[ Wednesday, June 9, 2010 to Thursday, June 10, 2010. ] The WRRC invites you to participate in the 2010 Annual Conference, Creating New Leadership for Arizona’s Water and Environment in a Time of Change, at the University of Arizona Memorial Student Union on June 9-10, 2010. The conference will provide a forum for youth leaders and young professionals to interact with established professionals and together [...]

[ Saturday, March 27, 2010; 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm. ] Last year, nearly one billion people in the world joined together in the largest climate movement in the history of mankind. We raised our voices in the United States with 80 million people participating and 318 cities (thanks to you) turning out their lights to take action in the fight against climate change.

This year, not [...]

[ Saturday, March 27, 2010; 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm. ] The 4th Annual Solar Rock Festival will be held on March 27th from noon to 6pm at Himmel Park, south east of Speedway and Tucson Blvd. This Free solar powered festival includes an outstanding lineup of local talent including Spirit Familia, Run Boy Run, Kevin Pakulis, Bruce Phillips, Drama Club, Leila Lopez, the winner of [...]

According to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center, the general public is not much interested in global warning or the environment. The importance of energy policy has also slipped as a matter of public concern.  This would suggest that policy initiatives that involve using taxes as a strategy to move consumption away from [...]

[ Friday, March 26, 2010 12:00 pm to Sunday, March 28, 2010 9:00 pm. ] Celebrate our most precious and endangered resource -WATER -with the The Water Project: Tucson’s Synergistic Water Festival on March 26-28, 2010. This event combines the energy of Tucson’s sustainability community with the vibrant arts community to provide an opportunity for the public to experience a festive collaboration, learn about water issues and have some fun!

This [...]

Read an excerpt from James Hansen’s new book, Storms of My Grandchildren, about why a program of “fees and dividends” is far superior to “cap and trade” proposals currently being debated. The article in The Nation is available here: http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100111/hansen .

This editorial by Nicholas Kristof for the New York Times at first seems to be a plug for living in Costa Rica. In fact, it is filled with numerous links to measures of happiness and well-being, many of which incorporate assessments of sustainability. You can review this article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/07/opinion/07kristof.html

A new report, America on the Move, describes the efforts being made at the state level to carry forward the fight against Global Warming. The report identifies six states that have taken the lead by adopting enforceable caps on global warming pollution. Ten states have created regional cap-and-trade systems for emissions from electric power plants, [...]

[ Saturday, April 17, 2010; 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. ] Tucson\’s 16th Annual Earth Day Festival and Parade will be held on Saturday, April 17, 2010 at Reid Park. The theme for the 2010 Festival is “All Species Deserve a Place on Earth!”  All species great and small – insects, plants and animals – the Earth needs them all!

Exhibits related to the environment will include [...]

A palindrome reads the same backwards as forward. This video reads the exact opposite backwards as forward.  Not only does it read the opposite, the [...]

[ Thursday, January 14, 2010; 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. ] Come help plan the Water Festival! Come to the Brainstorming Gathering.

Doors open / Sign in: 6pm
Discussion / Activities: 6:30-8:30pm
Armory Park Center
220 S. 5th Avenue, Tucson AZ
(On 5th Avenue, South of 12th St)

At the Community Brainstorm Gathering you will have the opportunity to:

Learn more about the festival
Collaboratively map ideas about water issues
Sign up for preferred levels [...]

Al Gore issued a bold challenge from the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, calling on Members of Congress to pass clean energy and climate legislation in the United States by next April 22, the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. In an inspiring speech that was interrupted often with outbursts of applause and that [...]

Via Clean Break, John Holdren, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, offers some useful thoughts on the recent controversy surrounding the emails stolen from the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia. Holdren touches on the current state of climate science, the significance of the emails, and the [...]

[ Monday, February 8, 2010; 5:45 pm to 8:00 pm. ] The focus of the Sustainable Tucson General Meeting will be Food Sustainability. On February 8, your view of food sustainability in Tucson ’s future may change forever. The Sustainable Tucson Working Group on Food & Agriculture will engage your mind and your tastebuds in thinking about the sources of food in Tucson, Pima County and [...]

