http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu Wed, 22 May 2013 16:33:23 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/05/15/the-microgrid-solution/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/05/15/the-microgrid-solution/#comments Wed, 15 May 2013 16:15:10 +0000 Lakis Polycarpou http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=36594 Last October, Superstorm Sandy provoked widespread frustration and fear after it left more than 7.5 million people in the New York Metro area without power. In the hardest hit areas, outages lasted two weeks or more. These failures led many observers to wonder if America’s aging electrical grid was up to dealing with emerging climate and other challenges.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/05/15/the-microgrid-solution/feed/ 1 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/17/closing-the-loop-technology-and-sustainability-event/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/17/closing-the-loop-technology-and-sustainability-event/#comments Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:01:11 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=35703 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/17/closing-the-loop-technology-and-sustainability-event/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/15/fossil-fuels-do-far-more-harm-than-nuclear-power/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/15/fossil-fuels-do-far-more-harm-than-nuclear-power/#comments Mon, 15 Apr 2013 20:30:02 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=35606 Pushker Kharecha and James E. Hansen write about their recent paper on the long-term health effects of nuclear power versus fossil fuels, and argue that nuclear power needs to be part of the solution to climate change.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/15/fossil-fuels-do-far-more-harm-than-nuclear-power/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/02/20/tensiometers-in-punjab/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/02/20/tensiometers-in-punjab/#comments Wed, 20 Feb 2013 14:27:09 +0000 Kavita Jain-Cocks http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=34301 So far, tensiometers have been tested in four central districts of Punjab, initially with more than 500 farmers the first year, and then peaking with an additional 4,500 farmers in 2011 before testing was scaled back. Data showed, on average, a 30 percent reduction in the water used in the test plots when compared with the standard practices employed in the control plots.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/02/20/tensiometers-in-punjab/feed/ 1 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/11/16/the-future-of-transportation-more-safety-savings-and-sustainability/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/11/16/the-future-of-transportation-more-safety-savings-and-sustainability/#comments Fri, 16 Nov 2012 19:39:22 +0000 Renee Cho http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=32350 Though driverless cars sound like something out of the “The Jetsons,” they are just one of many innovations already under way in the realm of personal transportation. ]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/11/16/the-future-of-transportation-more-safety-savings-and-sustainability/feed/ 1 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/27/the-us-jobs-challenge-and-its-future/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/27/the-us-jobs-challenge-and-its-future/#comments Sat, 27 Oct 2012 17:01:26 +0000 David Maurrasse http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=31673 Collaboration between government and the private sector will be essential to substantially increasing job opportunities. The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 7.8% in September 2012 - its lowest level since January 2009.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/27/the-us-jobs-challenge-and-its-future/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/18/watering-the-worlds-crops-drop-by-drop/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/18/watering-the-worlds-crops-drop-by-drop/#comments Thu, 18 Oct 2012 18:35:22 +0000 Kevin Krajick http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=31390 Dr. Daniel Hillel was recently honored with the World Food Prize for his pioneering work in sustainable agriculture.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/18/watering-the-worlds-crops-drop-by-drop/feed/ 3 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/08/partnering-for-impact/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/08/partnering-for-impact/#comments Mon, 08 Oct 2012 14:36:16 +0000 David Maurrasse http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=31021 Our highly interconnected and interdependent world has given rise to an extraordinary collaborative effort to design a future that is sustainable, prosperous and empowering. The recently concluded Clinton Global Initiative 2012 annual meeting’s theme, “Designing for Impact,” focused on designing our lives, environments and the global systems that can create more opportunity and equality.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/10/08/partnering-for-impact/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/04/02/rare-earth-metals-another-challenge-for-the-green-economy/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/04/02/rare-earth-metals-another-challenge-for-the-green-economy/#comments Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:14:46 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=24591 Rare earth metals play an important role in our envisaged carbon-free future, but their availability in the future is under question for different political and availability issues, which is worrying for planned reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/04/02/rare-earth-metals-another-challenge-for-the-green-economy/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/03/22/water-water-everywhere-but-nary-a-drop-to-drink/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/03/22/water-water-everywhere-but-nary-a-drop-to-drink/#comments Thu, 22 Mar 2012 12:00:25 +0000 Upmanu Lall http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=24317 It is a unique challenge of our generation that many in the developing world have cellular phones and TVs, but lack reliable access to water. Odd, perhaps, given that water is marketed as essential for life, a human right, and heart rending pictures of women and children walking miles to fetch water are routinely flashed to tug at everyone’s heart strings.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/03/22/water-water-everywhere-but-nary-a-drop-to-drink/feed/ 4