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Category Archives: Energy

New nationwide ebike battery recycling program

Fast Company: “…E-bike battery recycling programs are common in Europe, where e-bike use has been more popular, but in the U.S., the infrastructure is lacking. In 2022, though, that will change, with the launch of an industry-wide electric bicycle battery recycling program, a joint effort from PeopleForBikes, a bicycle trade association and advocacy organization, and… Continue Reading

10 Breakthrough Technologies 2021

MIT Technology Review: “This list marks 20 years since we began compiling an annual selection of the year’s most important technologies. Some, such as mRNA vaccines, are already changing our lives, while others are still a few years off. Below, you’ll find a brief description along with a link to a feature article that probes… Continue Reading

Who are the TOxic Ten?

Center for Countering Digital Hate: How 10 fringe publishers fuel 69% of digital climate change denial (YouTube). “The Center for Countering Digital Hate is an international not-for-profit NGO that seeks to disrupt the architecture of online hate and misinformation. The Center has offices in London and Washington DC.” “(Mashable)…The Center for Countering Digital Hate, however, found that… Continue Reading

Poison in the Air

ProPublica: “The EPA allows polluters to turn neighborhoods into “sacrifice zones” where residents breathe carcinogens. ProPublica reveals where these places are in a first-of-its-kind map and data analysis. rom the urban sprawl of Houston to the riverways of Virginia, air pollution from industrial plants is elevating the cancer risk of an estimated quarter of a… Continue Reading

Which is more expensive: charging an electric vehicle or fueling a car with gas?

USA Today – “Last year, Patrick Anderson went electric: He got a Porsche Taycan EV in dark blue. Anderson, who is CEO of East Lansing-based economic consulting firm Anderson Economic Group, loves the zippy acceleration and “exciting” features the car offers. He also gets satisfaction in knowing that driving an EV benefits the environment, he said.  But Anderson’s joy comes with a dark side. “They… Continue Reading

UK Gov – Net Zero: principles for successful behaviour change initiatives

Net Zero: principles for successful behaviour change initiatives. Key principles from past government-led behaviour change and public engagement initiatives, BEIS Research Paper Number 2021/063 October 2021. “The Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) was commissioned by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to undertake a rapid review and synthesis of successful (and to a… Continue Reading

Report – Plastics To Outpace Coal In Driving Climate Change

Beyond Plastics – Plastics are the New Coal: “Plastics are on track to contribute more climate change emissions than coal plants by 2030, a new report finds. As fossil fuel companies seek to recoup falling profits, they are increasing plastics production and cancelling out greenhouse gas reductions gained from the recent closures of 65 percent… Continue Reading

Director of National Intelligence Inaugural Estimate on Climate Change

National Intelligence Estimate – Climate Change and International Responses Increasing Challenges to US National Security Through 2040. October 21, 2021. “We assess that climate change will increasingly exacerbate risks to US national security interests as the physical impacts increase and geopolitical tensions mount about how to respond to the challenge. Global momentum is growing for more… Continue Reading

More than 120,000 US sites feared to handle harmful PFAS ‘forever’ chemicals

The Guardian: “The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has identified more than 120,000 locations around the US where people may be exposed to a class of toxic “forever chemicals” associated with various cancers and other health problems that is a frightening tally four times larger than previously reported, according to data obtained by the Guardian.… Continue Reading

The Power of Electric Bike Libraries

Bloomberg: “Climate-friendly e-bikes are a key part of plans to decarbonize urban transportation. To speed adoption, more cities are offering lending programs that can expose more riders to this new mode…With U.S. sales growing 145% in 2020 — boosted in part by Covid-19 shutdowns and an explosion in outdoor recreation — e-bikes are steadily becoming more familiar sights… Continue Reading

The thorny truth about socially responsible investing

Vox: “It’s easier than ever to invest ethically — or, at least, to be told by marketers you are. Whether you’re actually doing it is harder to figure out. Investors have become eager to put their money toward good in recent years. In 2020, assets under management using sustainable investing strategies in the United States… Continue Reading

If 100 companies are responsible for 70% of emissions, what can you do?

Fast Company: “Corporations and governments have known about the risk of climate change for about half a century. It first appeared on Exxon’s radar in 1981. Two years prior, a group of scientists had created the Charney Report, which assessed the effects of rising amounts of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere (and correctly predicted how… Continue Reading