Climate News
Thursday, September 24th, 2009
“Cities can really benefit from each other’s experience taking action on climate change,” states Julia Parzen, author of a new publication, “Lessons Learned: Creating the Chicago Climate Action Plan.”
This report, which documents the Plan’s process up until its public release on September 19, 2008, summarizes key lessons learned and provides a timeline and observations about each step. The City of Chicago benefited from the work of other cities as it created the Chicago Climate Action Plan. Because of funding from the Clinton Climate Initiative, Chicago was able to document the three phases—research, planning, and implementation—of the Chicago Climate Action Plan process. The report is being co-released by the Global Philanthropy Partnership, the City of Chicago, and ICLEI.
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Posted in Chicago Climate Action Plan, Climate, Featured Portfolio News | 1 Comment »
Thursday, July 9th, 2009
Last Friday, H.R. 2454 – the American Clean Energy & Security Act (ACES), also known as the Waxman-Markey Bill – successfully passed in the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 219 to 212. This Thursday, a Senate counterpart to the plan was officially unveiled by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI).
The bill calls for an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, along with programs to encourage renewable energy production. This landmark legislation is the first to focus on comprehensive and direct solutions to climate change. The bill successfully targets climate change by focusing on short-term solutions like provisions for creating energy-efficient buildings—solutions that can reduce energy usage and save Americans money.
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Posted in Climate, Featured Portfolio News, Location efficiency, Policy | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009
At first glance, cities may appear to be a big source of the greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. But new research by CNT, which compares greenhouse gas emissions of city and suburban households, yields some surprising results.
CNT looked at emissions of carbon dioxide, a key greenhouse gas, stemming from household vehicle travel in 55 metropolitan areas across the U.S. When measured on a per household basis, it found that the transportation-related emissions of people living in cities and compact neighborhoods can be nearly 70% less than those living in suburbs. See how this compares in your region at our newly redesigned Housing + Transportation Affordability Index site.
Read the full Press Release or try out the new site.
Posted in Climate, Featured Portfolio News, Location efficiency | No Comments »
Friday, April 17th, 2009
Scott Bernstein, President of CNT, was invited to participate in a public announcement of President Barack Obama’s national high-speed rail (HSR) master plan. The President, joined by Vice President Joe Biden, who has commuted to D.C. on rail every day for his national elected career, thanked the select group of leaders who have been working tirelessly on bringing high-speed rail to the United States. President Obama presented a vision that challenges Americans to imagine traveling at 100 mph or more by train, then making local connections by walking or transit. “The Obama administration is moving quickly to advance high-speed rail as the most sustainable and cost-efficient mode of innercity transit,” said Bernstein. “By investing in high-speed rail, the Obama administration is not only addressing transportation issues but also reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
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Posted in Climate, Featured Portfolio News, PCAP, Scott Bernstein | 1 Comment »
Thursday, April 16th, 2009
CNT CEO, Kathryn Tholin, joined U.S. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky and Max Muller, Program Director for Environment Illinois, in outlining how President Obama’s budget “means a cleaner, greener, and more prosperous future for Illinois.” Tholin applauded the commitment to a clean energy future reflected in the President’s budget, and helped outline Environment Illinois new report, “Vision 2010: President Obama’s Budget, Clean Energy and the Environment”, released today at a press conference at CNT.
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Posted in Climate, Featured Portfolio News | No Comments »
Friday, March 6th, 2009
On March 3, CNT staff took part in a press conference in Springfield, IL to help outline the policy agenda for the new briefing book released by the Illinois Environmental Council. Priorities for a Healthful Illinois: 2009 Illinois Environmental Briefing Book offers specific policies and legislative action for these top environmental priorities: global warming and energy, open space and natural areas, transportation, environmental health and clean water.
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Friday, September 19th, 2008
The City of Chicago launched its Chicago Climate Action Plan Thursday at the Shedd Aquarium with the backdrop of the city skyline and blue skies. The release is a major milestone for CNT’s climate change work. CNT led the mitigation research team for the Chicago Climate Change Task Force that developed the report.
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Thursday, July 17th, 2008
A recent Harris poll found that nearly two-thirds of Americans want the next President to initiate strong action on climate change. The nationwide poll shows that 4 in 10 Americans agree that if action is not taken to address global warming and climate change, the country’s national security will be threatened by global instability.
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Posted in Climate, Featured Portfolio News, PCAP | No Comments »
Monday, May 26th, 2008
Chicago is not the only city considering the value of multi-modal transport in an urban environment. New research is coming out that agrees with and builds on what CNT advocates: eliminating auto dependency is a key to cleaner, less congested and more livable cities.
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Posted in Climate, Featured Portfolio News | 1 Comment »
Thursday, January 24th, 2008
The Presidential Climate Action Project (PCAP) delivered the State of the Climate paper to the White House this morning with a very impressive list of signatories. The list includes two Nobel Laureates, a number of the nation’s top climate scientists and policy experts, mayors, and business leaders. CNT’s President and member of the PCAP Steering Committee Scott Bernstein is one of the signatories.
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Posted in Climate, Featured Portfolio News, PCAP | No Comments »
