Interesting Ideas

Jenny wants to spread her wings and see the world, but Teddy is happy at home. Where do they go from here? You decide

• Find out how to get a disagreement settled or become a juror

I worry about my carbon footprint, but you can’t go everywhere by train and I want to see the world

It’s not an environmental issue. I’ve just had my fill of flying and don’t really enjoy being a tourist

10–15 years ago, a common joke you’d see in online forums and Facebook groups was that Barack Obama was America’s Greatest Gun Salesman. With the prospect of strict gun control laws (that never had a snowball’s chance in hell of passing or surviving court challenges in the United States), many ... [continued]

The post Donald Trump: America’s Greatest EV Salesman appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Buxton, Derbyshire: Their ‘parents’ were planted 50 years ago by my wonderful late mother. Yet we all have a connection to these uplifting flowers

I wonder if nature has found a way to compensate us for the dreariest winter I can recall, because the snowdrops this year have been unbelievable. I’m seeing them everywhere – along road verges, on village greens, with vast white sheets across churchyards and especially in old gardens with driveways and mature trees around their margins.

I have a small snowdrop patch under our crab apple and while they’re modest in number, they are, in a way, more than flowers. My mother first planted those same bulbs (or their “parents”) in her garden, which is half a mile from here, in the 1970s. When she died a decade ago, I took them first to our old house and now to this property. I’d actually forgotten the last transfer: a scoop of both the bulbs and surrounding soil, a short car journey, then a hasty reinterment in a hole on this south-facing slope. Now here they all are, up in the light, sparkling and brimful of this seasonal moment, but also laden with memories of my wonderful Ma and her love of gardens. In a way, her snowdrops are now family.

Any serious discussion of renewable energy on Oʻahu should begin with a clear understanding of how much electricity the island actually needs once fossil fuel end uses are electrified. Earlier analysis constructed a fully electrified civilian energy Sankey for Oʻahu that removed overseas aviation fuel, international maritime bunkering, and military ... [continued]

The post Wind on Oʻahu: A Modest but Valuable Complement to Solar appeared first on CleanTechnica.

EV sales tanked in the US after the federal tax credit evaporated last September, but stationary energy storage and renewable energy are keeping the zero emission electrification trend alive.

The post US Battery Makers Gave Up Waaaaay Too Soon On EV Sales (But They Have A Backup Plan) appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Energy dominance doesn't come from the barrel of a rifle, it comes from harvesting the abundant energy of the sun.

The post “Energy Security” Makes Us Less Secure. Renewables Are The Answer appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Researchers identify sharp rise to about 0.35C every decade, after excluding natural fluctuations such as El Niño

Humanity is heating the planet faster than ever before, a study has found.

Climate breakdown is occurring more rapidly with the heating rate almost doubling, according to research that excludes the effect of natural factors behind the latest scorching temperatures.

Someone recently pointed me at a chart published by H2 Mobility that shows hydrogen dispensed per month across its German refueling network climbing steadily over time. The chart is visually persuasive. The blue area rises from near zero in 2017 to roughly 59 tons per month in early 2026. It ... [continued]

The post Germany’s Hydrogen Refueling Network Looks Impressive Until You Do The Math appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Why EU type approval is the missing lever to make every EV a grid asset. In 2024, T&E highlighted the potential of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G), and bi-directional charging of Electric Vehicles (EVs). EVs are ‘Batteries on Wheels’, delivering flexibility benefits for the electricity grid, supporting the integration of more renewables, and delivering ... [continued]

The post Unlocking Vehicle-to-Grid at Scale appeared first on CleanTechnica.

New European Code Against Cancer calls on politicians to phase out use of fossil fuels in homes

Cutting air pollution should form part of government strategies to reduce cancer rates, the European Code Against Cancer has recommended.

The code previously focused on advice to help people to reduce the air pollution that they breathe. But, for the first time since its launch in 1987, it has given clear direction to governments.

T&E’s reaction to the proposed Industrial Accelerator Act. Local content rules are a positive step for Europe’s battery industry as corporate cars will be required to have local batteries. But extending EV purchase subsidies to all FTA countries and requiring non-strategic components to be local, undermines its effectiveness. From 2027, ... [continued]

The post IAA Will Ensure Most EVs Sold in Europe Will Have Batteries Made in the EU, but Loopholes Threaten Its Impact appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Prof Tim Lang says country produces far less food than it needs to feed population and is particularly vulnerable

The British government should be stockpiling food, according to a leading expert on food policy, as it is not prepared for climate shocks or wars that could cause the population to starve.

