Topics Environmental

Boat Tail on Car Increases MPG by 15%

Guy Adds Boat Tail to Car, Increases MPG by 15.1% : TreeHugger.

So, yeah the car looks a little whacky, but heck, it’s a Geo Metro! Regardless, I love articles like this one, as it reinforces to me that solutions to our environmental issues shouldn’t be relegated SOLELY to world governments, including our own.

The federal government surely has a role to play — through sponsoring large scale testing and research, for example. But I really think the great ideas come from the people, not the politicians. And even though this particular example is unlikely ever to go anywhere, it does show the capacity for ingenuity we have (or should find) access to.

Fantastic Mr. Foxx

This is a very proud day for me and a wonderful day for the city I call home. Mayor Anthony Foxx, in one of his first acts in office, signed the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement today and joined the Sierra Club Cool Cities Program. read more

Charlotte’s Foxx to sign climate agreement

I’m proud to be joining newly-elected Mayor Anthony Foxx tomorrow as he signs the US Conference of Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement. Charlotte will join over 1000 U.S. cites and communities in committing to becoming a cleaner, greener and more sustainable city by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

I’m practicing my remarks now and hope to have photos to share after the event tomorrow!

What Matters Now: get the free ebook

It’s like hitting a TED conference, with 3 minute reads talks rather than 20 minute talks.

Same quality of authorship [Dan Pink, Karen Armstrong, Seth Godin, Tom Peters, Chris Anderson (Wired's, not TED's Chris), and many, many others]; much more accessible for most of us. Oh, and it’s free.

Here are more than seventy big thinkers, each sharing an idea for you to think about as we head into the new year.

via Seth’s Blog: What Matters Now: get the free ebook.

The pen is mightier than the calculator

Photo via CC License from Flickr user Robert S. Donovan

The percentage of Americans who believe in global warming continues to decline, after reaching a peak of 75 percent in 2001. Since 2007, when 71 percent of Americans believed in global warming, the percentage has taken a precipitous fall, to just 51 percent, according to a recent Harris Interactive poll.

via ecoAmerica/Blog: Just 51% of Americans Believe in Global Warming, Down from 71% in 2007.

This is, of course, because people don’t really make decisions based on science and facts. “Data-driven decision-making” sounds great and makes sense. But the reason consultants talk about it so much is because so few people actually make data-driven decisions. Instead, people make decisions based on feelings and gut reactions and then rationalize their decisions using the “facts” that support their feelings. Why? Because every fact has some kind of counter fact — or counter “fact.” Feelings are intangible and not subject to being countered in the same.

Scientists: 2000 studies point to man made climate change.

Skeptic: Well, two showed something else. Plus, it was cool that one week in June. So, I don’t believe you.

Now, if we really made data-driven decisions, the 2000 bits of data would far outweigh the two bits. But we don’t. That’s why lotteries exist.

Lottery ad (the tiny, tiny print): Odds of winning approximately 299,000,000 to 1.

Lottery ticket buyer: So you’re saying I have a chance? I’ll buy three tickets. Now I have THREE chances!

We need a better story not better science.

This post reposted on TopicsThreeSticks.com.

One in a Billion

I recently ran a google search of “green living tips.” It returned “about 68,900,000″ results. And of course, you know what they are:

• Change your lightbulbs to CFLs or LEDs
• Caulk  your windows
• Inflate your tires
• Use a programmable thermostat and turn down your heat (ours is set to 58 F in winter, but down to 66 F would be plenty)
• Wrap your water heater in a blanket
• Buy local produce and eat seasonally
• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (and here’s a way to do that you may not be aware of — and one I really like!)
• Blah. Blah. Blah.

Will doing all those things save you some money? Almost certainly. Will they make you feel better about yourself? Probably. Will they save the planet? No. read more

Non-Linear Problems Require Non-Linear Solutions

Dr. David Orr, Environmental Science Professor at Oberlin College, gave s series of lectures recently in Charlotte. In some ways, it was more of the same — think Al Gore without the I-Shoulda-Been-Your-President animosity. But Orr particularly resonated with his audience when he described our environment and the threats of climate change using the mathematical concept of a “nonlinear system.”

Now, I realize that doesn’t exactly scream excitement, but stay with me while I explain. In a linear system, 2+2 = 4. That is, a linear system is made up of the combination of the individual elements of that system. Conversely, in a nonlinear system, the output is not proportional to its input. Therefore, in a nonlinear system 2+2 MAY equal 4 or 22 or 7 or something else entirely. read more

Al Gore is wrong (for me), Part II: Investing in a bright green future

In the previous installment of this multi-part essay, I suggested that we focus our environmental attention on hope rather than fear. I argued that Americans are drawn to possibility rather than pessimism and that our individual dealings with climate change should reflect that reality. And of course, I’m not alone in thinking that. In fact, there is a growing cadre of new environmentalists promoting the same bright green future I favor.

Michael Shellenberger and Ted Nordhaus, recent authors of Break Through, are two such men. The two reached a level of fame — well, actually, infamy — among old guard environmentalists when they published the thought-provoking essay, “The Death of Environmentalism,” back in 2004.

That original essay argued persuasively that the traditional environmentalists’ decision to brand the environment as a special interest — as a “thing” — that must be protected by legislative policy (i.e., “the politics of ‘no’”) has backfired. And despite this backfiring, the movement hasn’t changed its fundamental approach to “saving the environment” in three decades. read more

Patagonia’s transparent fabric makes them who they are

Last fall, Patagonia launched an inconspicuous microsite called the Footprint Chronicles. The purpose of the site is to track the environmental and social impact of a handful of the company’s retail apparel offerings. Good and bad. I love it. And I’m excited to hear that Patagonia plans on tracking another 10 products on the site this year.

Of course, Patagonia isn’t alone in its concern over its impact on the environment. Timberland, in a similar move, unveiled a ranking system last year for its leather walking shoes and clogs that suggests how “eco-friendly” the shoes are. Timberland believes (rightly, I think) that environmentally-conscious shoppers will be 1) more likely to buy shoes they know have been made and delivered mindfully and 2) more loyal to companies that endeavor to be transparent by providing this kind of information for the customers who want it.

To be sure, Timberland is acting for both environmental and economic reasons. But I don’t care if it’s a 50/50 split or 95% driven by economic factors. As long as the company is making a good faith effort to be honest and transparent and mindful about its selection of materials and in its production and delivery practices (and I have no reason to believe they aren’t), why should it matter? I applaud them for doing it and refuse to take the bait to look for the cynicism behind their efforts. Good for Timberland. read more

Al Gore is Wrong (for me)

Part I: Breaking up is hard to do

I’m sure many of you saw the documentary “An Inconvenient Truth” (“AIT”) — or are at least aware of the film. For many people, the film was eye opening at minimum and in some cases even life changing. At the very least, AIT was responsible for adding Climate Change to the public conversation around the warming globe.

Many of you also may know that we developed the official classroom curriculum for the DVD release of the film last fall. Topics Education, my firm, created a series of activities for high school classrooms that simultaneously met teacher needs and offered the content to students in a way that both entertained and educated them. This project was tremendously successful in just about every possible measure.

The program won two national awards, including one for best science curriculum, and some 60,000 teachers in the U.S. registered to download the free materials, reaching some 6 million students across the country — from sea to shining sea. AIT in the Classroom was a homerun. A grand slam. read more