Editors' blog
Hannah Bullock, 18 May 2009
Anyone who’s watched Sex in the City will know that ladies have b...
Hydrogen city car hits 300mpg and 30g/km CO2
July 2nd
With politicians and carmakers waxing lyrical about electric vehicles, the squat hydrogen fuel cell car with a top speed of 50mph introduced by start-up Riversimple in June is definitely bucking prevailing trends.
Focusing minds: Guy Thompson on the challenge of sustainability
July 2nd
Since 1996, Forum for the Future’s Masters in Leadership for Sustainable Development has been training the sustainability leaders of the future. Forum alumnus and Executive Director of Natural England Guy Thompson talks about the importance of thought leadership.
Obama drives up fuel efficiency on cars
July 2nd
Flanked by two unlikely allies – California’s Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson – President Obama has announced groundbreaking vehicle standards that will further cement the greening of the US car industry.
Solar farm to transform Welsh city's skyline
July 2nd
Swimming pools, sports centres and schools are being eyed up as sites for a new ‘solar farm’. The Welsh city of Newport plans to pitch large-scale photovoltaic arrays on all public buildings, after a report found “great potential” on the rooftops.
First UK power station captures carbon emissions
June 30th
The UK’s second biggest coal-fired power station made headlines in May as the first in the country to start capturing its carbon dioxide emissions, putting ScottishPower at the forefront of a technology widely seen as crucial for the future of coal – and the climate.
Waste heat from computers to warm buildings
June 25th
Any laptop user will know that even the most casual of Twittering with a computer resting on your knees can get uncomfortably hot – so imagine the vast amount of heat that a massive IT data centre kicks out. Now telecommunications company Telehouse Europe is planning to capture that and pipe it to nearby homes and businesses.
Empire State Building gets eco-makeover
Rebecca Schischa May 26 2009, Built environment, Re-use/refurbishment
New York’s most iconic landmark, the Empire State Building, is set to become one of the city’s greenest buildings, thanks to a $20-million retrofit that will slash energy use by nearly 40% over the next 15 years.
Looking good on paper
Claire Baylis May 21 2009, Carbon reduction, Standards
Printing is big business – a £14 billion industry with a carbon footprint to match. But a new service could see the sector getting a much better handle on its climate impact.
Council leads on sustainable spending
Rebecca Schischa May 14 2009, Local government, Procurement
Leicester City Council (LCC) is forging ahead with an ambitious new approach to procurement: making sure that everything bought is sustainably sourced. The policy will impact on some £190 million worth of spend.
Blueprint for green stores
Chris Alden May 11 2009, Construction, Retail
Retailer’s latest Manchester supermarket sets its eco standard
Tesco is to use its latest ‘eco-store’ – a new 52,000 sq ft supermarket at Cheetham Hill in Manchester – as a ‘low-carbon blueprint’ for all the new supermarkets it builds in future.
DIY giant opens eco-store
Chris Alden May 11 2009, Construction, Retail
B&Q pushes green products, sets stretch target on emissions
It boasts the UK’s biggest building-mounted turbine, a rooftop garden, and solar panels. And it’s challenging the notion that consumers won’t go green in a recession.
LED streetlights cash in on low-energy technology
Anna Simpson May 7 2009, Energy conservation & efficiency, Local government, Urban
High-powered, low-carbon lamps ready for rollout across UK
Greener companies “more crunch-proof”
Claire Baylis May 5 2009, Business
New report tracks value of sustainability commitment during recession
Businesses with a ‘true commitment’ to sustainability are weathering the downturn better than their rivals, according to a new report.
Eco-Municipalities take seed from Canada to Kenya
Chris Alden May 5 2009, Local government, Urban
How on earth should we begin greening our metropolises? By asking the right questions, says The Natural Step.
Action on peak oil essential for business survival, say UK transport chiefs
Martin Wright May 5 2009, Fossil fuels, Mass transit/Public transport
How prepared are the UK’s leading transport companies for a world of climate change and peak oil? Martin Wright talks to Brian Souter, Moir Lockhead, Will Whitehorn and Richard Brown.
