Global Warming

TED Talk: Norman Foster Creates Green Buildings

Patrick — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 19:43:04 -0400

Norman Foster is a well-known British Architect that has helped build plenty of structures throughout the world, including Wembley Stadium, Hearst Tower, and plenty of others throughout his career of four decades. Efficient and green, his buildings are easily recognizable throughout various countries of the world.

In this TED Talk, he reveals how computers can assist in the building of "green" and nearly pollution-free buildings during the DLD Conference 2007 in Munich.

Watch this TED Video in which Foster explains more:

Should This Guy Blow Up His Range Rover? You Decide.

Mike.Delponte — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 13:19:30 -0400

The folks at onefewer.com do not mess around. Check out the video below to hear how you can decide what to do with this obsolete gas guzzler. Can anyone say domino effect? Ok, that may be a stretch, but this is cool nonetheless. Here's the story from digg.

"There's no way around it: 13 MPG sucks. But what do you do with a Range Rover that's already on the road? Selling it just passes the burden on, so, should we blow it up? Drive it off a cliff? Convert it to a biodiesel or plug-in hybrid and give it to an organization that can use it to do something great? This guy will use the best idea he gets.."

Read the whole story on onefewer.com and make sure to share this with others. You can do so by clicking the green "share" icon below.

Oil Execs Charged With Crimes Against Humanity?

Molly — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 15:44:51 -0400

Dr. James Hansen, a leading scientist on climate change, has stated that he believes the top executives in oil companies such as ExxonMobil should be charged with high crimes against humanity and nature. This is not because of the fact that the CEO's sell oil, but because he believes that they tried to spread doubt about global warming and its effects, as well as obstructing action.

I believe that if this case went through, (correct me if I'm wrong) it would be the first time that someone was charged with a "high crime against nature." High crimes against humanity were used in the past more for war crimes and leaders that caused genocides. I guess one could argue that global warming, which in the end could cause massive extinctions, may be on par or even worse than genocides. read more »

Costa Rica: The Carbon Neutrality Challenge

mattswriting — Thu, 15 May 2008 16:39:12 -0400

Costa Rica has declared that it will go carbon neutral by 2021. To meet that challenge, energy officials from the Central American nation have gone on a fact-finding tour of the United States, seeking out the best practices that can be incorporated in Costa Rica. UC Berkeley's Center for Latin American Studies is hosting a talk by Minister Dobles on Costa Rica’s efforts to mitigate carbon emissions at 5 p.m. on Monday, May 19 in Room 554, Barrows Hall, UC Berkeley Campus in Berkeley, California. The event is free and should last one hour. read more »

Talkin' Conscious Fashion in Uruguay

Mike.Delponte — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 15:07:31 -0400

*This post was written by Christina DesVaux, a friend of Conscious Lifestyle. You can learn more about her year in Montevideo, at "cdesvaux.wordpress.com.""

I was recently invited to be a guest lecturer at the University of Montevideo, in a seminar entitled Communication and Fashion. I am living in Montevideo, Uruguay for the year as aRotary Ambassadorial Research Scholar. I am taking courses at the University of Montevideo, in their School of Business and Entrepreneurial Studies. My research project will focus on female Uruguayan artisans and the North American based fair-trade organizations that buy from them. read more »

Microsoft vs. Apple

Molly — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 16:47:51 -0400

Microsoft and Apple, two enormous multinational corporations, have always been competing to churn out the latest popular products. These rival companies wield tremendous power, with Microsoft at 80,000 employees and an annual revenue of 50 billion dollars, and Apple slowly catching up at 20,000 employees and 25 billion.

Consumers compare the products' designs, aesthetics, models, convenience, adaptability, storage space, and of course, prices. However, what about the eco-friendliness of each corporation? read more »

Green Energy pioneer speaks at UC Berkeley

mattswriting — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 16:08:31 -0400

The inventor of the technology behind thin film solar, the hydrogen fuel cell, and the batteries used in hybrid cars spoke at UC Berkeley on Tuesday, April 8. In addition to his scientific achievements, which have led to 350 patents, and to Stan Ovshinsky being called "the modern world's most important energy visionary," Stan has been deeply concerned with the intersection between the environment, jobs, and development. Video and a podcast of his talk can be found at
http://webcast.berkeley.edu/event_details.php?webcastid=23036 read more »

Too Hot to Pass Up…$10,000 Prize for Your Plan

Susan — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 14:24:13 -0500

The Presidential Forum on Renewable Energy is sponsoring a nationwide essay contest for college students between the ages of 18 and 24 asking them to submit a plan on renewable energy, sustainability, and conservation for America. Each of three winners will receive an educational prize of $10,000 to coincide with the celebration of Earth Day in April.

But hurry: the essay is due by February 1, 2008. You can enter online here. read more »

Climate Change Teach-In To Be Held Across America

Susan — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 10:45:36 -0500

Focus The Nation is an educational initiative on global warming solutions for America occurring at more than 1,000 universities, colleges, high schools, middle schools, places of worship, civic organizations, and businesses, in all 50 states on Jan. 31, 2008.

The teach-in has two goals: to formulate policy solutions that can be implemented immediately; and to explore a new model of collaborative, interdisciplinary education on a national scale, needed to tackle the interconnected social, environmental, and political issues of climate change. read more »

Good CARMA for Activists

Susan — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 11:29:27 -0500

Want to find out how much carbon your local power plant—or one in Neyveli, India, or perhaps Duvha, South Africa—is spewing out? Now, you can, using a new interactive map that helps you make informed decisions on which polluters need to reduce emissions.

Carbon Monitoring for Action (CARMA), a massive database containing information on the carbon emissions of more than 50,000 power plants and 4,000 power companies worldwide, was unveiled last week. It is the first global inventory of a major emissions-producing sector of the economy accounting for 40% of all carbon emissions in the United States and about one-quarter of global emissions. Data from CARMA will allow concerned citizens, investors, consumers, and environmentalists to pressure top polluters to clean up their acts, worldwide.

CARMA is produced and financed by the Confronting Climate Change Initiative at the Center for Global Development, an independent and non-partisan think tank located in Washington, D.C.

To try it out, visit carma.org.