• City Planning
• Climate Change
• Economic Development
• Healthy Cities
• Vital Urban Communities

Hey Fatso!

Who has a fat butt?
Time to look in the mirror and take responsibility for our carbon excesses.

Some would say that we shouldn’t have to cut fossil fuel use to reduce carbon emissions until every country commits to doing the same. But what would you think if you knew that those countries suffering most from severe climate disruption aren’t causing the problem? Countries in the tropics and the global south produce relatively little carbon yet are suffering severe flooding, water shortages and catastrophic storms…
Country size represents total carbon emissions. Source: Worldmapper.org

• Bicycle Advocacy
• City Planning
• Vital Urban Communities

Portland’s Transportation Priorities Adrift? Say it isn’t so!

In a dog bites man story, the Oregonian reports on the latest report that the City of Portland’s vaunted transportation department lacks focus, overspends and doesn’t achieve its goal. Not a big surprise to Portlanders who know too well the energizer-bunny characters of the ex-Mayor (who headed this bureau for 8 years) and his doppelganger, […]

• Active Citizenship
• Climate Change
• Sustainable Economy

The President talks Climate

“We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves, but to all posterity. We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations. Some may still deny the overwhelming judgment of science, but none can avoid the devastating impact of raging fires, and crippling drought, and more powerful storms…

• Climate Change

Motivation for Getting Our Acts in Gear

Despite the continued attempts to sweep the impacts of climate change under the rug, the data keeps piling up that we have much to do to reduce future damage to society and the environment as well as cope with changes already underway. Last released in 2009, the National Climate Assessmentt is being updated and a working draft is now available. Actual adoption is scheduled to occur in 2013–expect much Republican-US Chamber of Commerce scheming and gnashing of teeth.

Comments are being solicited between January 14th and April 12th. The full report is available here as are individual chapters. You can search by region of the country or by issue area.