the cover.

Although I've only just skimmed, the articles look promising, and they're all freely available online. Here's the rundown:

• "Cleaning up: How business is starting to tackle climate change, and how governments need to help"
• "Everybody's green now: How America's big businesses got environmentalism"
• "Trading thin air: The carbon market is working, but not bringing forth as much innovation as had been hoped"
• "Irrational Incandescence: People can't be bothered to make easy energy savings"
• "Fairfield vs. the valley: Two competing models for the clean-energy business"
• "Sunlit uplands: Wind and solar power are flourishing, thanks to subsidies"
• "Boom: As security and climate concerns rise, nuclear power may be coming back"
• "Dirty king coal: Scrubbing carbon from coal-fired power stations is possible but pricey"
• "The drive for low emissions: Car and fuel companies are investing in clean transport"
• "The final cut: Business can do it, with governments' help"
• Audio interview: "A discussion with Emma Duncan, Deputy Editor of The Economist"

Check Baby Check Baby One Two … 300

Wachovia, fourth-largest U.S. bank, plans to build 300 green branches The fourth-largest bank in the U.S. will build only green branches by the end of 2008, aiming for 300 eco-friendly offices by 2010. Wachovia, based in Charlotte, N.C., is expanding into California and will begin its green experiment there. It is also seeking LEED certification […]

Can Hemp Dashboards Be Far Behind?

Union leader, Ford call for green progress in Detroit Could Big Auto be shifting gears? Speaking at a business conference on Michigan’s (car-free) Mackinac Island yesterday, Ford Motor Company Chair Bill Ford Jr. and United Automobile Workers President Ron Gettelfinger both addressed the need for Detroit to get with the green program. “Unfortunately, there is […]

A conference for green money types

Right now there’s a big conference going on in London: "Corporate Climate Response." All sorts of international corporate bigwigs (and some smallerwigs) are in attendance, discussing businessy green stuff. A crew of folks is live-blogging the event here, replete with audio, video, and good old fashioned text. If you want a glimpse into the concerns […]