Climate Change

Even as the world (unsuccessfully) tries to formulate a treaty to get nations to reduce their carbon emissions, researchers indicate it may be too late - the tipping point may have been reached. But what if CO2 could be extracted from the air?

January 8, 2013 - The New York Times - Novelties

This week Lisa Jackson made public her decision to step down as administrator of the EPA. Despite many hard-fought victories, Jackson's tenure is also associated with a lack of significant action to address climate change.

December 28, 2012 - The New York Times

Despite the extreme weather events of the past year, most Americans are still not persuaded that climate change is primarily the result of human activity. Why not?

December 9, 2012 - Michael Lewyn

Dr. James Hansen was awarded the prestigious Stephen H. Schneider climate award at the Commonwealth Club in S.F. on Dec. 4 and chose to trash CA's landmark cap-and-trade program, preferring a 'simple, clean carbon tax'. Gov. Brown was attending.

December 8, 2012 - San Francisco Chronicle

Reflecting on the significance and impact of Superstorm Sandy, Bill McKibben and Lawrence J. Hanley propose a 3-step process focused on mass transit that America should pursue to promote community development, public health and the environment.

December 7, 2012 - The Huffington Post

Two new scientific papers report that global carbon dioxide emissions set a record high in 2011. With no coordinated effort underway to curb them, researchers believe crossing the 2 degree Celsius threshold for the worst impacts may be inevitable.

December 3, 2012 - The New York Times

It's official - for large industrial sources in California, the cost for emitting a ton of carbon dioxide or equivalent is $10.09 - nine cents above the minimum price set by the Air Board. That was the price paid at the first auction on Nov. 14.

November 21, 2012 - San Jose Mercury News

Howard Schneider examines a recent study by the World Bank, issued as a call-to-action for the international community not merely to curb, but to plan for and mitigate the crises that a 4°C rise in global temperatures would bring.

November 20, 2012 - The Washington Post

Confirming an earlier Dept. of Energy report, the International Energy Agency's World Energy Outlook indicates not only that U.S. oil production will surpass Saudi Arabia's by 2020, but that it will be a net exporter by 2030 - thanks to fracking.

November 14, 2012 - Bloomberg News

After years of climate change denial by conservatives and muzzling by liberals, Superstorm Sandy made abundantly clear the economic costs of inaction. Will that be enough to spur political action?

November 10, 2012 - The New York Times

As an increasing percentage of the world's population, and economic assets, confront the threats of climate change, the aftermath of Sandy provides an opportunity for New York to set a global example for building stronger, smarter cities.

November 7, 2012 - New York Daily News

Increasing mileage standards will do little to measurably reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In order to seriously tackle climate change we need to ditch the cars, and the development patterns they encourage, and move to walkable places.

November 6, 2012 - Salon

Justin Davidson argues that New York's ability to adapt to the effects of climate change will rely on the city learning to embrace nature rather than vainly trying to fight it.

November 5, 2012 - New York Magazine

As we've heard recently, many of the places most vulnerable to rising sea levels and extreme weather are in developing countries. Encouragingly, however, Sandy revealed several low-cost solutions to help mitigate the impacts of severe storms.

November 4, 2012 - The New York Times

Cassim Shepard and Varick Shute respond to an exhortation by Governor Cuomo to "build [the New York City area] back smarter" in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, and in the face of changing weather patterns, with some ideas on what that will entail.

November 3, 2012 - Urban Omnibus

NJ's Republican Gov. Chris Christie heaps praise on President Obama, and the governor of the neighboring, hard-hit state, NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has also stirred the political pot by going where no other pol has gone - linking Sandy to climate change.

November 2, 2012 - San Francisco Chronicle

A study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) identified twenty coastal cities, which by population, would be most exposed to flooding and superstorms. Fifteen are mega-cities in Asia.

November 1, 2012 - Channel News Asia

Although still being measured, the damage superstorm Sandy inflicted upon New York was clearly historic. But the stunning conclusion reached by Richard Barone of the Regional Planning Association, is that "[i]t can get a lot worse than this."

October 31, 2012 - Capital

Hurricane Sandy demonstrates that the impacts of climate change -- rising sea levels and more extreme weather patterns -- mean that the future of America's coastal cities is in doubt.

October 30, 2012 - The Nation

The silence on climate change during the presidential debates was deafening. With Hurricane Sandy disrupting the final week of the campaign, Mother Nature is having the last word.

October 30, 2012 - The Political Environment