In partnership with the Daylife people (who we've written about here), we've created the first "green index". It works a bit like a stock market index, except that instead of tracking stocks, it tracks mentions of certain key green phrases in the media. It's a way to gauge how much mindshare certain concepts have and see if they are gaining or losing ground compared to last week. Not very scientific, but lots of fun!
New keywords can be added to it and if you click on an entry, you can see more details and read recent new stories on that particular topic.
Next is what we call the TreeHugger Green Index "badge". It shows the direction the index is moving this week and will link back to the permanent home of the TreeHugger Green Index. We'll make code available that you can cut & paste in your blog if you want to show the badge and have an easy way to keep track of the green index.
Also, if you have any suggestions, please contact us. Thank you.
Recent Business Related Posts
Climate Researcher Database Hacked
The King of Climate Deniers, Sen. James Inhofe
Email communication has made us efficient--yes--but also short-tempered, imprudent at time, and sloppy. Need proof? Check out emails between climate scientists stored on servers at the University of East Anglia that showed not a plot but perhaps too much information-sharing on climate change between scientists. The server was hacked into and the emails--almost 20 years worth from prominent scientists--showed up on a Russian FTP....
Nature Iraq's 'Second Creation Story' (Video)
Science, Evidence, and the Importance of Action
Image credit: Cedar Consulting
Contradictory science is nothing new within the green movement—from those who claim that solar energy could power the world to those who argue that nuclear power could solve the energy crisis, from those extolling biochar for carbon sequestration and soil improvement to those who say it could destroy the biosphere. In fact, it's in the very nature of science to constantly question, deliberate and reexamine the evidence available, and consequently there are almost always differing opinions and seemingly contradictory studies. But at some point we have to make decisions based on the science we have. At some point we have to act.
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Brush Presidential Library May Get LEED Platinum, But Is It "Dog-Whistle" Architecture?
Although some may assign credit for "W's" Presidential Center Platinum LEED application to the project architect, Robert A.M. Stern, who is simply a following a trend, I'm giving President George W Bush and wife Laura benefit of the doubt. Their design choice goes way beyond legacy building. It sends a 'dog whistle' political message to Republican Party Leaders and candidates, indicating they must live the enviro-life style large before throwing stones in the green house. Good strategy.
Inhabitat coverage has more renderings; so go read Plans for the Green George W. Bush Presidential Center Released if interested. Money quote follows....
COP15 Burnout, Immigration Footprinting & Sarah Palin as Green Marketer
A weekly wrap up of green and socially minded business news from the gang at TriplePundit.com.
How Do You Solve a Problem Like Sarah Palin Wearin' Your Product? - Got a great green company? What happens when Sarah Palin shows up wearing it on the cover of Newsweek? The folks at Icebreaker turn it into a marketing coup.
Avoiding COP15 Burnout with "Expectation Management" - Will the Copenhagen conference be a fizzle without a US commitment? Or will magic happen behind the scenes? Take a breath and manage your expecations with a couple different perspectives.
As Asia Outpaces America in Cleantech, US and China Agree to Cooperation - COP15 may be up in the air, but a partnership on clean technology between the United States and China holds promise for progress elsewhere.
Coca-Cola Rolls Out Plant-Based Recyclable Bottles - It's only 30% bio material and doesn't make much of a dent in the comsumption cycle, but better is better and Coke gets kudos.
California Group Blames Immigrants for Climate Change - And now one for the WTF file. Sure, population increases mean a higher carbon footprint, but does blaming immigrants make any sense? This marketing campaign seems all kinds of unbalanced.
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Split Carbon Costs of Deforestation Between Producers & Consumers to Slow Felling Forests
It's probably no great secret to TreeHugger readers at this point that part of the reason carbon emissions in developing nations are rapidly rising is partially because manufacturing of goods for export to the developed world. In fact in China at least one-third of total emissions and about 50% of emissions growth in recent years is directly tied to goods consumer in Europe and the United States.
So when it comes to counting those emissions, shouldn't the national burden be split up differently? The idea's not novel, but a new paper in Environmental Research Letters (via Mongabay) brings the issue to the fore.
The report authors use the example of Brazil, making the point that Brazil is the world's foremost exporter of both beef and soybeans -- both contributing to varying degrees to the nation's ongoing (if slowing) deforestation -- but the countries which consume these goods don't pay anything for the environmental damage, loss of biodiversity, and soaring carbon emissions caused when agriculture replaces rainforests. ...
U.S. Military Wary About Offshore Wind Power Off Coast of Maryland
Photo: Wikipedia, CC
Maryland Offshore Wind Development
Martin O'Malley, the governor of Maryland, would like to see offshore wind power developed off the cost of his state, but the U.S. military has expressed fears that the turbines could "disrupt flight and weapon test ranges, as well as erroneously appear on radar as unidentifiable aircraft." Three military bases in the region are using that area in the Atlantic for training missions and flight tests....
$36 Billion Rainforest Protection Plan Agreed to by 35 Nations - Now Who Will Pay For It...?
photo: flickrfavorites.
A group of 35 nations have agreed to a plan that aims to reduce global deforestation by 25% by 2015, The Guardian reports. The price tag for it all could run as high as $36 billion over the next five years. Now who will pay for it all?...
Hundreds Speak Out In Support of EPA Global Warming Rule
Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope (left) testifies at the Arlington EPA hearing as API's Howard Feldman looks on.
This week we saw some amazing public action as part of the two Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hearings on its proposed tailoring rule, which we call the "Big Polluters" rule. Right now only a handful of pollution sources, including coal-fired power plants, are responsible for more than half of all of the global warming pollution in the United States. Cleaning these up is a large step towards stopping global warming, so EPA is proposing a new rule to start cleaning up these Big Polluters under the Clean Air Act. By targeting the worst offenders, the Big Polluters rule is an important step that will cut global warming pollution while still helping our economy grow....
Newcastle-upon-Tyne Named Greenest City in the U.K.
Newcastle-upon-Tyne has been named the greenest city in the U.K. in a sustainability audit conducted by Forum for the Future. Photo by Draco2008 via Flickr.com.
Shrouded in smoke and the center of ship building, Newcastle-upon-Tyne was once a major industrial center. But the city has been transformed into the greenest city in Britain in recent years, according to a sustainability audit, The Guardian reports. Newcastle was a bit of a surprise, surpassing cities that typically come to mind when Britons think "green city," such as Bristol and Brighton & Hove, which ranked second and third, respectively.
But perhaps Brits shouldn't have been quite so surprised. ...
Breaking: Hackers Infiltrate World's Leading Climate Research Unit
Image via Menassat
The email system of one of the world's leading climate researchers was just reported to be infiltrated by hackers. Protected information and email messages sent from climate scientists at the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit (CRU) began turning up on public websites today. Why the CRU was targeted is still unclear--though there's speculation that with the global climate meeting in Copenhagen nearing, opponents of climate action may be going so far as to be doing illegal reconnaissance....
Women and Minorities Getting Left Out of Green Job Market, New Study Finds
Photo via Change
If James Brown had been around to witness the rise of the green jobs sector and learned of the news from this recent study, he'd shake his head and say, "It's a man's world. Ow! After all these years and so much progress, even in a sector dedicated towards achieving the noble aim of an emissions-free economy, it appears some prejudices still plague us." Well, he might not have said it exactly like that. But it appears to be the unfortunate truth: women--especially minority women--are getting largely left out of the green job market....
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