Stories from RP Siegel
Corporate Responsibility
Lowering the Carbon Footprint of Air Conditioning
A year ago, I wrote a story about Stan Cox’s book Losing Our Cool: Uncomfortable Truths About Our Air-Conditioned World. […]
August 12, 2013
Energy
Shell and BP Halt Opposition to Renewable Fuel Standard
Oil companies don’t like biofuels very much. The reason why is pretty clear. Right now, 10 percent of what would […]
August 6, 2013
Finance
World Bank Steers Clear of Coal
It looks like Big Coal is becoming the latest incarnation of Rodney Dangerfield, the man who famously said, “I don’t […]
July 26, 2013
Voices for Change
Power Africa Aims to Light Up the Dark Continent
In the early days of this country, the wild and undeveloped land to the West of the original thirteen colonies […]
July 19, 2013
Energy
Report: Keystone XL Pipeline Will Raise Gas Prices, Hurt Economy
Consumer Watchdog released a groundbreaking report today that asks and answers the following question: What economic effect will the Keystone […]
July 16, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
GM and Honda Join Forces on Fuel Cell Vehicles
I did not anticipate this, but I’m becoming increasingly convinced that it’s true. Sustainability is changing the face of capitalism. […]
July 10, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
China Now Handing Down Death Penalty to Worst Polluters
Given our heavily business-friendly Congress, members of which believe that the best thing they can do for Americans is to […]
July 3, 2013
Voices for Change
Senators’ Positions on Climate Change Reflect Their Donors' Wishes
Earlier this week, President Obama followed up on the promise he made in his State of the Union Address, to […]
June 28, 2013
Finance
Woody Harrelson’s New Wheat-based Paper Takes Trees Out of the Equation
Woody Harrelson is a well-known actor, seen in both TV and film in roles ranging from Woody the bartender in […]
June 19, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Sierra Club Reviews Plug-in Hybrids
Most people don’t think of Sierra Club as the place to go for information about new technology. After all, the […]
June 18, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Biofuels Taking Off With United Airlines
Last week, United signed an agreement with AltAir Fuels of Seattle to purchase 15 million gallons of biofuel. AltAir has […]
June 12, 2013
Energy
Scientist Using Viruses to Improve Batteries, Solar Cells and Biofuels Wins Major Prize
MIT Materials Scientist Angela Belcher has been doing amazing things for a while now. She was winner of a McArthur […]
June 4, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Poll: 58% of Republicans Still Believe Global Warming is a Hoax
You could say that the American Right is holding the world hostage to their need for greed, especially when it […]
April 25, 2013
Energy
Renewable Fuel Standard Under Attack
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and Iowa Governor Terry Branstad appeared together recently defending the Renewable Fuel Standard from recent […]
April 22, 2013
Technology
Crowdsourcing Solar is a Bright and Powerful Idea
The past few years have been amazing for solar in the U.S. New capacity added in 2012 grew by 76 […]
April 19, 2013
Voices for Change
Why is the American Health Care System So Expensive?
One of the biggest problems plaguing our economy is the high price of health care. Not only do the costs […]
April 16, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Citizen Hansen Continues to Battle Climate Change
Many of us, who are devoted to the idea of facilitating change in the world, find ourselves wondering whether this […]
April 12, 2013
Energy
Media Quiet on Arkansas Spill as Keystone Hangs in the Balance
The silence is almost deafening. As the whole world watches and waits to see if President Obama is going to […]
April 9, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Verizon is Dialing in to Shared Success
Last week, Verizon issued their 2012 Annual Report. For the second year in a row, the company used an integrated […]
April 8, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Why We Need A Price on Carbon
Last week, ThinkProgress posted a video about the price of carbon. The short film featured images of storms, wildfires, droughts, […]
April 3, 2013
Energy
Open Letter to Senator Barbara Mikulski on the “Monsanto Protection” Rider
Dear Senator Mikulski (D-MD) and Other Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, This letter is in regard to your committee’s […]
April 2, 2013
Finance
Annual Income of Bottom 90% Has Grown $59 in 47 Years
Imagine a train, traveling through time, where every year was another station. The sign on the front of the train […]
March 29, 2013
Energy
Grassroots Activism Leads to Fracking Ban in Pristine Canadian Wilderness
It’s not so easy being a giant oil company these days. First, you have half the world angry at you […]
March 28, 2013
Energy
Monsanto Buys the Senate and Democracy Buys the Farm
When the U.S. government was first created, the founding fathers took great pains to distribute power across three branches of […]
March 25, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Methane Hydrates: Energy Salvation or Worst Thing Yet?
