http://www.cchange.net Covering the transformations to social, environment and economic sustainability Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:26:44 +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/2010/12/14/electricity-that-sucks/ http://www.cchange.net/2010/12/14/electricity-that-sucks/#comments Tue, 14 Dec 2010 19:08:11 +0000 Alex Wise http://www.cchange.net/?p=3045 http://www.cchange.net/2010/12/14/electricity-that-sucks/feed/ 0 alan meier,alex wise,electricity consumption,energy consumption,energy star program,EPA,lawrence berkeley national laboratory,maria vargas,sea change radio,standby mode,standby power,uc davis This week on Sea Change Radio we talk with Maria Vargas of the Energy Star program and Alan Meier, senior scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a faculty member at UC Davis and the foremost authority on standby power. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Alan-Meier-e1292352005774-115x150.jpg)Vampire power refers to the electricity electronic appliances and devices waste just by being plugged in, even when they're switched off. Did you know that when you point your remote control at the TV to turn it off for the night, that appliance isn’t really off? In the middle of the night, at the witching hour, your TV, in standby mode, continues to suck power, like a sinister vampire draining electricity off the grid while you sleep blithely unaware.(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Maria-Vargas-e1292352187986.jpg) This purely wasteful electricity consumption is said to amount to around 10% of residential use for the average American household. The good news is that the solution is very straightforward. By utilizing technological innovations that already exist, and changing some simple everyday habits, we can put a stake in the heart of this problem. This week on Sea Change Radio we talk with Maria Vargas who explains how the federal government’s Energy Star (http://www.energystar.gov/)program is trying to raise awareness and promote more responsible energy consumption, and with Alan Meier (http://eetd.lbl.gov/ea/akmeier//), senior scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a faculty member at UC Davis and one of the foremost authorities on standby power. While this broadcast focuses more on the progress being made by the Energy Star program, critics (http://www.builderonline.com/energy-star/feds-move-to-strengthen-energy-star-as-program-comes-under-fire.aspx) assert that the program's binary "yes" or "no" system is less helpful to consumers than graded scale systems like in Europe - and also that the program certifies too many products (http://www.builderonline.com/energy-star/energy-star-in-harsh-media-spotlight.aspx). Alex Wise clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/06/24/forecasting-climate-change/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/06/24/forecasting-climate-change/#comments Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:37:24 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=1315 http://www.cchange.net/2009/06/24/forecasting-climate-change/feed/ 1 Climate Change,EPA,global warming,greenhouse gas emissions,Matt Madia,OMB Watch,Stephan Faris,sudan,Waxman-Markey Climate Bill What does our future on this warming globe hold?  We explore this question today with Stephan Faris, who talks about his new book, .  And Matt Madia of OMBWatch tells us about a provision in the Waxman-Markey climate bill that would strip the EPA of it... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/StephanFaris-150x150.jpg)(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/MattMadia-150x150.jpg)What does our future on this warming globe hold?  We explore this question today with Stephan Faris (http://www.stephanfaris.com/), who talks about his new book, (http://us.macmillan.com/forecast).  And Matt Madia (http://www.ombwatch.org/node/2789) of OMBWatch (http://www.ombwatch.org/) tells us about a provision in the Waxman-Markey climate bill (http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-2454) that would strip the EPA of its authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act. Journalist Stephan Faris has traveled around the globe to cover global warming.  He’s compiled his experiences in the new book, FORECAST: The Consequences of Climate Change, from the Amazon to the Arctic, from Darfur to Napa Valley. He spoke with Sea Change Radio Co-Host Francesca Rheannon recently in a wide-ranging discussion about the intersections between global warming and geopolitics. The conversation started on the hot-button issue of Darfur.  Contrary to the conventional wisdom that ethnic tensions between Arab Janjaweed (http://www.slate.com/id/2104210/) nomadic herders and African farmers are driving the genocide, Faris traces the origins of the conflict to global warming. Research shows that drought in the Sudan in the 1980s was caused by climate change, and this extended dry spell fueled the conflict between herders and farmers. Faris also talks about how global warming is transforming the insurance industry, which acts as a barometer of the financial impacts of climate change – not only in rising property insurance for seaside properties, but also in rising health and life insurance rates.  Immigration is another area impacted by climate change, as populations migrate in response to rising sea levels and drought, for example.  Click here (http://www.cchange.net/2009/06/24/stephan-faris-complete-interview/) to listen to a complete version of the 40-minute interview. In the second segment, we look at climate legislation.  