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Top 10 Green Trends of 2011 from TIME Magazine
Posted by: | CommentsWelcome back to the Planet Forward blog, we’re a couple of weeks into the New Year and we thought we’d take a look back at the top 10 green trends in 2011. TIME Magazine published a list of their top 10 green trends of 2011 and you’ll be surprised by some of them. The topics are diverse ranging from electric vehicles to increased nuclear fears to fracking.
TIME Magazine’s top 10 green trends in 2011:
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant after earthquake and tsunami March 14, 2011 (photo credit: reuters.com)
1. The Return of Nuclear Fears
On March 11, a colossal earthquake and tsunami hit northern Japan. In the worst atomic meltdown since Chernobyl, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex was severely damaged by the disaster which eventually caused a meltdown. There’s still research underway to determine the long-term effects of the Fukushima disaster, but reaction in the nuclear industry was quick as Germany and Japan announced drastic reductions in atomic power.
2. Climate-Change Skepticism
Back in 2008, Republican presidential candidate John McCain believed in global warming and had a plan to reduce carbon emissions and increase renewable energy. “Today it’s easier to find an iceberg in the Sahara than it is to find a major Republican candidate who believes in climate science. As a result, climate change has become one more politically polarized issue — which means any national action from the U.S. has become virtually impossible.”
3. Fighting Old-Fashioned Air Pollution
The fight against air pollution continues and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has implemented mandated change. The EPA established “new rules for power plants and industrial facilities that will reduce smog and air pollution and improve public health.”
4. Going Local
It’s not just about shopping locally sourced foods and products; it’s about local government’s taking action to combat climate change while recognizing that federal governments move at a snail’s pace. For example, “California enacted an ambitious cap-and-trade program that will mandate greenhouse-gas reductions, despite political opposition. Cities like New York and Portland, Ore., continued to press on with plans to increase energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions.”
5. NIMBYism
NIMBYism which means “not in my backyard,” includes greens fighting against development. The biggest victory came for NIMBYism when they pushed Obama to postpone the Keystone XL pipeline. The Keystone XL pipeline was planned across the Midwest US and would have brought crude from Canadian oil-sands. Most activists and environmentalists honed in on the carbon risk of the oil sands, but it was the ordinary folks in Nebraska who were concerned about the risk of a local oil spill where the pipeline was planned to cross. I’m sure everyone saw the media coverage on the numerous protests that occurred.
6. Electric Vehicles Go Commercial
In 2011, the Nissan Leaf and GM’s Volt began selling their electric vehicles to eco-conscious drivers. The number of drivers is still small at less than 10,000 of each model and the Volt has come under fire (literally) for safety as a result of battery fires that can occur during collision. However, we certainly hope that the trend will continue towards more electric vehicle options from car manufacturers so they become the norm on the road, not the exception. Drivers at large have to recognize that to help combat climate change, we have to reduce our dependency on oil and fossil fuels.
7. The Fight over Fracking
What the frack? “Environmentalists have serious concerns about the risk of water pollution associated with hydrofracking — and many of the people who’ve leased their land for drilling are having second thoughts. As a result, fracking has become the hottest environmental issue in the U.S. — much more so than climate change — and there’s a real possibility that the expansion of gas drilling could be blocked in states like New York. The U.S. could be entering a golden age of gas, but only if it can figure out the environmental challenges.”
8. Greens Sour on Obama
Obama’s recent moves to postpone the Keystone XL pipeline and improve gas mileage have helped, but environmentalists are still disappointed with his progress over the past 4 years. “After eight years of the climate skeptic George W. Bush, Obama represented himself as someone who believed in science, who was willing to make the U.S. a leader in the battle against global warming. He promised cap and trade and drafted the greenest Cabinet in U.S. history, with luminaries like Energy Secretary (and Nobel Prize–winning physicist) Steven Chu. But less than a year before the 2012 election, many greens have soured on Obama. He’s blamed for not putting enough energy behind the push for cap and trade, which finally died in the Senate last year. He’s accused of kowtowing to polluters, watering down regulations on smog and other air pollutants.” I don’t think this bodes well for green support for Obama in the 2012 election.
9. The Solyndra Mess
It’s not uncommon for companies to go bankrupt especially with the current state of the economy, but all hell broke loose when solar panel manufacturer Solyndra declared bankruptcy in September 2011. Why? Well, not only were there 1,000 employees now out of work but Solyndra received $500 million in government loan guarantees. Did Solyndra waste they money? “Not exactly. The loan-guarantee program was going to be risky — support for insurgent technologies always is. And recent reviews of the Department of Energy’s loan programs have shown little waste. But Republicans seized on Solyndra as evidence that renewable energy wasn’t worth government support — and they’ve kept the issue in the headlines ever since. Expect to hear about the “Solyndra scandal” a lot between now and November.”
10. The Billion-Dollar Disasters
With 14 separate natural disasters costing $1 billion-plus, the US hit an all-time record in 2011. Although scientists continue to struggle with the connection between climate change and extreme weather, there’s no question that the hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, floods and droughts suffered were warning signs. What does the future hold and how many billion-dollar disasters will the public have to cope with in the future?
And that’s it for TIME’s list of the top 10 green trends in 2011. Quite frankly, a little depressing. What do you think the green trends will be in 2012?
January 18, 2012
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Welcome back to the Planet Forward blog for another edition of our weekly green news highlights. This week: the EPA maps out the worst greenhouse gas emitters; 15 resolutions for a greener New Year; and 8 steps to a healthy home: the key for a healthy body and planet. Just click on the links to learn more.
