With healthcare, the economy, Tiger Woods, and Conan O’Brien at the center of most media attention in the end of 2009 and beginning of 2010, coverage of the latest international efforts to reverse the effects of climate change has been drowned out.

While the result of the Copenhagen summit may have been disappointing, there is promising progress with an agreement with China.  Considering China and US are two of the largest eco footprints an agreement could have huge effects.

In November 2009, President Obama traveled to China and met with President Hu Jintao.  The two leaders announced an ambitious and sweeping plan to increase cooperation between the United States and China in developing and incorporating clean energy.  According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the Chinese agreement has seven primary components: …read more of U.S. and China Step Toward a Clean Energy Future here

The Group of 20 (G-20) meeting in Pittsburgh has yielded promise on the environmental sustainability front… but not quantifiable, time-specific progress.

Developing nations–including the member states of the African Union–and international leaders–including former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan–have been vocal about what they want from December’s international climate change meeting in Copenhagen: a well defined plan for how developed countries will help support environmentally sustainable development in the developing world.

The G-20, a club for the heads of state of powerful  countries, acknowledged that they want to take action on this issue. They did not, however, define how much action they want to take. …read more of G-20 Vague On Environmental Sustainability here

Image Credit: maciekSz, Flickr CC

The American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) is a massive piece of legislation that leaves no stone unturned. It has a cap and trade provision; it provides billions of dollars for the development of clean electricity by harnessing the power of wind and sun, and it also includes funding — to the tune of $90 billion –  to support an extensive energy efficiency program.

Ironically, while much attention has focused on the bill’s cap-and-trade provision, covered here, energy efficiency is the one provision in this ACES legislation that over the long-term could have the most impact in resolving the climate change issue.

Step 1: Reduce the Need for Energy

It’s true that building wind farms across the U.S. wind corridor or massive solar power plants in the western deserts sound like attractive propositions. However, they also generate their share of issues. …read more of Blogging ACES Pt. 2 – Energy Efficiency here