In 2007, the Supreme Court issued an opinion (http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/06pdf/05-1120.pdf) in Massachusetts v EPA (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_v._Environmental_Protection_Agency) authorizing EPA to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the Clean Air Act. But a little-known provision in the proposed American Clean Energy and Security Act (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d111:h.r.02454:) (ACES, otherwise known as the Waxman-Markey climate bill) would strip the EPA of this power. We first heard about the provision, section 311 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c111:2:./temp/~c111ww2C7z:e662391:), when we talked with Greenpeace about their objections to Waxman-Markey. So we decided to learn more about it by asking someone whose job it is to delve deep into the details of federal regulations. We found Matt Madia (http://www.ombwatch.org/node/2789) of OMBWatch (http://www.ombwatch.org/). He’s a federal regulatory policy analyst with the organization, and he's written (http://www.ombwatch.org/node/9833) about the dangers of Waxman-Markey stripping EPA's authority to regulate GHG emissions. Bill Baue clean 28:35 http://www.cchange.net/2009/02/18/making-the-case-for-a-green-stimulus/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/02/18/making-the-case-for-a-green-stimulus/#comments Wed, 18 Feb 2009 22:15:23 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=566 http://www.cchange.net/2009/02/18/making-the-case-for-a-green-stimulus/feed/ 0 Clean Tech,Climate Change,EPA,global warming,Green Building,Green Jobs,Green Living,nicholas stern,Renewable Energy,stimulus,Sustainable Agriculture,Sustainable Innovation Alex Bowen, a Principal Research Fellow at The Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment of the London School of Economics, discusses An Outline of the Case for a ‘Green’ Stimulus, a report he co-authored with Lord Nicholas Stern, (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/alexbowen.jpg)(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/greenstimulus.jpg)Alex Bowen, a Principal Research Fellow at The Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment (http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/granthamInstitute/Default.htm) of the London School of Economics, discusses An Outline of the Case for a ‘Green’ Stimulus (http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/granthamInstitute/publications/An%20outline%20of%20the%20case%20for%20a%20'green'%20stimulus.pdf), a report he co-authored with Lord Nicholas Stern, the man behind the 2006 Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change (http://www.occ.gov.uk/activities/stern.htm).   And in the ViewPoint, Donald Bartlett of the investigative journalism team Bartlett and Steele (http://barlettandsteele.com/index.php) advances the idea of a Federal Reserve for health care (http://barlettandsteele.com/blog/?p=10). President Obama signed a $787 billion dollar stimulus package into law this week --and many say it's good news for the green industry (http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/17/obama-signs-stimulus-packed-with-clean-energy-provisions/). Obama declared it would "double the amount of renewable energy produced over the next three years" and help transform the way we use energy. That's all to the good. But is it enough? Forty percent of the package is in the form of tax cuts, which most economists think are much worse at stimulating economic activity than spending (http://www.forbes.com/feeds/afx/2009/02/06/afx6019551.html). Mass transit supporters were discouraged by the small portion given over to light rail. (Although there was a last minute infusion for high speed rail (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0209/18924.html).) Throwing a lot of money at roads and bridges instead of public transportation doesn't exactly help the climate. We've talked a lot on this show about how going green is good for the economy, too. But when the economy is in free fall, many argue the priority is a stimulus that is "timely and targeted"-- and that means getting the political will behind quick passage with the sweetener of tax cuts and funds for "shovel ready" projects like repairing roads and bridges. But a new report says we can get the stimulus right and green. "An outline of the case for a 'green' stimulus" is jointly out from the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment and the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (http://www.cccep.ac.uk/Default.htm). They're both connected to the London School of Economics. Sea Change Radio Co-Host Francesca Rheannon spoke with the report's lead author, Alex Bowen. Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/28/after-capitalism-prout-as-a-sustainable-democratic-economic-model/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/28/after-capitalism-prout-as-a-sustainable-democratic-economic-model/#comments Wed, 28 Jan 2009 23:14:18 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=470 http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/28/after-capitalism-prout-as-a-sustainable-democratic-economic-model/feed/ 0 Alternative Economic Models,Clean Tech,Climate Change,climate policy,Climate Progress,Community Economic Engagement,corporate governance,corporate social responsibility,EPA,greenhouse gas emissions,joe romm,Lisa Woll Today, Dada Maheshvarananda meditates on the alternative economic model of Progressive Utilization Theory, or PROUT. Joe Romm of Climate Progress analyzes the climate resolve of the Obama Administration. Lisa Woll of the Social Investment Forum propose... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/dadamaheshvarananda-150x150.jpg) Today, Dada Maheshvarananda meditates on the alternative economic model of Progressive Utilization Theory (http://www.prout.org/), or PROUT. Joe Romm of Climate Progress (http://climateprogress.org/) analyzes the climate resolve of the Obama Administration. Lisa Woll of the Social Investment Forum (http://www.socialinvest.org/) proposes (http://www.socialinvest.org/documents/ObamaAdministrationFINAL1.14.pdf) an Office for Innovation in Corporate Social Responsibility to the Obama Administration.  