Browsing environmental news sources so you don't have to. Contact Laura Barnes (lbarnes@istc.illinois.edu) with questions, comments, and suggestions.
Follow ENB on TwitterRead the full post at Slate.
My family just got Netflix, and the first DVD we rented was An Inconvenient Truth (really). As we watched the film, I started getting pangs of regret: The movie was surely sitting on the shelf at my local video store, and here we were getting it delivered from hundreds of miles away. Is my Netflix queue destroying the environment?
Read the full story in the Chicago Tribune.
When Tom Koulentes is not advising students at Highland Park High School or chasing after his own kids, he spends time behind his small Des Plaines home researching climate change.
Koulentes is recording his garden’s natural history, from the weigela’s first leaf to the butterfly bush’s last bloom, for Project BudBurst, a new nationwide research program based on the observations of ordinary people. He is looking for local signs like an early bloom or a late-falling leaf that stem from planetwide changes.
Only a handful of researchers study plants to chronicle global warming, but millions of gardeners quietly keep watch on their plants. BudBurst seeks to tap that potential, asking “citizen scientists” to monitor plants alongside trained scholars.
Read the full story in the Arizona Republic.
Solar- and wind-energy projects in Arizona and around the country continue to hang in limbo after Congress adjourned for its summer recess without reaching agreement on legislation that would extend renewable-energy tax credits.
PRC Technologies, a division of Print Recovery Concepts Inc., announced today an environmental breakthrough in printing for offices, public schools and colleges. This summer, PRC will offer the first laser printer cartridges using toner powder derived from soybeans. PRC reports they will supply cartridges for the most popular laser printers under the SoyPrint brand at prices comparable to brand name versions currently available. Soy ink has been available for some time but this is the first soy toner cartridge for laser printers.
Read the full story in Nature Climate Change.
In response to looming environmental challenges such as climate change, a group of former senior federal officials has called for the next US president to create a new Earth sciences body by merging two huge existing agencies.
The proposal, published in the 4 July issue of Science, would see the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the US Geological Survey (USGS) unite to form a single institution with the suggested title of Earth Systems Science Agency (ESSA). NOAA, headquartered in Washington DC and in charge of ocean and air research, is separated from USGS, which covers just about everything else comprising the Earth system, from biology to energy and mineral resources, and has regional offices throughout the United States.
Read the full story in Nature Climate Change.
Our insatiable appetite for gadgets — mobile phones, MP3 players and flat-screen TVs — may be adding a hidden greenhouse gas to the Earth’s atmosphere. Countries that ratified the Kyoto Protocol committed to reducing their emissions of carbon dioxide and five other heat-trapping gases: methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride. But these aren’t the only climate-altering chemicals being produced by human activity. In the 13 years since the Protocol was first drawn up, scientists have discovered that other gases, such as nitrogen trifluoride (NF3), could become an increasing part of the climate problem.
Recent state budget constraints require the sponsors to postpone the September 22 and 23 Many Waters, Many Lands: 2008 International Symposium on River Management and Ecosystem Services and incorporate this important discussion into the Governor’s Conference on the Management of the Illinois River System to be held in October 20-22, 2009, in Peoria, Illinois.
The National Great Rivers Research and Education Center, Lewis and Clark Community College, the University of Illinois and the Office of Lt. Governor greatly appreciate your efforts to discuss this new and important field of work in ecosystem services. It is a topic that policy makers and scientists alike will be discussing in the decades to come as we grapple with some of the most urgent problems facing our societies around the world.
We will be taking the progress, discussion and contacts for the symposium and use this work to develop the 2009 Illinois River Conference. Information on this conference can be found at www.conferences.uiuc.edu/ilriver. Another opportunity to discuss elements of the ecosystem services will take place August 11-13, 2009, Collinsville, IL, Visions of a Sustainable Mississippi River: Merging Ecological, Economic and Cultural Values.
We encourage you to attend these future conferences. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience to your schedule. If you have any questions or concerns please Marc Miller at the Lt. Governor
Plenty Magazine reports on inventions and breakthroughs of the last century that green our lives.
Plenty Magazine reports that biogass facilities, which turn manure into methane, are popping up nationwide.
The opening of Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend has been celebrated for the many innovative and patient-friendly design elements incorporated into the new facility. But one of the largest hospital construction projects in the Pacific Northwest in the last decade is also notable for another important reason: its commitment to environmental stewardship principles in the design and building of the facility, making it one of the nation’s greenest hospitals.
Sundance Channel has launched the original 13-part web series, “Eco- Heroes,” hosted and created by Majora Carter, an environmental activist and host of network’s eco-destination, THE GREEN. The web-series was announced today by Sundance Channel Senior Vice President, Digital Media and Business Strategy, Christopher Barry. “Eco-Heroes” will also air interstitially as part of THE GREEN each week on Sundance Channel on Tuesday nights.
Each “Eco Heroes” piece is a two-minute webisode in which Majora Carter interviews one person who has been an inspiration to her and her work.
