ALSO POSTED BY: Huffington Post 15 May 2011 A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for. – William G.T. Shedd Here is a trick question: Now that the 2012 election campaign has begun, should you vote Republican or Democrat? The correct answer: Neither of the above. In this election, maybe more than ever, it should be courage that counts, not party affiliation. It’s the tough issues in tough times that are the best tests of courage — and right now, few issues are tougher in American politics than confronting global climate change. It requires that...
14 May 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
Big Oil's Political Ploy
ALSO POSTED BY: Huffington Post & Think Progress 13 May 2011 ALSO POSTED BY: Huffington Post 13 May 2011 Whatever else we might say about Big Oil in the United States, we have to give the industry credit for one thing: It has mastered the art of scamming us with a perfectly straight face. The scam has been underway for decades. This year’s example is the debate about repealing $21 billion in federal subsidies for big oil companies over the next decade. To their credit, President Obama and several Democrats in Congress are pushing the idea. Oil executives have launched a...
06 May 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
Defending the Atmosphere, Part 2
ALSO POSTED BY: Huffington Post & Think Progress 5 May 2011 In response to a lawsuit that argues greenhouse gas emissions are a “public nuisance”, three of Congress’s most active opponents of responsible climate policy filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court last February. Rep. Fred Upton, Rep. Ed Whitfield and Sen. James Inhofe told the Justices it is inappropriate and unnecessary for courts to get involved in America’s climate policy. [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] Upton chairs the House Committee...
05 May 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
Defending the Atmosphere, Part 1
ALSO POSTED BY: Huffington Post & Think Progress 4 May 2011 Last February, three Republican leaders in Congress filed a brief in the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that when it comes to global climate change, judges and Justices should mind their own business. The courts are about to get a different message. Starting on May 4, young people in the United States and several other countries will file petitions and lawsuits in an effort to force public officials into protecting us all from climate change. The international legal intervention – the sponsors call it guerrilla law – is believed to be...
30 April 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
30 April 2011 | Longmont, CO | The Designers Accord Sustainability in 7 Series
The Designers Accord Sustainability in 7 video series delivered a daily dose of design inspiration by today’s leading sustainability experts. Join in the conversation as they share 7 things every designer should consider when integrating sustainability into design practice. Hunter Lovins’ video from her Ranch in Longmont, CO: Thoughtful (and thought-provoking) videos from 17 of 2011s most respected sustainability experts. Learned that “by design” starts with value thinking from William McDonough, the realities of sustainable business from Hunter Lovins and Lisa Gansky, that diversity creates resilience from Nathan Shedroff and that each of us should look to nature for design solutions from Janine Benyus. Each...
28 April 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
"Point of View" by Martin C. Pederson
MetropolisMag (by Martin C. Pederson) 27 April 2011 For our 30th anniversary issue, I interviewed three pioneers in the green building movement: Bill McDonough, USGBC President and CEO Rick Fedrizzi, and Hunter Lovins. It turns out all three of them share a common approach to environmentalism. They engage with business, rather than confront it. I’d call it second (or maybe third) wave activism. And no one has been at it longer than Lovins, who in 1982 co-founded (with Amory Lovins, her ex-husband) the Rocky Mountain Institute. Today Lovins serves as executive director of Natural Capitalist Solutions, a non-profit dedicated to helping businesses,...
26 April 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
Sucking it up …
Dunno how much longer I can do this…. Nashville’s in my taillights, but at this rate it’s not clear that I’ll make Colorado. Our little Embraer jet’s slamming through the sorts of clouds that eat airplanes. Somewhere over Oklahoma. Can only imagine the violence below. This is the sort of day that makes one wonder if it’s worth it – this life of going down the road. I’m tired. It’s been a grueling run. Then the plane was two hours late into Nashville cause storms wracked Chicago. Where I was two days ago. After New York and DC in the...
19 April 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
Seizing the Smart Energy Opportunity
GreenBiz.com 18 April 2011 [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][GreenBiz Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of excerpts from “Climate Capitalism: Capitalism in the Age of Climate Change,” by L. Hunter Lovins and Boyd Cohen, just published by Hill and Wang.The first excerpt can be found here.] Investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy will generate jobs and help build strong companies, communities, and countries. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley concluded, “All states of the union stand to...
16 April 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
The Book is Launched
It’s a thrill to launch a book, and standing room only at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco is not a bad way to do it. That’s the honor that a lively audience gave me Tuesday. With my dear friend Joel Makower, editor of GreenBiz, presiding, Climate Capitalism made its formal debut to sustainability thought leaders like Gil Friend, public servants like Jay Eickenhorst, former Presidio students (and enduring friends), my Madrone colleagues and the bright membership of the Club. Joel introduced me to describe the book’s thesis: Believe in climate change or don’t – it really doesn’t matter if...
12 April 2011January 29, 2019Natural Capitalism Solutions
Principles of Climate Capitalism
GreenBiz.com 11 April 2011 [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][GreenBiz Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of excerpts from “Climate Capitalism: Capitalism in the Age of Climate Change,” by L. Hunter Lovins and Boyd Cohen, just published by Hill and Wang.] The CEOs of the companies implementing greater sustainability in their business practices may not recognize it, but they are following the principles set forth a decade ago in this book’s predecessor, Natural Capitalism. These principles have proved to...