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What comes after *Yes, we can!*

So what next for climate activists swept up in ‘Yes, we can!' mania?  Perhaps we first must acknowledge how hard this is going to be.  As a friend wrote to me in reaction to last week's blog post, "I share your enthusiasm about the long-term, but the near term is going to be very challenging.  Obama needs to convince the public that some pain is required immediately in order to clean out the problems in the financial system, mortgage markets, and budget deficit." My friend is right of course, and so-far-so-good
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2009 - The end of an error?

My favorite quote from the recent campaign was the statement in Obama's acceptance speech at the convention in Denver. Speaking about the United States, he said, "We are better than these last eight years."
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Resiliant cities and the crash

The financial crash is developing a whole industry of responses that can tell us where we went wrong and what we must do to make our future more resilient, especially in our cities where so much of the crash is hurting. Finance and economics dominate this discussion. We believe that a better understanding of what makes cities work will help in this debate, especially how urban transport and energy are fundamental to how the urban economy works or doesn't. What caused the crash?
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A big vote for knowing how our food is raised

November 4, 2008 will be best remembered for the historic election of Barack Obama, but it was also a day when Californians voted their gut and their appetite.
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Last minute Bush Administration actions

On November 4, from the White House to state houses and the unsung offices of Soil & Water Conservation and Public Utility Districts, American voters elected what is likely an unprecedented number of pro-environment candidates.
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Bison slaughter in Montana

According to the New York Times, Jeffrey Scott Hawn, a wealthy software developer, recently pleaded guilty to one count of criminal mischief and one count of cruelty to animals for illegally killing 32 bison on his ranch in Colorado last winter. The bison apparently wandered onto Mr. Hawn's property from an adjacent ranch, probably because a heavy snowfall caused them to go searching for forage. For his misdeed, Mr. Hawn will pay $157,000 in fines and restitution.
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Yes, we can!

Yes we can! - That unforgettable call-and-response, heard again last night in Barack Obama's stunning acceptance speech, echoes today around the world.  And I and my fellow climate activists are happy to take all the credit for the President-elect's use of this phrase.
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Solar, the benefits are big but the funding is not

In the green world, the "benefits of solar" is bandied about as dogma. But exactly what kind of benefits are we talking about? Economic? Environmental? Social? All of the above?

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