Welcome ! As a young French Master's graduate in international management I have been selecting since January 2007 the latest headlines and best researches on sustainable development, climate change and the world energy sector. Sounds great ? Don't hesitate to subscribe now !
” The South Korean government has announced that it intends to invest $35.4 billion in the renewable energy sector over the next five years as it aims at reducing its dependence on fossil fuels and build a green economy for the future.”
“The South Korean government announced the ‘Green Korea’ plan in September 2008 which identified nine key areas for green investment : solar and wind power,(…) and energy storage.”
It seems China is not the only Asian country to have understood that cleantech is literally the next frontier in terms of employment and business. For more, please read the full article at Ecopolitology.org
Last week US President Barack Obama announced he will put back solar panels on the White House next year. The first solar panels were installed by President Carter in the 1970s and removed by Reagan in 1986.
This made me wonder when l’Elysée, the residence of French Presidents will install solar panels as well. While discussing with a friend he told me that the Elysée isn’t the White House and that there were aesthetic concerns.
This is to me not a problem. Aesthetics don’t matter any more when there is massive unemployment, climate change and peak oil. Continue »
I know it since I read Collapse, Jared Diamond’s fantastic book about how various societies disappeared : trees matter ! Between soil erosion prevention and climate change mitigation, there are many reasons for keeping forests alive.
Now comes a British study noting that the annual cost of deforestation is five trillion dollar. This research is carried out under the UNEP program known as The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB)
We have seen it here on multiple occasions, protecting Nature and its fantastic biodiversity is as a matter of fact the best way to protect ourselves. Continue »
Yesterday took place around the world 7,700 gatherings in over 180 countries to urge governments to embrace 350 : lowering the amount of carbon dioxide to 350 ppm (today’s levels are at 388).
I already stated that we are facing a triple crisis with massive unemployment, climate change and decreasing energy supplies (peak oil and coal). I believe that embracing 350′s plan (one stone) would hit those three birds.
Seeing people meeting up and planting trees or installing solar water heaters is a good thing. I hope it will work and urge our representatives to act during the Cancun climate talks. (More at 350.org)
I knew it all along ! As rare earths are more and more expensive and critically needed for our technological thirst, it is becoming economically viable to mine landfills and to recycle old appliances. As the New York Times indeed noted :
” This town’s hopes for a mining comeback lie not underground, but in what Japan refers to as urban mining — recycling the valuable metals and minerals from the country’s huge stockpiles of used electronics“
This proves that by using ingeniousness we can do wonders and start discovering the gold sitting in our landfills. This is to me a great alternative to mining the oceans floor.
While browsing CleanTechnica I found an interesting article on peak oil. According to a leaked military report from the German Bundeswehr, peak oil will occur this year and the consequences will be dramatic.
Among them are market failures and tremendous risks for democracy itself. As Cleantechnica notes “ it is unlikely that any nation would be unaffected by such crises. “ This is not exactly encouraging news.
Meanwhile, the US Army is also thinking about the risks of peak oil and may stop completely using this energy source by 2040. Continue »
After no less than ten years of exploration all around the world ( with no less than 2,700 scientists, 80+ nations, 540 expeditions) the Census Of Marine Life is finally out. And the findings are more than interesting.
The wealth of the planet Ocean is astonishing as it is estimated there are over a million species. A quarter of it have been formally described. All this includes an estimated total of 21,800 fish species (5,000 haven’t been discovered yet).
If you want to discover the associated published books, maps and wonderful images and videos, the website is yours to visit ! Continue »
While the US federal government is still haggling about a climate and energy bill, the richest state is willing to have a third of its electricity coming from solar, wind and the likes by the end of the decade.
The local government points to the fact that this will decrease the dependence on foreign fossil fuels, improve air quality and create jobs. This is not what I call a gloomy prospect
I don’t understand why not all US States are following their example. This is the boldest plan in the United States. (Colorado comes second) Continue »
I really like TED talks as they always provide great insight and ideas on countless issues. This week, Mr. Mechai Viravaidya explains how his country – Thailand – went from 7 children per family in 1974 to about 1.5 today.
Similarly, the programs succeeded in fighting HIV/AIDS as no less than 7.7 million lives were saved between 1991 and 2003. Those are tremendous results that would interest many poor nations around the globe.
Since curbing population growth is important to avert climate change, I believe Mr. Viravaidya - also known in his country as Mr. Condom – should spread… Continue »
To Ashok Kamal in CleanTechies : ” In many academic, policy and business circles, the term “clean tech” is synonymous with renewable energy.” However under this term we can put among others electric cars and green IT.
And the latter is very important and promising as GreenTech Enterprise notes that it is the biggest green market. In a brilliant article they outline seven reasons why it is the case.
Data centers have we have seen previously consume huge amounts of energy and this is only the beginning as we are using more and more the Internet. Continue »
