http://www.cchange.net Covering the transformations to social, environment and economic sustainability Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:08:33 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Sea Change Radio covers the transformations to social, environmental, and economic sustainability. Change is accelerating in positive and negative directions: the clock is ticking in the race to see which will tip first—the problems or the solutions. Join Sea Change's Host, Alex Wise, as he provides in-depth analysis to help our audience understand possible remedies and potential pitfalls. Sea Change interviews sustainability experts including Paul Hawken, Stewart Brand, Bill McKibben, Van Jones, Lester Brown, and many others. Sea Change airs on over 30 radio stations around the country. Alex Wise clean Alex Wise awise@cchange.net awise@cchange.net (Alex Wise) 2007-2011 Making Connections for Sustainability Sustainability, Climate Change, Human Rights, Environment, Corporate Responsibility, Socially Responsible Investing, Accountability, Stakeholders, Clean Tech, Renewable Energy, Green Jobs, Wealth Divide http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/cwr-images-archive/SeaChangeRadioTAG_square144_sm.jpg http://www.cchange.net Weekly http://www.cchange.net/2011/12/20/the-peaks-valleys-of-clean-energy-innovation/ http://www.cchange.net/2011/12/20/the-peaks-valleys-of-clean-energy-innovation/#comments Wed, 21 Dec 2011 02:51:34 +0000 Alex Wise http://www.cchange.net/?p=4033 http://www.cchange.net/2011/12/20/the-peaks-valleys-of-clean-energy-innovation/feed/ 0 alex wise,breakthrough Institute,Bridging the Clean Energy Valleys of Death,Clean energy,jesse jenkins,sea change radio,solyndra Jesse Jenkins of the Breakthrough Institute and host Alex Wise discuss Jenkins' recent white paper titled "Bridging the Clean Energy Valleys of Death" (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Jesse-Jenkins2.jpg)(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Bridging_the_Valleys_Of_Death_Cover-thumb-250x321-237x300.jpg)The bankruptcy of solar startup, Solyndra (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/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 (http://thebreakthrough.org/staff.shtml), the Director of Energy and Climate Policy at the Breakthrough Institute (http://thebreakthrough.org), a leading progressive public policy think tank. Jenkins and host Alex Wise (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Wise) discuss his white paper titled "Bridging the Clean Energy Valleys of Death (http://thebreakthrough.org/blog/2011/11/bridging_the_clean_energy_vall.shtml)" 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. Alex Wise clean http://www.cchange.net/2011/02/01/rep-jerry-mcnerney-ca-11-ted-reiff-of-the-reuse-people/ http://www.cchange.net/2011/02/01/rep-jerry-mcnerney-ca-11-ted-reiff-of-the-reuse-people/#comments Wed, 02 Feb 2011 07:26:25 +0000 Alex Wise http://www.cchange.net/?p=3151 http://www.cchange.net/2011/02/01/rep-jerry-mcnerney-ca-11-ted-reiff-of-the-reuse-people/feed/ 1 alex wise,Clean energy,deconstruction,jerry mcnerney,non profit organization,non-profit,Reuse,reuse people,sea change radio,sustainable building,ted reiff,wind This week on Sea Change Radio, we speak with Rep. Jerry McNerney of California’s 11th District, a former wind energy engineer who is helping build bridges to an America powered by clean energy. Then we hear from Ted Reiff, whose non-profit organization, (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/jerry-mcnerney-150x150.jpg)(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Ted-Reiff-150x150.png)This week on Sea Change Radio, host Alex Wise (http://www.cchange.net/about/alex-wise/) speaks with Rep. Jerry McNerney (http://www.jerrymcnerney.org/) of California’s 11th District, a former wind energy engineer who is helping build bridges to an America powered by clean energy. Then we hear from Ted Reiff (http://thereusepeople.org/AboutTRP), whose non-profit organization, The ReUse People (http://thereusepeople.org/), is a pioneer in the deconstruction industry, enabling cast-off materials to be reused in building projects around the country. Today on Sea Change Radio, building a sustainability infrastructure and creating a vision for sustainable building. Alex Wise clean http://www.cchange.net/2010/05/26/keeping-pac/ http://www.cchange.net/2010/05/26/keeping-pac/#comments Wed, 26 May 2010 06:10:11 +0000 Alex Wise http://www.cchange.net/?p=2518 http://www.cchange.net/2010/05/26/keeping-pac/feed/ 2 cisco devries,Clean energy,francisco devries,Green Jobs,local governments,matt golden,PACE,pace program,property assessed clean energy program,recurve.com,Renewable,steve malloy This week on Sea Change Radio, we take an in-depth look at the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program. PACE is an innovative financing model that helps local governments create green jobs, dramatically reduce carbon emissions and save property o... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/cisco-devries-e1274853008535-150x150.jpg)This week on Sea Change Radio, we take an in-depth look at the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program. PACE (http://www.pacenow.org/) is an innovative financing model that helps local governments create green jobs, dramatically reduce carbon emissions and save property owners money on their utility bills. We speak with President of Renewable Funding (http://www.renewfund.com/), Cisco Devries (http://www.renewfund.com/about-us/management#Francisco%20DeVries), the founder of the PACE program. We also get additional perspectives into the PACE program from two green energy entrepreneurs whose businesses have benefited greatly from California's adoption of PACE, Steve Malloy (http://www.youtilbill.com/Leadership.html) of YoUtilBill (http://www.youtilbill.com/) and Matt Golden (http://www.recurve.com/about/matt-golden/) of Recurve (http://www.recurve.com/). Alex Wise clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/09/09/a-summer-of-sea-change-radio/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/09/09/a-summer-of-sea-change-radio/#comments Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:42:47 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=1928 http://www.cchange.net/2009/09/09/a-summer-of-sea-change-radio/feed/ 0 http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/21/viewpoint-francesca-rheannon-modest-proposal/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/21/viewpoint-francesca-rheannon-modest-proposal/#comments Wed, 21 Jan 2009 22:24:04 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=429 http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/21/viewpoint-francesca-rheannon-modest-proposal/feed/ 1 Alternative Economic Models,bob pollin,Clean energy,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,Green Living,Obama,Sustainable Innovation,Sustainable Public Policy Sea Change Co-Host Francesca Rheannon has a modest proposal for building demand for energy efficiency: a Home Energy Savings Equal Opportunity Program. - The home energy audit guy came the other day. You know, (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/francescarheannon.jpg)Sea Change Co-Host Francesca Rheannon has a modest proposal for building demand for energy efficiency: a Home Energy Savings Equal Opportunity Program. The home energy audit guy came the other day. You know, the deal where your local utility pays an energy expert to come and tell you where all that cold air is seeping into your house? Here in Massachusetts, it’s called “Mass-Save ( http://www.masssave.com/)”. Well, it didn’t help me save a whole mass of energy. The first time I was the beneficiary of the program, back in the 1980’s, the Mass Save guy was like Santa Claus. From his pack, he brought out a voucher for some rolls of fiber glass insulation for my leaky attic, a door sweeper, and a whole mess of other goodies to make my house tighter. When I moved to my current apartment in 2002, the energy audit guy gifted me with enough florescent lightbulbs to replace all my incandescents and another couple of rolls of insulation for the attic. This time, all I got was a refrigerator brush and a few packets of foam inserts for outlets--barely enough for one room, let alone my entire, tiny apartment. Oh yes, I managed to wheedle out of him some spare strips of door insulation, enough to seal one of my two outside doors. And it’s not as if I didn’t get much because my house is all that tight. The audit guy suggested improvements that would cost me a couple of hundred dollars--as a renter. OK, folks, this is pathetic. It’s widely understood that home weatherization is a major low-hanging fruit (http://finance.senate.gov/hearings/testimony/2007test/022707drtest.pdf) for cutting carbon emissions. It benefits consumers, utility companies, and the planet. At a time when many Americans are having to choose between heating and eating, weatherizing homes would be a quick way to provide some meaningful economic stimulus that would benefit the entire economy. It would boost consumer spending with those dollars spared from home fuel costs — and provide jobs. The problem is the up-front costs. If you can barely pay your monthly heating bill, you can’t pay for serious weatherization of your home. Especially since those who have less usually have older, much less efficient houses. Energy efficient replacement windows, high R-value wall and attic insulation, efficient furnaces--these cost thousands. Even replacing incandescent light bulbs and plastic sheeting on windows is beyond the budget of many. And it isn’t just the poor. Plenty of middle class people are being squeezed. After the mortgage payment, the health insurance premium and the college tuition, there isn’t much left in the kitty for home weatherization. Currently, the federal government has plans to weatherize only 140,000 homes (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/30/us/30weatherize.html?