And auto and environment expert Jim Motavalli (http://www.jimmotavalli.com/index.html) comments on the significance of President Obama's executive order (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090126/ap_on_go_pr_wh/obama_greenhouse_gases) directing the EPA to reconsider its refusal to grant California a waiver allowing it to regulate greenhouse gases from autos. Capitalism, in the highly deregulated form currently practiced, is showing signs of collapse.  What happens After Capitalism?  Dada Maheshvarananda meditates on this very , which outlines the alternative economic model of Progressive Utilization Theory, or PROUT.  Maheshvarananda directs the PROUT Institute of Venezuela (http://www.priven.org/).  Last Thanksgiving, he visited our studios, soon after he had published a commentary (http://vcr.csrwire.com/node/11848) entitled "The Human Cost of Economic Meltdown and Its Alternative." Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/28/viewpoint-jim-motavalli-on-cars-and-carbon/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/28/viewpoint-jim-motavalli-on-cars-and-carbon/#comments Wed, 28 Jan 2009 23:13:46 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=459 http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/28/viewpoint-jim-motavalli-on-cars-and-carbon/feed/ 0 alliance of automobile manufacturers,Clean Tech,Climate Change,dave mccurdy,environmental protection agency,EPA,global warming,greenhouse gas emissions,lisa jackson,new york times,Renewable Energy,Sustainable Innovation Jim Motavalli blogs on green matters for The Daily Green and Mother Nature Network and he blogs about cars in the New York Times “Automobiles” section.  He was also a long-time editor for E--the Environmental Magazine, Jim Motavalli blogs on green matters for The Daily Green (http://www.thedailygreen.com/archives/living-green/blogs/cars-transportation/by_author/5413/15;1) and Mother Nature Network (http://www.mnn.com/featured-blogs/jmotavalli) and he blogs about cars in the New York Times (http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/author/jmotavalli/) “Automobiles” section (http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/author/jmotavalli/).  He was also a long-time editor for E--the Environmental Magazine (http://www.emagazine.com/), where he continues as a contributing writer. Motavalli combines his passion for autos and environment in his book, . He thinks its time for the auto industry to wake up and smell the coffee. In his Sea Change ViewPoint commentary, he discusses the significance of President Barack Obama's executive order (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090126/ap_on_go_pr_wh/obama_greenhouse_gases) directing the Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider its refusal to grant California a waiver allowing it to regulate greenhouse gases from cars and trucks. When old-time foresters cut down trees and rolled them down rivers to be processed at the local sawmill, they used to break up masses of logs that had gotten hung up on obstacles or the shoreline. That's where the popular phrase "logjam" comes from. President Barack Obama broke up one such logjam last week. He signed an executive order directing the Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider its refusal to grant California a waiver allowing it to regulate greenhouse gases from cars and trucks. The order doesn't automatically grant California's waiver. Instead, it starts a formal review period, with public comment, that could take several months. But with EPA head Lisa Jackson on record favoring the waiver, its approval seems a foregone conclusion. Environmental activists have hailed it as "the biggest single step we can take to curbing global warming." Automakers sounded positive about Obama's actions--at least in their public statements. General Motors' Greg Martin said the company is "ready to engage the Obama administration and the Congress." And Dave McCurdy of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers said his group "supports a nationwide program that bridges state and federal concerns." But the carmakers complain that if California gets its way, it will be one of three state and federal agencies that have a piece of fuel economy and greenhouse gas regulation. (The others are the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the EPA.) They favor a single federal standard. And they would probably want that standard to be weaker. They're not likely to get it. If a federal standard is enacted by the EPA, it could be just as strong--or even stronger--than the California law the carmakers have already filed several suits to stop. (The industry hasn't dropped its lawsuits, despite repeated rebuffs in court.) The auto industry hates regulation, especially the kind of fuel-economy mandates that were also part of Obama's announcement. It repeatedly argues that it builds the cars people want, and for the last 20 years that's meant gas-guzzling SUVs and trucks. But the public's tastes are changing, and that's left Detroit unprepared and losing market share. The industry is finally recognizing the problem: the recent Detroit Auto Show was a showcase for green cars. Chrysler said it would build several battery-based EVs, and it's announced an alliance with Fiat to produce fleets of fuel-efficient vehicles. Ford is building a battery car based on the Focus, a battery van, and a plug-in hybrid. GM is about to roll out the Chevrolet Volt, a unique car with a small gas engine that will