COP21 will go down in history as nearly 200 countries came together to reach an historic climate agreement. Despite the efforts, there is still a political contingency of “climate deniers” (check out the Climate Deniers Anthem spoof released by Funny or Die last week) and Americans United for Change noted they will be taking the presidential debate stage tomorrow in …
Sing Along to the Climate Change Deniers’ Anthem
Funny or Die has done it again with their latest video “produced” by the Koch Brothers, the fossil fuel billionaires. In the video spoof, the Koch brothers pay celebrities to sing climate change denier’s anthem to the “We Are the World” music. The video features actors Beau Bridges, January Jones, Darren Criss, Jennette McCurdy, Emily Osment, Ben Feldman, Estelle and …
U.S. & Britain Partner to Power Up Africa
Bringing reliable, renewable power to Africans has been an ongoing conversation around the climate talks in Paris this month. Both the U.S. and the UK have programs with goals to do just this. Going forward, however, the programs will be power amplified with the new collaboration between the two countries. The partnership was announced during COP21 by UK International Development …
PG&E Service Centers to be 100% Solar Powered
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has launched a new renewable energy initiative. The company plans to power all its operations service centers – nearly 100 in Northern and Central California – with solar energy. In addition, through the Solar Choice program, customers will have the choice to choose 50 or 100 percent of their electricity from solar sourced from …
Global Geothermal Alliance Launched at #COP21
As a means to increase geothermal energy globally, this week during the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, (COP21) a coalition of 38 countries along with 20 development and industry partners have launched the Global Geothermal Alliance (GGA). The nonprofit was organized by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and was founded with the goal of achieving a 500 percent …
Global Groups Call on COP21 to Support Biofuels
Biofuels organizations representing multiple nations may have their differences but they have come together in a call for world leaders attending the COP21 in Paris to set a goal for increasing use of biofuels for transportation. The call for a global commitment to replace at least 15 percent of the world’s total oil use in transport with sustainable biofuels by …
#COP21 Participants Commit to Energy Transition
Over the weekend UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) attendees made commitments to accelerate the ongoing energy transition through several initiatives discussed during the Lima-Paris Action Agenda Focus on Energy (LPAA). New analysis from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) finds that achieving a 36 percent share of renewable energy by 2030 would result in half of all emission reductions needed …
UN Climate Deal May Spur European Wind Growth
Ambitious climate plans are being unveiled in Paris during COP21 and some of these could spark an export boom for European wind industry according to European Wind Energy Association (EWEA). China, India, Morocco, Brazil and Turkey are just a few of the countries that have made post-2020 national pledges on the deployment of wind energy in the coming years. In …
African Renewable Electricity Program Debuts @COP21
Africa launched an ambitious Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI) during the Conference of Parties (COP21) taking place in Paris, France. The program’s goal is to produce 300 gigawatts (GW) of electricity for the continent by 2030 as a demonstration of Africa’s leadership in the UN climate negotiations. AREI is an outcome of African leadership in Workstream II of the Durban …
Clean Energy Victory Bonds for a Clean Climate
A new bill was introduced in the U.S. this week in conjunction with COP21: the Clean Energy Victory Bonds Act of 2015. If passed, it would help the U.S. meet its climate goals. Introduced by Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Doris Matsui (D-CA), the Act would also create more than 1 million jobs. The Clean Energy Victory Bonds would begin …