In The News

A Hawkeyed Addition to Canada's Arctic Arsenal

Paul Taylor December 11, 2007
A Canadian satellite – Radarsat-2 – will monitor the Arctic and Antarctic and help defend Canada’s territorial claims in the Arctic, reports Paul Taylor in the Globe & Mail. Canada has had a similar satellite in orbit since 1995, which monitors the progress of melting polar ice, oil spills and agricultural growth. Research based on the satellite’s images contributed to Canada becoming a...

How to Save Mother Earth Without Breaking the Bank

Marc Gunther December 4, 2007
By acting quickly, the US could cap greenhouse gas emissions with little sacrifice. Businesses and consumers must shift to using energy-efficient and pollution-reducing measures, suggests Marc Gunther for Fortune magazine, while alternative energy sources and innovation would also contribute to reductions. The strategy will work only if the society puts in a collective effort, according to the...

Bali Climate Change Conference: “We Have Very Little Time to Act”

Patrick McGroarty December 3, 2007
As evidence of climate change is increasingly accepted, the need to counter the phenomenon becomes more pressing. The Kyoto Protocol has been in effect since early 2005, and yet less than 800 million out of the world’s 6.6 billion people live in countries that have agreed to reduce emissions. Since then, carbon emissions continue to climb and deforestation has intensified. Without the support of...

The Battle of Beijing

Moisés Naím November 26, 2007
China is intent on using the 2008 Olympics as a stage to display the strength of its culture, organized political system and rising economic power. Activists on a range of issues, particularly human rights, are equally earnest, planning to use the Olympics as a platform for exposing flaws of China’s one-party authoritarian regime. State-of-the-art technology common among tourists – including cell...

How Not to Repeat the Mistakes of the Kyoto Protocol

Scott Barrett November 14, 2007
Most countries recognize the need for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. But for any climate treaty to succeed at reducing emissions, all countries – especially the big emitters – must participate. Otherwise, trade leakage will result, as emitting industries concentrate in the nations with the fewest restrictions. For such reasons, the Kyoto Protocol to the UN Framework Convention on...

Vive La Vélorution

Manfred Dworschak November 13, 2007
Confronting astronomical gas costs and clogged city arteries, urban residents find a new way to get around. In exchange for little to no fee, they can temporarily rent a bicycle from stations scattered throughout the city and leave them at the destination. The system is wildly popular: For the rental program's first three months in Paris, Vélib provided more than six million rides. Cities...

The Future Is Drying Up

Jon Gertner November 6, 2007
Populations continue to flock to the US West, despite shrinking water reserves. This dynamic, combined with falling water levels in lakes and diminishing flows in rivers, leaves cities and states scrambling to find innovative ways to secure freshwater. Constructing a pipeline goes quickly, but water security rests on the uncertainty surrounding prolonged droughts and the effects of climate change...