Articles Tagged ‘ alex wise ’

The State of Socially Responsible Investing in The States

February 21st, 2012

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A couple of months ago here at Sea Change Radio we discussed socially responsible investing, or SRI, from a global perspective with South African financial expert Graham Sinclair. This week, we take a look at the American SRI movement. Host Alex Wise speaks with industry pioneer Jerome Dodson the founder of both Parnassus Investments and Working Assets along with Aaron Winer, a Bay Area investment advisor who specializes in finding his clients socially responsible investment vehicles. We discuss the roots of the SRI industry, some of the innovations taking place today and how the new political reality of American democracy in the Citizens United era is changing how we all should view the companies we invest in and support.

Tom Vanderbilt on Transit & Traffic

February 14th, 2012

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Has this ever happened to you: you’re sitting in your car, engine idling, watching the cars in front of you and behind you move only inches at a time, and you find yourself wishing you had opted for public transportation? So why didn’t you? Were you deterred by the time you imagined it would take? Did the transport system’s notorious unreliability make you nervous? Or perhaps the prospect of sitting on a dingy seat next to a smelly stranger kept you behind the wheel of your own car, where you know you’re in control? Then again, how “in control” can you be – you’ve only moved a foot in the last five minutes, haven’t you?

This week on Sea Change Radio our guest is Tom Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt is the author of Traffic, one of the New York Times’ Most Notable Books of 2008 and he recently wrote an article for Slate exploring the “Best Way To Get Users To Embrace Mass Transit.” Vanderbilt and host Alex Wise chat about the marvels and the miseries of both public transportation and driving, and muse over what it takes to get us out of our cars and onto the train.

Walmart: Green or Greed? Part II

February 7th, 2012

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Last week on Sea Change Radio, we spoke with Stacy Mitchell, a researcher and author who believes that Walmart’s sustainability efforts over the past five or six years have only disguised, not improved the tremendous detrimental effects caused by the world’s largest retailer. This week, we hear from a business and sustainability reporter who has a different perspective on Walmart’s green campaign. Marc Gunther thinks that while Walmart still has a long way to go to become a truly responsible corporation, the company’s work in this area represents important steps in the right direction. Gunther and host Alex Wise discuss the parallels of Walmart and Apple’s supply chain troubles including slave-like labor conditions in China, and look at the Walmart situation from both a management and consumer perspective. After hearing both Stacy Mitchell last week and Marc Gunther this week, Sea Change Radio invites you to draw your own conclusions about this retail giant.

Walmart: Green or Greed? Part I

January 31st, 2012

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Walmart. What does the name of the world’s largest retailer evoke for you? Do you think of its reputation as a poor employer and its anti-union tactics? Do you lump it in your mind with other large corporations who worship profit at the expense of environmental and social justice? Or perhaps you’re among those who respect Walmart’s more recent initiatives to improve its environmental impact, cut back on energy use, and reduce packaging. Today on Sea Change Radio, we begin a two-part series in which we speak with two writers for whom the name Walmart evokes very different things.

This week, host Alex Wise talks with author, researcher and advocate, Stacy Mitchell who recently published a 6-part series for Grist on Walmart’s sustainability efforts. Mitchell believes that the company’s purported efforts to improve its sustainability profile are mostly window dressing, a ploy to change the media narrative of Walmart’s poor track record without actually changing its overall negative global impact. Next week we will hear a contrasting opinion from reporter Marc Gunther who’s written extensively on Walmart, as well. Gunther is more impressed by the company’s sustainability efforts, believing that the perfect should not be the enemy of the good, and that when a giant like Walmart makes moves toward environmental responsibility it is worth taking notice. But first, our discussion with Stacy Mitchell.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce: the nation’s highest-regarded pollution advocacy group

January 17th, 2012

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What is the United States Chamber of Commerce? Many Americans hold the misconception that it’s a government agency. It is not. It is the most significant lobbying group in the United States. And, as our guests today on Sea Change Radio explain, it’s a formidable foe of environmental protections and could easily be called an organized group for pollution-advocacy.  This week, host Alex Wise talks with environmental ethicist Philip Cafaro, who explains the role that the US Chamber of Commerce plays in promoting constant growth, and how that premise inherently contradicts environmental sustainability. Next, Shaun Goho, lawyer and lecturer at Harvard Law School, dissects the US Chamber of Commerce’s own statement on environmental issues and demonstrates how its current policies diverge drastically from the Chamber’s 19th Century roots.