_r=1)--a drop in the bucket. President Obama has said he’ll raise that to 1 million. That’s nice, but it’s still nowhere near enough to make a real dent in carbon emissions. Congress has added $250 million to the current budget for weatherization. That’s million with an “m”–not anything like the hundreds of billions taxpayers have poured into the pockets of the banks this year. And those billions ended up not as loans to businesses and consumers, but as dividends and executive bonuses (http://endthebailouts.com/2008/11/07/86-of-bailout-money-used-for-executive-bonuses/). So here’s my modest proposal for a real fiscal stimulus. It would work something like the earned income credit–starting high at the lower end of the income spectrum and phasing out the higher you went. It could cap, say, at 300% of the poverty level ($62,000 for a family of four). At that level of annual income, the program would include about half of all Americans. It wouldn’t take all that much, per household. As economist (and Sea Change guest) Bob Pollin reports in “Green Recovery Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/08/envisioning-the-future-of-sustainability/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/08/envisioning-the-future-of-sustainability/#comments Wed, 08 Oct 2008 17:44:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/08/envisioning-the-future-of-sustainability/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/08/envisioning-the-future-of-sustainability/feed/ 0 Clean energy,darfur,EPA,glen hiemstra,starbucks,Sustainable Business It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future. Yogi Berra said that. He also said, the future ain't what it used to be. For Glen Hiemstra, the future holds the key to current planning. The founder of the website futurist.com, (http://www.futurist.com/wordpress/wp-content/themes/Futurist.com%20Wordpress/images/glenshirt_face.gif) It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future. Yogi Berra said that. He also said, the future ain't what it used to be. For Glen Hiemstra, the future holds the key to current planning. The founder of the website futurist.com, Hiemstra consults for businesses and governments on how to take the long view on trends. In his book, Turning the Future into Revenue, he argues that the planning horizon should stretch out for several decades in order to meet the sustainability challenges we face right now. Glen Hiemstra (http://www.futurist.com/glenhiemstrabio/) (http://www.turningthefutureintorevenue.com/wordpress/wp-content/themes/FutureIntoRevenue/images/bookcover.gif) CWR Headlines: --Google Unveils Clean Energy Plan (http://seekingalpha.com/article/98167-google-outlines-clean-energy-plan?source=email) --Starbucks Accused of Wasting Water (http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article1771553.ece), Explores Alternatives (http://www.businessgreen.com/business-green/news/2227719/starbucks-looks-turn-taps) --Palin Stretches the Truth on Darfur Divestment (http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/2008/10/palin_twists_the_facts_on_darf.html) Bill Baue clean 28:40 http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/27/political-will-required-to-build-a-green-economy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/27/political-will-required-to-build-a-green-economy/#comments Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:17:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/27/political-will-required-to-build-a-green-economy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/27/political-will-required-to-build-a-green-economy/feed/ 0 Clean energy,global warming,green economy,Green Jobs,greenbiz,Obama,political economy research institute The Democratic party has shied away from linking clean energy, the economy, and the environment since Jimmy Carter's 1977 Energy Policy. But the political winds are changing. At Tuesday evening's Democratic National Convention, (http://solartoday.