New satellite data released by NASA provide dramatic visual evidence of the dangerous air quality reported from cities across Asia and the Middle East this month.

Based on data collected from its satellite-based Ozone Monitoring Instrument, a map released by NASA scientists illustrates high levels of nitrogen Continue reading… » 

I come across several articles each day that cause me to adjust my position on where we’re going as a civilization. Here’s one on BP, peak oil, and climate change that offers an interesting nuance, concluding with the following:

As author Naomi Klein outlines in an article written in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy last fall, it has Continue reading… » 

As part of BSR’s multipart series on sustainable urban growth, we recently spoke with several influential stakeholders about the outlook for Cairo, a city that has experienced tremendous political change in the past few years.

Given that Cairo is the largest and one of the most densely populated cities in the Middle East and Africa, Continue reading… » 

On January 24, the California Public Utitlies Commission will vote on an important precedent for using renewables to enhance grid reliability.

Grid reliability requires that there be a certain amount of local generation–known in wonkspeak as ‘local capacity requirements’, or LCR. Continue reading… » 

Preserved natural lands are a national treasure that protect wildlife and allow us to see and enjoy the natural landscape of our beautiful country as it has existed for millenniums, without human “improvements”. But there are lots of areas in national parks, monuments, and wildlife areas that are not pristine. These areas are targeted for low-impact energy development by Continue reading… » 

Whether driven by a genuine desire to reduce their environmental footprint, or simply to insulate themselves against rising costs, energy efficiency is becoming a significant organizational goal for many companies around the country. In order to achieve these goals, businesses are looking for direction on how they can have their buildings’ designed and/or Continue reading… » 

A previous post reported on a declaratory judgment action brought by DuPont-owned biopharmaceutical company Danisco against Novozymes. The two companies are both Danish and appear to be arch rivals. As the court described it, they are “reputedly the two major competitors in the field of developing and supplying industrial enzymes used in Continue reading… » 

A global-scale, multi-sectoral, regional assessment of the impacts of climate change that may be avoided by emissions policies is reported this week in Nature Climate Change.

Although a number of studies have looked at the effects of proposed mitigation policies on global Continue reading… » 

Lean concepts popularized the supply chain and took procurement and operations to a new level of supply chain management understanding. Characterized by the efficient movement of materials with minimal work in process and inventory, these integrated process flows were dependent on aligned supplier/customer incentives. But in 2008 when times became tough and Continue reading… » 

For years, we’ve been making the case that in addition to the environmental benefits, solar also adds value to the grid.

How much value? Today, we released a report that we commissioned to look at both the costs and benefits of net metering in California. The study was done by Tom Beach of Crossborder Energy, who used actual data from 10,000 solar systems Continue reading… »