EPA Greenhouse Gas Emissions Image Credit: epa.gov
The EPA maps the worst greenhouse gas offenders in the US. The EPA has developed an interactive map to help you understand who the major greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters are in the USA. “EPA’s online data publication tool allows users to review information quickly and easily by filtering GHG data in a variety of ways including by facility, industry, location, or gas. The tool displays data in two distinct sections: “Direct emitters” are facilities that combust fuels or otherwise put GHGs into the atmosphere directly from their facility. This data is the default view for the tool. “Suppliers” are those entities that supply certain fossil fuels or fluorinated gases into the economy which, when combusted, released or oxidized emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. This data may be found by accessing the suppliers section of the publication tool.”
15 Resolutions for a Greener New Year. There are lots of zero cost green resolutions on the list from the Daily Green created by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Green basics like recycling, using reusable bags over plastic, and banning bottled water in favour of reusable bottles and good old fashion tap water make for excellent resolutions that are also easy to implement. One resolution that I immediately followed up on for my own household was to stop receiving those unwanted catalogues, which I seem to unintentionally stockpile and then eventually recycle. 19 billion catalogues are mailed in the US annually which requires 53 million trees to produce, not to mention the carbon footprint to deliver it to your mailbox. It’s time to get off those mailing lists sending you catalogues you aren’t even looking at. Besides, what’s in the catalogue is also available online which is a much greener way to shop anyway.
8 Steps to a Healthy Home: The Key for a Healthy Body and Planet. This article from the Huffington Post is a nice compliment to the green resolutions from the NRDC. Again, simple green tips for a healthy planet and healthier you. In fact, some of the steps suggested are also on the green resolution list like avoiding toxic chemicals and green cleaning with vinegar and baking soda instead; or eliminating bottled water with tap water and reusable bottles; or simply buying local and organic.
Got any green resolutions of your own? Sound off in the comments. Stay tuned for more green news.
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Planet Forward is an online retailer of ethically-made, earth-friendly products designed for everyday use with a distinctly urban feel. Products include reusable stainless steel bottles, stainless steel thermal travel mugs, waste-free lunch bags, reusable shopping bags, Make-it-Yourself toxin-free Green Cleaning kits, organic fashions and other accessories. SALE 50% OFF ALL PRODUCTS – SHOP NOW !
Lights out to support Earth Hour 2011
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This Saturday, March 26 at 8:30pm, the global community turns their lights off for Earth Hour 2011. Earth Hour started in 2007 in the beautiful Sydney, Australia by the WWF-Australia (World Wildlife Fund) and it has evolved to become a worldwide movement to raise awareness about climate change and the threat from rising greenhouse gas emissions. Basically, for the hour, countries participating around the world are lights out. This includes numerous iconic landmarks and monuments like the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the Colosseum in Rome, the CN Tower in Toronto, Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, and the National Stadium (Bird’s Nest) in Beijing. For Earth Hour 2011, well over 1 billion people will demonstrate their solidarity and support to this global initiative.
Since it all began in 2007 in Sydney, the growth is remarkable. Here is an Earth Hour time capsule:
Earth Hour 2007 – It all begins in Sydney, Australia
“WWF-Australia, in partnership with advertising agency Leo Burnett and Fairfax Media, initiated the first ever Earth Hour. The idea was to make a bold symbolic statement about the critical issue of climate change and to engage Australians in taking action. Approximately 2.2 million people and 2,100 businesses in Sydney took part in this first year, switching off their lights in a clear signal to government and industry that there’s a demand and a need for change.” (earthhour.org.au)
Earth Hour 2008 – Earth hour becomes a global sustainability movement with over 35 countries and 50 million people participating by turning off their lights.
Las Vegas before Earth Hour 2010
Earth Hour 2009 – Hundreds of millions of people in over 4000 cities in 88 countries pledged their support by switching off to support the planet. This officially made Earth Hour 2009 the world’s largest global climate change initiative.
Earth Hour 2010 – Earth Hour 2010 was supported by 1.3 billion people worldwide. A record 128 countries and territories united making it the largest voluntary action ever observed. The long-term health of our planet can symbolize world unity as participation continues to grow from Asia to Africa to the Americas.
Las Vegas during Earth Hour 2010
Earth Hour 2011 – On March 26 at 8:30pm you can show your support for the planet by the simple task of turning off your lights for one hour. A voluntary one hour blackout. Easy, right?
Can’t visualize the impact? Check out the pictures of the Las Vegas Strip (the city of lights) during Earth Hour 2010.
Living in Ontario, Canada, I wanted to learn if we’re living up to our friendly Canadian image by acting environmentally friendly. I was pleased to discover that over half of the Canadian adult population participated in Earth Hour 2010. Even my local energy supplier reported at 9.1% reduction during Earth Hour 2010.
Earth Hour uses the simple action of turning off the lights for one hour to deliver a powerful message about the need for action on climate change. It’s a call to action and the action is simple – you have the ‘power’ to make it happen. Join the fight against global warming. On March 26th at 8:30pm, pledge your support to Earth Hour 2011 and turn off your lights for one hour.
Take inspiration from these words in the WWF ads endorsing Earth Hour 2011 (watch the ad on youtube below).
In only 3 years
What started as a simple act in one country
Has become a global call to action
On climate change
By over 1 billion people worldwide
Switch off your lights and join the movement
Towards clean energy