supply power to electric motors instead of driving the wheels. Even though gas prices have fallen (and SUV sales are edging up), consumers are still concerned about fuel economy. And they expect energy prices to spike long term. The green-minded Barack Obama is in office for the next four years, Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/07/the-transition-to-sustainability/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/07/the-transition-to-sustainability/#comments Wed, 07 Jan 2009 22:06:16 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=287 http://www.cchange.net/2009/01/07/the-transition-to-sustainability/feed/ 0 Charlie Cray,Clean Tech,Climate Change,climate policy,EPA,Green Jobs,hunter lovins,Obama,paul hawken,Renewable Energy,sustainability movement,Sustainable Business Today we talk with Hunter Lovins, founder of Natural Capitalism Solutions, about the Presidential Climate Action Project.  The Sea Change ViewPoint comes from Charlie Cray of the Center for Corporate Policy. - For many people, Today we talk with Hunter Lovins, founder of Natural Capitalism Solutions, about the Presidential Climate Action Project.  The Sea Change ViewPoint comes from Charlie Cray of the Center for Corporate Policy. For many people, the election of Barack Obama as the US President stoked hope for big change.  The transition to the Obama Administration brings promise of shifts to government regulations and policies to promote sustainability.  Long before the election, though, a group of influential sustainability leaders gathered to brainstorm recommendations to the incoming President on tackling climate change.  The Presidential Climate Action Project was born, midwived by the University of Colorado School of Public Affairs in Denver.  The P-CAP Advisory Committee hashed out a plan with over a hundred recommendations for the incoming President on climate policy. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/new_pcap_cover.jpg)Advisory Committee member Hunter Lovins also authored a separate report for P-CAP to map a broader survey of the current sustainability landscape.  Lovins helped pioneer the sustainability movement by co-founding Rocky Mountain Institute in the 80s with Amory Lovins. They also co-authored Natural Capitalism in the late 90s Paul Hawken.  Earlier this decade, she founded Natural Capitalism Solutions.  We caught up with Lovins between commitments in California, where she teaches at the Presidio School of Management.  It's one of a handful of new MBA programs with sustainability embedded in its DNA. The Economic Case for Climate Action (http://www.natcapsolutions.org/publications_files/PCAP/PCAP_EonomicCaseForClimateProtection_04xii07.pdf) by Hunter Lovins Natural Capitalism Solutions (http://www.natcapsolutions.org/) Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2008/12/03/the-end-of-food/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/12/03/the-end-of-food/#comments Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:25:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/12/03/the-end-of-food/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/12/03/the-end-of-food/feed/ 1 cap and trade,Climate Change,earthrights international,EPA,marc gunther,paul roberts,union carbide corp The 18th century British author Jonathan Swift wrote that under the enclosure movement in Britain, "sheep eat men". That's because large landowners threw thousands of tenant farmers off their land to make way for raising sheep on an industrialized scale, The 18th century British author Jonathan Swift wrote that under the enclosure movement in Britain, "sheep eat men". That's because large landowners threw thousands of tenant farmers off their land to make way for raising sheep on an industrialized scale, in order to feed the textile mills of the new industrial age. Something of the same could be said of our current system of producing food. It was supposed to solve the problem of hunger in the world. The so-called "green revolution", with its massive use of herbicides and pesticides, did usher in the era of cheap, abundant food. But Paul Roberts says that era is coming to an end. In his book, , Roberts says the technologies meant to end hunger don't fit the conditions in the very countries they were supposed to feed. Small farmers are squeezed off the land, their families go hungry, and suicide sweeps their ranks. Rich countries are vulnerable, too. In a globalized food system, plant diseases could wipe out major food crops like wheat, fish stocks are crashing, and antibiotic resistance threatens both our meat animals--and ourselves. Roberts says the global industrialized food system is overextended, under threat of disruptions and unsustainable. CWR News Analysis -- The 24th Anniversary of Bhopal: --International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (http://www.bhopal.net/) --EarthRights International: Bano v. Union Carbide Case History --Press Release: "Victory Against Union Carbide Corp.: Court Reverses Dismissal of Pollution Claims" (http://www.bhopal.net/courtcases/archives/2008/11/victory_against.html) --Second Circuit Appeals Court Decision in Bano v. Union Carbide --Press Release: "Chevron Found Not Liable for Killings, Shootings, and Torture of Nigerian Peaceful Protesters" (http://www.earthrights.org/content/view/590/114/) --FindLaw: "Chevron Wins an Alien Tort Statute Case - But the Victory May Be Less Important than It Might Seem" (http://writ.news.findlaw.com/sebok/20081202.html) CWR ViewPoint -- Are NGOs and Corporations Too Cozy? On Monday, the Washington DC offices of the NGO Environmental Defense were "invaded" by grassroots climate activists from Rising Tide North America (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601130&sid=aMP4JEpi2kxw). Dr. Rachel Smolker, daughter of a co-founder of Environmental Defense, protested ED's collaboration with corporations (http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=56), particularly its involvement in the US Climate Action Partnership (http://www.us-cap.org/), an alliance of NGOs and big companies that advocates for carbon cap-and-trade. The activists label this a "false" solution to the climate crisis, and lampooned the NGO with "Mr. Green" and "Mr. Wash" scrubbing the ED offices clean (http://www.risingtidenorthamerica.org/wordpress/2008/12/01/first-hand-account-of-environmental-defense-occupation/). Last month, Fortune magazine's Sustainability Columnist Marc Gunther blogged (http://www.marcgunther.com/?p=430) and wrote an article (http://money.cnn.com/2008/11/13/news/companies/corporate_green.