Today’s news brings a story from New Zealand about growing interest in free trade agreements with that nation in order to address mounting concerns about food security. With many nations limiting or banning exports of rice, corn, and wheat, some food importing nations are looking to strike deals with New Zealand to supply their needs.
At [...]

It shouldn’t surprise us that policies set by all levels of governments can contribute to the success of green businesses and the development of green jobs. It shouldn’t embarrass us either when they do. While the same can be said for other types of businesses and jobs, it usually remains unsaid.
Still, whether public policy is, [...]

Shortly after Barack Obama’s campaign launched its Fight the Smears website this month, Joe and I published a piece on Open Left that explored some of the difficulties in dispelling myths and offered ways to overcome them. I also provided some related advice here at hivethrive regarding the hurdles faced by entrepreneurs who challenge [...]

Products that are identified chiefly as green, organic, or locally produced have sometimes risked falling into what one might call the LOHAS Trap. To the extent that LOHAS, an acronym for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability, is regarded as a relatively affluent, well-educated market segment, products that are aimed at that segment are likely to [...]

The massive flooding in the Midwest is of such a scale that it can be difficult to imagine how to respond. There are now reports that the flooding will likely have a devastating impact on the Gulf of Mexico as well. As the flood waters travel down the Mississippi River, they carry nitrates from [...]

In a post earlier this month entitled Aren’t Ideas Important to Community?, Joe argued that we can be held back in devising solutions to the problems we face when “the most typical ideas in our culture stand at odds with our collective well-being.” Recognizing and correcting patterns of thought that hinder our efforts to address [...]

An interesting company called New Amsterdam Project is getting attention this week from TreeHugger and Green Daily. New Amsterdam Project (NAP) started offering delivery services in the Boston area last November using cargo tricycles that one might describe as human-electric hybrids. An electric power source assists the cyclist, making it possible to carry a [...]

On the weekend, I posted a piece called Three Ways to Accelerate a Transition to Local Solar Power. In it, I highlighted three noteworthy approaches: local financial incentives, which San Francisco just approved, a solar financing district, which the city of Berkeley is creating, and plans, such as one by Helio Micro Utility, that enable [...]

Today’s Oregonian reports the less than surprising news that Americans are questioning the need for bottled water as the economic downturn prompts people to search for ways to reduce their spending. The article suggests that economic forces are now achieving what environmentalists have long struggled to do: changing how we consume water and reducing [...]

This past week, the city of San Francisco adopted a new program called GoSolarSF to encourage homeowners and businesses to purchase and install solar panels. Through the program, the city provides financial incentives that, when combined with state and federal tax incentives, can reduce the cost of a typical residential installation from $25,000 to [...]