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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

It was an afternoon of ironies.

I took a few hours off and helped my daughter study for her poli-sci mid-term, which will cover the formation of the United States, the Articles of Confederation, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the philosophical precepts that underlie all this: John Locke’s notion of natural rights,  Rousseau’s social contract, etc.  I always enjoy teaching the concept of a “republic,” i.e., a form of government in which the country is considered a “public matter,” not the private concern or property of the rulers. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Politics

Here’s an article from Auto News that describes the automobile industry outlook under a Romney presidency.  Those aggressive CAFE (fuel economy) standards will go the same place that the Republicans have promised to take all the other progress the U.S. has made in terms of the environment, i.e., out the window.  Another good reason to get out and vote.

 

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

I think we all understand that the smart phone is going to play a huge role in how we transport our bodies and our cargo in the future.  Here’s a somewhat obvious prelude to all this: an app by BMW that monitors your driving behavior and lets you know if you’re a good candidate for the company’s new electric vehicle.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Wind Energy

For those of you wishing to understand the connection between natural gas pricing and the integration of wind power onto our grids, here’s a very scholarly piece by energy analyst and frequent 2GreenEnergy commenter Glenn Doty.  Every time I click on one of Glenn’s articles I’m confident that I’ll be learning a lot, and this certainly did not disappoint.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

Here’s a short article from Dr. David Katz, an MD from Yale University, who writes on a topic quite familiar to me: we human beings may be running out of time.  In particular, we’re in a race that has evolved over a period of tens of thousands of years that now needs to make plans that will affect our very survival as a civilization.  But are we equipped to deal with this challenge effectively? 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

I know I’ve mentioned that occasionally, we’re lucky enough here at 2GreenEnergy to be the beneficiary of work done by interns – normally young people anxious to participate in a true “win-win-win.”  2GreenEnergy is empowered with more content, the intern learns about the industry, and the world is a better place as a result of having more attention focused on clean energy.  I’m happy to report that currently, we have four people at various stages of participation in this program. 

Of course, the nature of the activity that an intern performs is a function of his/her interests and strengths.  I wouldn’t ask a wallflower to make cold phone calls, and I wouldn’t expect a quantum physicist to be a great business writer.  Having said that, this clean energy field is broad enough that I’ll never run out of ideas with respect to focusing the energies of a willing person toward doing something that’s both edifying and fun.  (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

Late this morning, I made my 100th call to the 100 top financial planners in the United States.  Now I can say that at least one person in each of these organizations knows who 2GreenEnergy is, and the value proposition we represent to wealth management professionals whose clients have an appetite for clean energy, or cleantech more generally.

The concept now is to stay in front of them, such that, when the timing’s right, I get a call with an immediate interest in making an investment. Every month, I’ll send them something: perhaps a free electronic copy of Renewable Energy — Facts and Fantasies, perhaps a white paper, or a report.  “You have to give something to get something,” as we say in marketing.

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Sustainability

I just had a chat with Sara Chiguer, a terrific young lady in Morocco.  Sara is involved in a great number of “green” activities, including her support of some advocacy groups that are extremely active in bringing about a sustainable approach to living in Northern Africa.  Readers will want to check out the Moroccan Organization for Sustainable Development. 

She writes:

I do appreciate this (2GreenEnergy) initiative. I would like to inform you that there are many projects in Morocco in the field of renewable energies and sustainable development. They encourage investors from foreign countries. Morocco has a number of collaborative programs, called Implementing Agreements, managed under the umbrella of the International Energy Agency to help find solutions to worldwide energy problems.

I also want you to know that I am the team leader of SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) and we have to work on economic, environmental and social projects in order to help people in need.

I asked Sara about the plan to build an enormous amount of concentrated solar power (CSP, aka solar thermal) and transmit the power to Europe, under the Mediterranean Sea. Obviously this is a long-term plan, but I’ve come across the notion several times. Where does it stand?  Sara will hunt something up for me and send it.  When she does, I’ll happily write a post on it. 

 

 

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Electric Vehicles

Every year, GreenerCars.org releases a list of cars that are rated according to their Green Score. While many potential car buyers look to this list for environmentally-sound automobile choices, we thought it would be more entertaining to peruse the list for the cars with the lowest green ratings. Here are five vehicles that would make any decent environmentalist lose sleep.

1. Bugatti Veyron

This multimillion-dollar car is about as sexy as they come. With curves that can make even the Victoria’s Secret models jealous, this car is an amazing piece of machinery. The amazing acceleration of the Veyron can take it from 0 to 60 in under three seconds and may very well burn half of a tank of gas in the process. You can expect to earn just eight miles to the gallon tooling around the city (Monte Carlo, of course) and only 15 mpg on the highway. If you’re green, forget your dreams of owning this environmental monstrosity. (more…)

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by craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

Commenting on my post on Bernie Sanders’ article on renewable energy, frequent commenter Tim Kingston writes:

(We) need to have nuclear in the mix. Try powering a steel mill or an aluminum smelter with solar panels and wind turbines. Good luck with that! But I guess Sanders is okay with that because he and most greenies would welcome the demise of heavy industry in the US and the well-paying jobs that go with it.

Tim, I don’t think you’re being fair to the huge segment of the world’s population that is concerned about both economic vitality and the quality of the natural environment.  I don’t presume to speak for all environmentalists, but from my own perspective, I respect the value of well-paying jobs.  In fact, at one point, I had over 100 employees on my personal payroll, a group I paid more than twice the average for our industry, simply because I knew I needed the very best in the business.  I wrote a $65,000 payroll check every week during that period.  My people appreciated it, and I considered them the bargain of the century. 
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