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2008111409) on the "cozy" relationships between NGOs and corporations. For the Corporate Watchdog Radio ViewPoint, we caught up with Marc from his home office in Bethesda for his take on this issue. Bill Baue clean 29:26 http://www.cchange.net/2008/11/26/how-the-rich-are-destroying-the-earth/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/11/26/how-the-rich-are-destroying-the-earth/#comments Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:27:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/11/26/how-the-rich-are-destroying-the-earth/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/11/26/how-the-rich-are-destroying-the-earth/feed/ 1 carbon disclosure project,china,cornucopia institute,enron,EPA,greenbiz,Herve Kempf,jonathan weil,Obama,rubinomics,walmart While some view the negative impacts of economics and environment as separate, Herve Kempf sees financial inequality and environmental destruction as inextricably linked. The author of , Kempf explains how the wealthy of the world are living unsustaina... While some view the negative impacts of economics and environment as separate, Herve Kempf sees financial inequality and environmental destruction as inextricably linked. The author of , Kempf explains how the wealthy of the world are living unsustainable lifestyles, and everyone else is trashing the earth too trying to keep up with the rich Joneses. The solution? Move away from materialism and growth. CWR News Analysis -- The Greening of Wal-Mart?: Sources: --CSRwire: "Wal-Mart Celebrates Thanksgiving by Sourcing Local Food, Supporting Hunger-Relief, and Buying Wind Power" (http://www.csrwire.com/News/13837.html) --GreenBiz: "Wal-Mart's New CEO: What Does it Mean for Green?" (http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2008/11/21/wal-marts-new-ceo-what-does-it-mean-green) --The Green Wave Marches On: Wal-Mart in China (http://www.andrewwinston.com/blog/2008/11/the_green_wave_marches_on_walm.php) --Grist: "Wal-Mart Comes to the Farmers Market" (http://www.grist.org/comments/food/2008/07/11/) --Press Release: "Walmart Gives Consumers Opportunity To Support Local Economies Through Locally Grown Program" (http://www.csrwire.com/News/13827.html) --Cornucopia Institute: Wal-Mart Organics: Market Expansion or Market Delusion? --Press Release: "Wal-Mart Makes Major Commitment to Renewable Wind Power" (http://www.csrwire.com/News/13784.html) --Wal-Mart Carbon Disclosure Project Response, 2007 (http://www.cdproject.net/responses/public/WalMart_Stores_Inc_7808_Corporate_GHG_Emissions_Response_CDP6_2008.asp) --Lee Scott Message in Wal-Mart Sustainability Progress report, 2007 CWR ViewPoint: Bloomberg Columnist Jonathan Weil, the first journalist to expose Enron's cooked books in 2001, recently criticized President-Elect Barack Obama's appointments to the Transition Economic Advisory Board, pointing out that almost half hail from companies that fried their financial statements or fueled the market meltdown -- or both. CWR Co-hosts Bill Baue and Francesca Rheannon chat with Weil about his critique. "Obama's Bailout Bunch Brings Us More of the Same" (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&sid=aNCFKvAMUQ6w&refer=columnist_weil) "Rubinomics Recalculated" (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/24/us/politics/24rubin.html) Bill Baue clean 29:42 http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/29/joe-romm-compares-presidential-platforms-on-environment-and-energy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/29/joe-romm-compares-presidential-platforms-on-environment-and-energy/#comments Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:23:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/29/joe-romm-compares-presidential-platforms-on-environment-and-energy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/10/29/joe-romm-compares-presidential-platforms-on-environment-and-energy/feed/ 0 carbon dioxide,center for american progress,clean air act,Climate Change,EPA,global warming,joe romm,John McCain,Obama We reported last week that Barack Obama will regulate carbon dioxide as a pollutant under the Clean Air Act if elected. Not so for John McCain. Today writer and scientist Joseph Romm wrote on his blog Climate Progess, (http://climateprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/08/joe_140x193.jpg) We reported last week that Barack Obama will regulate carbon dioxide as a pollutant under the Clean Air Act if elected. Not so for John McCain. Today writer and scientist Joseph Romm wrote on his blog Climate Progess, that a McCain-Palin administration would use a voluntary or incentive-based approach, one that "has never worked in any country to restrain emissions growth." Today, we talk to Joe Romm about how Barack Obama and John McCain differ on their approaches to the climate crisis and alternative energy. Romm is a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, where he maintains its blog, Climate Progress. It was named one of the top 15 green websites by Time Magazine. Romm is also the author of the 2006 book Hell and High Water: Global Warming--the Solution and the Politics--and What We Should Do. He was Acting Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy during the Clinton Administration. Joe Romm (http://www.americanprogress.org/aboutus/staff/RommJoseph.html) Climate Progress blog (http://climateprogress.org/) (http://climateprogress.org/sites/climateprogress.org/wp-content/themes/cp/images/HH125.jpg) CWR Headlines: --BPA is OK -- According to a Chemical-Friendly FDA (http://www2.