epi@earthpolicy.org Copyright EPI 2013 2013-05-14T15:07:54+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2013/update113 When New York City opened registration for its much anticipated public bike-sharing program on April 15, 2013, more than 5,000 people signed up within 30 hours. Eager for access to a fleet of thousands of bicycles, they became Citi Bike members weeks before bikes were expected to be available. Such pent-up demand for more cycling options is on display in cities across the United States—from Buffalo to Boulder, Omaha to Oklahoma City, and Long Beach in New York to Long Beach in California—where shared bicycle programs are taking root. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-05-14T14:07:54+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/busy_in_the_city/ The Institute’s most intrepid researcher, Lester Brown, has been quietly making a splash speaking at select events in the DC area over the past few months on the findings in his recent book, Full Planet, Empty Plates. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2013-05-01T11:00:17+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2013/update112 Politicians, lobbyists, and tourists alike can ride bicycles along a specially marked lane between the White House and the U.S. Capitol, part of the 115 miles of bicycle lanes and paths that now crisscross Washington, DC. In Copenhagen, commuters can ride to work following a “green wave” of signal lights timed for bikers. Residents in China’s “happiest city,” Hangzhou, can move easily from public transit onto physically separated bike tracks that have been carved out of the vast majority of roadways. Welcome to the era of the Bike Share. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-04-25T16:44:04+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/earth_day_today/ http://www.earth-policy.org/images/uploads/blog_images/LB_USDA.jpg 2013-04-22T11:00:07+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/_babies/ 2013-04-17T11:00:14+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C49/wind_power_2013 Even amid policy uncertainty in major wind power markets, wind developers still managed to set a new record for installations in 2012, with 44,000 megawatts of new wind capacity worldwide. With total capacity exceeding 280,000 megawatts, wind farms generate carbon-free electricity in more than 80 countries, 24 of which have at least 1,000 megawatts. At the European level of consumption, the world's operating wind turbines could satisfy the residential electricity needs of 450 million people. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-04-02T18:36:20+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2013 Freeing America from its dependence on oil from unstable parts of the world is an admirable goal, but many of the proposed solutions—including the push for more home-grown biofuels and for the construction of the new Keystone XL pipeline to transport Canadian tar sands oil to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast—are harmful and simply unnecessary. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-03-28T19:00:06+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/people_in_action_2012/ 2013-03-19T13:00:30+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2013 Defying conventional wisdom about the limits of wind power, in 2012 both Iowa and South Dakota generated close to one quarter of their electricity from wind farms. Wind power accounted for at least 10 percent of electricity generation in seven other states. Across the United States, wind power continues to strengthen its case as a serious energy source. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-03-14T12:30:10+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C50/ice_melt_2013 As the earth warms, glaciers and ice sheets are melting and seas are rising. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-03-07T11:40:45+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2013 The energy game is rigged in favor of fossil fuels because we omit the environmental and health costs of burning coal, oil, and natural gas from their prices. Subsidies manipulate the game even further. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-02-27T19:00:57+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2013 Wind has overtaken nuclear as an electricity source in China. In 2012, wind farms generated 2 percent more electricity than nuclear power plants did, a gap that will likely widen dramatically over the next few years as wind surges ahead. Since 2007, nuclear power generation has risen by 10 percent annually, compared with wind’s explosive growth of 80 percent per year. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-02-19T15:55:14+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C51/temperature_2013 In recent years weather events have whiplashed between the extremes of heat and cold, flooding and drought. Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases—largely from the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas—have loaded up in the atmosphere, heating the planet and pushing humanity onto a climatic seesaw of weather irregularities. High-temperature records in many places are already being broken with startling frequency, and hotter temperatures are in store. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-02-13T13:37:10+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2013/fpepch1 The world is in transition from an era of food abundance to one of scarcity. Over the last decade, world grain reserves have fallen by one third. World food prices have more than doubled, triggering a worldwide land rush and ushering in a new geopolitics of food. Food is the new oil. Land is the new gold. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-02-07T11:50:28+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2013/update111 The fish near the bottom of the aquatic food chain—collectively known as forage fish—are often overlooked, but they are vital to healthy oceans and estuaries. As demand for animal protein has soared over the last half-century, more and more forage fish have been caught to feed livestock and farmed fish instead of being eaten by people directly. A growing body of scientific evidence suggests that current fishing levels are dangerously high—both for the forage fish themselves and for the predators and industries that depend on them. