Earth to Bush… – Citizens Protest Sham Climate Conference

Just when you thought George Bush couldn’t possibly isolate himself any more on global warming, he goes and hosts an embarrassing charade of a climate conference, bringing together 17 leading emitters in order to preach the virtues of voluntary actions. It was a shameless ploy, as even the mainstream media were quick to point out.

Thankfully, hundreds of protestors were on hand to call him out.

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Folks from all over the DC region came together outside the State Department last Friday to remind Bush of the reality he so recklessly chooses to ignore; and I don’t just mean the reality of melting ice caps and threatened species, I also mean the reality that he’s out of touch with the American public. He doesn’t speak for us, pure and simple.

It was a great rally. There were speeches from local climate and social justice leaders such as Van Jones, Ted Glick, Jamie Henn and Mike Tidwell. Live music was provided by Luci Murphy. The media were there in force. A polar bear even showed up. Together, we sent Bush a strong message: that his criminal negligence on climate change is no longer acceptable.

Instead of useless voluntary measures, we were there to demand an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. We were there to demand a new direction. Most of all, we came out to represent all citizens who know that nothing short of mandatory reductions is good enough.

Live Energy in Fauquier County

On Saturday, September 29th, over 200 people from all over the region attended the First Annual Fauquier Live Energy Festival. The lively crowd followed the sound of music and speakers down to the Warrenton Greenway to listen to experts denounce Dominion Power and demand clean energy for Virginia now!

Live Energy

Solace Sovay pumped up the crowd with their thoughtful and upbeat music, children had symbols of clean energy painted on their faces, and over 150 petition signatures were gathered in an effort to stop a new coal fired power plant from being built in Virginia. “I have never had more fun in my life,” said Troy Holland, Co-chair of the Fauquier Chapter, “the crowd was great, the speakers were amazing, the vendor displays were awesome, the music rocked, and the children’s activities kept my two daughters happy all afternoon. The renewable energy revolution for Fauquier started today with this amazing festival.”

Improving learning: Greening Schools, the real payoff

The Washington Post featured a local high school’s green renovation in Titans of Ecology, which began

At the brand-new T.C. Williams High in Alexandria, a modern “green” school, students say the environmentally friendly design has led to a serious lifestyle change: They can’t doze in class anymore because sunlight pours in from practically every angle.

Going green means more attentive students … at least, fewer students napping.This one of those benefits from Going Green, being more environmentally and energy sensitive (aware) when building, that many don’t realize. Putting aside all the environmental benefits (real benefits), being Energy Smart, Environmentally Smart is, well, simply being smart. Continue reading

Nuclear energy: What role should it play in tackling global warming?

Here, in very simple terms, is what CCAN thinks:

In terms of greenhouse gas reductions [nuclear energy] is not a deal breaker. Despite the many negatives of nuclear energy, one positive is that it generates almost no carbon dioxide. [CCAN does] not advocate building a single new nuclear power plant, but neither [does it] advocate shutting down existing ones in the face of rapid global warming.

What do you think? What role, if any, should nuclear power play in the face of rapid global warming? Continue reading

New Orleans was a Curtain Raiser

On the August 27th Tavis Smiley show, Mike Tidwell discussed his newest book, The Ravaging Tide, which focuses on Hurricane Katrina and what it means for the future of the US and global warming.

Click below to watch Mike’s interview with Tavis Smiley.

Tidwell on Climate: Forget the Darn Light Bulbs

Enough with the bloody lightbulbs already!

By Mike Tidwell
Published in Grist, www.grist.org
04 Sep 2007

Strange but true: Energy-efficient light bulbs and hybrid cars are hurting our nation’s budding efforts to fight global warming.

More precisely, every time an activist or politician hectors the public to voluntarily reach for a new bulb or spend extra on a Prius, ExxonMobil heaves a big sigh of relief.

Scientists now scream the news about global warming: it’s already here and could soon, very soon, bring tremendous chaos and pain to our world. The networks and newspapers have begun running urgent stories almost daily: The Greenland ice sheet is vanishing! Sea levels are rising! Wildfires are out of control! Hurricanes are getting bigger!

But what’s the solution? Most media sidebars and web links quickly send us to that peppy and bright list we all know so well, one vaguely reminiscent of Better Homes and Gardens: “10 Things You Can Do to Save the Planet.” Standard steps include: change three light bulbs. Consider a hybrid car for your next purchase. Tell the kids to turn out the lights. Even during the recent Al Gore-inspired Live Earth concerts, the phrase “planetary emergency” was followed by “wear more clothes indoors in winter” and “download your music at home to save on the shipping fuel for CDs.”

Nice little gestures all, but are you kidding me? Does anyone think this is the answer? Continue reading

Arctic Sea Ice at All Time Low

Arctic Ice Melt

On August 9th the Northern Hemisphere sea ice area broke the record for the lowest recorded ice area in recorded history. The new record came a full month before the historic summer minimum typically occurs. There is still a month or more of melt likely this year. It is therefore almost certain that the previous 2005 record will be annihilated by the final 2007 annual minimum closer to the end of this summer.

The University of Illinois Ice site, which monitors Arctic sea ice, is reporting:

In previous record sea ice minima years, ice area anomalies were confined to certain sectors (N. Atlantic, Beaufort/Bering Sea, etc). The character of 2007’s sea ice melt is unique in that it is dramatic and covers the entire Arctic sector. Atlantic, Pacific and even the central Arctic sectors are showing large negative sea ice area anomalies.

Read more on Daily Kos.

The Arctic ice cap is melting much faster than expected and is now about 30 years ahead of previous predictions made by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change. This means the ocean at the top of the world could be free or nearly free of summer ice by 2020, three decades sooner than the global panel’s gloomiest forecast of 2050.

Carbon Neutrality Rocks the House

Sunday, Mike Tidwell, hosted his quarterly open house at his home in Takoma Park, Maryland. This was Tidwell’s 44th open house to display a wide variety of alternative energy products such as a hybrid car, an electric car, a solar oven, and a corn powered grill that cooks a great veggie-burger!

In case you missed the event, here are photos and descriptions of all the exciting products at the open house:

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The Buckner Corn Grill is the newest attraction at the Clean Energy Open House. This grill runs solely on corn and electricity and makes a great veggie-burger.

 

 

 

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