Air conditioning – part 2

Following last week’s post on air conditioning or not, this is a good overview by Stan Cox for Yale Environment 360 of the global impact of air conditioning. The report was on the Guardian website. Climate risks heat up as world switches on to air conditioning The world is warming, incomes are rising, and smaller … Continue reading Air conditioning – part 2 →

Feeling cool about air conditioning

While much of northern Europe is anxiously waiting for summer to really take hold, in Canada and the United States, a major heat wave has driven many to use their air conditioning to the maximum. Margaret Wente of Canada’s Globe and Mail writes here on the dilemma faced by the eco-conscious. The air conditioning … Continue reading Feeling cool about air conditioning →

What a carbon tax offers to Australians

Australia has taken a bold step forward by approving a carbon tax. This is an insightful article from the Canberra Times on the opportunities such a tax brings. Carbon tax a chance to rethink our energy use July 1, 2012 Canberra Times Many Australian families will wake up this morning with a sense of uncertainty … Continue reading What a carbon tax offers to Australians →

Sustainable development in the Paris region

Paris is taking a very progressive approach on sustainable development. You can see from the “Neighbourhood” that there are good things going on in the EiD “quartier.” This article from Agence France Presse presents a new roadmap that the regional council has recently published. Sustainable Development: the Ile de France presents its roadmap PARIS … Continue reading Sustainable development in the Paris region →

Supreme Court Justice says courts are crucial to environmental protection

Lord Carnwath of Notting Hill, a justice of the UK supreme court, writes in the Guardian of the missed opportunity at Rio+20 to emphasise how people can effect real change through the courts: Judges for the environment: we have a crucial role to play While politicians may have failed to agree any headline-grabbing commitments … Continue reading Supreme Court Justice says courts are crucial to environmental protection →

EU holds out hope for UK’s green goods tax break

BusinessGreen reports (below) that the European Commission recently ordered the UK government to repeal a law that allows reduced rates of VAT on insulation materials and solar panels, on the grounds that it fails to comply with the EU's VAT Directive. In a bizarre move, the European Commission suggests a defence that the UK can … Continue reading EU holds out hope for UK’s green goods tax break →

MPs have no idea how to meet the ‘carbon’ target they voted for

When readers asked their MPs to explain how the UK would cut CO2 emissions by 80 per cent, the answers made worrying reading. This is an important article from Britain's Sunday Telegraph. MPs have no idea how to meet the 'carbon' target they voted for by Christopher Booker The Sunday Telegraph The great global … Continue reading MPs have no idea how to meet the ‘carbon’ target they voted for →

Climate change will reduce renewable energy capacity

We seldom think that climate change will actually affect renewable energy production. This article from the Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for Sustainable Development was released before the Rio + 20 Conference. Climate change will reduce renewable energy capacity, warn scientists Scientists fear climate change impacts will reduce Latin America's capacity to produce renewable … Continue reading Climate change will reduce renewable energy capacity →

GBPN Buildings Sector Summit and Symposium

The Paris-based Global Buildings Performance Network, funded by Climate Works of the US, held a series of meetings May 30 and 31st to essentially launch the Network. The network has hubs in Europe, the US, China and India. The meetings were designed to discuss two important research projects commissioned by the GBPN and released at … Continue reading GBPN Buildings Sector Summit and Symposium →

Neither sermons nor silence

The Green Alliance in the UK has published a valuable report entitled “Neither sermons nor silence - the case for national communications on energy use”. The report examines previous Government-led national communication campaigns, including "Act on CO2" and argues that they lacked enabling policy to underpin them. There are behavioural barriers to uptake and the … Continue reading Neither sermons nor silence →