Prof Tim Lang of City St George’s, University of London said the UK produced far less food than it needed to feed itself, and as a small island that relied on a few large companies to feed its giant population, it was particularly vulnerable to shocks.

US consumers may not admit it, but they’re getting very interested in Chinese EVs. Part of the curiosity arises as neighboring countries court trade deals to bring more affordable vehicles westward. For example, during a January visit to Beijing, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney agreed to admit a small number ... [continued]

The post Gen Z Consumers Are Warming Up To The Idea Of Chinese EVs appeared first on CleanTechnica.

First of the trusts, formed with 12 people in a Norfolk pub in 1926, buys swath of farmland to restore to nature

The place where Norton Wood once stood is now a vast field of decaying wheat stubble. The ancient wood was grubbed up during the second world war. No trace of it remains – on the surface, at least. This ghost in the landscape lives on only in the name of the local village: Wood Norton.

But trees will soon be bursting upwards again and the wood will regrow after Norfolk Wildlife Trust celebrated its 100th birthday by buying a swath of farmland to revive for nature.

The latest announcement about Hinkley Point C was predictable. The first reactor at the plant in Somerset is now expected to begin generating electricity in 2030. The cost estimate has climbed again, now reaching roughly £35B in 2015 pounds or about £49B in current money according to Electricité de France. ... [continued]

The post While Hinkley Nuclear Was Being Built, The UK Grid Decarbonized appeared first on CleanTechnica.

The 55 pilot whales, which had to be euthanised, had been following a female having a difficult birth, scientists believe

The mass stranding and death of 55 whales on the Isle of Lewis in 2023 was caused by the mammals’ loyalty to their pod, a report has concluded.

It had been thought that the unusually large incident on Tràigh Mhòr beach, Tolsta, could have been caused by trauma, disease or acoustic disturbance from military or industrially generated noise.

The country’s network of footpaths is growing – with hopes they will develop local economies and better preserve the environment

Follow the yellow footprints along Brazil’s newest long-distance trail, and they will take you through lush green forests and sandy shrubland, past sweeping vistas and bizarre rock formations, into grottos and rural communities.

Spanning 186km (115 miles) of paths once used by 19th-century merchants, the Caminhos da Ibiapaba is the first waymarked long-distance footpath in Brazil’s north-east region, adding to a growing network of hiking trails in the country.

Many Australians are choosing oat, almond and soy over cow’s milk – but which choice is the most sustainable?

• Change by degrees offers life hacks and sustainable living tips each Saturday to help reduce your household’s carbon footprint

• Got a question or tip for reducing household emissions? Email us at changebydegrees@theguardian.com

Oat cap, skinny flat white, almond chai, soy matcha. Everyone has a different milk preference: cow, skim, lactose-free, oat, almond, soy, goat or camel.

Milk choices may be due to environmental reasons, dietary concerns or just taste preferences.

Photographer Murdo MacLeod patrols the snow with members of the Scottish Avalanche Information Service, which has for several decades published a vital daily avalanche forecast for mountain areas

Scottish avalanches are back. More than 200 have been recorded this winter, against the previous year’s record low of 42. The worst season for fatalities was 2012-13 when eight people died, four of whom were buried in deep snow when an avalanche struck without warning while they descended Glen Coe’s Bidean nam Bian.

Fortunately, so far – despite one person being carried a distance down Ben Nevis and two people falling through cornices and triggering slips – there have not been any confirmed avalanche deaths, though one person is still missing on Ben Nevis. The search goes on in and around the sites of recent avalanches.

A mountain rescue team looks for a missing climber in Observatory Gully on the north face of Ben Nevis, an area where there has been a succession of avalanches

An evidence based assessment of key barriers to Onboard Carbon Capture and Storage, and its potential for maritime decarbonisation. As shipyard orderbooks are full of fossil-powered vessels, and uncertainty remains about the speed of green fuels uptake, the shipping industry is also looking at a wide range of alternative solutions. ... [continued]

The post Can Shipping’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Be Captured At The Funnel? appeared first on CleanTechnica.