[ Thursday, November 19, 2009; 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. ] A Community Brainstorming Gathering is scheduled for Thursday, November 19th, 6:30-8:30pm (doors open at 6pm) at the Armory Park Center, 220 S. 5th Avenue. The Brainstorming Gathering is being organized in support of the Water Project being planned for March 26-28, 2010. The Water Project is a participatory festival that celebrates, educates, and facilitates creative [...]

Nicolette Niman, from a decidedly self-interested perspective on the matter, still has some interesting arguments to consider about what she refers to as “the real story of meat’s contribution to global warning.” You might want to read her op-ed in the New York Times.

The Wall is a place where literally thousands and thousands of people committed to a revolutionary new energy future for our nation and the world are coming together — to express our hopes, share our resolve, and step up to a leadership role [...]

You may be interested in the following new reports:
1. Climate Solutions2: Low-Carbon Re-Industrialization. A Report to WWF International based on the Climate Industry Sector Technology Allocation (CRISTAL) Model (Executive Summary). This report models the ability of low-carbon industries to grow and transform within a market economy. It finds that runaway climate change is almost inevitable [...]

[ Thursday, October 22, 2009; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. ] Repower Arizona, a campaign of the Alliance for Climate Protection in support of clean energy is coming to town! The office grand opening will feature Tucson City council member Rodney Glassman. Join us for education, activities, and networking.

Repower Arizona is educating Arizona on the benefits of transitioning to a clean energy economy, including providing a [...]

Paul Krugman offers a timely analysis of some of the reasons for our inadequate response to the crisis of climate change.

[ Saturday, October 24, 2009; 10:00 am to 11:45 am. ] Join us October 24th, Tucson Chinese Cultural Center, 1288 West River Road, 10 am to 11:45 am.
350.0rg
Connect with others in our community and thousands of communities across the planet
who are building a movement to lift public awareness about Global Warming. Let’s show
the world what Tucson is doing to make policymakers aware of the scientific evidence [...]

Please listen to this powerful appeal to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development by a young woman of 13, wise beyond her years: http://media.causes.com/510213

[ Tuesday, September 22, 2009; 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm. 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm. ] Meeting to develop support for green jobs and clean energy being organized by Repower America. Ward 3 Office, 1510 E. Grant Road. For more information about the national campaign visit http://www.repowera merica.org/ page/event/ detail/4jvb2

Here’s a rather impressive bit of reflection by Adam Sacks on “the fallacy of climate activism“  http://www.grist.org/article/2009-08-23-the-fallacy-of-climate-activism.
He says: “in the 20 years since we climate activists began our work in earnest, the state of the climate has become dramatically worse, and the change is accelerating–this despite all of our best efforts. Clearly something is deeply [...]

[ Thursday, September 24, 2009; 8:30 pm; Sunday, September 27, 2009; 6:30 pm; ] What kind of innovative approaches are scientists taking to help mankind protect the planet and live more sustainably? WaveLengths: Sustainability — the season premiere of the science program from Arizona Public Media – explores some of the cutting edge research scientists are using to look for solutions for more responsible use of the planet’s natural [...]

Van Jones’s Ousting: A Wake-Up Call for Green Economy Advocates
Published 09/07/2009 on Energy Bulletin (http://www.energybulletin.net)
by Aaron G. Lehmer
A dear friend of the earth, a staunch defender of justice, and a bold champion for a solar-powered America has just been forced out of the Obama Administration through a clever campaign of deceit, malice, and fear. [...]

The CEO of Siemens AG, Peter Löscher, believes Europe is on the brink of anew era in energy production. The aim of the €400 billion ($560 billion) project is to provide carbon-free energy that could supply up to 20 percent of European energy needs by 2050.
The biggest solar energy project in the world is about [...]