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=809282) --Scientists Blast FDA report on BPA Safety (http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/watchdogreports/33200554.html) --Phthalate-Laden Toys Flooding the Market (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122472242723860917.html) --The Other Debt Crisis -- How we're Overspending Our Ecological Budget (http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/press/humanitys_growing_demand_on_nature_approaching_critical_threshold_report_fi/) Bill Baue clean 29:19 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/2008/07/16/the-community-building-power-of-wind/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/16/the-community-building-power-of-wind/#comments Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:34:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/16/the-community-building-power-of-wind/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/16/the-community-building-power-of-wind/feed/ 1 clean air act,Climate Change,EPA,Renewable Energy,t boone pickens When it comes to renewable energy, wind is taking the lead--at least at this stage of technological development. But what's the best model for developing it? Should we follow the centralized utility model with big wind farms set up in a few places -- o... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/cwr-images-archive/juhl_wind.jpg) When it comes to renewable energy, wind is taking the lead--at least at this stage of technological development. But what's the best model for developing it? Should we follow the centralized utility model with big wind farms set up in a few places -- offshore Massachusetts or the state of Texas -- and then send the juice over wires to power homes and businesses far away? That's the dominant model in the US. Or should we follow the community-owned wind power model, where the people using the power have a financial stake in it, too? Maybe a healthy mix of both would be best. Today, CWR co-host Francesca Rheannon speaks with Dan Juhl of Juhl Wind Development, which is helping communities around the country develop locally owned wind power cooperatives. The company has developed about 140 megawatts -- or several hundred million dollars worth -- of community-based wind projects. Francesca met him at the Sustainable Energy Summit at the University of Massachusetts in June. And Rheannon speaks with journalist Elizabeth Kolbert. Her recent New Yorker article, "The Island in the Wind," profiles the Danish island of Samso, known internationally as the "renewable energy island" because residents get most of their power from windmills they cooperatively own. Juhl Wind Development (http://www.juhlwind.com/) Community-Based Energy Development (http://www.c-bed.org/) Dan Juhl interview transcript on SocialFunds: "It Takes a Village to Raise a Turbine: Making the Case for Community-Owned Windpower" (http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/2538.html) Sustainable Energy Summit (http://cooppower.onlinecommunity.coop/2008-sustainable-energy-summit-1) Complete interview with Dan Juhl (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Juhl.mp3) (http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/03/15/books/kolb184.jpg) Elizabeth Kolbert: "The Island in the Wind" (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/07/07/080707fa_fact_kolbert) CWR Headlines: --The US can achieve 20 percent energy from wind by 2030 (http://www.cleanedge.com/views/index.php?id=5438) with help from GE (http://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/paginas/Contenidosecciones.asp?ID=2870&Tipo=&Nombre=Renewable%20energy%20news) and T. Boone Pickens (http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/7/8/15835/74508) Updates: --European parliament votes to include aviation emissions in Emissions Trading Scheme (http://www.wbcsd.org/plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?type=DocDet&ObjectId=MzA2NjM) --EPA report links climate change to human health risks (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25680628/), but Bush blocks GHG emissions regulation under Clean Air Act (http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2008/2008-07-11-10.asp) Bill Baue clean 29:40 http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/09/new-generations-in-sustainability/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/09/new-generations-in-sustainability/#comments Wed, 09 Jul 2008 19:47:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/09/new-generations-in-sustainability/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/09/new-generations-in-sustainability/feed/ 0 corporate sustainability,corporate watchdog,EPA,tim cohen,tom hartmann Each generation reinvents the world inherited from the previous generation. A new generation is inheriting a wounded planet and a dysfunctional economy. Youthful energy seeks to heal our world and revitalize our economy using new strategies and adapt... