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Debt-ridden and sclerotic Japan hasn’t been the go-to example of smart foreign governments since about 1991—that slot is now occupied by China—but there’s one program from Tokyo that the U.S. would be wise to copy. It’s called Top Runner, and it helps explain why Japanese appliances perennially top the table when it comes to energy [...]
It’s that time of year again—and no, I don’t mean International Jugglers Day, or even worse, Newspaper Columnists Day. It’s the annual unveiling of the TIME 100 list, our roundup of the most interesting and influential people in the world. It’s a group that ranges from Presidents to pop stars. It’s triggered a dance off [...]
Every day, the world burns through more than 87 million barrels of oil—and every year, that number gets bigger and bigger. We use oil to power our cars, planes and trucks; our tanks, bombers and rockets. Oil is irreplacable, which is why we remain addicted—even though we hate it. And it’s why the oil industry—represented [...]
When Bill Gates speaks about energy, we should listen. Not just because he’s still one of the richest people in the world, or because he did as much as anyone else living to design the world we live and work in. Rather, listen to Gates on energy because he knows what he’s talking about, linking [...]
I have a brilliant idea that will solve the nation’s energy problem. We need to invest in a massive research program—I mean Apollo Project-sized—to invent a silver bullet. Because all I keep hearing is that we’re all waiting for a silver bullet to solve our energy woes, if only we could find one. Take President [...]
In an era of LEED-certified construction and growing concern for sustainability, it comes as a surprise that constructing new, energy-efficient buildings can be less eco-friendly than renovating old ones. A study by the Preservation Green Lab of the National Trust for Historic Preservation shows building reuse almost always has fewer environmental impacts than new construction—which means we’d [...]
With President Obama’s rejection (for now) of the proposed Keystone XL oil sands pipeline fresh in everyone’s mind—and conservatives and the oil industry already hammering him, even as greens sing his praises—you can be sure that energy issues will play a bigger role than usual in the 2012 election. So it’s worth taking a step [...]
The story around Solyndra—the failed solar company that took hundreds of millions in government loan guarantees—is not getting better for greens. Earlier this week Solyndra CEO Brian Harrison let Congress know through his lawyers that he wouldn’t be answering any questions at a House investigation hearing set forFriday. “Mr. Harrison intends to invoke his Fifth [...]
The watchword for the week at the Clinton Global Initiative‘s (CGI) annual summit in Manhattan this week has been “efficiency.” (It narrowly beats out “traffic,” which is what you’ll be caught in trying to get anywhere in the city for the next few days.) I wrote about an industry consortium led by the Carbon War [...]
It’s ClimateWeek in New York City, which overruns with the annual meeting of the UN General Assembly and the yearly summit of the Clinton Global Initiative. In other words, don’t even try to take a taxi in Manhattan this week. We’ll also see plenty of bold policy announcements and generous philanthropic commitments, along with the [...]