Q: Why should I care about the Citizens united v. FEC ruling?
A: In this landmark case, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that it is unconstitutional to limit how much money corporations can spend to influence elections. Why? They said limits would violate the First Amendment guarantee of free speech. Since the 2010 ruling, corporations have [...]

by Rob Hopkins
Published on Energy Bulletin (http://energybulletin.net), 05/28/2009
At the Transition Network conference, Richard Heinberg gave an online presentation looking at the concept of Emergency Planning for Communities, something he initially unveiled at Findhorn last year. You can see his presentation here. For a while now, Richard and I have been discussing the tension between longer [...]

View Richard Heinberg’s Presentation on Resilient Communities here.

Richard Heinberg on Resilient Communities: Day 7 of the Findhorn Positive Energy Conference
The final day of the recent Findhorn Positive Energy Conference began with rain driving on the bedroom window. This extraordinary week at Findhorn had offered us a year’s worth of weather in one week. Snow, sleet, [...]

[ Thursday, May 21, 2009; 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. ] Lee Stanley presents:
Thursday, May 21, 7:30 pm

1327 N. 4th Avenue

At 7:30, May 21st I will show a fifteen minute short called : City Repair.
City Repair is the story of a quintessential grassroots startup in
Portland, OR who transform space into place.

After that I will show ‘What a way to Go.,,Life after the end of
Empire, a [...]

[ Wednesday, April 22, 2009; ] Sustainability Actions Everyone Can Do

We in Tucson face an unprecedented sustainability crisis including economic meltdown, climate change, resource depletion, and unraveling of the social fabric.——- Every level of our community is important in the effort to mitigate and adapt to these inter-related crises – household, neighborhood, small business, education, social service agencies, government, non-profits, and [...]

[ Wednesday, April 22, 2009; 8:00 am; ] Spotlight Conversation on Climate Action
Be a part of the Conversation!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009      8 a.m.-12 p.m.
The University of Arizona Student Union Grand Ballroom
1303 E. University Blvd.     FREE Registration
www.tucsonaz.gov/ocsd/climateaction

Contact Nicole Urban-Lopez for more information about this event.
nicole.urban-lopez@tucsonaz.gov
520-837-6934

Tucson will host a “Spotlight Conversation on Climate Action” as part of an elite group of 10 communities that were [...]

No, we can’t?
by Dave Cohen
Published on Energy Bulletin (http://www.energybulletin.net) March 5, 2009
What is the biggest impediment in 2009 to mitigating the harmful effects of energy problems in the 21st century? The answer may surprise you-it is insolvent zombie banks and our entrenched FIRE economy (Finance, Insurance, Real Estate). Allow me to explain.
Another Tragic Misallocation of [...]

[ Saturday, March 28, 2009; 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm. ] Himmel Park

South of Speedway and East Of Tucson Blvd

12 noon to 6pm

[ Thursday, May 17, 2012; 1:17 am; Thursday, March 5, 2009; 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm. ] The University of Arizona College of Engineering, College of Science and the Eller College of Management presents
” Energy, Sustainability, and the Environment” — A Lecture Series
National and International Issues of Water Availability and Quality: A U.S. EPA Research Perspective

By Sally Gutierrez, Director, National Risk Assessment Laboratory
Environmental Protection Agency

4:00 pm, Thursday, March 5, 2009
Center [...]

[ Thursday, March 12, 2009; 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. ] The Coolest Talk Around: Solar and Low-Energy Cooling

Wilmot Library

530 North Wilmot Road

6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Bill Cunningham, owner of Southwest Solar and sustainability engineer, will give a presentation entitled, “The Coolest Talk Around: Solar and Low-Energy Cooling.”  He will explain about passive and active cooling strategies, what works and what doesn’t work, appropriate technology and exotic [...]

UA climate scientist Jonathon Overpeck confirms previous studies that Arizona is ground zero for the most extreme warming and drying impacts in the U.S. Read article here. UA Regents Professor, Malcolm Hughes recently completed a new study that shows the last decade was the hottest in at least the past 1300 years.

By Tony Davis, February 18, 2009, Arizona Daily Star
The state’s best-known climate-change expert presented harrowing forecasts for sharply higher temperatures and drier rivers and reservoirs before a legislative committee in Phoenix on Tuesday.
Jonathan Overpeck told the House Environment Committee that:

Temperatures could regularly hit the 130s in Phoenix by the second half of this century [...]

