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Image:tchrd Situated in the north eastern outskirts of Lhasa, Drapchi is the largest prison in Tibet, although there are many more – some concealed by titles such as ‘re-education centres’ or ‘reform through labour camps’. Opened in 1965 and built with forced labour it is known in Chinese as Di Yi Jianyu-No 1. Prison.
Action For Tibetan Political Prisoners « Tibettruth
Maine Solar Power Blog - Solar Energy News New Hampshire
ReVision Energy will by exhibiting at the 18th Annual Seacoast Home & Garden Show at the Whittemore Center Arena which is located on the campus of the University of New Hampshire. The doors will open at 10:00am on Saturday and Sunday, March 24 & 25, 2012. This spring show is full of inspirational ideas for the home and garden. This year the show puts a special emphasis on updating and remodeling in today’s new eco-friendly world, all designed to help consumers make informed decisions about their homes and gardens. This is the ultimate opportunity to meet the professionals that can bring many of your visions for your home and garden to life. There are over 200 exhibitor booths at this year’s show offering consumers the opportunity to see the latest products and services on the market and meet the professionals who can help bring them to your home.
On January 26 th , 2011, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) signed an agreement with waste-to-energy company as the first participant in a new program for mid-sized renewable energy generation. Renewable energy systems, including solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, between 200KW and 20MW are eligible to participate in the TVA's Renewable Standard Offer program, which was created in October 2010. "This contract with Waste Management marks the successful beginning of a new renewable power initiative for TVA and the region," said TVA Senior Vice President for Commercial Operations and Pricing John Trawick. "We look forward to working with power distributors and developers to continue growing our Renewable Standard Offer resources in 2011." Rates far below levels in successful feed-in tariff programs
KW05 | Tennessee Valley Authority begins operation of program for mid-sized renewable energy generation - SolarServer
Sierra Club: Email - Oil Industry Profits Soar; Sierra Club Calls for End to Subsidies
As Oil Industry Reports Soaring Quarterly Profit Records, Sierra Club Calls for End to Subsidies WASHINGTON, D.C. – This past week, the oil industry reported soaring quarterly profits. Chevron and Exxon recorded quarterly profits of $5.3 billion and $9.25 billion, respectively. “The oil industry continues to rake in record profits at the expense of our health, our economy, and our environment,” said Sierra Club public lands director Athan Manuel. “This is the richest industry in the world, and yet they continue to sidestep the kind of simple safety measures that might have helped prevent the Gulf oil disaster. These oil executives are counting their mountains of money while they put our kids’ health at risk every single day from pollution.”
Solar Industry: Content / Policy Watch / Taiwan May Cut Its Solar FIT Rates Next Year
Taiwan's government may reduce the feed-in tariffs (FITs) paid to solar power generators next year in response to lower equipment costs, Bloomberg reports. Current rates are NT$11.12 (USD$0.37)/kWh for PV. In contrast, the country is considering raising the FIT paid to wind power generators as the cost of equipment for those installations increases. FIT rates for 2011 are expected to be announced before the end of this year.
There are reportedly more than 700,000 beggars across Bangladesh The authorities in Bangladesh's city of Chittagong say they will pay beggars a daily wage to keep them off the streets during next month's Cricket World Cup. Some 300 disabled beggars would be paid about $2 (£1.20) a day for three months to compensate them for their loss of earning, Mayor Mansur Alam said. Mr Alam said he would meet beggars' representatives and other officials next week to prepare a list of disabled beggars in the southern city. "We have taken the initiative to rehabilitate the beggars and we are going to expedite it ahead of the Cricket World Cup so that they do not disturb the tourists and spectators. "We will also make a list to stop the influx of the disabled beggars from other parts of the country."
BBC News - Bangladesh city to pay beggars during cricket World Cup
Snags in Solar Permitting Add Costs, Delays | GetSolar.com Blog
Whenever the discussion of solar cost, the focus is usually on the cost of equipment, like solar panels and inverters. But, according to a recently released report from California solar installation company SunRun, there’s another factor that’s adding up to 30 percent to the solar installation cost: permits. Solar installers across the country are becoming increasingly frustrated with different requirements, even between neighboring counties. So what’s the deal with solar permitting?
Fresh on the heels of his innovation-focused State of the Union address , today President Obama announced his Startup America Partnership, a campaign to invest in the country's startup entrepreneurs and create thousands of jobs. Facebook, Intel, TECHStars, and others are all pledging to support the initiative--IBM has already announced a $150 million pledge . Much of the criticism of Obama, following his SOTU Speech, was about concrete plans regarding how to boost innovation and entrepreneurship.
Facebook, Intel, IBM Join White House in Startup Investment Campaign | Fast Company
Japanese scientists seek to harness solar power in space - Telegraph
The study, to be launched this spring, will focus on generating electricity from sunlight in space, converting the power into microwaves and sending them back to earth. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Mitsubishi Electric Corp and Kyoto University are among a string of high profile Japanese organisations jointly conducting the solar power generation research. The study will take place in a simulated outer space environment at Kyoto University, where scientists will attempt to convert a strong electric current into microwaves and transmit them ten yards away. The experiment marks a major step towards the achievement of solar energy generation in space, which is believed to be ten times more efficient that in its earth-based equivalent due to the intensity of sunlight in space and absence of clouds. If the experiments prove successful, scientists are hoping to be able to launch a trial satellite system generating solar power as early as 2016, according to Kyodo New reports.
The Export-Import Bank of the U.S. (Ex-Im Bank) has joined seven other U.S. government agencies in launching a coordinated effort to promote renewable energy and energy -efficiency exports under a project called the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Export Initiative. A top priority of Ex-Im Bank is to increase its support for renewable energy and energy-efficient exports by offering enhanced financing under its Environmental Exports Program.
Export-Import Bank of the U.S. Launching Renewable Energy Export Initiative | Solar Thermal Magazine
Why You Should Trust Apple More Than the U.S. Commerce Dept. With Your Universal Online ID | Fast Company
Enter the U.S. Commerce Department's National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC), which has been around in draft form for a while but is now getting serious government backing. As BusinessWeek notes in its piece about the idea, it's a "new online security system that experts say will eliminate the password maze and perhaps boost e-commerce." The article even quotes John Clippinger, co-director of Harvard's Law Lab at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society and an "advocate" of the plan as saying it'll "be far more efficient and you'll control it a lot more." The trick behind the NSTIC is that there will be some form of universal login system that replaces the password every time you flick on a PC or power-up your smartphone.Get Your 2010 Federal Solar IRS Tax Forms Right Here!
Solar PV is going up against some of the biggest industries in the energy market, such as: coal, natural gas, and oil. These industries have been around for quite some time, but the sun is finally setting on their reign, and rising for renewables. The big questions that come to mind are, when and how? [...]Morning Energy - POLITICO.com
With help from Erica Martinson and Patrick Reis I FEEL THE EARTH MOVE UNDER MY FEET: A dramatic rise in earthquakes in the U.S. heartland is “almost certainly manmade,” scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey have concluded in a paper that is drawing new scrutiny to deep underground injection of wastewater from oil and gas extraction. Some of the cases were probably related to the pumping of fluids into injection wells, the researchers say.The housing market crash was like crabs in a bucket. It took every affiliated industry down with it. While U.S. real estate continues to flounder along the bottom of that so-called bucket, with some areas showing slight signs of rebound and others continuing their depreciation plunges , one industry is starting to climb back out: home improvement.