Climate Change

Over 400,000 individuals invaded New York on Sunday to make a statement to world leaders about climate change. Mayor's National Climate Action Agenda Yesterday, Mayor Michael Nutter announced the formation of the Mayor's National Climate Action Agenda with Mayors Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles and Annise Parker of Houston. Nutter is currently in New York City for the Clinton Global Initiative meeting and was announced on day one of Climate Week, an international platform for government, business and civil society to work together on low carbon solutions to the climate change crisis. Find out more about the Mayor's new initiative, and what Philadelphia & Pennsylvania are doing about climate change, after the jump.

Are you ready for that sound? History is being made this weekend. The People's Climate March is pegged to be the biggest in history on Sunday, 9/21 in this smack middle of Manhattan. With over 1000 groups coordinating the march, citizens are proving a point to our global leaders that our pathetic inaction on climate change ain't cutting it. They're expecting 100,000 people. Let's back up.

My top two passions in life are sustainability and traveling. When Citizens Diplomacy International (CDI) Philadelphia invited me to represent the local green media and meet with five Indonesians in Philadelphia to discuss the US's take on sustainability (back in June), I enthusiastically accepted.

It's HOT outside. With summer upon us, getting dressed for work can be a painful exercise. Ties or jackets in 95*F? Ouch. Turns out that some businesses are noticing that what we wear can cause pain to our planet.  Relaxed summer wardrobes are a good start to easing the pain: the fewer layers you’re wearing, the less air conditioning you need to be comfortable. Bring on the polo shirts! Find out more about how climate change is affecting office attire, after the jump.

First a disclaimer: I won't stray too far from the 'green' theme on today's blog post. Just let me take a minute to get there. Yesterday, my Facebook news feed was filled with Miley Cyrus updates. At lunch, I dropped off a huge bag of donations at Goodwill and then went inside to peruse. (Did I mention I scored a $3 unused french press?!?) As I was enjoying the thrift shop like Macklemore, I overheard one shopper’s tirade about how Cyrus’ ‘career is RUINED” and she is an absolute terrible human being. This morning on the Today Show, Matt Lauer & others once again discussed if “just being Miley” crossed the line yet again. OK, I understand that Miley was performing the “song of the summer”, which is essentially about getting laid. (In the ‘equal rights’ category, does anyone blame Thicke for his lyrics? Did everyone block their memories of Britney Spears wearing a snake or the Janet Jackson/JT superbowl moments?) I won’t get into my full opinion on this issue, although I can’t quite understand why anyone over the age of 15 watches the MTV music/VMA/movie awards. But there is something more disturbing here. The Onion summed it up pretty well: as the day journalism was overtaken by Miley Cyrus. CNN’s top headline was twerking. I now would like to bring in the important question: Why? (Find out how I related Miley's latest scandal to the environment, after the jump.)

But in the late 1950s, the National Weather Service began measuring the levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, with the worry that rising levels might someday disrupt the fragile balance that makes our planet so hospitable.  And what they’ve found, year after year, is that the levels of carbon pollution in our atmosphere have increased dramatically. That science, accumulated and reviewed over decades, tells us that our planet is changing in ways that will have profound impacts on all of humankind. - President Barack Obama, 6/25/13 President Obama gave a speech on Climate Change yesterday at Georgetown University. Here's the full transcript on the Wall Street Journal. Guest blogger Russell Zerbo of the Clean Air Council shares his remarks on the speech and the impact on our nation.

Many critics (including us) questioned why climate change wasn't mentioned during the Presidential Debates. Mitt Romney even used climate change as a punchline. But could we be seeing Climate Change forced in front of our eyes right before a monumental election? Hurricane Sandy isn't just half as big as Texas - She's set to be an unprecedented storm of our lifetime. Scientists predicted that global warming would intensify North Atlantic hurricanes, but Frankenstorm (Find out more about Hurricane Sandy and Climate Change, after the jump!)

Happy Political Conventions Week! From the chair POTUS to Bill Clinton, John Kerry & many more discussing sustainability plans, it's been a fun week to watch the election. (I even found my own chair #Clinteastwooding with Skinny Bitch.) What else did you miss?

When I first heard about the Hunger Games, I had my doubts. But when my ‘too cool for YA” BFF demanded that I read the series, I reconsidered. Although the book doesn’t state the exact event, major landmasses shifted and the sea level rose to unknown heights to change the Earth’s landscape we know it which develops Panem into its current state.  Does Collins use any of the Hunger Games themes or district circumstances to address our current environmental issues?  Let’s explore further, after the jump.