Ecologist Eric Berlow: Simplicity On The Other Side Of Complexity

January 10th, 2012

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Trained as an ecologist, our guest this week on Sea Change Radio uses complexity theory to map spheres of influence and find solutions to any number of problems. Eric Berlow has applied this systems perspective to solve a diverse array of riddles, from stopping the disappearance of the yellow-legged frog in the Sierra Nevada to distilling the core issues in the US Counter-Insurgency strategy in Afghanistan.

Listen now as this tireless optimist explains to host Alex Wise how embracing the true complexity of a problem reveals its simplest solution, and why a starfish, or a fly, or a toad can be the keystone to our ecology’s health.

-Here’s a link to a video of Eric’s 2010 TED conference talk

Kitt Doucette: From the Frontlines of the Plastic Bag Wars

January 3rd, 2012

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In just a couple of decades the plastic bag has become ubiquitous on this planet – these “disposable” items don’t biodegrade, however, so they’ve been collecting in our oceans, killing wildlife, and eventually inspiring a movement to push back against their environmental blight. Some cities, counties and even countries have instituted bans and others have put in place policies that charge consumers a few cents per bag in order to dissuade use. But eventually the producers of plastic caught on that there was a growing trend to limit the consumption of an item that’s usually only used for a few minutes, but stays on earth indefinitely. They’ve launched their own offensive, and the fight is starting to look like an all-out war.

In this Sea Change Radio encore presentation, host Alex Wise speaks with Kitt Doucette, a journalist for Rolling Stone who recently wrote about this war over plastic bags. Doucette talks about the history of the conflict, some of the fronts on which this battle is being waged, and what we can all do to fight back against the corporate bullies gaining ground everyday in this struggle for the earth’s well-being.

Stewards of Other People’s Money… and The Planet

December 27th, 2011

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Socially responsible capitalism – is this an oxymoron? Not according to this week’s guest on Sea Change Radio. Graham Sinclair is a South African sustainable investment consultant and the President of the Africa Sustainable Investment Forum. Money managers like him attract conscientious investors, using the tools of capitalism to pressure corporations to be more socially responsible. Today, Sinclair talks about the past and future of sustainable investing, and what it means for corporations, investors and consumers. Host Alex Wise also discusses with Sinclair the particular importance of socially responsible investment strategies in developing countries.

The Peaks & Valleys of Clean Energy Innovation

December 20th, 2011

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The bankruptcy of solar startup, Solyndra, earlier this year had the clean energy naysayers up-in-arms, saying that Solyndra’s demise proved that governments shouldn’t be wasting taxpayer money on businesses that could fail. We all know that startup businesses are inherently risky and in the clean energy space, they can be quite expensive but who’s better suited to foot the bill and assume the risk, private companies or government-backed efforts?

This week on Sea Change Radio, we welcome back to the show, Jesse Jenkins, the Director of Energy and Climate Policy at the Breakthrough Institute, a leading progressive public policy think tank. Jenkins and host Alex Wise discuss his white paper titled “Bridging the Clean Energy Valleys of Death” which gives an overview of the challenges facing clean energy commercialization and outlines proposals that may allow green technologies and entrepreneurs to better compete with their fossil fuel-based brethren.

An Eco-Literate Conversation With Richard Heinberg

December 13th, 2011

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This week on Sea Change Radio, host Alex Wise talks with Richard Heinberg, author and senior fellow at the Post Carbon Institute who’s written extensively on energy, economic, and ecological issues. The last time he was a guest on this program, he described some of the fundamental problems surrounding our carbon-based economy outlined in his book, The End of Growth.  This week we welcome Mr. Heinberg back to the show as we discuss his latest article published in Energy Bulletin titled, What We Are For. In the next half hour, listen as Richard Heinberg gives us his thoughts on how to promote eco-literacy, why empowering women is good for the planet, and what environmentalists can learn from the Occupy Movement.

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