Thanks to the Australian Government’s Indigenous Communication’s Program (ICP) Australians in the most remote indigenous regions are now able to connect to the outside world via solar powered satellite public phones. Activ8me.net.au, a leading company in the installation of these phones has come across numerous difficulties that are as wild (more…)

The Japanese government says it will seek to phase out all nuclear power plants by 2040, although officials suggested that the target remains flexible.

The new energy strategy, which places a 40-year lifespan on nuclear reactors and limits construction of new plants, would continue a national shift away (more…)

Water does weigh something; about 8.3 pounds per gallon. In research published this week, scientists from the National Oceanography Center and Newcastle University have proposed an idea that will assess the mass of the world ocean by weighing it at a single point. But there is a catch. Global sea level is currently rising at about 3 mm per year, but (more…)

Government officials in Guangzhou, China’s third-largest city, have enacted measures to limit the number of new cars on city streets, a policy some analysts say reflects a broader effort by Chinese cities to protect public health and well-being in the face of worsening highway congestion. (more…)

The government of India has approved a 230-billion rupee strategy ($4.13 billion) to spur increased production of electric and hybrid vehicles over the next eight years, setting a target of 6 million green vehicles by 2020.

The new plan, designed to reduce the nation’s (more…)

First Solar Inc., the U.S.-based solar panel manufacturer, plans to expand its role in the global energy industry by developing solar power farms in India, where an emerging industrial sector is looking to shore up energy security in the aftermath of record blackouts.

The company aims to secure 20 percent of India’s (more…)

The State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) of China recently enacted a prioritized examination program for invention patent applications directed to a number of technology areas, including several categories of green technologies (see the translated program administrative measures here). (more…)

Even in Southeast Asia, the battle for affordable, safe, and clean energy access is generally fought on two fronts: policy and implementation. Attempting to educate myself and to acquire on the ground work, I have found myself living on the front lines of this battle in Mae Sot, Thailand, a border town known as a hub for illicit trade, humanitarian aid, and migrant (more…)

Radioactive materials emitted during the Fukushima disaster caused physical mutations and genetic damage to butterfly populations living near the nuclear plant, a new study says.

In a series of tests, Japanese scientists found that butterflies collected from the Fukushima area about (more…)

In my last post, I talked about the harm caused by generating electricity to feed the internet (and all our other electrical needs). Today I’m going to look at what happens when we use so much energy that our utilities no longer have the capacity to meet the demand. Think darkness. And empty wallets. (more…)