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Shutting down climate science weakens the United States
Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution of the United States requires Congress “promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts”. It also requires that scientists and inventors be given rights against unfair competition and intrusion into the independence of their work. Though not often cited, this short passage of… Keep reading ⇢
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On the way to nowhere
We must choose between the road to nowhere and a living Earth. We are blessed beyond description to live on this planet. All of the collisions and creative destruction of cosmic history have led to the miraculous state of a world that is fit for not only life itself, but… Keep reading ⇢
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Incumbent industries are too comfortable
Rapid business-model change is coming. Polluting industries need to get serious about a future without pollution. There is a lot of talk about the breakdown in trust which is roiling and upending political systems around the world. The most clearly applicable explanation is systemic injustice, which is spreading. Even in wealthy countries,… Keep reading ⇢
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Reduced regulation of toxic chemicals will harm Americans
A national crisis According to the Environmental Working Group, which closely monitors pollutants and their effects on human health: Hundreds of everyday products are made with highly toxic fluorinated chemicals called PFAS. They build up in our bodies and never break down in the environment. Very small doses of PFAS have… Keep reading ⇢
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Opportunity is everywhere – The resilience economy is emerging
Communities everywhere need risk reduction and resilience measures. Green infrastructure—including soil biomass and well-rooted forests, mangroves in coastal areas prone to tropical storms, and mountain glaciers that serve as stable headwaters for healthy watersheds—is essential for maintaining human security and prosperity. Costs of climate inaction are reaching record levels, so… Keep reading ⇢
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Is $5 trillion too much for one company?
Whenever something happens that has never happened before, it is difficult to predict what it will ultimately mean for humankind, or even for those directly invovled in the anomalous event. But when trends are part of the picture, and economics, we can make some informed judgments. This week, NVIDIA became… Keep reading ⇢
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Disaster costs set record in first half of 2025
Climate change is not a future problem; it is happening now. In the first six months of this year, major disasters in the United States costing $1 billion or more set a record for overall costs. From 1980 through 1989, the US spent roughly $220 billion on disasters costing $1… Keep reading ⇢
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What are we building?
Buckminster Fuller wrote that “The human brain is Nature’s most powerful anti-entropy engine.” Intelligence is not just information, or thought or the semblance of thought; it is the process of making enough sense of what is happening to be able to come through it safely, find good health and opportunity… Keep reading ⇢
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The climate tipping point that will affect us all
Loss of the mountain cryosphere—glaciers and snowpack—is a climate tipping point we do not talk about enough. Climate change is complex, because the climate system is complex. It involves atmospheric fluid dynamics, transfer of heat and energy from region to region, and between the ocean and atmosphere. The disruption driven… Keep reading ⇢