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/cwr-images-archive/TimCohen-Mitchell.jpeg) Each generation reinvents the world inherited from the previous generation. A new generation is inheriting a wounded planet and a dysfunctional economy. Youthful energy seeks to heal our world and revitalize our economy using new strategies and adapting existing tools. Today, we focus on new generations in sustainability. First, we hear from Tim Cohen-Mitchell of the Young Entrepreneurs Society in Orange, Massachusetts, from a presentation he made at the recent Pioneer Valley Sustainable Investing Summit that Corporate Watchdog Radio helped organize. Then, CWR co-host Francesca Rheannon speaks with Jeremy Daw about the BioTour, an initiative brainstormed by an enterprising group of 20-somethings at Burning Man, an annual art event and temporary community based on radical self expression and self-reliance in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada. The BioTour is about to embark on a journey across the US in a biofuel bus to raise awareness on sustainability. Young Entrepreneurs Society (http://www.yes-inc.org/) Tim Cohen-Mitchell's complete presentation and Q&A (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Tim-Cohen-Mitchell-Talk-QA.mp3) BioTour (http://www.biotour.org/) Burning Man (http://www.burningman.com/) CWR Headlines: --WWF to G8: “Your Climate Solution is ‘Pathetic’” (http://www.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUST54523._CH_.2400) --Senate May Subpoena White House for Ignoring EPA Carbon Warnings (http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/49265/story.htm) --Toyota Responds to Report on Labor Abuses on Prius Production Line (http://www.business-humanrights.org/Links/Repository/829786) CWR ViewPoint:  read (http://vcr.csrwire.com/node/9220) (thanks to our partner CSRwire for posting the text of CWR commentaries) Robin Giampa tells about Timberland’s trendsetting use of social networking sites like Facebook and YouTube to advance its corporate sustainability initiatives. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/cwr-images-archive/Earthkeepers.jpg)Timberland's Earthkeepers Francesca and Bill ain't exactly spring chickens, but we've got a lot of youthful energy, so we're joining this trend in linking social networking with corporate sustainability by launching CWR pages on Facebook and MySpace this week. Thanks to our new intern, Tom Hartmann-Boyce, an international affairs student at Skidmore, for getting those pages up and running. Check out our website for links to these pages, and join us there as "friends." CWR's MySpace page (http://www.myspace.com/watchdogradio) CWR's Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=24934727811) Bill Baue clean 28:20 http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/02/the-myth-of-clean-coal/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/02/the-myth-of-clean-coal/#comments Wed, 02 Jul 2008 16:29:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/02/the-myth-of-clean-coal/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/07/02/the-myth-of-clean-coal/feed/ 1 clean coal,DotEarth,EPA,global warming,interfaith center on corporate responsibility,leslie lowe,power plant Utilities and coal companies are pushing to open over a hundred new coal-fired power plants in the US. But activists, investors, communities, consumers, and scientists are pointing to financial, regulatory, environmental, (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/cwr-images-archive/DontGetBurnedsm.jpg)(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/cwr-images-archive/leslielowe_edit.gif) Utilities and coal companies are pushing to open over a hundred new coal-fired power plants in the US. But activists, investors, communities, consumers, and scientists are pointing to financial, regulatory, environmental, and social risks that far outweigh the potential benefits of coal. And they are pulling back the veil from the myth of clean coal, exposing that king coal is a naked emperor. Carbon capture and storage, the key to coal's "clean" claims, has years of technical and economic hurdles to cross. Leslie Lowe, director of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibilty's Energy & Environment Program, speaks with us today about the risks of committing to a future of new coal plants. Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (http://www.iccr.org/) ICCR Report: Don't Get Burned: The Risks of Investing in New Coal-Fired Generating Facilities New York City Comptroller letter asking Department of Energy to review tax-exempt status of bonds for new coal plants ( http://www.comptroller.nyc.gov/press/pdfs/06-16-08_Solomon-6-6-08.pdf) CWR Headlines: --Airlines Flying to and From Europe Will Have to Pay for Emissions (http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/06/26/business/air.php) --Coal plants get thumbs up (http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/06/26/ap5158045.html) -- and thumbs down (http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/stories/2008/06/30/coal_ruling.html) --Leading Climate Scientist calls Coal and Oil CEO's Criminals (http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/23/are-big-oil-and-big-coal-climate-criminals/) --Clean coal gets a boost from the US Dept of Energy (http://www.doe.gov/news/6359.htm) James Hansen Congressional testimony: Global Warming Twenty Years Later: Tipping Points Near CWR ViewPoint:  read (http://vcr.csrwire.com/node/8986) (Thanks to our partner CSRwire for posting text of CWR commentaries.) (http://vcr.csrwire.com/files/blogpics/yochi_coop_headshot_cropped.jpg) Yochi Zakai of Co-op America points out that clean coal is dirtier than it's cracked up to be. He comments on the recent Georgia court ruling against a new coal plant proposed by Dynegy, and Co-op America's ongoing activism aimed at that company and others in the industry. Co-op America "Stop the Coal Rush" Campaign (http://www.coopamerica.org/takeaction/nocoal/) Bill Baue clean 28:21 