The storehouses of digital information have to also go green if India is to achieve net zero

Buildings are a major source of carbon emissions because they use vast amounts of energy — 34% of global demand—from fossil fuels for heating and cooling.

Albany : SUNY Press, [2017-2018]

One-time passwords were supposed to be our digital guardians but they have become a nagging overprotective parent instead

Chennai emerges as India’s No. 1 greenhouse gas emitter in a study done among seven major cities. Poor city and building design is the main culprit.

The removal of the footpaths will help increase the width of the carriageway at points where lanes on either side of the median will be barricaded

With Brahmanandam as a storyteller, the Telugu anthology film ‘Panchathantram’ looks at memories through sensory experiences and a couple of stories hit the sweet spot

The Telugu anthology ‘Anger Tales’ explores anger that stems from everyday situations through effective performances 

Grooves dated 3000 BCE found near Pathari.

In his new book, The Golden Road: How Ancient India Transformed the World, the writer and historian explores India’s philosophical, religious and scientific influence on Eurasia

Accordingly, the merger will strengthen the airline’s presence on critical long-haul routes and open new destinations like Bali and Mauritius

Executives from 13 major U.S. corporations are announcing at least $140 billion in new investments to decrease their carbon footprints as part of a White House initiative to recruit private commitments ahead of a United Nations climate-change summit later this year in Paris.

Companies including Apple Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Energy Co., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. will join Secretary of State John Kerry and top administration officials at the White House for the announcement. In addition to pledges to cut emissions, provide financing to environmentally-focused companies, and reduce water consumption, the companies have said they will procure at least 1,600 MW of new, renewable energy. The White House said in a statement that it expects to announce a second round of similar pledges later this fall from additional companies.

The commitments are being announced as President Barack Obama is looking to build momentum toward a legacy-defining global climate accord in Paris. In addition to company-specific commitments, the corporate leaders on Monday will signal their support for a strong climate agreement out of the United Nations talks. They administration is using the pledges to set an example for companies to find ways to eliminate their carbon emissions.

Climate Talks

“As the world looks toward global climate negotiations in Paris this December, American leadership at all levels will be essential,” the White House said in a fact sheet detailing the announcement.

The administration’s actions are pushing the issue into the 2016 presidential debate. Hillary Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, released an energy strategy saying she would both defend and go beyond Obama’s efforts. Republican candidates have criticized the administration’s initiatives as costly to the economy and unnecessary.

Among the pledges, aluminum manufacturer Alcoa Inc. has agreed to reduce emissions by 50 percent from its 2005 levels, while agricultural giant Cargill Inc. says 18 percent of its total energy use will come from renewable sources.

Coca-Cola Co. said it would drive down the carbon footprint of its beverage production by 25 percent over the next five years, while Google says it plans to triple its purchases of renewable energy over the next decade. Berkshire Hathaway says it plans to invest up to an additional $15 billion in the construction and operation of renewable energy generators, while Bank of America Corp says it will increase its environmental business initiative by $75 billion over the next decade, according to the White House

Other participating firms include Wal-Mart, United Parcel Service Inc., PepsiCo Inc., Microsoft Corp., General Motors Inc.

The corporate commitments won’t be the administration’s only major climate announcement in the next few weeks. The Environmental Protection Agency is set to present final regulations that aim to reduce carbon emissions from power plants by 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030 later this week.

While visiting Kenya over the weekend, Obama repeatedly praised the country for its efforts to address climate change, saying its efforts tor educe emissions “has put it in the position of being a leader on the continent.” And next month, the president will travel to Alaska for an international summit on Arctic climate issues.

©2015 Bloomberg News

For more, see Big Companies, Big Renewable Investments.

Executives from 13 major U.S. corporations are announcing at least $140 billion in new investments to decrease their carbon footprints as part of a White House initiative to recruit private commitments ahead of a United Nations climate-change summit later this year in Paris.

Companies including Apple Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Energy Co., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. will join Secretary of State John Kerry and top administration officials at the White House for the announcement. In addition to pledges to cut emissions, provide financing to environmentally-focused companies, and reduce water consumption, the companies have said they will procure at least 1,600 MW of new, renewable energy. The White House said in a statement that it expects to announce a second round of similar pledges later this fall from additional companies.

The commitments are being announced as President Barack Obama is looking to build momentum toward a legacy-defining global climate accord in Paris. In addition to company-specific commitments, the corporate leaders on Monday will signal their support for a strong climate agreement out of the United Nations talks. They administration is using the pledges to set an example for companies to find ways to eliminate their carbon emissions.

Climate Talks

“As the world looks toward global climate negotiations in Paris this December, American leadership at all levels will be essential,” the White House said in a fact sheet detailing the announcement.

The administration’s actions are pushing the issue into the 2016 presidential debate. Hillary Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, released an energy strategy saying she would both defend and go beyond Obama’s efforts. Republican candidates have criticized the administration’s initiatives as costly to the economy and unnecessary.

Among the pledges, aluminum manufacturer Alcoa Inc. has agreed to reduce emissions by 50 percent from its 2005 levels, while agricultural giant Cargill Inc. says 18 percent of its total energy use will come from renewable sources.

