Tag: climate-change
August 8, 2021
Monthly Forum: Dirty Energy Around the World
With the international emphasis on electrification, we must focus on the amount of electricity that is being generated by renewables rather than carbon based fuels. In all but one state in the US (and in much of the EU), there are not as many renewables as hoped in the energy mix. (Watch the recording of this forum on our Youtube channel!)
(more…)November 9, 2020
Viewpoint: Getting Back to Paris
By Evan Mason
In all the confusion and excitement of the post-election drama, some of us may have missed a piece of important news: the day after Election Day, the Trump administration’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement became official. But that doesn’t mean it became permanent.
According to the NY Times, President-Elect Biden plans to inform the United Nations of his decision to rejoin the Paris Climate accord, by executive action. While it’s preferable to go through Congress instead of changing policy in this manner—effectively this stroke of Biden’s pen can easily be reversed by the next president in 2024–it’s clear that the President Elect recognizes the short deadline for reversing the impacts of climate change. (more…)
November 3, 2020
Climate Week 2020 Highlight: Project Drawdown
By Tamanna Mohapatra Imagine a city as a sanctuary for nature, solar panels on all buildings, no need for cars, and regenerative farming practiced everywhere. So began “Drawdown 2020: The Time is Now,” a Climate Week NYC talk sponsored by Ethical NYC, Drawdown NYC, 350NYC, and Climate Reality NYC in September of 2020.
Founded in 2014, Project Drawdown is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to reach “drawdown—the point in the future when levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline, thereby stopping catastrophic climate change — as quickly, safely, and equitably as possible.” The way forward consists of 100 plus solutions, each of which reduces greenhouse gases by avoiding emissions and/or by sequestering carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere.
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August 1, 2020
Sustainability Goals Call For Ambitious Action
By Alexa Roccanova Though the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted business as usual, it has also heightened awareness of the fragile balance between nature and humanity. To some, the magnitude of the virus’s impact represents a culmination of enduring environmental, economic, and social issues. Sustainability presents a globally beneficial path forward; however, not unlike the pandemic, its extensive scope demands responses that both tackle and develop complex and interconnected systems. Public and private sectors are now seeing the COVID-19 economic recovery as an opportunity for an operational reset.
Ambitious Actions Needed: Sustainable Development Goals
The United Nations Sustainability Goals (SDGs) are helping both sectors to pursue environmental and humanitarian targets by providing a universal framework of seventeen integrated objectives needed to facilitate global environmental, social, and economic well-being by 2030.
June 30, 2020
The Intersection of COVID and Climate: What Have We Learned?
By Kaitlyn Pohly In a post-quarantine, shelter-in-place, mask-wearing world, what does the fate of our climate look like? Amidst all of this upheaval, it’s hard to remember that just half a year ago sustainability was a rising priority on the public’s agenda; the debate about the climate and its subsequent socioeconomic implications was gaining momentum. Although the world’s shared media has been widely focused on the pandemic, it’s crucial that the pressure remain on the topic of climate change. And not only for the future of the planet—investments in sustainable, climate-resilient infrastructure and the transition to a lower-carbon society can significantly increase near-term job creation, a crucial factor in rebuilding our societies following the pandemic. Creating both economic and environmental resilience in a post COVID-19 world is now more essential than ever. (more…)June 17, 2020
Film Review: The Story of Plastic
By Tamanna Mohapatra This documentary is in the same vein as the other popular “The Story Of…” series that first came to the public’s attention from founder Annie Leonard in 2007. I remember being very influenced by ‘The Story of Stuff’.” This movie is no different. The opening scene is a bit jarring yet somehow familiar…islands of dirty plastic with people swarming through it. The folks handling the heaps of plastic seem somewhat resigned to this fate.
What is the Story of Plastic? Where does it come from? Why is it so ubiquitous? What, if anything, can we do about it? These are some of the questions this documentary explores in some urgent depth. (more…)
May 9, 2020
Monthly Forum: Virtual Edition – Quantifying Climate Change
Quantifying the effects of climate change can be a daunting task to even the brightest scientific minds! To help demystify this complex topic, GreenHomeNYC is bringing leading climate change experts together to discuss their most recent efforts around quantifying our changing environment, and what it means for New York City.
Date: Wednesday, May 20, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM
Place: Online
Speakers at this event will include:
Susan Golden /// Environmental educator and member of the Climate Reality Project Leadership Corps
Luis Ortiz /// Postdoctoral research fellow with the Urban Systems Lab at The New School
Peter Marsters /// Research Associate at the Columbia Center on Global Energy Policy
REGISTER HERE!
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March 17, 2020
New Music Video Sings Out for the Planet
Inspired by the Environmental Movement, Boyan Slat & The Ocean Cleanup project, and teenager activist Greta Thunberg, composer Martin Vejarano created “Stop Go.” This new music video, performed by the Cumbia River Band, is an energetic and danceable invitation for environmental action around the world. “It conveys an urgent message and proposes a paradigm shift,” says Martin, “to honor Mother Nature over the comfort and the reckless consumerism displayed by contemporary humans.”
You can’t help singing along with the lyrics of this spirited plea for our planet, with a musical style that draws from a festive repertoire of Colombian Cumbia. Featuring artists on tuba, clarinet, accordian, guitar, Colombian percussion and vocals, this Cumbia in English invites all to dance and take action.
View Video
December 16, 2018
November Forum Recap: Sustainability and Art
by Stanley M. Kaminsky
At GreenHomeNYC’s November Forum, four speakers who specialize in the intersection of art and sustainability came together in ThoughtWorks’ Manhattan office to speak about their work. The panelists, who have differing backgrounds within art and sustainability, provided the audience with a diverse conversation ranging from environmentally-friendly museum buildings to artwork that communicates the urgency of climate change.
Environmentally-Friendly and Disaster-Ready Museums
Sharon Gaber serves as manager at North American Passive House Network, but focused her presentation primarily on her other professional role – development chair for the Environment and Climate Network (ECN) within the American Alliance of Museums. Specifically, the ECN is a community that aims to establish museums and other cultural institutions as leaders in the world of sustainability and climate action. They carry out their mission by providing a multitude of resources to museums seeking to implement sustainability within their facilities. They also bestow Sustainability Excellence Awards on museums and cultural institutions that stand out as true sustainability and climate action leaders.
September 2, 2018
High Noon on Wall Street – Rally for Our Climate
Join the Bard MBA Community, Be Social Change, NYC Climate Action Alliance and GreenHomeNYC for a Climate Week lunchtime rally in Battery Park–Castle Clinton on Monday, September 24th. Together, we will make it loud and clear that the time for climate action is NOW!
Featured Speakers will be:
Hunter Lovins — Author, Natural Capitalism | BardMBA Faculty | Co-Founder, Change Finance
Megan Boone — Boone Picutres | Star of NBC’s Blacklist | Climate Advocate | BardMBA Student
Robert Litterman — Former Head of Risk Management, Goldman Sachs | Chairman, Kepos Capital
When: Monday, September 24, 2018 from 12 noon to 1 pm
Where: Battery Park–Castle Clinton
For more information: call 845-758-7073, or e-mail codonnel@bard.edu
Rally co-sponsors include Be Social Change, NYC Climate Action Alliance and GreenHomeNYC.