Last week, energy researchers in Japan made a dramatic breakthrough that could have huge implications for the entire world’s energy, […]
March 20, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Solar Power to Hit Cost Parity Next Year
They said it couldn’t be done. They tried to tell us that renewable energy could only survive if it were […]
March 18, 2013
Energy
The Oil Leak in the Gulf We’re Not Supposed to Know About
Wait a minute. What’s this about a leak in the Gulf of Mexico? I thought we stopped that leak. You […]
March 13, 2013
Energy
Top Ten Effects of Global Warming on Business
At some point there is a transition from trying to avoid the collision to bracing for the impact. That could […]
March 13, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Tom’s of Maine Takes a Step Towards Quantifying Goodness
Natural products maker Tom’s of Maine just unveiled a new reporting initiative that they are calling their Goodness Report. Tom’s, […]
March 11, 2013
Finance
What is the Best Investment for a Sustainable Future Right Now?
What if your very green Great Uncle Ned passed on to greener pastures, leaving you some money and explicit instructions […]
March 8, 2013
Energy
Shell’s Scenario Planning Depicts Two Long Roads to a Carbon-free Future
Royal Dutch Shell was recently in the news for their decision to pull back on oil exploration in the Arctic, […]
March 7, 2013
Energy
Can Houston Become a Recycling Leader?
For those of us who spend a lot of time thinking about the possibility of a timely transition to a […]
March 5, 2013
Energy
Shell Stops Arctic Oil Drilling – For Now
Royal Dutch Shell , the megalithic energy company announced this week that it was curtailing all Arctic operation for the […]
March 1, 2013
Energy
ALEC Now Looking to Teach Climate Denial in Schools
Well, it looks like the folks at ALEC, the nation’s largest fossil-fuel powered association of state legislators, are at it […]
February 26, 2013
Sponsored
Energy Options: Pros and Cons
The Pros and Cons of Energy Storage Systems
As we begin to move away from fossil fuels, it is important to recognize that those fuels provided two functions […]
February 25, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Shale Energy Bubble Threatens Second Economic Collapse
There has been more than a little celebration as the result of the huge shale gas deposits discovered in Pennsylvania […]
February 22, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
NOAA Starts Crowdsourcing Weather Data
It’s not hard to see how the pace of change is accelerating, considering how much of our world now runs […]
February 20, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Bold New Senate Bill Addresses Climate Change
“Unless we take bold action to reverse climate change, our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren are going to look back on […]
February 18, 2013
Technology
Japan's Smart Cities Charting a Resilient Course
I think it’s pretty obvious to anyone who has visited Japan that the Japanese love technology. And given the recent […]
February 15, 2013
Energy
Southwest Rivers and Budgets are Both Drying Up
We keep hearing about the forthcoming water crisis in the Western states. This is a complicated issue and one in […]
February 12, 2013
Sponsored
The Rise Of The Sharing Economy
RovAir Helps Business Travelers Share Mobile Hotspots
The sharing economy is really an exciting new development that can and will continue to take on many new forms […]
February 11, 2013
Finance
Big Coal Blames Super Bowl Blackout on Renewables
If you were one of the millions of people that watched the Super Bowl last Sunday, then you undoubtedly remember […]
February 8, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Talking Carbon Reduction with GM’s Sustainability Chief
Last week Chevrolet’s Carbon Reduction Initiative announced a major milestone, achieving 7 million metric tons of carbon reduction, as they […]
February 6, 2013
Finance
Changing Tide: P&G Listens to the People
In David Korten’s 1995 classic book, When Corporations Rule the World, he talks about the three-legged stool of people, government, […]
February 4, 2013
Technology
IBM Teaching Schools How to Save Money On Buildings
IBM recently announced three public school initiatives as part of their Smarter Planet program which is now five years old. […]
February 1, 2013
Sponsored
The Rise Of The Sharing Economy
An Inside Look at Wheelz
We would be remiss in writing about the sharing economy without talking about Wheelz. And not just because they, as […]
January 30, 2013
Technology
Hydrokinetics: The Biggest Source of Renewable Energy You Never Heard Of
Renewable energy has certainly made tremendous progress in the past decade. Indeed, most people would acknowledge that it has grown […]
January 30, 2013
Finance
SF Plan to Buy Clean Energy from Dirty Company Stirs Controversy
The path to a sustainable future will surely be filled with detours, wrong turns and dead ends. There will be […]
January 28, 2013
Energy
Cargill Cattle Plant Closes: Global Warming Casualty?
