John Gardner, US Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare joined Lyndon Johnson’s cabinet in 1965 to help create a ‘Great Society’ to end poverty, promote equality, improve education, rejuvenate cities…
Emissions spiked, thanks to more intensive energy use.
Louis Vest
By Frank Jotzo, Australian National University; Andrew Macintosh, Australian National University; David Stern, Australian National University; Paul Burke, Australian National University, and Peter Wood, Australian National University
Recessions are not the way to permanently cut greenhouse gas emissions. Global emissions surged during 2010, cancelling out the reductions from the global financial crisis (GFC).
Emissions took off in…
Research says Melbourne could benefit from less black.
mugley/Flickr
Can a whiter roof make your home cooler? What about your whole city?
The existing literature and theory suggests that increasing the albedo – or reflectiveness – of a building will reflect incoming sun…
An "eco village" in the UK. With the right policies, energy-efficiency has a future in Australia.
telex4
Mandatory energy efficiency ratings for houses have been in force in parts of the United Kingdom and elsewhere in Europe for some time and appear to have gained general acceptance. New homes in particular…
There's no shortage of hype around thorium, but how justified is the excitement?
AzureGrackel
You have probably heard at least a little about thorium. There are certainly advocates out there who strongly believe it could help solve the world’s energy problems.
The idea is that thorium-based nuclear…
Energy production worldwide has become even more reliant on coal.
Joost J Bakker IJmuiden
DURBAN CLIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCE: A paper published yesterday shows global industrial emissions of carbon dioxide, overwhelmingly from fossil fuels, jumped by 5.9% from 2009 to 2010. This is a big increase…
Emoticons may be soon be a feature of your energy bills.
Flickr/Jessica Tam
How would you feel if you opened your energy bill and there was a smiley face next to your usage? Or you found yourself being compared to your neighbour? Would this influence you to use less energy?
The…
Businesses that talk about maximising the benefits could find the carbon tax is good for them.
Mays Business School
For most people, the debate about climate change and what we should do about it is not really based on the science. It’s much more about what they think the implications are for them.
Let’s face, it if…
To meet the energy challenge we have to think big.
AAP Image/Snowy Hydro Limited
Today’s carbon navel-gazing by politicians, business leaders and media scribes seems determined to constrain Australia to the stone age of industrial competence, workforce skills and international environmental…
Solar is now a viable industry that should be taken seriously
AFP Photo/Sakis Mitrolidis
A solar energy revolution is brewing that will put the coal and nuclear industries out of business. Solar is already reaching price parity with coal in many parts of Australia. In contrast to coal and…
Technology can save fuel and cut emissions, so why not drive more?
me2myself/Flickr
Antibiotics cure many diseases, but also lead to resistant bacteria. The rise of computers, far from inaugurating the paperless office, increased office paper use.
The unintended consequences of our actions…
If businesses develop the skills to assess energy efficiency, they could be on a winner.
Passivehaus via Wikimedia Commons
By Suzanne Benn, University of Technology, Sydney and Paul Brown, University of Technology, Sydney
Being energy efficient has always made financial sense for industry. The introduction of the Clean Energy Future package and a price on carbon makes it even more sensible. But many businesses will struggle…
The power to save money under a carbon tax is in your hands.
EssG/Flickr
Will paying a price for carbon dioxide emissions make our lives miserable and destroy the economy? No. In fact, the carbon price could make households and businesses better off if they take a few important…
Australia struggles to keep up in the efficiency race
Flickr/adambowie
Energy efficiency is globally seen as the biggest and best option for cheaply reducing greenhouse gas emissions and dealing with rising power bills.
But in Australia it still struggles for recognition…