Coca-Cola Co. said it would drive down the carbon footprint of its beverage production by 25 percent over the next five years, while Google says it plans to triple its purchases of renewable energy over the next decade. Berkshire Hathaway says it plans to invest up to an additional $15 billion in the construction and operation of renewable energy generators, while Bank of America Corp says it will increase its environmental business initiative by $75 billion over the next decade, according to the White House

Other participating firms include Wal-Mart, United Parcel Service Inc., PepsiCo Inc., Microsoft Corp., General Motors Inc.

The corporate commitments won’t be the administration’s only major climate announcement in the next few weeks. The Environmental Protection Agency is set to present final regulations that aim to reduce carbon emissions from power plants by 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030 later this week.

While visiting Kenya over the weekend, Obama repeatedly praised the country for its efforts to address climate change, saying its efforts tor educe emissions “has put it in the position of being a leader on the continent.” And next month, the president will travel to Alaska for an international summit on Arctic climate issues.

©2015 Bloomberg News

For more, see Big Companies, Big Renewable Investments.

Governments around the world are encouraging people to factor the environment into their everyday lives and purchases. Is it leading to more sustainable consumption? Are households ‘going green’?

We could spend World Environment Day warning of the doom and gloom of future Earth, but considering how much we have done that already, that’s not going to get us very far as we approach this year’s COP21 in Paris. Instead, we are going to give you a taste on what we do here at the OECD headquarters to help save the environment, taking our own medicine on what we prescribe to governments.

This project is unique in that it explores how national-level policies impact household behaviour. Topics include energy use, food consumption, personal transport choices, waste generation and recycling, and water consumption. Yet the project does not specifically discuss the term “ecological footprint,” and it retains a macro-policy focus, targeting governments interested in learning which policies to implement.

Type “Christmas and environment” into Google and you will get page after page of tips on how to have a sustainable festive and holiday season. Topics from the Christmas tree to sustainable gift-giving to eco-friendly Christmas food to holiday cards to gift wrapping, there is no shortage of news articles, websites and blogs providing useful advice on how to reduce the environmental footprint of the holiday period.

Governments around the world are encouraging people to factor the environment into their everyday lives and purchases. Is it leading to more sustainable consumption? Are households ‘going green’?

Seabed fishing grounds in the UK are made up of intensively fished core areas surrounded by more rarely used marginal areas, new research shows. Excluding these margins, which contain only 10% of the total fishing activity, approximately halves the total area of fishing grounds. Thus reducing the fishing footprint by closing the marginal areas will disproportionately reduce the seabed impact of fishing activity.

A new study provides recommendations to reduce the environmental impact of personal hygiene and cleaning products on the environment. Researchers undertook life-cycle assessments of products including detergents, soaps and toilet cleaners, and compared their environmental footprints looking at different types of environmental damage.

New research has recommended using both ecological and carbon footprints to assess the impact of environmental policies and strategies at a regional level. The combination can provide an evidence-based means of evaluating policies to help achieve environmental targets.

Individuals can assess how their behaviour is affecting nitrogen pollution with a newly developed nitrogen footprint calculator, which was developed by a team from the University of Virginia (U.S.) and the Energy Research Centre (ECN, the Netherlands). For many people in wealthy countries, reducing protein consumption to the recommended levels and reducing the amount of red meat and energy they consume would significantly lower their nitrogen footprint.

There is a need for greater harmonisation of the methods used to estimate the environmental impact of products, otherwise known as product category rules (PCRs). A new study has reviewed the development of PCRs and provided recommendations for better alignment.

Environmentally responsible attitudes and behaviour do not necessarily translate into real benefits for the environment, according to the results of a new study. The study shows that people who think they are environmentally aware – and even those who, in some respects, seem to behave in an environmentally friendly way – actually have just as large an impact on the environment as other consumers.

Increasing the use of recycled materials could substantially reduce the carbon footprint of plastic packaging, research suggests. A new study of the life-cycle of plastic trays has shown that increasing the proportion of recycled material could lead to a significant reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

The majority of respondents to a UK survey would like to see labels explaining the carbon footprint of the food they buy. 72% of the supermarket shoppers questioned were in favour of carbon labels on food. The survey also found that 42% had changed their shopping habits in the last 10 years in response to environmental concerns.

Researchers have calculated how much phosphorus is taken from the land by major crops around the world and how much is applied as fertiliser, to help estimate agriculture's phosphorus footprint. Among their conclusions, they argue that phosphorus fertiliser needs to be used more sustainably to address global imbalances in its use.

Product carbon footprinting (PCF) is an increasingly popular method of reporting sustainability impacts. There are a growing number of methodologies and labels addressing carbon footprints in Europe and worldwide, and PCFs are seen both as a way to better communicate and inform consumers and as a tool to reduce the global footprint related to production and consumption activities. The articles in this thematic issue of Science for Environment Policy explore the calculation and understanding of PCF, in order to guide effective policy.

