Tag Archives: center for american progress

Rebecca Vallas on Poverty Denialism

July 24, 2018Full Showcenter for american progress, homelessness, poor, poverty, rebecca vallasAlex Wise

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“Just remember that what you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not happening,” said the President of the United States this week to a group of veterans. It was a statement eerily reminiscent of the quote from George Orwell’s 1984, “The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears.” It was also yet another example of gaslighting, a term derived from the 1938 Patrick Hamilton play “Gas Light” that’s used to describe efforts to manipulate someone’s perception of reality. It’s, of course, a term with which more and more of us are becoming familiar as of late since we seem to be getting a consistently unhealthy dose of gaslighting under the current Administration. Recently, the White House Council of Economic Advisers published a report that essentially declared poverty in this country a thing of the past. This week on Sea Change Radio, we discuss the ins and outs of this latest gaslighting special with Rebecca Vallas, the vice president for the Poverty to Prosperity Program at the Center for American Progress. Vallas explains what’s at the root of the report, who it really targets and why it should be concerning to all of us.

Power: Easy As Riding A Bike

November 8, 2011Full Showcenter for american progressAlex Wise

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Since man’s romance with fossil fuels and electricity began, bicycles have mostly been viewed as an obsolete technology. But pedaling remains one of the most efficient mechanisms to harvest human energy. While it falls short of a panacea, increasing our use of pedaling beyond traditional transportation is on the rise – and it shows what’s possible. The simple, healthy act of pedaling is replacing fossil fuels for a growing list of innovative projects.

Around the world, bicycle-based systems are powering boats and snowplows, school busses, water lifting machines in farming villages that have no electricity, gyms and rec centers, and even music concerts. And with gas-powered generators in New York’s Zucchotti Park being banned, the protestors at Occupy Wall Street have turned to pedal power for alternative electricity generation as well.

From obesity to climate change, solving some of our most seemingly intractable problems start with the simplest of steps, or in this case, pedals. This week on Sea Change Radio, we talk pedal power with two evangelists for the technology. First, host Alex Wise speaks with Adam Boesel, whose Green Micro Gym in Portland, Oregon is raising awareness alongside pulses. Then, we hear from Paul Freedman, the founder of Rock The Bike, a San Francisco organization that puts on pedal-powered concerts and other events. Later in the show, Wise reads excerpts of “Power For The People” by Kate Gordon at the Center for American Progress.

California Election Special: Propositions 19 & 23

October 19, 2010Full Showcenter for american progress, ella baker center for human rights, marijuana, tom ammiano, Van JonesAlex Wise

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This week on Sea Change Radio, our California Election Special. All eyes are trained on the most populous state in the union as it votes on two separate measures with far-reaching environmental implications.

First we’ll explore Prop 19, the ballot measure that would provide for the control and regulation of marijuana – people have heard many of the arguments for legalization, but Sea Change Radio takes a sustainability perspective on the issue and talks with the bill’s sponsor Tom Ammiano and NORML Executive Director, Allen St. Pierre.

Next, Sea Change Radio host Alex Wise speaks with Van Jones, who has been active in the No on 23 campaign. Learn about Prop 23 and why so many in California are trying to stop Texas oil from determining the state’s climate future.

Van Jones: A Conversation With America’s Green Jobs Guru

October 5, 2010Full ShowBarack Obama, center for american progress, ella baker center for human rights, environmentalists, green for all, Green Jobs, human rights, time, Van JonesAlex Wise

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This week on Sea Change Radio, host Alex Wise speaks with one of the leader’s of a new generation of environmentalists, Van Jones. Jones is the founder of Green For All, an organization that advocates for green-worker training, in addition to two social justice organizations, the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and Color of Change.

The author of the New York Times Bestseller, The Green Collar Economy, Jones served under President Barack Obama as the Special Adviser for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation , and in 2009 was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People. Jones is currently a senior fellow at the Center For American Progress, where he leads their Green Opportunity Initiative and is a visiting fellow at Princeton University.

Sea Change Radio talks with Jones about helping make the green jobs movement relevant for all people, identifying the problems with the process and his thoughts on the tactics of those working against progress.

Climate Bill: Pass or Fail?

June 3, 2009Full Showcenter for american progress, Clean Tech, Climate Change, climate policy, Climate Progress, Green Jobs, Greenpeace, joe romm, Renewable Energy, Sustainable Innovation, Sustainable Public Policy, Waxman-Markey Climate BillBill Baue

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The Waxman-Markey Climate Bill is making its way through Congress, and stirring up controversy within the environmental movement between those who support it as a necessary first step, and those who think it’s fatally flawed. Sea Change Radio talks with both sides. Joe Romm, editor of the ClimateProgress.org blog and a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, favors passing the Bill. Carroll Muffett of Greenpeace says the bill fails to address key issues in solving the climate crisis.

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Joe Romm on Obama’s Climate Resolve

January 28, 2009Sea Change Blogcenter for american progress, Clean Tech, Climate Change, Climate Progress, joe romm, News Analysis, Renewable Energy, Sustainable Innovation, Sustainable Public PolicyBill Baue

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[amazon-product align=”right”]006117212X[/amazon-product]In his first week in office, President Obama seemed to hit the ground running on climate change policy and support for a greener economy. But some say that while his efforts are a good first step, they’ll have to be followed up with much stronger measures to really do the job. We caught up with Joe Romm of the blog Climate Progress for some perspective on Obama’s first week. In addition to giving an overview, Romm also talked about an important–and frightening–new study from the NOAA that underscores the urgency of Obama’s moves.

Joe Romm worked on environmental policy under the Clinton Administration and is the author of [amazon-product text=”HELL AND HIGH WATER: Global Warming, the Solution and the Politics” type=”text”]006117212X[/amazon-product]. His blog Climate Progess is a project of the Center for American Progress.

Joe Romm Compares Presidential Platforms on Environment and Energy

October 29, 2008Full Showcarbon dioxide, center for american progress, clean air act, Climate Change, EPA, global warming, joe romm, ObamaBill Baue

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Joe Romm

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

Climate Progress blog

CWR Headlines:

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—The Other Debt Crisis — How we’re Overspending Our Ecological Budget

The Road to Economic Recovery: Potholed, or Paved in Green?

September 23, 2008Full ShowBarney Frank, bob pollin, center for american progress, global warming, hazel henderson, house financial services committee, political economy research institute, troubled asset relief programBill Baue

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The market meltdown is spurring an urgent response from Congress, with both houses debating and revising versions of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) bill on an hourly basis. The bill revises the President’s proposed bailout of financial institutions, which some call “Cash for Trash.” CWR co-hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue interview US Representative (D-MA) Barney Frank, chair of the House Financial Services Committee that is now ushering the Troubled Asset Relief Program bill, or TARP, through Congress. While many question whether this bailout is the best path out of the market meltdown, others are proposing a road to recovery paved in green. Bob Pollin of the Political Economy Research Institute co-authored a report on the Green Recovery that was released last week with the Center for American Progress. Francesca and Bill interviewed him here at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst the day after he testified before the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming at a hearing entitled “The Green Road to Economic Recovery.”

Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) bill as of 1:09 p.m. on September 22, 2008

Green Recovery

House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming hearing: “The Green Road to Economic Recovery”

Listen to the full 25-minute interview with Bob Pollin

CWR ViewPoint: read

Commentary from futurist Hazel Henderson of Ethical Markets on the market meltdown called Chicago Boys’ Curse Comes Home to Wall Street.