Weak signals from the future
May 1 2009, Innovation, Visions & futures
What does the future hold? 'Water wars'? Personal solar panels? Peer-to-peer renting? We've got our finger on the pulse, and suggest how today's trends could become tomorrow's phenomena.
The hanging gardens of the future
Peter Madden May 1 2009, Farming/Horticulture, Local food, Visions & futures
Peter Madden sees a future in which cities feed themselves
Within a few decades, every one of us will own a ‘farm in a box’, which will sit on our balcony, roof or next to a window
How will we dress in 2025?
Richard Hardyment May 1 2009, Fashion, Visions & futures
What are you wearing right now? Now, no peeking at the label, do you know what it’s made of, who manufactured it and where? And how do you think your answers might be different in 15 years’ time?
Ecotricity designs wind-powered sports car
Claire Baylis May 1 2009, Cars, Wind power
A wind-powered sports car? Sounds like a perfect whipping boy for Top Gear. But Ecotricity’s Dale Vince is deadly serious – and he thinks Clarkson might just love it…
Dried fruit, juicy prospects
Anna Simpson and Kay Sexton May 1 2009, Africa, Farming/Horticulture, Retail
Bananas are not the only fruit… Kay Sexton talks to Tropical Wholefoods’ Adam Brett.
Burn the trees to save the world?
Chris Goodall and Hannah Bullock April 30 2009, Carbon sequestration, Farming/Horticulture
It’s been touted as a solution to hunger, deforestation and global warming. So is biochar the magic bullet we’ve been waiting for? Chris Goodall investigates.
Green lite budget for UK
Roger East April 24 2009, Budget/Taxation
The UK's most critical – and controversial – budget of recent times got a mixed reception for its green merits and shortcomings.
Co-op works on water
Claire Baylis April 22 2009, Hydro electric, Retail
Power from a Peak District river is to be harnessed to generate green electricity for the local Co-op store in New Mills, Derbyshire – the UK's first community-funded hydropower scheme.
When councils get clever
Hannah Bullock April 22 2009, Behaviour change, Local government
Innovative approach helps local authorities connect with their citizens – and save money too.
Entrepreneurial ingenuity our best hope on climate change
Ed Crooks April 22 2009, Climate change, Innovation
Our best hope on climate change, says Ed Crooks, Energy Editor of the Financial Times, lies in entrepreneurial ingenuity backed by sound carbon pricing.
Solar takes America block by block
Claire Baylis April 17 2009, Community energy, Solar energy/PV
So you think small-scale solar remains the preserve of die-hard environmentalists? Think again. A new movement gathering momentum in the US could make photovoltaics a common feature on residential streets.
‘Reuse It Yourself’ movement could revolutionise DIY
Rebecca Schischa April 17 2009, Construction, Re-use/refurbishment
Some “14 million tonnes” of unwanted building materials generated by the construction industry could be saved from being dumped in landfills in a new reclaim and resell scheme.
Innovative new concrete absorbs carbon emissions
April 16 2009, Carbon sequestration, Construction
A hefty 0.83 tonnes of CO2 is produced for every tonne of traditional (or Portland) cement made, according to the International Energy Agency. Now Novacem (a spin-off company from London’s Imperial College) is developing a cement based on magnesium oxide that has the potential to absorb large amounts of CO2 as it hardens.
Lotus produces all natural hemp car
April 16 2009, Cars, Materials
Lotus’s Eco Elise features a hemp spoiler and body panels, sisal carpets, woollen fabric seats and water-based paint – materials that reduce the environmental impact of production.
Why ethical banking is looking bullish
April 16 2009, Banking, Business services
Some of the world’s biggest banks are facing meltdown.
So, can their sustainable cousins rise from the ashes?