The actual carbon footprint of products and services can differ considerably according to how energy used to manufacture the product was generated – for example, whether it was generated by fossil fuel or renewable sources. A recent US study has therefore recommended that differences in regional power supply should be acknowledged by life cycle assessments of products and services.

A recent study from Finland on the carbon footprint of food can help producers and consumers make choices that lower the food chain’s impact on climate change, by highlighting hotspots in the food chain for improvement and revealing food’s overall impact.

The majority of respondents to a UK survey would like to see labels explaining the carbon footprint of the food they buy. 72% of the supermarket shoppers questioned were in favour of carbon labels on food. The survey also found that 42% had changed their shopping habits in the last 10 years in response to environmental concerns.

Despite better public transport and more energy-efficient housing, city dwellers have a larger carbon footprint than those in rural areas, according to a recent Finnish study. This is partly explained by the phenomenon of ‘parallel consumption’ in which people extend their living space by using services that the home also provides.

A measure of ‘chemical footprint’ is being developed by researchers to assess the environmental impacts of the toxic chemicals released by the production and consumption of goods. The methodology, based on life cycle and risk assessment, is also designed to be linked to the resilience of ecosystems to chemical exposure.

Increases in global energy requirements could lead to a rise in the energy sector's water footprint of up to 66% in the next 20 years, new research suggests. As part of a sustainable future, any energy mix must enable a reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, some renewable sources, such as biofuels and large-scale hydropower, have large water footprints, a factor which must also be considered in energy policies, the researchers say.

The carbon footprint of food waste should be taken into account alongside the the weight of food wasted, says a new study. The research examined three years of food waste data from six branches of a Swedish supermarket and calculated the waste’s carbon footprint. On the basis of their footprint, key products that could be targeted for waste reduction include beef mince, meatballs and cream, the results suggest.

Food packaging waste is currently under scrutiny. In the context of its Circular Economy Action Plan, the EU is addressing this through, among others, its Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) initiative , which aims to enhance the reliability of environmental claims — both in a business-to-consumer and in a business-to-business context. The initiative aims, therefore, to boost the market of green and circular products. However, a review of the methods available for assessing the environmental sustainability of packaging now highlights the difficulty of clearly characterising packaging's environmental impact. The study suggests a new, fully quantifiable framework that could help to standardise assessment methods and bring 'environmental footprint labelling' to fruition.

To better understand the social and ecological implications of the non- food sector of the EU’s expanding bioeconomy, an economy which is based on the production and conversion of renewable biological resources into products and energy, a study has assessed the global cropland footprint of the region’s non-food products. The results show that the EU was the world’s biggest consumer and importer of these products from 1995 to 2010: two-thirds of the cropland required to satisfy the EU’s non-food consumption is located elsewhere in regions including China, the USA and Indonesia, bringing potential impacts for distant ecosystems. These findings can inform EU policymaking and support the EU Bioeconomy Strategy.

A new study has analysed how to reduce the environmental footprint of EU trade by preferentially importing goods from countries that have greener production processes. The study concludes that the environmental impacts of 200 product groups imported into the EU could be considerably reduced in this way. For example, water consumption caused by these imports could be cut by 72%, and land use by 65%.

Carbon footprints are an established means of communicating one aspect of a product's environmental impact. New research suggests additional 'nitrogen footprints' for food products could give consumers a more informed choice and help reduce eutrophication in water. However, it warns that there are environmental trade-offs for some food groups, for example, oil products have a small nitrogen footprint, but a fairly large carbon footprint.

Reservoirs of water stored under the earth’s surface, otherwise known as groundwater, are a valuable resource. However, using a footprinting method, a new global study has indicated that about 1.7 billion people live in areas where groundwater is being used more quickly than it can be replenished.

Trawling can disturb the seabed, impacting habitats and biodiversity. Results from a new study in the North Sea have shown that changes in the distribution of trawling activity – the result of fishers' choices among fishing grounds and the effects of fisheries' regulations - have greater implications for the overall state of seabed habitat than the protection that might be provided by proposed Marine Protected Areas.

The concept of the Ecological Footprint can be used to illustrate the balance between the use of a natural resource or an ecological service and its availability. According to a new study, the Ecological Footprint could be valuable as an indicator to help track progress towards the goals of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

A methodology for assessing ‘chemical footprints’ has been developed by researchers to evaluate human pressures and the impact of chemicals released by the production and consumption of goods. The study integrates a life-cycle approach with different methodologies, such as those developed in the context of environmental risk assessment and sustainability science, with the aim of assessing the extent to which chemicals impact on ecosystems beyond their ability to recover (i.e. surpass planetary boundaries).

New research has estimated the global footprint of emissions from commercial aircraft. In 2006 nearly 190 million tonnes of fuel were burnt and 162 million tonnes of carbon from CO2 were emitted. The vast majority of the fuel was burned in the Northern hemisphere and half the emissions were over the US, Europe and East Asia.

A group of researchers at Cornell University finds that natural gas may not be as clean as originally thought.

Preserved human footprints in the White Sands National Monument give us insights into early humans' hunting practices of giant ground sloths.