By Tony Davis, published September 2, 2008, Arizona Daily Star
Data from tree rings, other sources indicate last decade was hottest in
1,300-1,700 years
The decade ending in 2006 was the warmest such period in the Northern Hemisphere for at least the last 1,300 years and possibly longer, says a new study written by a University of Arizona [...]

Carbon levels rising faster, scientists warn
By The Associated Press, Arizona Daily Star February 15, 2009
CHICAGO – Despite widespread concern over global warming, humans are adding carbon to the atmosphere even faster than in the 1990s, researchers warned Saturday.
Carbon dioxide and other gases added to the air by industrial and other activities have been blamed for [...]

Tucson’s problems are increasing. After two years, we continue to have a glut of approximately 8,000 to 10,000 empty, unsold houses. Home prices are plummeting. Families are abandoning their foreclosed houses, especially in the suburbs. Builders are going bankrupt. Skilled workers are losing their jobs and leaving the state. Net population growth in Tucson has [...]

Expect climate ‘surprises,’ UA expert says
By Evan Pellegrino, published February 14, 2009, Arizona Daily Star
CHICAGO – It’s time to expect the unexpected.
The director of UA’s Institute for Environment and Society issued the warning Friday with two other experts during a symposium to address climate change.
The debate on why the world is warming has ended, [...]

One response to the global crisis that is gaining enthusiastic momentum in Tucson and around the world is the Transition Towns movement. Sustainable Tucson is taking advantage of many Transition Resources to support our Sustainability Planning Initiative.
Jennifer Gray, a pioneer in the Transition Initiative in the UK and cofounder of Transition US, describes it as [...]

By David Adam, published by The Guardian (UK), December 9, 2008
As ministers and officials gather in Poznan one year ahead of the Copenhagen summit on global warming, the second part of a major series looks at the crucial issue of targets
At a high-level academic conference on global warming at Exeter University this summer, climate scientist [...]

On October 30th, Dr. David Suzuki, reknowned Canadian scientist and educator, gave “one of the great speeches in history”  to the 20th Anniversary Roundtable on the Economy and the Environment.
Click on the following to watch a video of that speech:
http://www.cpac.ca/forms/index.asp?dsp=template&act=view3&pagetype=vod&lang=e&clipID=2099

[ Saturday, November 15, 2008; 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. ] DU VAL AUDITORIUM
University Medical Center, 1501 North Campbell Avenue
November 15, 2008; 8:00AM – 5:00 PM
Register online at: www.healthandclimatechange.eventbrite.com

Keynote Speakers:
Andrew Comrie, PhD, Professor of Geography & Climatology, University of Arizona
Jeremy Hess, MD, MPH, Consultant, National Center for Environmental Health,
Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia

A Multidisciplinary Panel of Clinicians and Public Health Professionals and Elected Officials and
3 [...]

The Peak Oil Crisis: Memorandum for the President-Elect
by Tom Whipple, retired CIA analyst, columnist for the Falls Church (VA) News-Press, and editor of Peak Oil Review. Published November 6, 2008
The way things are shaping up, in less than three months you will be in charge of solving the direst set of crises since the ones [...]

[ Thursday, November 13, 2008; 10:00 pm to 11:00 pm. ] On November 13, 2008 KUAT is airing “The American Southwest: Are We Running Dry” documentary from 8:30-9:30pm, followed by a half-hour special edition of “Arizona Illustrated” with panelists Chuck Huckelberry, Jeff Biggs, Sharon Megdal and Kathy Jacobs.

Then at 10pm, another documentary on water called “Liquid Assets” which looks at America’s water infrastructure.

[ Thursday, November 13, 2008; 8:30 pm to 10:00 pm. ] On November 13, 2008 KUAT is airing “The American Southwest: Are We Running Dry” documentary from 8:30-9:30pm, followed by a half-hour special edition of “Arizona Illustrated” with panelists Chuck Huckelberry, Jeff Biggs, Sharon Megdal and Kathy Jacobs.

Then at 10pm, another documentary on water called “Liquid Assets” which looks at America’s water infrastructure.