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-01-30T14:31:29+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/green_inaugural_ball/ EPI had the pleasure of honoring President Obama at the Green Inaugural Ball on Sunday. For a full blog post with pictures, please visit the EPI website. 2013-01-23T13:00:50+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C54/grain_2013 The world produced 2,241 million tons of grain in 2012, down 75 million tons or 3 percent from the 2011 record harvest. The drop was largely because of droughts that devastated several major crops—namely corn in the United States (the world’s largest crop) and wheat in Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and Australia. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-01-17T13:00:57+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/outreach_2012/ Outreach is an essential part of the mission of the Earth Policy Institute (EPI). With an in-house team of three people, we work to get EPI’s research into the hands of those who can use it. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2013-01-08T18:32:23+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2013 Global demand for soybeans has soared in recent decades, with China leading the race. Nearly 60 percent of all soybeans entering international trade today go to China, making it far and away the world’s largest importer. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2013-01-08T15:02:01+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/european_launchings/ With the pressure of writing two books this year, Lester Brown has kept his travel to the bare minimum. Nevertheless, he managed a weeklong trip to Europe following Thanksgiving. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-12-26T12:00:48+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update110 2012-12-20T16:40:28+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/2012_research/ In this spot, we often talk about happenings at Earth Policy other than our research. But at this time of the year, we wanted to give you a sense of what our research team has produced in 2012. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-12-19T12:00:02+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 World nuclear electricity-generating capacity has been essentially flat since 2007 and is likely to fall as plants retire faster than new ones are built. In fact, the actual electricity generated at nuclear power plants fell 5 percent between 2006 and 2011. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-12-13T16:30:30+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/umd_kudos/ 2012-12-11T16:47:43+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C55/fish_catch_2012 The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) projects that the world’s wild fish harvest will fall to 90 million tons in 2012, down 2 percent from 2011. This is close to 4 percent below the all-time peak haul of nearly 94 million tons in 1996. The wild fish catch per person has dropped even more dramatically, from 17 kilograms (37.5 pounds) per person at its height in 1988 to 13 kilograms in 2012—a 37-year low. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-11-19T14:45:44+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update109 2012-11-16T18:01:07+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/...quick_facts/ 2012-11-13T13:00:31+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/video_full_planet_empty_plates/ 2012-11-05T12:30:54+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update108 2012-10-31T12:15:27+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update107 As fossil fuel prices rise, as oil insecurity deepens, and as concerns about pollution and climate instability cast a shadow over the future of coal, a new world energy economy is emerging. 2012-10-25T11:45:24+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 More than 150 data sets accompany Lester R. Brown’s latest book, Full Planet, Empty Plates: The New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity. These tables and graphs help to explain the precarious situation in which humanity finds itself, as the world leaves an era of food surpluses and enters one of food scarcity. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-10-17T13:45:35+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/the_dust_bowl/ Ken Burn’s new film The Dust Bowl, a two-part, four-hour documentary airs on PBS November 18 and 19, 8:00-10:00 p.m. ET (check local listings). The film chronicles this 1930s environmental catastrophe that destroyed the farmlands of the Great Plains. 2012-10-16T12:15:13+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 The North Pole is losing its ice cap. Comparing recent melt seasons with historical records spanning more than 1,400 years shows summer Arctic sea ice in free fall. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-10-11T16:34:55+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/celebrating_full_planet_empty_plates/ After the arrival of Full Planet, Empty Plates on bookstore shelves last week, Earth Policy Institute hosted a party to celebrate its official release. Along with good food and drink, Lester gave a brief talk on the main points of the book and answered questions from the attendees. 2012-10-09T12:15:21+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/full_planet/ Lester Brown’s book, Full Planet, Empty Plates: The New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity examines the underlying causes of what is likely the first link in our modern civilization to show that we have pushed beyond the boundaries of the natural systems that support us. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-09-26T16:52:20+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 September estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) show 2012 U.S. corn yields at 123 bushels per acre, down by a fourth from the 2009 high of 165 bushels per acre. Yields are the lowest since 1995 and well below the average of the last 30 years. The summer heat and drought also hit U.S. soybean yields, which are down 20 percent from their 2009 peak. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-09-14T15:40:20+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/new_arrival/ A new book is on its way to bookstores in your area. And we’ve already unloaded and unpacked our shipment! And we’re mailing out advance copies. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-09-13T13:00:47+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/silent_spring/ September is a month of mixtures. There is the heady energy of going back to school, which I always enjoyed. It is also the dot on the end of summer and vacations as so many of us head back to work. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-09-06T16:00:26+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C56/forests_2012 Forests provide many important goods, such as timber and paper. They also supply essential services—for example, they filter water, control water runoff, protect soil, regulate climate, cycle and store nutrients, and provide habitat for countless animal species and space for recreation. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-08-31T15:30:47+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/world_water_week/ Every August, scientists gather in Stockholm to participate in World Water Week and discuss the various issues related to water. For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-08-29T13:00:37+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update106 Wind power is the world's leading source of renewable electricity, excluding hydropower, with 238,000 megawatts of capacity installed at the start of 2012. Thus far, almost all of this wind power has been tapped on land; worldwide just 4,600 megawatts of offshore wind farms were operating as of mid-2012. Offshore wind capacity is growing quickly, however, expanding nearly six-fold since 2006. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-08-16T13:30:20+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update105 Over the last two months, the price of corn has been climbing. On July 19th, it exceeded $8 per bushel for the first time, taking the world into a new food price terrain. With heat and drought still smothering the Corn Belt, we may well see more all-time highs in coming weeks as the extent of crop damage becomes clearer. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-08-08T19:26:24+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2012/wotech10_1 Protecting the 10 billion acres of remaining forests on earth and replanting many of those already lost are both essential for restoring the earth’s health. Restoring the earth’s tree and grass cover protects soil from erosion, reduces flooding, and sequesters carbon. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-07-31T13:07:42+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/up_and_running/ Ready ... set ... Go to EPI’s mobile website and new shopping cart! For a full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-07-26T16:00:37+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update104 In the early spring of 2012, U.S. farmers were on their way to planting some 96 million acres in corn, the most in 75 years. A warm early spring got the crop off to a great start. Analysts were predicting the largest corn harvest on record. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-07-24T18:00:50+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/across_our_desks_ii/ Fish Tank: A Fable For Our Times by Scott Bischke is an innovative take on a very real and serious problem, climate change. The End of Growth: Adapting to our New Economic Reality by Richard Heinberg of the Post Carbon Institute describes what policy makers, communities, and families can do to build a new economy that operates within Earth’s budget of energy and resources. For full blog post, please visit the EPI website. 2012-07-17T12:00:53+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2012/wotech8_ss5 The production, processing, and disposal of materials in our modern throwaway economy wastes not only materials but the energy embodied in the material as well. The throwaway economy that has evolved over the last half-century is an aberration that is now itself headed for the junk heap of history. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-07-12T13:00:08+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/making_a_difference/ We are always thrilled to hear how our work at Earth Policy Institute is making a difference in communities around the world. A few weeks ago we were pleased to receive an email form Gary Curtis, President of the Guemes Island Environmental Trust (GIET) in Anacortes Washington. For full blog post, please visit the EPI website.  2012-07-03T12:00:56+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2012/wotech1_2 No previous civilization has survived the ongoing destruction of its natural supports. Nor will ours. Economists and natural scientists look at the future through different lenses. Economists believe we will return to growth as usual soon, while natural scientists have revealed a flaw. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-06-27T12:00:33+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/rio20/ A group of 22 scientists recently published their findings in Nature (486 June 07) revealing that we are approaching a “state shift” in Earth’s biosphere. That’s a gentle way of saying that we’re headed for trouble. We are pressing against, likely have even pressed past, the limits of what our planet can sustain. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2012-06-19T12:00:19+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 World hydroelectric power generation has risen steadily by an average 3 percent annually over the past four decades. In 2011, at 3,500 billion kilowatt-hours, hydroelectricity accounted for roughly 16 percent of global electricity generation, almost all produced by the world’s 45,000-plus large dams. Today hydropower is generated in over 160 countries. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-06-14T18:01:04+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/sad_day/ Saturday, Lester and I attended the funeral for Blondeen and John Gravely. It was an especially sad time for Lester as he and Blondeen had begun working together when he was at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in the 1960s. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2012-06-06T12:00:06+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2012/wotech13 The time when military forces were the prime threat to security has faded into the past. The threats now are climate volatility, spreading water shortages, continuing population growth, spreading hunger, and failing states. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-05-31T12:00:15+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/grad_congrats/ Our hearty congratulations to Research Associate J. Matthew Roney who just received his Master of Science degree from Johns Hopkins University in the field of environmental sciences and policy with a focus on Chesapeake Bay conservation and management. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2012-05-30T16:00:30+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update103 For the first time in over 40 years, Japan has not a single nuclear power plant generating electricity. The March 2011 earthquake, tsunami, and subsequent Fukushima Daiichi nuclear meltdown shattered public confidence in atomic energy. And the disaster’s legacy has spread far beyond Japan. Some European countries have decided to phase out their nuclear programs entirely. With the world’s fleet of reactors aging, and with new plants suffering construction delays and cost increases, it is possible that world nuclear electricity generation has peaked and begun a long-term decline. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-05-22T13:00:14+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/something_fun/ At its recent Harvard University recently held its third annual Green Carpet Awards, Harvard University presented Lester Brown with the first-ever Alumni Environmental Sustainability Award. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2012-05-08T13:00:29+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 The Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa make up only 5 percent of the world’s population, yet they take in more than 20 percent of the world’s grain exports. Imports to the region have jumped from 30 million tons of grain in 1990 to nearly 70 million tons in 2011. Now imported grain accounts for nearly 60 percent of regional grain consumption. With water scarce, arable land limited, and production stagnating, grain imports are likely to continue rising. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-05-02T11:59:54+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2012/update102 More than a quarter of all the meat produced worldwide is now eaten in China, and the country’s 1.35 billion people are hungry for more. In 1978, China’s meat consumption of 8 million tons was one third the U.S. consumption of 24 million tons. But by 1992, China had overtaken the United States as the world’s leading meat consumer—and it has not looked back since. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-04-24T14:00:27+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/dots_matter/ Bill McKibben’s 350.org has launched Connect the Dots Day. Scheduled for May 5 this global initiative is to draw attention to the fact that people all over the world recognize that climate change is happening and it is creating unpredictable weather events. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2012-04-23T13:00:55+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/across_our_desks/ From time to time, we come across great books that we feel need to be shared. Take a look at these if you are lacking summer reads for vacation or need inspiration. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2012-04-17T13:00:33+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2012/wotech13_ss1 Moving the global economy off its current decline-and-collapse path depends on reaching four goals: stabilizing climate, stabilizing population, eradicating poverty, and restoring the economy’s natural support systems. These goals—comprising what the Earth Policy Institute calls "Plan B" to save civilization—are mutually dependent. All are essential to feeding the world’s people. It is unlikely that we can reach any one goal without reaching the others. The key to restructuring the economy is to get the market to tell the truth through full-cost pricing. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-04-11T12:30:10+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 A new picture is emerging in the U.S. power sector. In 2007, electricity generation from coal peaked, dropping by close to 4 percent annually between 2007 and 2011. Over the same time period, nuclear generation fell slightly, while natural gas-fired electricity grew by some 3 percent annually and hydropower by 7 percent. Meanwhile, wind-generated electricity grew by a whopping 36 percent each year. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-04-04T11:55:28+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/behind_the_scenes/ While our intrepid research team has been diligently working on various Data Highlights and Eco-Economy Indicators (more on the way, so stay tuned!), and while Lester has been immersed in working on his books (spoiler alert!) one on the global food situation, another on the energy situation, and the other his autobiography, the rest of us have been making some changes. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2012-04-02T13:26:29+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 In 1994, the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, Egypt, recognized reproductive health and family planning as fundamental human rights. Delegates committed to making voluntary family planning services universally available by 2015. Now just three years from that deadline, at least 215 million women want to prevent or delay pregnancy but are not using effective contraception. Contraceptive prevalence was increasing until 2000, but growth has stalled since then. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-03-27T12:10:46+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2012/wotech10_ss4 During the past two summers, Pakistan was hit with catastrophic floods. The record flooding in the late summer of 2010 was the most devastating natural disaster in Pakistan’s history. The media coverage reported torrential rains as the cause, but there is much more to the story. When Pakistan was created in 1947, some 30 percent of the landscape was covered by forests. Now it is 4 percent. Pakistan’s livestock herd outnumbers that of the United States. With little forest still standing and the countryside grazed bare, there was scant vegetation to retain the rainfall. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-03-21T14:59:59+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/whos_talking/ Even while squirreled away in his office working on three books (!!), Lester Brown is still finding time to weigh in on topics of interest at conferences. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2012-03-20T15:44:03+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C49/wind_power_2012 Wind energy developers installed a record 41,000 megawatts of electricity-generating capacity in 2011, bringing the world total to 238,000 megawatts. With more than 80 countries now harnessing the wind, there is enough installed wind power capacity worldwide to meet the residential electricity needs of 380 million people at the European level of consumption. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-03-14T11:49:11+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 U.S. meat consumption has peaked. Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture show that meat eating across the country fell from the 2004 high point of 184 pounds (83 kilograms) per person to 171 pounds in 2011. Early estimates for 2012 project a further reduction in American meat eating to 166 pounds, making for a 10 percent drop over the eight-year period. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-03-07T17:57:47+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/travelin_man/ When Lester Brown left on his trip to Japan and China two weeks ago, he was just about the only member of the staff who wasn’t fighting or down with a cold, flu, or some other illness. Being a world traveler, he is fortunate to have a strong constitution. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2012-02-23T14:01:08+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C53/economy_2012 The global economy grew 3.8 percent in 2011, a drop from 5.2 percent in 2010. Economists had anticipated a slowdown, but this was even less growth than expected, thanks to the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, unrest in oil-producing countries, the debt crisis in Europe, and a stagnating recovery in the United States. As richer economies struggle to recover from the financial crisis of 2008–09, poorer countries are facing high food prices and rising youth unemployment. Meanwhile, growing income inequality and environmental disruption are challenging conventional notions of economic health. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-02-16T11:50:48+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/notable/ On Sunday, February 12, Lester Brown will be inducted into the Earth Hall of Fame Kyoto. This prestigious award is given in recognition of the achievements of people who have contributed to the conservation of the global environment. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2012-02-06T14:25:01+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C51/temperature_2012 The global average temperature in 2011 was 14.52 degrees Celsius (58.14 degrees Fahrenheit). According to NASA scientists, this was the ninth warmest year in 132 years of recordkeeping, despite the cooling influence of the La Niña atmospheric and oceanic circulation pattern and relatively low solar irradiance. Since the 1970s, each subsequent decade has gotten hotter—and 9 of the 10 hottest years on record have occurred in the twenty-first century. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-01-31T13:00:11+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2012 We distort reality when we omit the health and environmental costs associated with burning fossil fuels from their prices. When governments actually subsidize their use, they take the distortion even further. Worldwide, direct fossil fuel subsidies added up to roughly $500 billion in 2010. Of this, supports on the production side totaled some $100 billion. Supports for consumption exceeded $400 billion, with $193 billion for oil, $91 billion for natural gas, $3 billion for coal, and $122 billion spent subsidizing the use of fossil fuel-generated electricity. All together, governments are shelling out nearly $1.4 billion per day to further destabilize the earth's climate. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-01-19T15:10:44+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C54/grain_2012 The world’s farmers produced more grain in 2011 than ever before. Estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture show the global grain harvest coming in at 2,295 million tons, up 53 million tons from the previous record in 2009. Consumption grew by 90 million tons over the same period to 2,280 million tons. Yet with global grain production actually falling short of consumption in 7 of the past 12 years, stocks remain worryingly low, leaving the world vulnerable to food price shocks. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2012-01-11T13:53:20+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/letter_from_iran/ As noted in our previous blogs, we rely on a network of publishers to translate and publish our publications, thus helping us to reach a global audience. Hamid Taravati, who translates and arranges for our books to be published in Iran, sent us an email recently updating us on some of the environmental work going on there. He is also a member of our Board. The following are excerpts from his letter. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2012-01-04T15:10:20+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/outreach_2011/ We realize that it will take an enormous dissemination effort to guide the global transition to a Plan B economy. Thus, at the Institute we work through a combination of a worldwide network of media contacts, publishers, and the Internet to reach a global audience. We also hold press teleconferences to draw special attention to some of the issues. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2011-12-21T15:05:54+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2011 The pace of solar energy development is accelerating as the installation of rooftop solar water heaters takes off. Unlike solar photovoltaic (PV) panels that convert solar radiation into electricity, these "solar thermal collectors" use the sun's energy to heat water, space, or both. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-12-14T15:30:21+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/research_2011/ So, what have we been up to this past year to promote our plan for saving civilization? That’s what this blog and the next will discuss. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2011-12-08T12:54:13+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/congratulations_global_thinker/ Congratulations to Lester Brown who has been named one of the top 100 Global Thinkers by Foreign Policy “for calling the food crisis of 2011.” For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2011-12-01T13:20:41+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2011 World consumption of animal protein is everywhere on the rise. Meat consumption increased from 44 million tons in 1950 to 284 million tons in 2009, more than doubling annual consumption per person to over 90 pounds. The rise in consumption of milk and eggs is equally dramatic. Wherever incomes rise, so does meat consumption. As the oceanic fish catch and rangeland beef production have both leveled off, the world has shifted to grain-based production of animal protein to expand output. With some 35 percent of the world grain harvest (760 million tons) used to produce animal protein, meat consumption has a large impact on grain consumption, and therefore global food security. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-11-22T11:50:04+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2011 People born today will live for 68 years on average, 20 years longer than those born in 1950. By the mid-twentieth century, industrial countries had already made major strides in extending lifespans with improvements in sanitation, nutrition, and public health. After World War II, rapid gains in life expectancy in developing countries began to narrow the gap between these nations and industrial countries. Although average life expectancy worldwide continues to increase, gains have come more slowly in the last few decades. Worryingly, life expectancy has actually declined in some developing countries, while a few industrial countries have stalled or made slow progress on this important indicator of human health and well-being. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-11-17T14:39:18+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/new_translations/ Translations of World on the Edge are rolling out faster than Lester Brown can launch them. On a recent trip to South Korea, he spoke at the Climate Change Symposium sponsored by the Korea Green Fund, and gave two presentations for the Gwangju Summt of the Urban Environment Accords, an international conference of mayors and others concerned with climate change and greening their cities. He also launched the Korean edition of World on the Edge, entitled The Angry Planet, published by Doyosae. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2011-11-08T18:37:38+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2011 After a half-century of forming new states from former colonies and from the breakup of the Soviet Union, the international community is today faced with the opposite situation: the disintegration of states. Failing states are now a prominent feature of the international political landscape. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-11-08T12:50:51+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2011/update101 Between 2007 and 2011, carbon emissions from coal use in the United States dropped 10 percent. During the same period, emissions from oil use dropped 11 percent. In contrast, carbon emissions from natural gas use increased by 6 percent. The net effect of these trends was that U.S. carbon emissions dropped 7 percent in four years. And this is only the beginning. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-11-02T12:59:02+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C47/solar_power_2011 Solar photovoltaic (PV) companies manufactured a record 24,000 megawatts of PV cells worldwide in 2010, more than doubling their 2009 output. Annual PV production has grown nearly 100-fold since 2000, when just 277 megawatts of cells were made. Newly installed PV also set a record in 2010, as 16,600 megawatts were installed in more than 100 countries. This brought the total worldwide capacity of solar PV to nearly 40,000 megawatts—enough to power 14 million European homes. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-10-27T13:00:21+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/7_billion/ On October 31, Halloween to some of us, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) predicts that world population will hit 7 billion. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2011-10-25T12:30:22+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C40/population_2011 The number of people in the world is expected to reach 7 billion by the end of October 2011. Our rate of increase continues to slow from the high point of over 2 percent in 1968. Still, this year’s 1.1 percent increase means some 78 million people will be added to the global population in 2011. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-10-12T13:10:28+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/a_european_trail/ Lester Brown returned from his European tour last Saturday tired, but exhilarated. His first stop was in Utrecht, The Netherlands, where he was excited to see the concept of Plan B taking root. He met with managers of three major investment companies whose goal was to design a Plan B pension fund. We should know by the end of this month if this fund will become a reality … but it’s looking very positive. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2011-10-11T16:30:41+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2011/update100 As the debate unfolds about whether to build a 1,711-mile pipeline to carry crude oil from the tar sands in Canada to refineries in Texas, the focus is on the oil spills and carbon emissions that inevitably come with it. But we need to ask a more fundamental question. Do we really need that oil? For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-10-06T11:59:01+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/la_belle_france/ During his career, Lester Brown’s books have been published in over 40 languages, a phenomenal achievement for any writer. French was one of the first, publishing the first two books he ever wrote: Man, Land and Food and Increasing World Food Output. Altogether, 7 of Lester’s books and 14 of the two book series he introduced and co-authored at Worldwatch, have been published in France. Soon an eighth book will be added to the list. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2011-09-26T14:16:20+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2011 Smallpox plagued humanity for thousands of years. In the 18th century, smallpox killed one out of every ten children in France and Sweden. Over the 20th century, the virus caused between 300 and 500 million deaths worldwide. No effective treatment was ever developed. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-09-15T12:00:47+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/coal_history/ The announcement on Tuesday, August 30, that a coal-fired power plant on the Potomac River near Alexandria, Virginia, would soon be closed was another victory in the ongoing campaign by many environmentalists to move the world into the renewable energy era. This campaign includes making sure no new coal-fired power plants are built, existing plants are closed, and renewable energy is promoted. For full blog posting, visit the EPI website. 2011-09-12T13:00:53+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2011 For almost as long as I can remember we have been saying that the United States, with 5 percent of the world’s people, consumes a third or more of the earth’s resources. That was true. It is no longer true. Today China consumes more basic resources than the United States does. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-09-08T14:00:10+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/iran_connection/ There are few things more exciting than to receive an email or letter from an individual who is so energized by our books that they want to translate one into their language. Over the past several weeks, we’ve been approached by people who want to translate and publish World on the Edge in Croatian, Czech, Greek, Malayalam, and Marathi.One can never tell what that kind of enthusiasm will generate, but looking at one of our longtime publishing arrangements might provide a clue. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2011-09-06T17:36:35+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/vacation_time/ To someone like Lester Brown, who is invigorated by a 10-hour workday seven days a week, vacations are a misnomer. Nevertheless, once a decade or so, he is enticed to go somewhere without a fax or phone. In the mid-1990s, it was a hiking trip with his son Brian across the tops of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2011-08-31T13:13:25+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2011/wotech6_ss2 People do not normally leave their homes, their families, and their communities unless they have no other option. Yet as environmental stresses mount, we can expect to see a growing number of environmental refugees. Rising seas and increasingly devastating storms grab headlines, but expanding deserts, falling water tables, and toxic waste and radiation are also forcing people from their homes. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-08-23T11:50:06+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/?/blog/books2011/ From time to time, the Institute receives some interesting books. Check out these that we excavated from Lester’s office if you are in search of any late summer reads. For full blog posting, please visit the EPI website. 2011-08-17T12:37:47+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/book_bytes/2011/wotech6_ss1 In late August 2005, as Hurricane Katrina approached the U.S. Gulf Coast, more than 1 million people were evacuated from New Orleans and the small towns and rural communities along the coast. Once the storm passed, it was assumed that the million or so Katrina evacuees would, as in past cases, return to repair and rebuild their homes. Some 700,000 did return, but close to 300,000 did not. They are no longer evacuees. They are the first large wave of modern climate refugees. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-08-15T11:50:12+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2011/update99 At a press conference on July 21, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that he was contributing $50 million to the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. Michael Brune, head of the Sierra Club, called it a “game changer”. It is that, but it also could push the United States, and indeed the world, to a tipping point on the climate issue.It is one thing for Michael Brune to say coal has to go, but quite another when Michael Bloomberg says so. Few outside the environmental community know who Michael Brune is, but every business person knows Michael Bloomberg as one of the most successful business entrepreneurs of his generation. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-08-10T12:00:28+00:00 http://www.earth-policy.org/data_highlights/2011 The thin layer of topsoil that covers much of the earth’s land surface is the foundation of civilization. As long as soil erosion on cropland does not exceed new soil formation, all is well. But once it does, it leads to falling soil fertility and eventually to land abandonment. As countries lose their topsoil through overgrazing, overplowing, or deforestation, they eventually lose the capacity to feed themselves. Among those facing this problem are Lesotho, Haiti, Mongolia, and North Korea. For full report, visit the EPI website. 2011-08-02T11:50:57+00:00