Good news from the world of (at least increasingly) sustainable business growth: AAA Northern California, Nevada & Utah (AAA NCNU) is expanding, and expanding (at least partially) sustainably. The company recently partnered with IBM to design and build AAA NCNU’s new energy efficient data center, in keeping with AAA’s technology requirements.

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The BBC recently reported good news for the typically strained environmental relations between the U.S. and China. Although the two countries are among the world’s top polluters, and although each seems to expect concessions the other isn’t willing to give (in terms of greenhouse gas legislation), a U.S. energy firm and China recently signed a [...]

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Congress’ debate over health care reform could slow the passage of climate legislation, since, practically speaking, lawmakers must choose one battle over the other for now. This lag could potentially jeopardize the success of December’s UN Climate Change Conference, the Wall Street Journal reports. President Obama will plead his case on health care to Congress [...]

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This just in from the is-this-good-news-or-bad-news file: Japan’s incoming Democratic Party-led government has promised a more aggressive emissions-trimming policy than the outgoing government. However, the plan will hinge on the inclusion of China and India in an international climate change agreement. This could be bad news for the UN Climate Change Conference to take place [...]

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Reuters reported good news for the carbon traders of the world today. For three months (beginning September 2nd), NYMEX’s The Green Exchange will waive trading fees for all emissions futures and options, including European Union carbon permits. NYMEX (the New York Mercantile Exchange) launched The Green Exchange in 2008, partnering with Evolution Markets, Morgan Stanley [...]

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Oh, the good old days, when jobs were plentiful, stable, well-paying, and benefit-providing. The fact that those days are over is the lament of a new Nightly Business Report (NBR) series, “Once Upon a Job”. Through a series of interviews, the slice-of-life three-part series explores the current economy from the point-of-view of the jobless. One [...]

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The European Union has proved that it means business when it comes to banishing climate-damaging chemicals in cars. On Tuesday, the EU refused to grant a delay, requested by auto makers, on a recent ban on certain vehicle air conditioner chemicals, Reuters reports. In 2006, the EU decided that, starting in 2011, it would ban [...]

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The European Union has found an unlikely helper in the fight to cut its greenhouse gas emissions: the recession. According to a Reuters report, the EU’s emissions dropped for a fourth straight year in 2008, largely due to decreases in industrial activity caused by the recession. Go figure….

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Looks like “alternative fuel” may soon become more mainstream, if a recent grant by the Department of Energy has the intended effect. The DOE granted $1.6 million to the Alternative Fuel Trade Alliance, which the Alliance will use to increase public awareness and understanding of alternative fuels (including ethanol, biodiesel, propane, and natural gas) and [...]

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The US government is in the process of forming a new program designed to boost struggling home appliance manufacturers and retailers (and the environment) by spurring cautious consumers to buy energy efficient models. The program will reward consumers who buy qualifying Energy Star models of appliances (refrigerators, washing machines, etc…), hopefully increasing sales while reducing [...]

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A recent Los Angeles Times headline could easily appear in the News of the Weird: “U.S. Chamber of Commerce Seeks Trial on Global Warming.” Absurd? Yes. A business-environment intersection we’d rather not see? Yes. True? Yes: in hopes of preventing potentially sweeping limits on emissions, the Chamber is pushing the EPA to try the scientific [...]

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This December could be a make-or-break month in terms of, well, saving the world. “Decisions that we will make – or not make – [during the UN Climate Change Conference in December] will have profound impacts [on] the next five thousand generations. Will we, this year, establish the architecture that can rewire the entire planet [...]

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If lighting is the jewelry of a piece of architecture, the U.S. Capitol may soon be dressing to impress – if Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has her way. Pelosi is seeking to illuminate the Capitol dome with energy efficient lighting, making it a literal, physical example of environmental responsibility.

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Australia’s Parliament passed a law Thursday that set the country’s renewable energy goals for the next 11 years: the country must draw 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources (for example, sun and wind) by 2020. Reaching the 20 percent goal would allow Australia to provide enough clean energy to power all 21 million [...]

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Southern California Edison signed a deal with Arizona’s First Solar, Inc., in which the companies will construct two solar power facilities (one near Desert City in Riverside County and another in San Bernardino County). First Solar will begin building the 250-megawatt Riverside facility in 2012 and the 300-megawatt San Bernardino facility in 2013 and completing [...]

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Environmental Leader recently posted an article with a theme near and dear to Triple Pundit’s heart: “‘Green’ Manufacturing Should be Part of Your Strategy” (the article’s title). Written by David Dornfeld, Department Head of UC Berkeley’s Laboratory for Manufacturing and Sustainability, the article emphasizes the importance of green manufacturing in business and commerce and of [...]

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Big auto companies aren’t the only ones competing in the electric vehicle (EV) market. Coda Automotive, a 41-employee company without its own factory, designers, or dealer network, claims it will beat General Motors and other large firms in the EV market. Coda’s affordable, all-electric automobile (built for the “average American,” the Washington Post reports) is [...]

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Apparently, home really is where the heart is – even when it comes to Congress’ distribution of energy research funds. When Energy Secretary Steven Chu proposed a plan for creating eight “innovation hubs” (i.e. clean technology research centers), Congressmen overwhelmingly favored earmarking funds for research schools in their home regions. The earmarking has many critics [...]

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To the question “is corporate social responsibility dead?” the answer, from Seventh Generation’s perspective, appears to be “no; it just needs to be reborn.” Seventh Generation’s 2008 CSR report, which it released this week, offers a fresh look at just what “corporate social responsibility” is. In the words of the company’s chairman Jeffrey Hollender, Seventh [...]

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A recent headline caught my attention: “BBC accused of wasting £406,000 of public money a year on bottled water.” Apparently, the UK news agency is having trouble proving the legitimacy of its (unsustainable) bottled water consumption and spending.

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The Nature Conservancy is seeking to engage the public in the naming of its new Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV). The competition began this week and will continue until midnight on August 31. Participants may vote online from the following names: “Beagle” (the name of Darwin’s famous ship), “Petrale Patrol,” “Rachel Carson” (an environmental legend), “Rock [...]

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North Carolina is on the move, from a renewable energy perspective. In the past several days, it has worked toward signing a technology-exchange agreement with China (and toward limiting the construction of industrial-sized windmills – a renewable energy quagmire, it seems). The Duke-China pact has gained significant international attention, as it is the first such [...]

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Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) introduced a new bill Wednesday as a follow-up to the short-lived-by-design Cash for Clunker program. The bill, called The Efficient Vehicle Leadership Act of 2009 (S. 1620), would, the Senators claim, spur auto sales for the long haul by rationalizing incentives to buy fuel efficient vehicles. The [...]

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Believe it or not, there are groups attempting to promote “clean coal” – an attempt worth parodying. The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity recently joined the ranks of such groups; it is preparing a series of ads designed to convince the Senate to vote against passing the climate energy bill. Does it really think [...]

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Project Better Place, the self-described world leader in providing electric vehicle (EV) services, has taken on a huge project – one of the biggest islands in the world, to be exact. Project Better Place has announced that that it will deploy an EV network in Canberra, Australia – the first Australian city the company has [...]

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Hollywood is world famous for many things – celebrities, sunshine, and shopping among them. But a new Hollywood attraction is the first of its kind: Environmentaland, an eco-themed park that opened this month at Hollywood Boulevard and North Highland Avenue. The park is expected to entertain adults and kids alike, with attractions including an energy-generating [...]

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