Looking to the future of sustainability reporting

With the world moving more and more toward sustainable development, there is a rising demand from the public and governments for big businesses to show that their walking the walk and not just talking the talk when they say that they take “corporate social responsibility” seriously. Corporate social responsibility is a process by which companies assess and take responsibility for the effects their...

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The Solar Shakeout: Is the Industry Ready?

The past few years have seen some spectacular flameouts in the solar energy industry, with none so prominent—at least in the U.S.—as Solyndra. Many of these flameouts were startups, but some were bigger players. Now Suntech is in the hot seat. The Chinese manufacturer was one of the world’s biggest P.V. producers, but it recently declared bankruptcy because it had some problems, like not being able to repay $543...

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Irena: The most important agency you never heard of

As we here in the North East shed off a rather chilly spring, it is only fitting that the conversation about renewable energy should begin to heat up again. Much to the chagrin of some on Capitol Hill, the 2014 budget proposed by the current administration seems to be doubling down on Mr. Obama’s commitment to alternative energy. Yet, with everything between gun control to the sputtering economy dominating much...

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Bits, bytes and truths: Rethinking our relationship with technology

According to Wikipedia: “the word technology refers to the making, modification, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems, and methods of organization, in order to solve a problem, improve a preexisting solution to a problem, achieve a goal, handle an applied input/output relation or perform a specific function”. The definition continues: “The human species' use of technology...

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Green credentials of super power stations

Virtually every developed country is now at a crossroads when it comes to energy production and consumption. The ever growing demands of modern society are beginning to put tremendous pressure on the national grid, and this in turn leads to blackouts costing millions of pounds every year. The origin of these problems can be traced to obsolete centralized energy generation strategies and old infrastructure, which...

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Surviving climate change: Government must support clean tech investments

It’s hard to deny the importance of mitigating climate change when its effects are literally to be found at the steps of your home and place of business. “With the last storms that hit New York I saw the financial district - the heart of the financial activity in the United States - under water, and the effect it had on our whole economy ” shared Kenneth Kramer, managing director of Rushton Atlantic, LLC...

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Ambitious British Plans for a New Energy Economy

There has been significant concern in the ranks of Smart Energy advocates at the potential negative impact of the upcoming U.K. Electricity Market Reform (E.M.R) bill. This is based on the potential implications it could have on both on carbon targets, and emerging smart grid services in Demand Side Response (D.S.R.) and Demand Side Management (D.S.M.). For those not familiar with the sector, D.S.M. and D.S.R...

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On architectural sustainability in the Philippines

The recent approval of the bill on green vehicles marks the Philippines’ initiative on living a more sustainable life. With the country’s natural resources facing a roller coaster ride of both depletion and increase, the motivation to live more ecologically friendly is becoming stronger. While grand plans of country-wide reforestation, environmental protection, and electric vehicle implementation for public...

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Clean Energy’s Battle of Britain

A proposed amendment to the U.K. Electricity Market Reform bill, with support from across the political spectrum; highlights a battle that is underway for the future of the British energy sector. At its heart is whether Britain will be a clean tech leader to challenge Germany, stimulating growth and high tech jobs, or whether legacy technologies and energy companies are given preference. The one thing that is set,...

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E.V. Japan 2013: Advances of the present and challenges of the future

Just because a technology exists doesn’t mean that many people know it does or have an idea of just how it can change and improve their lives. Electric vehicles are an example of this. While the industry is expanding, many people still see little of the true scope of the technology. In the recently concluded E.V. Japan 2013, automobile manufacturers and component manufacturers engaged in the electric vehicle market gathered...

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