The Gross Society Seeing only its title, a prospective reader might guess this essay is about our nation’s epidemic of obesity. Or could it be a sarcastic observation on the evolution of Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society? Might it be a jeremiad about the gross (i.e., offensive and disgusting) ways we waste and over-consume natural resources, or a comment on current television trends? There’s plenty to be said on all those scores. No, the definition of gross I have in mind is “exclusive of deductions,” as in gross profits versus net profits. Here’s my thesis: As a society, we are entering the early stages of energy impoverishment. President Obama did some crowing in his most recent State of the Union address, where he touted “More oil produced at home than we buy from the rest of the world—the first time that’s happened in nearly twenty years.” While these gross numbers appear splendid, when you look at net things go pear-shaped, as the British say. Right now that’s exactly what is happening.
Danbena Shutdown of 150th coal plant reminder that so-called 'war on coal' must not be war on coal workers Last week, it was all smiles at Beyond Coal when the retirement was announced of the giant, much-protested Brayton Point Power Station in Somerset, Massachusetts. That's the 150th U.S. coal-powered generating plant to go that route since the beginning of 2010. It's the largest remaining coal-burner supplying electricity in New England. There is little doubt that the shutdown is good news for the planet. But what will happen to the 240 workers at Brayton Point? Only believers in a devil-take-the-hindmost society can deny that there is a matter of justice here. Van Jones told an interviewer in 2008: I think it's important that we be respectful of all the contributions that have been made by all workers. President Barack Obama on June 25, 2013, said: We’re going to need to give special care to people and communities that are unsettled by this transition—not just here in the United States but around the world. The brilliant writer and activist Jeremy Brecher recently wrote: Got that?
Regional Sustainability Organizations - Green Plus There are a multitude of nonprofits bringing together their local and regional business communities around the topic of sustainability. Since we weren’t able to find a comprehensive list of such organizations we created one. Such organizations offer local knowledge and networks and can be a great touch point for getting connected to sustainability in your area. If you have a suggested addition of a sustainability nonprofit specifically focused on offering business networking opportunities in your area, please contact us here. Green Plus seeks to complement the work of other organizations promoting sustainable practices in communities by providing a turnkey, national sustainability certification program that works through chambers of commerce to introduce the concepts of triple bottom line sustainability to small and medium sized employers, foster networks of sustainable organizations, and reward participants for their efforts. National Regions Northeast Northwest Southeast By State Alabama
Movements without leaders: What to make of life on an overheating planet The history we grow up with shapes our sense of reality -- it’s hard to shake. If you were young during the fight against Nazism, war seems a different, more virtuous animal than if you came of age during Vietnam. I was born in 1960, and so the first great political character of my life was Martin Luther King, Jr. I had a shadowy, child’s sense of him when he was still alive, and then a mythic one as his legend grew; after all, he had a national holiday. As time went on, I learned enough about the civil rights movement to know it was much more than Dr. Which is why it’s a little disconcerting to look around and realize that most of the movements of the moment -- even highly successful ones like the fight for gay marriage or immigrant’s rights -- don’t really have easily discernible leaders. It’s true, too, in the battle where I’ve spent most of my life: the fight to slow climate change and hence give the planet some margin for survival. A Movement for a New Planet What the Elders Said
Think Global, Map Local! | Green Map System Green Map® System promotes inclusive participation in sustainable community development worldwide, using mapmaking as our medium. We support locally-led Green Map projects as they create perspective-changing community ‘portraits’ which act as comprehensive inventories for decision-making and as practical guides for residents and tourists. Mapmaking teams pair our adaptable tools and universal iconography with local knowledge and leadership as they chart green living, ecological, social and cultural resources. Over 500 unique, vibrant Green Maps have published to date, and another 325 are interactive Open Green Maps. Strengthen local-global sustainability networks Expand the demand for healthier, greener choices Help successful initiatives spread to even more communities Green Map System has been developed collaboratively since 1995, and the movement has spread to over 845 cities, towns and villages in 65 countries. Take Green Map With You!
The Crazy True Story Of How A Handful Of Climate Advocates Painted A Red Town Green Knoxville, Tennessee. (Credit: Flickr user Alex Banakas) You might be surprised that the same town that Jeff Foxworthy calls home is a green haven. I’m not talking about the famous comedian. I’m referring to a man who, when not using Foxworthy as his nome de guerre, identified himself as “The Educated Redneck.” Actually, I was. But beyond the concrete policy successes, there’s a deeper, human story about how a town where climate change, formerly a four-letter phrase in this right-leaning region, grew into a watchword. There are broader lessons, too. It’s a story, in short, about hope. Beginnings Knoxville, according to economist Tyler Cowen, is “the most perfectly average place in the United States.” Knoxville columnist Jack Neely charitably took Cowen’s note as a compliment. Neely also sees city politics as pretty “average.” So when I say Knoxville is a conservative city, I don’t mean that the city limits proper mark a hotbed of Tea Party activism, though that certainly exists.
Ceres - Mobilizing Business Leadership for a Sustainable World — Ceres Saving water costs city residents ST. LOUIS • When Anheuser-Busch cut water use here by 540 million gallons this past year, saving nearly $400,000, Earl Lee Young could do nothing but watch his utility bills rise. Young, 65, a city resident on Social Security, is particularly concerned about water costs. "Every year it's been going up!" exclaimed Young, after a 12 percent hike in July. In 2004, his annual bill was $180. Businesses across St. But in cities such as St. Unlike businesses, city homes aren't metered. Worse, the businesses' conservation efforts are indirectly increasing homeowner bills. Rates have risen for three years in St. So, despite the dip in bulk sales, the city's water division billed for $44.6 million this past fiscal year, $6.4 million more than in 2005, according to a Post-Dispatch analysis of water division data. Businesses are footing just $1.1 million of that increase, 5 percent more than they paid five years ago. Not all of this can be attributed to business conservation. By this spring, the St.