The subjects of “Eco-Heroes” take advanced, cutting-edge environmental thinking and break it down in a manner that makes the information accessible to the general public. The video pieces are available to view at www.sundancechannel.com/thegreen and further information about the subjects are also available within Eco-mmunity, Sundance Channel’s online environmental forum featuring blogs, news and discussions, located at www.sundancechannel.com/ecommunity. Also featured on the Sundance Channel micro-site for THE GREEN are blog posts, discussion boards, extra footage and photos.
For a full-color, graphic version of this newsletter, go to
http://www.greenbiz.com/enewsletters/2008/greenbiz/index.html.
Life After Acquisition for ECD
By Leslie Guevarra
http://greenbiz.com/podcast/2008/07/30/life-after-acquisition-ecd
Jiri Skopek, the CEO for ECD Energy and Environment Canada, talks to GreenBiz Radio about the deal that brought his firm under the umbrella of real estate giant Jones Lang LaSalle.
BofA, West Marine Launch Programs to Slash Energy Use
By Leslie Guevarra
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/07/31/bofa-west-marine-launch-programs-slash-energy-use
Bank of America and West Marine have embarked on major programs to manage energy consumption using sophisticated monitoring and control systems.
Senators Push for Higher Energy Efficiency for Small Businesses
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/08/01/senators-energy-efficiency-small-businesses
Facing ever-increasing energy prices and growing concern about environmental impact, Senators John Kerry and Olympia Snowe are urging the U.S. Small Business Administration to promote energy efficiency programs and make it easier for SMEs to save costs and lower their carbon footprint.
Two More Anheuser-Busch Plants to Add Alternative Energy
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/08/01/two-more-anheuser-busch-plants-add-alternative-energy
Anheuser-Busch is installing systems at two facilities to turn landfill gas and brewing wastewater into energy. A recent survey has found than 40 percent of manufacturing companies use or are investigating alternative energy.
Retrofit Brings New Life to Old Industrial Park
By Leslie Guevarra
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/08/01/retrofit-brings-new-life-old-industrial-park
San Jose moves a step closer to its vision for a green community with the transformation of a tired former industrial property into an eco-friendly business park that was crafted according to LEED standards.
Aveda Launches Nationwide Bottle Cap Recycling Program
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/07/31/aveda-bottle-cap-recycling
Beauty products company Aveda is taking its bottle cap recycling program nationwide, collecting plastic bottle caps to turn into new caps.
California Plans Another Emissions Lawsuit Against EPA
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/07/31/california-plans-another-emissions-lawsuit-against-epa
California will announce plans today to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for its failure to rein in greenhouse gas emissions from ships, aircraft and industrial equipment.
Growing the Pool of Green Auditors
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/07/30/growing-pool-green-auditors
Riding a wave of growing interest in eco-friendly business operations, a Maryland-based consulting firm is offering training for environmentally focused consultants who want to specialize in green audits for small companies.
Environmental Stewardship Must Become a ‘Central Pillar’ for World Bank: Report
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/07/30/environmental-stewardship-must-become-a-central-pillar-world-bank-report
The Independent Evaluation Group examined the effectiveness of World Bank projects in nine countries between 1990 and 2007. While the bank has made progress, results vary.
Institute for the Future Outlines Influences on Business Sustainability
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/07/30/institute-future-outlines-influences-business-sustainability
Looking out to 2017, the Institute for the Future has compiled what it envisions will be the main outside forces affecting business sustainability, including changing cities, how people interact, where our energy comes from and more.
Assessment Tool Helps Companies Measure Impacts
http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/01/01/assessment-tool-helps-companies-measure-impacts
The World Business Council for Sustainable Development has developed and released a free framework to guide companies as they analyze their impacts on societies.
Going Green: Outstanding Green Business Practices
http://www.greenbiz.com/resources/resource/going-green-outstanding-green-business-practices
This guide to green business tactics includes case studies from corporations, manufacturers, startups, school systems and government groups of all sizes.
Measuring Impact Framework
http://www.greenbiz.com/resources/resource/measuring-impact-framework
This Excel-based guide was developed to help businesses identify, measure and track impacts from their business operations.
Green Fast Food: Really Here or a Green Dream?
By Anne Moore Odell, SocialFunds.com
http://www.greenbiz.com/feature/2008/08/04/green-fast-food-here-or-dream
The fast food industry is seeing a growing demand for environmental sustainability. How can investors, consumers, and other stakeholders know which restaurants are truly embracing sustainable development and which are only greenwashing their practices?
GM and the New Plug-In Infrastructure
By Joel Makower
http://www.greenbiz.com/column/2008/07/24/gm-and-new-plug-in-infrastructure
This week’s announcement by General Motors that it has joined with more than 30 utility companies across the U.S. to work on issues related to electric vehicles got a great deal of media play. But the coverage only began to scratch the surface of the complexity of bringing plug-in electric vehicles to market in mass quantities.
Getting Smart About Green Targeting
By David Wigder
http://www.greenbiz.com/column/2008/07/26/getting-smart-about-green-targeting
For green marketers to be successful, they must effectively and efficiently target their audience when and where consumers are most receptive to green messaging. This is no easy task.
Scouts Honor?
By Marc Gunther
http://www.greenbiz.com/column/2008/07/25/scouts-honor
I’d ordinarily be reluctant to take on Warren Buffett and the Girls Scouts of America in a single blog post, but this story is too good to pass up.