http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/25/bob-monks-exxonmobil-exemplifies-corpocracy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/25/bob-monks-exxonmobil-exemplifies-corpocracy/#comments Wed, 25 Jun 2008 19:03:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/25/bob-monks-exxonmobil-exemplifies-corpocracy/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/25/bob-monks-exxonmobil-exemplifies-corpocracy/feed/ 0 Climate Change,corporate governance,EPA,exxon,human rights,Renewable Energy,shareholder resolutions,steve viederman The ExxonMobil annual shareholder meeting this year carried high expectations from shareholder activists. Members of the Rockefeller family, descending from the founder of the Standard Oil monopoly that splintered into Exxon and Mobil, (http://bp1.blogger.com/_i87Eno9Cr6U/RzEZaT2d6eI/AAAAAAAAAAc/sxXjfoOqPmQ/S220/corpocracy_sm.jpg)(http://www.ragm.com/images/BobMonksHome.jpg) The ExxonMobil annual shareholder meeting this year carried high expectations from shareholder activists. Members of the Rockefeller family, descending from the founder of the Standard Oil monopoly that splintered into Exxon and Mobil, attended the meeting to support four different shareholder resolutions on corporate governance and climate change. Of these four, the resolution supported by most Rockefellers asked the company to split the CEO and Board Chair positions. Today's CWR guest, Bob Monks, has filed this resolution at ExxonMobil since the early 2000s. His struggle to hold ExxonMobil accountable exemplifies the broader struggle to hold corporations accountable described in his new book, Corpocracy. Monks is co-founder of Institutional Shareholder Services, The Corporate Library, Lens Governance Advisors, and a former Labor Department official in the Reagan Administration. Bob Monks' Website (http://ragmonks.blogspot.com/) Corpocracy: How CEOs and the Business Roundtable Hijacked the World's Greatest Wealth Machine -- And How to Get It Back Web extra: Bob Monks chats with CWR co-hosts Bill Baue and Francesca Rheannon about the US presidential candidates' ability to take on corpocracy. Listen (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/podcasts/Monks-extra.mp3) CWR Headlines: --ExxonMobil loses appeal to Supreme Court on human rights abuse case (http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D91B7PHG0.htm) CWR ViewPoint:  read (http://vcr.csrwire.com/node/8711) (Thanks to our partner CSRwire for posting text of CWR commentaries.) Longtime shareholder activist Steve Viederman presented this statement at the ExxonMobil Annual Meeting in May 2008 to introduce resolution 19 asking Exxon to adopt a renewable energy policy. He filed the resolution along with other individuals, families, foundations and religious orders, joined by 20 institutional investors worth over $740 billion in combined assets, including Exxon Mobil stock valued at more than $8.6 billion. Steve Viederman Bio (http://www.sustainability.com/about/profile.asp?id=84) Bill Baue clean 28:46 http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/04/the-climate-of-transportation/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/04/the-climate-of-transportation/#comments Wed, 04 Jun 2008 19:45:00 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/04/the-climate-of-transportation/ http://www.cchange.net/2008/06/04/the-climate-of-transportation/feed/ 0 Climate Bill,Climate Change,environmental defense fund,EPA,Jeff Brown,john olver,michael replogle,paul brubaker,university of massachusetts amherst,us department of transportation Today CWR takes you to a conference at the intersection between climate change and transportation held last week at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. There, climate scientists, engineers, government officials and activists gathered for a “Cli... Today CWR takes you to a conference at the intersection between climate change and transportation held last week at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. There, climate scientists, engineers, government officials and activists gathered for a “Climate Change Think Tank” to brainstorm solutions to the problem of transport accounting for some 30 percent of carbon emissions. CWR co-hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue spoke with Representative John Olver, chair of the House Appropriations Sub-committee on Transportation; Paul Brubaker, head of the US Department of Transportation Research and Innovation Technology Administration; Michael Replogle of Environmental Defense Fund; and Jeff Brown of RideBuzz.org, a regional ride-sharing initiative. Climate Change Think Tank Symposium (http://www.ecs.umass.edu/umtc/climatechange_may08.shtml) --Senate Debates Climate Bill, US Companies Prepare for Carbon Price--culled from the following sources: US power firms risk value hit over climate (http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSPEK20284420080602?sp=true) Deutsche Bank raises 2008 EUA forecast to 40 euros (http://www.wbcsd.org/plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?type=DocDet&ObjectId=MzAyMTg) Senate to take up climate bill (http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g-9FDZbMqzvA3OcinVF3kDH41OYAD911QO100) Bush would veto U.S. climate change bill (http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSN0225568220080603) US emissions bill a "first step": UN climate chief (http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL30157752) --Chevron profits shadowed by human rights complaints (http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN2845117720080528?sp=true) CWR Greenwash Exposé Headline: --ING Video Trumpets Green Initiatives, Omits Opposition of Climate and Toxics Resolutions (http://www.csrwire.com/News/12264.html) Bill Baue clean