In Canada this week, EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen urged decisive action by quoting a famous hockey credo: "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take." The Trump administration is moving to gut energy efficiency rules for home appliances that are proven to cut demand for power and lower utility bills. The Washington Post … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, July 5-6, 2026
Category: urban policies
The oil shock is a wake-up call for car-dependent cities
Christopher J. Greyson-Gaito, Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, McMaster University writes on The Conversation website about using the oil price shock as a wake-up call to build more resilient, less car-dependent cities. Oil price shocks have exposed car‑dependent cities. Here’s what governments can doThe recent Israeli-United States war with Iran sent oil … Continue reading The oil shock is a wake-up call for car-dependent cities
Energy in Demand News, June 28-29, 2026
The Financial Times reports that Elon Musk’s SpaceX “was awarded the lowest possible environmental, social and governance rating by index provider MSCI [Morgan Stanley Capital International] ahead of the company’s record $75bn public float this month. The triple C assessment means SpaceX has the same score as that awarded to the Russian state on MSCI’s … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, June 28-29, 2026
Urban heat Is the new climate frontline
Much of Europe has suffered recently from a record breaking heatwave. As heat waves grow more frequent and fierce, cities worldwide are racing to cool streets and reshape urban life, as Martin Kuebler discusses in an article on the Deutsche Welle website. He discusses how cities around the world are adapting to increasingly dangerous urban … Continue reading Urban heat Is the new climate frontline
The world’s great cities are becoming heat islands
In an article on The Conversation website, Chloe Duteil, Postdoctoral Research Associate, School of Histories, Languages and Cultures Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Liverpool; Daniel Cumming, Post Doctoral Fellow, Melting Metropolis, Queens College, CUNY; and Jon Winder, Postdoctoral Research Associate, History, University of Liverpool about how extreme heat is becoming a defining … Continue reading The world’s great cities are becoming heat islands
Cooling cities means tackling traffic as well as buildings
In an article on The Conversation website, Zhonghua Zheng Assistant Professor in Data Science and Environmental Analytics, University of Manchester discusses how traffic is not just a source of pollution and emissions—it is also a significant contributor to urban heat, and reducing vehicle traffic can help cities adapt to climate change. How traffic makes … Continue reading Cooling cities means tackling traffic as well as buildings
In Barcelona, the reign of banana trees is coming to an end
The City Council confirms that it will halve the banana tree population over the next decade to combat allergies and improve urban biodiversity. David León Himelfarb discusses latest developments in an article on the Barcelona Secreta website. Farewell to Barcelona’s banana trees: the city will remove 24,000 trees over the next decade to combat … Continue reading In Barcelona, the reign of banana trees is coming to an end
World Urban Forum backs ‘Baku Call to Action’ on global housing
A landmark gathering of more than 57,000 participants – the largest in the history of the World Urban Forum – closed on May 22nd in Baku, Azerbaijan with an urgent call to rethink how the world houses its people, as a new roadmap urges governments, cities and communities to act collectively on a crisis affecting … Continue reading World Urban Forum backs ‘Baku Call to Action’ on global housing
Energy in Demand News, May 10-11, 2026
It is encouraging that the OECD has published a Data Explainer that details the need for governments to step up policies promoting more efficient energy use. It focuses on 13 energy efficiency policies, including minimum energy performance standards (MEPS), public financing mechanisms for buildings and industry (e.g. green mortgages, vendor credits), fuel economy standards and … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, May 10-11, 2026
In permissive Amsterdam, ads for fossil fuels or meat are now verboden
Martina Igini writes on the earth.org website that Amsterdam has outlawed advertising that promotes lifestyles linked to high carbon emissions, which is a driver of climate change. It’s a first for a world capital. Amsterdam’s Ban on Meat and Fossil Fuel Advertising Comes Into Effect A ban on advertising of fossil fuels and meat … Continue reading In permissive Amsterdam, ads for fossil fuels or meat are now verboden
Energy in Demand - Sustainable Energy - Rod Janssen 