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/hendricks.jpg?w=150&h=233) The Democratic party has shied away from linking clean energy, the economy, and the environment since Jimmy Carter's 1977 Energy Policy. But the political winds are changing. At Tuesday evening's Democratic National Convention, almost all of the speakers hit on the theme of green collar jobs. Nancy Floyd of Nth Power noted that there are 2.4 million green collar jobs worldwide -- but less than 10 percent are in US. Presumptive Democrat candidate Barack Obama's platform calls for more than doubling that number to 5 million green collar jobs in the US alone. And he's framing it as a win-win-win to get us off foreign oil, stop global warming, and create tons of green jobs in the US. This week, we feature the second part of our conversation with Bracken Hendricks, co-author with Congressman Jay Inslee of Apollo's Fire, and co-founder of the Apollo Alliance. The discussion focuses on the political will required to build a green economy. Bracken Hendricks (http://www.americanprogress.org/experts/HendricksBracken.html) (http://www.apollosfire.net/sites/all/themes/apollosfirev2/images/apollos-fire-cover.png) Apollo Alliance (http://www.apolloalliance.org/) Barack Obama's New Energy Platform (http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/newenergy) DNC speech by Nancy Floyd of Nth Power (http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/2008-democratic-national-convention-remarks,518266.shtml) Jimmy Carter's 1977 Energy Policy (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/carter/filmmore/ps_energy.html) Green Jobs: Towards Sustainable Work in a Low-Carbon World report by the Worldwatch Institute as part of the UNEP- ILO- ITUC Green Jobs Initiative (http://www.unep.org/labour_environment/features/greenjobs.asp) Job Opportunities for the Green Economy report from the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst (http://www.peri.umass.edu/). CWR Headlines: --Joe Biden's Got Environmental Creds (http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/8/23/0831/12658) --Google.org Pumps Money into Geothermal Energy (http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=google-invests-in-geothermal) --Buffett and Gates Visit Tar Sands (http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/24/gates-and-buffet-to-invest-in-tar-sands-and-spawn-more-two-headed-fish/) (http://www.greenbiz.com/files/imagecache/original/conrad-mackerron.jpg) CWR ViewPoint:  read (http://vcr.csrwire.com/node/10170) Conrad MacKerron (http://www.greenbiz.com/users/Conrad-MacKerron) of the As You Sow Foundation (http://www.asyousow.org/) comments on the labor and human rights implications of greening the supply chain. Prius Envy and the Greening of Wal-Mart: A Blind Spot for the Human Cost (http://www.greenbiz.com/column/2008/06/30/prius-envy-and-greening-wal-mart) Bill Baue clean 29:34 http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/20/green-collar-jobs-build-the-clean-energy-economy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/20/green-collar-jobs-build-the-clean-energy-economy/#comments Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:50:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/20/green-collar-jobs-build-the-clean-energy-economy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/08/20/green-collar-jobs-build-the-clean-energy-economy/feed/ 0 clean coal,Clean energy,Clean Energy economy,Climate Change,economic recession,energy economy,green economy Climate change, racial discrimination, and economic recession may seem impossible to solve. But building a green economy could do the trick. The beauty of the green economy is that it could tackle all these problems at the same time. (http://www.americanprogress.org/experts/HendricksBracken.html/repository/capportrait/item676453394) Climate change, racial discrimination, and economic recession may seem impossible to solve. But building a green economy could do the trick. The beauty of the green economy is that it could tackle all these problems at the same time. But only if labor is a driving force behind it. And that's beginning to happen. Green collar jobs build a clean energy infrastructure. They're hard to outsource because most of the work, like weatherizing homes, happens on-site. Advocates are working to make the green workforce more racially inclusive. And incomes could rise as demand grows for workers left out of the oil-based economy. Today we speak with 2 of the most prominent advocates for green collar jobs and the green economy. Today, we speak with Bracken Hendricks, author of Apollo's Fire: Igniting America's Clean Energy Economy. and co-founder of the Apollo Alliance, a coalition of business, labor, environmental, and community leaders working to catalyze a green economy. We also hear from Van Jones, founder of Green For All, an initiative seeking to lift 250,000 people out of poverty through green-collar jobs. Bracken Hendricks (http://www.americanprogress.org/experts/HendricksBracken.html) (http://www.apollosfire.net/sites/all/themes/apollosfirev2/images/apollos-fire-cover.png) Apollo Alliance (http://www.apolloalliance.org/) (http://www.americanprogress.org/experts/JonesVan.html/repository/capportrait/item897103057) Van Jones (http://www.ellabakercenter.org/page.php?pageid=45#van) CWR