It sounds a bit like justice served, doesn’t it? When Cargill announced the closing of its Plainview, Texas, cattle operation, […]
January 25, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Climate Change Reaching Human and Geophysical Tipping Points
There seems to be some evidence to suggest that as the storm tide swept over the East Coast last fall, […]
January 21, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Cars and Appliances Converge on Household Energy Savings
Okay, I’m looking at Ford’s new energy-saving partnership with Whirlpool. Let me see if I’ve got this straight. If I […]
January 14, 2013
Sponsored
The Rise Of The Sharing Economy
Floow2 Turns Businesses into Sharing Economy Participants
If you think about growing up in a house with your family, chances are you experienced some prototypical version of […]
January 11, 2013
Sponsored
The Rise Of The Sharing Economy
Is the Sharing Economy an Opportunity or a Threat to Existing Businesses?
Manufacturers use the term “excess capacity” to refer to an underutilized asset that is not being fully exploited to create […]
January 7, 2013
Energy
Fiscal Cliff Deal Extends Biofuel Credits
By now the New Year’s fiscal cliff deal has received quite a bit of press. We have already discussed the […]
January 7, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Wind Production Tax Credit Extended in Fiscal Cliff Deal
At least part of the fiscal cliff deal, which people will no doubt be debating for weeks to come, was […]
January 3, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Coal’s Share of World Energy Mix Hits Record High
With the New Year and newly minted, well-intentioned resolutions upon us, I thought it might be a good time to […]
January 2, 2013
Corporate Responsibility
Lisa Jackson Departs EPA
EPA chief Lisa Jackson announced yesterday that she will be leaving her position as head of the Environmental Protection Agency. […]
December 28, 2012
Energy
U.S. to Become World’s Top Oil and Gas Producer by 2017
At one point not long ago, the three issues of climate change, energy independence, and peak oil were being effectively […]
December 27, 2012
Energy
2012 Year End Sustainability Wrap-up
When we look back at 2012 from what we hope will be a sustainable future, what will be the things […]
December 24, 2012
Energy
The Water-Energy Dance (Why Wasting Water Really Means Wasting Energy)
Editor: This article has been submitted for the Masdar blogging contest “Engage: The Water Energy Nexus.” The winner will be invited to Abu Dhabi […]
December 21, 2012
Energy
Skeptic Leaks Latest IPCC Draft Claiming It Overturns Global Warming Theory
Over the past few weeks, we have seen Hurricane Sandy initiate a new high water mark in the level of […]
December 19, 2012
Energy
SunSaluter Purifies Water As It Provides Power
People have been talking a lot lately about the energy-water nexus, the interdependent juxtaposition of two critical resources that we […]
December 17, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Australian Grocery Chains Say No to Factory Bacon and Eggs
Some major news came out this week from our friends Down Under. Two of Australia’s largest grocery chains have pledged […]
December 14, 2012
Finance
The Real Connection Between Taxes and Jobs
The whole world is watching anxiously as the U.S. government goes careening towards the fiscal cliff, where automatic tax hikes […]
December 12, 2012
Energy
Major Pro-Fracking Studies Discredited
There are dark clouds hanging over the streets and fields of this country, clouds filled with dirty money that rains […]
December 10, 2012
Finance
Metabolix Applies Biotech to Plant-Based Economy Development
Continuing the theme of the bio-based economy, I would like to profile Metabolix, a Massachusetts-based company specializing in the production […]
December 7, 2012
Energy
How The Fed's Quantitative Easing Increases World Hunger
Food prices have increased significantly over the past few years. The United Nations (UN) FAO Food Price Index jumped 25 […]
December 5, 2012
Finance
How to Keep Biofuels Sustainable
While the bio-based economy should be more sustainable than the alternative – any good idea can be implemented poorly. I […]
December 3, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Kaiser Permanente Speaks Out Against GMOs
After Dr. Gilles-Eric Séralini came out to blow the whistle on the many corporate scientists in bed with Monsanto, Kaiser […]
