New report’s findings support argument that green assets have a lower risk than non-green assets

Elena Johansson writes on the Expert Investor Europe website about a report from an EU-funded project found a significant negative correlation between buildings’ energy efficiency and the probability of mortgage defaults and supports the argument that green assets have a lower risk than non-green assets. Evidence fuels argument to create ‘green supporting factor’ A … Continue reading New report’s findings support argument that green assets have a lower risk than non-green assets →

Global utility companies have been slow to go green, undermining efforts to tackle climate change

A new study from the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford found that of the 3,000 utilities studied most remain predominantly invested in fossil fuels. Jo Harper discusses in an article on the Deutsche Welle website. Climate change: Major energy companies lag in green shift Global utility companies … Continue reading Global utility companies have been slow to go green, undermining efforts to tackle climate change →

Blog from Anders Wijkman: Home retrofitting in the EU: An opportunity to build back better in a post COVID-19 world

The built environment, which includes our homes, workplaces, schools, hospitals, libraries, and other public buildings, is - as we know - the single largest energy consumer in the EU. It is responsible for an estimated 40 per cent of the EU’s total energy consumption and 36 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions. 75 per cent … Continue reading Blog from Anders Wijkman: Home retrofitting in the EU: An opportunity to build back better in a post COVID-19 world →

New EEA report on impacts of climate change on our health and well-being

Air and noise pollution, the impacts of climate change such as heatwaves, and exposure to dangerous chemicals cause ill health in Europe. Poor quality environments contribute to 13 % (one in every eight) of deaths according to a major assessment on health and environment released this week by the European Environment Agency (EEA). Tackling … Continue reading New EEA report on impacts of climate change on our health and well-being →

Looking back at the 30 years of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

You probably know colleagues who are involved in the IPCC process that is currently underway. It is a daunting task involving a wide range of experts globally. Marc Hudson, Research Associate in Social Movements at Keele University gives us some background about how things have evolved over the 30 years the process has been underway … Continue reading Looking back at the 30 years of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change →

California has had to adopt new measures to keep sufficient electricity supply

Last month as a heat wave slammed California (okay, now there are fires) and the state turned to electricity stored at businesses and even homes to meet electricity demand. Ivan Penn explains in an article on the New York Times website. Its Electric Grid Under Strain, California Turns to Batteries When demand exceeded supply … Continue reading California has had to adopt new measures to keep sufficient electricity supply →

Development in sodium-ion batteries has made significant progress recently

We are regularly reading about latest technical developments. Alexander Freund discusses latest developments in an article on the Deutsche Welle website. Sodium-ion rechargeable batteries could soon be a cheaper and resource-saving alternative to current lithium-ion cells. Powerful prototypes and ground-breaking findings in basic research make a breakthrough seem imminent. The batteries of the future: … Continue reading Development in sodium-ion batteries has made significant progress recently →

Guidelines and best practices for micro-, small and medium enterprises in delivering energy-efficient products and in providing renewable energy equipment

In response to the Covid-19 crisis, a study Guidelines and Best Practices for micro-, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in delivering energy-efficient products and in providing renewable energy equipment has been developed by the UN-Economic Commission for Europe. It is described in a UN-ECE press release. UNECE guidance for the energy efficiency and renewables … Continue reading Guidelines and best practices for micro-, small and medium enterprises in delivering energy-efficient products and in providing renewable energy equipment →

Recent analysis shows only 1.2% of the GHG emissions released by Australia’s top 65 emitting companies had to be offset under federal and state laws

Murray Griffin of Footprint News writes on The Guardian website that both levels of governments opted not to exercise legislative powers to be more ambitious in limiting GHG emissions. Australia’s big polluters required to offset just 1.2% of greenhouse gas emissions Only 1.2% of the greenhouse gas emissions released by Australia’s top 65 emitting … Continue reading Recent analysis shows only 1.2% of the GHG emissions released by Australia’s top 65 emitting companies had to be offset under federal and state laws →

The energy transition: most electric utility companies still stuck in old paradigm

We read about the new approaches taken by electric utilities to make a major contribution to our decarbonisation approaches, but recent analysis shows this is true in only a small percentage of utilities. Jillian Ambrose explains in an article on The Guardian website. Only one in 10 utility firms prioritise renewable electricity – global … Continue reading The energy transition: most electric utility companies still stuck in old paradigm →