Cardboard cooker wins $75,000
April 9 2009, Carbon offset/neutrality, Solar energy/PV
A solar-powered cardboard cooker, which aims to transform the lives of hundreds of millions of villagers in developing countries, is the winner of a $75,000 prize in a global competition for innovation to tackle climate change.
Super-efficient, locally fed power station comes to London
April 7 2009, Combined heat & power, Energy sources, Hydrogen/fuel cells
Work is set to begin in East London on what is billed as the country’s first ‘intelligent’ combined heat and power (CHP) plant.
New energy source in slow moving water
April 7 2009, Hydro electric, Water
A US entrepreneur is testing a renewable energy mechanism that would harness the power of slow-moving water currents – using technology based partly on observations of the way fish swim.
Exclusive interview with the man behind M&S's Plan A
Hannah Bullock April 7 2009, People, Retail
Director Richard Gillies speaks out on lycra, carbon prices – and how to recession-proof ethical shopping.
Street surfaces to harness kinetic energy
March 24 2009, Cars, Energy sources
An Israel-based firm thinks it has found a way to help offset motorists' carbon footprint – using specially designed roads to harness energy from the movement of traffic along the road.
Second life sludge
Darren Towers March 12 2009, Farming/Horticulture, Waste to energy
It’s potent stuff, sewage. And valuable too, if you turn it
into fertiliser, green electricity and renewable heat.
Give offsets some credit
David Wellington March 3 2009, Carbon offset/neutrality, Carbon reduction
As companies seek to cut costs, why offset in a credit crunch? David Wellington makes the business case.
Shopping down the carbon
Chris Alden February 26 2009, Carbon reduction, Corporate responsibility
Standard to make carbon footprint comparisons simple
Shoppers one step closer to being able to compare the carbon footprint of the products and services they purchase, now that the UK is unveiling a common standard.
Zero waste coming up from the streets
Chris Alden February 24 2009, Local government, Waste & recycling
Initiative targets dramatic cuts in landfill at community, city and regional level
A home composting workshop, vouchers for real nappies, community ‘Green Zones’ and personal and citywide waste audits... They're all part of the 'Zero Waste Places' scheme.
When the bills bite
Julian Rollins February 13 2009, Energy conservation & efficiency, Housing
Thrift’s big comeback is heating up the world of energy saving.
Letters
January 27 2009
Don't keep your thoughts to yourself! Our website receives hundreds of thousands of hits from visitors around the world. Reach them by posting a comment on any article in Green Futures, or respond to points others have made.
Sun’s up for rickshaws
Hannah Bullock January 21 2009, Asia, Solar energy/PV
Indian cycle taxis to run off solar power
Unleashed in Delhi, they can either be pedalled or propelled by a battery that’s topped up every 30-45 miles from a solar-powered charging station.
And another thing…
Jonathon Porritt January 15 2009, Climate change, Policy
In the first of his regular columns for Green Futures, Jonathon Porritt sniffs change in the air.
"We have to start thinking out of the box" – Pachauri
Martin Wright January 9 2009, Climate change, Entrepreneurship
World’s leading climate change expert sees entrepreneurs at the forefront of the drive to tackle global warming. Interview by Martin Wright.
Dawn of the digital away day
Julian Rollins January 9 2009, Telecommunications
Natural England pioneers carbon-light conferencing
Is the vast conference hall to become an endangered species? Possibly, if other organisations follow the lead of Natural England, which wants to halve the carbon footprint of its annual staff meetings.
Dig the city
Louise Vennells January 9 2009, Farming/Horticulture, Local food
'Grow-your-own' scheme cultivates unused scraps of London land
London families should soon be saving money and eating more healthily, thanks to an ambitious project to provide land to grow their own vegetables.
No.1
The UK, which overtook Denmark in installed offshore wind capacity (597.8MW to the Danes’ 423MW). The completion in October of two wind farms near Skegness also broke the ‘3GW threshold’. UK wind turbines now generate enough electricity to power more than 1.5 million homes – though that still represents only about 2% of total consumption.
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