November 30, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Humane Society Undercover Investigators Shine A Bright Light on Unsustainable Farming Practices
There is a scene in Robin Cook’s novel Toxin, in which the doctor, whose daughter has died of food poisoning […]
November 28, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
How Biofuels Will Lead Transition to a Sustainable Economy
As we have explored the history and the emerging role of biofuels in the transition to a sustainable economy, we […]
November 26, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
How Sustainable Consumerism Might Change the World
Looking for an alternative? Explore the sharing economy Poking around the web this week, I came across a great article […]
November 22, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Novozymes: Using Sustainability as a Competitive Advantage
Novozymes, the Danish biotech company that is sponsoring this series on biofuels, has long been considered a leader in sustainable […]
November 19, 2012
Technology
Tesla’s All-Electric Model S Wins Coveted Motor Trend Car of the Year
There is something about human nature that responds to a challenge. That’s a good thing and it is something that […]
November 19, 2012
Energy
ALEC Looking to Turn the Clock Back on Renewables
It’s often been said that the best defense is a good offense. So if you are a conservative organization that […]
November 15, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Research Shows Companies Are Losing Sight of the Big Sustainability Picture
A recent research study called 2012 Tomorrow’s Value Research (TVR) by DNV Two Tomorrows found that in their drive for […]
November 13, 2012
Finance
Soros Economic Development Fund Invests in Clean Cookstove Project
A little over a year ago, I wrote a about CleanStar, a multi-faceted, collaborative program in Mozambique that simultaneously addresses […]
November 12, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Suppressed Report Finds Taxes for the Rich Will Not Stifle Growth
With the election now behind us and the onslaught of extremism beaten back, we could be ready for a new […]
November 8, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Hurricane Sandy: It's “Global Warming, Stupid”
It’s not surprising that in the wake of Hurricane Sandy there has been contention over what role climate change played […]
November 6, 2012
Energy
The Role of Biofuels in a Warming World
As part of our series on biofuels, it is important to look at the role that biofuels play in ecosystems […]
November 5, 2012
Voices for Change
The Future of Coal Shows Continued Decline
Corporate responsibility watchdog, As You Sow, just released an update to their 2011 white paper on The Financial Risks of […]
October 30, 2012
Energy
Why Cellulosic Ethanol Depends on a Renewable Fuel Standard
As part of our series on biofuels, I recently spoke with Adam Monroe, President of Novozymes North America. I called […]
October 29, 2012
Energy
Is There Really Such A Thing As Green Fracking?
I keep wondering when people are going to get over the idea that we need to choose between the environment […]
October 23, 2012
Energy
Corn Ethanol Revisited
There are a number of reasons why corn ethanol is looked upon with skepticism if not outright scorn in this […]
October 22, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
Solyndra Fights Back Against China
With electoral politics in the air these days, and much at stake for those working towards a sustainable future, it’s […]
October 19, 2012
Energy
Wastewater Treatment Plant to Produce Electricity From Fuel Cells
Just yesterday, I posted an overview of various waste-to-energy initiatives as part of our series on biofuels. Today, I am […]
October 16, 2012
Energy
Three Waste-to-Energy Solutions
What is this stuff we call waste? We all add to the waste stream every day – probably without thinking […]
October 15, 2012
Corporate Responsibility
BSR Compares Sustainable Options for Transportation Fuel
A report just came out this week from Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) that provides an in-depth analysis of the […]
October 12, 2012
Voices for Change
How the Choice Between Money and Meaning Will Shape Our Future
There is a scene in my novel, Vapor Trails, in which the inspirational speaker and deep ecologist Diana Mars asks the […]
October 9, 2012
Energy
Spotlight: How Biofuel Is Made
The biofuel story can be a confusing one, since there are so many different types from so many different sources […]
October 8, 2012