Most conversations about the carbon footprint of a building focus on the activities that go on inside the completed construction. The HVAC system and lighting, for example, contribute to the building’s operational carbon footprint. But there is an additional type of carbon emissions to consider: embodied carbon, which can account for as much as half its lifetime environmental impact. Like […]
Algenesis is two companies in one, a biotechnology innovator and footwear maker. Making a new, sustainable material often requires the inventor to prove its utility before big companies will embrace it. Join the conversation for a story of discovery and finding a practical application to prove the value of a plant-based, compostable bioplastic foam. Stephen Mayfield, a professor of Biology […]
A pro-nuclear demonstration in Berlin, Germany. Photo credit: Reuters / Nadja Wohlleben. By Anders Lorenzen It has been on the cards for a long time and earlier this month it became official – Germany’s nuclear phase-out is complete. The decision to close down this low-carbon source of energy comes at a time when energy security and the climate crisis are […]
To truly tackle the problem of plastic pollution, we need the involvement of industry. Companies need to dramatically minimize plastic use and source more sustainable materials in their packaging. And American clothing company prAna is doing just that with its Responsible Packaging Movement. Plastic pollution has become one of the most urgent environmental issues throughout the world. Yet despite growing […]
The fashion and textile industry is a poster child for unsustainable practices. Fast fashion is a big part of the problem. However clothing manufacturing has significant environmental impacts at each step in the supply chain. Those supply chains are shockingly opaque – many brands have no idea how or where their clothes are made. As the industry starts to receive […]
Is your municipal water safe to drink but you’re still buying bottled water? Consider this: If you drink only bottled water, you’re probably spending around $1,000 per year on drinking water alone. Compare that to $1, which is about the amount you’ll spend for the same amount of tap water. Source: What’s Wrong With Bottled Water Print or share We Earthling […]
“Thousands of sea lamprey are passed upstream [on the Connecticut River] each year. This is a predator that wiped out the Great Lakes lake-trout fishery. [Lampreys] literally suck the life out of their host fish, namely small-scale fish such as trout and salmon. The fish ladders ought to be used to diminish the lamprey.” So editorialized the Lawrence (Massachusetts) Eagle-Tribune […]
Sometimes it seems like the only environmental news is bad news, and we never actually make any progress. Governments tend to favor short-term industrial interests over environmental legislation. Getting nations to agree to the type of global treaties necessary for real environmental progress is a Herculean task. It also doesn’t help that the United States is notorious for refusing to […]
Carbon removal strategies will play an essential role in drawing down CO2 levels. A carbon removal industry is developing that includes natural options like planting trees and restoring prairies and wetlands, pulling CO2 from the atmosphere with Direct Air Capture, and various technical approaches that engineer changes in the environment or rely on injecting CO2 into deep geological structures. But […]