Texas
Carbon taxation in any form will probably never make it in Texas. It’s a red state that likes its independence, especially when a Democrat presides in Washington. Historically, its residents have...
View ArticleNIMBY: Wind vs. Fossil Fuels
Last week I focused on Texas. In spite of its strong inclination toward state autonomy, reluctance to implement new taxes, and its heavy dependence on fossil fuels, it is playing a vital role in the...
View ArticleNIMBY as a Business Strategy
The June 9, 2015 blog focused on traditional NIMBY arguments in the context of attitudes toward wind farms. The main issue I raised was that if we are making the statement that we object to wind farms...
View ArticleThe Drop in Oil Price and What it Means
The test of any major transition is in its response to a sharp perturbation. Often such disturbances come in the form of a major war. Fortunately, the present global energy transition is being tested...
View ArticleChina – The Price of Progress: Inequality and Transparency
While I was in China (see last week’s blog), one of the questions that I asked most often – especially of those who mentioned that they have small children – was how people imagine China 20 years from...
View ArticleChina – How Many Cars Can a City Handle?
Right now, China has the largest global market for new cars. According to the last count by the International Organization of Motor Vehicles Manufacturers, there are 833 million light vehicles...
View ArticleCars in China – Cap and Pay
Last week’s blog ended with the following promise: “… a few of the largest cities in China are now taking drastic steps to limit car ownership – a fact that I was completely unaware of until my visit.”...
View ArticlePope Francis and the Golden Rule
On September 24th, Pope Francis delivered a message to a joint session of the American Congress (September 29, 2015 blog). He anchored his message on the Golden Rule, “Do unto others as you would have...
View ArticleThe Extended Golden Rule
Last week I looked at how Pope Francis used the Golden Rule “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Mt 7:12) as an anchor for his call for global change. I ended with an attempt to …...
View ArticleWorking for a Better Future
The 2016 presidential election campaign is heating up in the US and it seems to me that the widely accepted degree of cynicism about politicians is reaching new heights. In fact, it has already reached...
View ArticleChina – Cap and Trade With Babies?
Last week I started discussing the upcoming COP21 conference in Paris. I talked about the Earth Summit, which sanctioned the IPCCC, and included the near term commitments from the 10 most carbon...
View ArticleParis: Measurements for the Future
Last week I evaluated the commitments that various countries have made in preparation for the COP21 meeting that is scheduled for the end of this month. Specifically, I looked at the difficulty in...
View ArticleParis – The Beginning
Figure 1 – New windmill being installed on the Champs-Élysées in Paris (Photo by Patrick Kovarik/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images) This blog will be posted one day after the scheduled opening of...
View ArticleCOP21 – We Have an Agreement!!!!
This is going to be a long blog and to top it off, I’m posting it a day early. I often write these posts mid-week; this time, I waited to start writing it until the final resolution came out in …...
View ArticleCOP21- Anticipations
The COP21 meeting is over, as is my student’s final exam, 60% of which depended on an evaluation of the conference. What’s next for my students and the world at large? My class material for next...
View ArticleAssessment: Shenzhen’s Mudslide and a Prognosis for the Planet?
Figure 1– Shenzhen Mudslide New Year’s Eve is around the corner, which makes this a great time to reflect on the last three months and follow up on my Fall Assessment (September 22, 2015). As far as...
View ArticleA Redefinition of Sustainability: The Unilever Case
The 1987 United Nations’ Brundtland Report (World Commission on Environment and Development) was the first platform to articulate the idea of “sustainable development” to a wide audience. The Report...
View ArticleCOP21: Industry Commitments to Sustainability and Using Consumer Pressure to...
Last week’s blog looked at Unilever’s CEO’s attempts to make his company sustainable. Unilever is not alone in promising to be more environmentally friendly in the long term. One of the less discussed...
View ArticleRegulating Subsidies
The figure above shows the price of Brent crude oil as recorded at the end 2014, along with predictions by two respected financial organizations and the futures market for this past year. The real...
View ArticleState Destruction and the Cuban Embargo
My small series of blogs regarding Cuba cannot possibly have a global impact on these issues, so what am I doing writing it? In last week’s blog I warned about the dangers of a country (or group of...
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