Headlines: --Burying Carbon from "Clean Coal" Increases Pollution (http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/35181/title/Carbon_sequestration_frustration) -- But a New Process Can Turn Carbon Emissions Into Toothpaste (http://www.enn.com/sci-tech/article/37619) Bill Baue clean 29:50 http://www.cchange.net/2008/03/13/planning-for-the-convergence-of-peak-oil-and-climate-change/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/03/13/planning-for-the-convergence-of-peak-oil-and-climate-change/#comments Thu, 13 Mar 2008 17:53:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/03/13/post-carbon-cities-planning-for-the-convergence-of-peak-oil-and-climate-change/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/03/13/planning-for-the-convergence-of-peak-oil-and-climate-change/feed/ 0 Clean energy,Climate Change,daniel lerch,greenbiz,greenhouse gas emissions,peak oil CWR co-hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue speak with Daniel Lerch, author of Post Carbon Cities: Planning for Energy and Climate Uncertainty and manager of the Post Carbon Cities project of the Post Carbon Institute. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/Daniel-Lerch-150x150.jpg)CWR co-hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue speak with Daniel Lerch, author of Post Carbon Cities: Planning for Energy and Climate Uncertainty and manager of the Post Carbon Cities project of the Post Carbon Institute. Lerch discusses the overlap as well as the distinctions between peak oil and climate change. He also responds to the question of how the policy void at the federal government level in the US is driving action at the municipal and state level to address climate change and peak oil. The show also features CWR's new headlines segment: --Nanotech is Exposed in Grocery Store Aisles; --The Vatican says greenhouse gas emissions and genetically modified organisms are "Modern Sins"; --A new study says the Clean Energy Market will Hit $254 Billion by 2017. Post Carbon Cities: Planning for Energy and Climate Uncertainty Post Carbon Institute (http://www.postcarbon.org/) CWR HEADLINES Listen to the headlines (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/CWR-Headlines-2008-03-12.mp3) March 11, 2008 Friends of the Earth news: "Nanotech Exposed in Grocery Store Aisles" (http://action.foe.org/pressRelease.jsp?press_release_KEY=343) March 10, 2008 Reuters article: Vatican lists "new sins," including pollution March 11, 2008 GreenBiz headline: "Clean Energy Market to Hit $254 Billion by 2017, Says Study" March 11, 2008 Clean Edge report: Clean-Energy Trends 2008 Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2007/12/26/the-clean-tech-revolution/ http://www.cchange.net/2007/12/26/the-clean-tech-revolution/#comments Wed, 26 Dec 2007 21:53:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2007/12/26/the-clean-tech-revolution/ http://www.cchange.net/2007/12/26/the-clean-tech-revolution/feed/ 0 clean coal,Clean energy,Climate Change,Clint Wilder,energy index,exchange traded fund,Ron Pernick In part one of this two-part interview, Corporate Watchdog Radio co-hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue speak with Ron Pernick and Clint Wilder, co-authors of the new book, The Clean Tech Revolution: The Next Big Growth and Investment Opportunity. In part one of this two-part interview, Corporate Watchdog Radio co-hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue speak with Ron Pernick and Clint Wilder, co-authors of the new book, The Clean Tech Revolution: The Next Big Growth and Investment Opportunity. Pernick and Wilder, who helped define the clean tech industry in their work with the research and publishing firm Clean Edge, discuss how clean tech includes clean energy sources such as solar and wind but not so-called "clean" coal or nuclear, despite the fact that some environmentalists claim nukes can help solve climate change. Pernick and Wilder also explain the six Cs, or the major forces they identified that are driving the clean tech revolution. This week's conversation covers fours of the Cs (costs, capital, competition, and climate), saving the final two (China and consumers) for the second half of the interview next week. The Clean Tech Revolution Clean Edge (http://www.cleanedge.com/) SocialFunds.com book review of The Clean Tech Revolution by Francesca Rheannon SocialFunds.com article by Bill Baue on the NASDAQ Clean Edge US Index: "Another Clean Energy Exchange Traded Fund to Launch" (http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/2182.html) SocialFunds.com article by Bill Baue on the NASDAQ Clean Edge US Index: "Another Clean Energy Index Launches to Capitalize on Transition from Dependence on Fossil Fuels" (http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/article2001.html) Bill Baue clean 28:00