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Energy Return on Investment

EROI studies for most energy resources show a decline, indicating that depletion has been more important than technological improvements over time.

The Seed Underground

A delightful and thoroughly enjoyable read: in my many years of reading environmental books there aren't many I could say that about. I found The Seed Undergound on a table at the home of a member of Transition Mar Vista/Venice, at an open house (open garden) as part of last month's 100+ home …

For Africa’s Solar Sisters, Off-Grid Electricity Is Power

U.S. businesswoman Katherine Lucey is working with a network of women entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa to sell inexpensive, household solar energy systems. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, Lucey explains how solar electricity can transform lives, particularly those of rural women …

Tornadoes, Extreme Weather And Climate Change, Revisited

The big tornado outbreak, including a monster Oklahoma twister, have people asking again about a possible link to climate change. I’ll review the science in this post.

Spring Time?

I have ruminated enough times on this blog about climate change that it should no longer pop up its ugly head, and yet it never ceases to amaze me as to how well it lends itself to a quick article. As homesteaders, so many of our daily activities lead to the out-of-doors, and therefore keeps us …

Earth Trek: The Journey Home

Lurking behind the cover story of terrorism and modern unease is an even more troubling development: the endgame of fossil-fueled civilization, and hence, the end of space travel.

Why Austerity Kills: From Greece to U.S., Crippling Economic Policies Causing Global Health Crisis

"Had austerity been organized like a clinical trial, it would’ve been discontinued given evidence of its deadly side effects," Stuckler says.

Shale gas, tight oil, and fracking - May 21

•At margins of shale oil boom, a tempered euphoria •Fracking envy •Radioactive fracking debris triggers worries at dump sites •Poland’s shale gas hopes suffer blow •Poland Shale Boom Falters as State Targets Higher Taxes •The fight for North Dakota's …

Hope from the margins

These notes offer a quick glance to ways, in the south of Mexico, in which people are regenerating the society from the bottom up. It is a new kind of revolution without leaders or vanguards....

Half of oil burnable in 2000-2050 to keep us within 2 degrees warming has been used up as we hit 400 ppm

We have a race between peak oil and global warming. Symptoms of these complex processes pop up every now and then.

The Poisoned Chalice: Genetic Heritage, Future Demise

During the Pleistocene evolution favored those humans who left the most descendants so our evolved instincts encourage us to procreate, seek status and consume resources. Now sustainability is an existential issue and these instincts and our invention of technology are threatening our future.

Guerilla Gardeners Transform London, One Bus Stop at a Time

The Edible Bus Stop (EBS) is a gardening project trying to transform neglected spaces throughout London into vibrant green patches of community engagement. The project is due to launch May 18, 2013 at the Grand Opening event, ‘Donate a Plant’ at the Landor Road Garden.

What Kind of Example Is Canada Setting?

Is any nation on Earth taking seriously the need for a true-cost economy, where we live sustainably in a steady state?

Making an Iota of Difference

So, sustainable communities, to me, means keeping out of the way of things that are too big to fail.

Warrior Writers  

How can reporting on energy, presented as opportunity or catastrophic risk, compete against grumpy cat memes and economic woes? Is there a secret to breaking through the flood of information to make a meaningful impression on the public?

Deep thought - May 20

• Some of My Best Friends Are Germs • Bye-Bye Baby Boomers • The repentant environmentalist: Part 3 • Thanks for coming • Needed: An ecosocialist cosmovision

So Much Wasted Energy - Rethinking food waste

Regardless of terminology, one point is writ clear: the most technologically and economically advanced cultures in the world have the highest rates of food waste on the planet

The Great (and Not So Great) Bike Debates

Cycling is a great example of an EcoOptimistic solution, as I’ve written about before. It works on so many angles that it surpasses the win-win-win solutions that I often discuss here.

Too soon to tell: The case for hope, continued

Ten years ago, as a contrarian and a person who prefers not to see others suffer, I tried to undermine despair with the case for hope.

Foodlab Detroit Fosters New Business Paradigm, Jobs

As Detroit recovers from staggering unemployment due to the mass exodus of the auto industry, small business creation is now being touted by many locals as a better solution for resiliency, higher wages and employment stability than big business recruitment. But starting a new business from a …

New report raises concerns about expansion of frac sand mines in Minnesota and Wisconsin

The true economic impact of frac sand mining may fall short of industry claims promising sustained prosperity and economic opportunity, says a first-of-its-kind expert report to be released Wednesday, May 15. By using currently available economic data, The Economic Benefits and Costs of …

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