On October 5th, president Obama sign executive order 13514,  Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance –which directs each Federal agency to set a target to reduce its direct and indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.  The order requires a comprehensive inventory of agency greenhouse gas emissions and requires agencies to: Submit annual Strategic Sustainability Performance Plans to prioritize agency actions based on lifecycle return ...

On October 23rd the Pew Research Center reported that 35% of Americans see climate change as a serious problem, down from about 44% in April 2008.  This trend was seen in other polls as well.  What's with this national change of heart?   Below are four possible explanations: In previous polls things were perhaps a little rosier in general.  The specter of climate change therefore appeared to be a large problem ...

Carbon Offsets: The story of how I went from skeptic to supporter and then part owner of Big Tree Climate Fund, purveyors of Fair Carbon™. Few things have been more maligned, more debated and scrutinized in this era of blooming green than the Carbon Offset. Some say they are, after all, akin to an indulgence, they don’t solve any problems directly and they are a method of deferral. But are they? I have come to see ...

We get asked all the time, "why should my company do this? What benefits can we expect to gain by measuring and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and becoming more sustainable?" Below is an ever growing collection of articles that speak to those questions. http://www.environmentalleader.com/2009/06/09/sustainability-initiatives-cut-costs-by-6-10/ Sustainability Initiatives Cut Costs by 6-10% Why Being a Green Laggard is Bad for Business http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2009/06/02/green-laggard-bad-business Consumers Still Buying Green Through Economic Changes http://www.greenbiz.com/news/2009/02/09/consumers-buying-green The Climate Group: Carbon Down / Profits Up (pdf doc) http://www.theclimategroup.org/assets/resources/cdpu_newedition.pdf 82 Percent of Consumers Buy Green, Despite ...

GMO Sugar Beets on Boulder County Open Space   Living in Boulder, it surprised me to no end when I learned from a colleague that Boulder was considering allowing genetically modified (GMO) Monsanto Round-Up Ready™ sugar beets to be cultivated on Boulder Open Space and that there was to be a public hearing on the matter.  Surely there must be a mass uprising in the works, surely all manner of “greenies” would emerge and march ...

Here is a brief overview of some the basic principles of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES): The last few weeks have seen the first debates on the latest draft of the potential US climate legislation.  It was unveiled last month, discussed, taken back behind closed doors for further mark-ups, and has recently reemerged. The bill uses a market-based approach to curb greenhouse gas emissions called "Cap and Trade".  This is an alternative to a straight-up tax on the pollution. ...

Increasing the amount of renewable energy in our electricity generation mix has widely been touted as one of the most important things we can do to help prevent further climate change.  Beyond the benefits to climate, it will also provide the ancillary benefits of stimulating the national economy, increasing energy independence, and helping to insulate us from volatile fossil fuel prices.  It certainly seems to be a win/win/win situation and it is, after we get over a some major ...

Climate Change. It's nothing new, “global warming” or “climate change” as it is now fashionably called, is happening and we are along for the ride.  For those not aware of how or why this is happening a quick review: Greenhouse gases are responsible for climate change.  These are gases that trap the heat from the sun within the atmosphere rather than letting it bounce off into space.  This has been important to our planet for without the greenhouse effect the ...

Our Carbon footprints are not the only footprints we need to worry about.  More than ever we need to be aware of how much water we use and how to efficiently use this precious resource.  Unfortunately, climate change is only going to exacerbate this issue as local weather patterns change and as dry areas get even drier.  This is forecasted to be a real issue, especially in areas like the already arid American west. Take a look at the diagram below ...

Have any of you ever tried to print eco-stickers?  That is, stickers that are ecologically friendly but that can still withstand the elements.   Now there is the rub...  durable vs eco-friendly.  One characteristic of eco-friendly is biodegradable, right?  Well, most people don't want their bumper sticker biodegrading on the back of their car.  So what do you do?  Well, Big Tree needed to print up some new stickers so we looked at some of the options.