What Should the Next President Do About Climate Change?
 Clean Air-Cool Planet has a message for President-elect Obama: Move quickly on climate change. The latest report from CA-CP's Climate Policy Center, Building a Foundation for Success: Recommendations for Early Action on Climate Change, spells out 25 recommendations for the new President's transition and the first 150 days from election day. The report, which originated in the concerns and questions voiced by citizen participants in the New Hampshire Carbon Coalition, contains practical suggestions for picking the right team, linking climate and economic issues, and building a powerful consensus for action in the Congress and the public.
In preparing the report, CA-CP consulted more than 40 professionals with expertise in presidential transitions, the national economy, climate change science, and White House administration. CA-CP President Rafe Pomerance presented the report to the Washington College and local business communities in Chestertown, Maryland, last week. In his address, Pomerance called on the environmental community to do a better job of discussing the negative economic effects of climate inaction and called for a "Climate Bailout."
Click to read more about this report.
Home Energy Savings - Clean Air-Cool Planet's Top 10 Tips for your Kitchen and Car
We began this series in our Summer issue and now the winter cold is here. For most of us, that means our energy bills are rising. In this issue, we give you our top ten energy saving tips for home appliances and motor vehicles. Some may surprise you!
Here are some of the small things you can do to "green" your kitchen and your car, the Clean Air - Cool Planet Top 10, continued.
 1. Get rid of those electrical kitchen gadgets - unless you really can't use the manual versions - like the can opener, carving knife, even the mixer. There are great manual food processors available, too.
2. Only heat the water you need on the stove top. Filling the kettle all the way for one cup of tea is throwing money away.
Read more of our Energy Saving Tips...
CA-CP Interviews Top Arctic Experts about the Greenland Ice Sheet,
Ice Cores, and Sea Level Rise
 CA-CP interviews Arctic experts every month for its Arctic Warming website. Recently CA-CP spoke with Dr. Konrad Steffen, Director of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), at the University of Colorado. Dr. Steffen told CA-CP about his extensive research on the Greenland Ice Sheet since his Swiss Camp was built there in 1990. He tells us that Greenland's ice mass is decreasing and ice flow to the oceans is accelerating. Read his interview to learn about his startling predictions for sea level rise.
Other climate science experts have contributed up-to-date information on ice core studies, tropospheric ozone, work with Inuit hunters and elders, how climatic changes affect the lives of species, and Arctic sea ice and the likelihood of an ice-free summer in the near future. Read more first-hand accounts of the condition of the arctic from renowned arctic scientists: www.arcticwarming.net.
Clean Air - Cool Planet hosts Poznan Side Event on Arctic Warming
Norwegian climate negotiators and Arctic scientists presented important new data on the effects of high-impact pollutants on the Arctic climate system in a side event presented by Clean Air - Cool Planet and the Clean Air Task Force at the 14th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Poznan Poland this week. The event was moderated by former IPCC Chair Dr. Robert Watson.
Rapidly rising temperatures in the Arctic threaten to melt the polar sea ice and Greenland ice sheets that stabilize the world climate - one of the so-called tipping points in global warming. New research however finds that three pollutants - black carbon (BC), tropospheric ozone, and methane -- collectively may have had nearly the same warming effect on the Arctic as carbon dioxide (CO2) in the past century. Reductions in these pollutants may slow Arctic warming, and prevent the worst effects of global warming and Arctic "tipping points" around the world.
To find out more, click here.
Home Energy Audits Show Cold and Hotspots in Infrared Images
 Clean Air-Cool Planet staff has begun to tackle the monumental task of increasing energy efficiency in single-family homes all over New England as part of CA-CP initiatives - like The Cool Monadnock Weatherization Project - and as volunteers. Roger Stephenson has been closely involved with New Hampshire's winterization projects. And Anne Stephenson is working with her neighbors to implement weatherization projects in South Berwick, Maine.
In order to undertake the South Berwick weatherization project, Anne attended a HERS training course. HERS - Home Energy Rating System - is a methodology for tracking the energy intensity of newly constructed and pre-existing homes. As part of the training she learned how to use an infrared camera and blower-door equipment - instruments used to evaluate moisture infiltration, heat loss, and air leakage. While still new to energy auditing, Anne has been struck with the low-cost and simple ways in which homeowners can increase efficiency in their homes, and by how powerfully thermal photographs tell the story of efficiency challenges.
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For more information on global warming solutions, visit CA-CP's website.
EPA Asked, the Climate Policy Center Answered: Should We Use the Clean Air Act to Regulate Greenhouse Gases?
In answer to an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, CA-CP's Climate Policy Center issued a statement encouraging use of an "economy-wide" solution. CA-CP's comments recognize that the best way to achieve an effective and economically efficient program to reduce GHGs, which have global impacts, is through new legislation. However, in the absence of Congressional action, CA-CP's detailed analysis shows how EPA can implement a nation-wide cap-and-trade program as the basic framework for reducing U.S. GHG emissions. Read the document here.
Climate Ride 2008: A Great Success! Pedal Up for Next Year's Ride
The 300-mile ride for climate change from New York to Washington, D.C. was a big success - attracting more than 100 cyclists and raising nearly $300,000 - and Clean Air-Cool Planet is proud and pleased to have been a beneficiary. Planning is already underway for the 2009 Climate Ride, and Clean Air-Cool Planet is on board for a second year. Please visit the Climate Ride website early and often for the latest developments, to register to ride, or to make a donation.
AASHE Conference Features Former CA-CP Fellows
 Former Clean Air-Cool Planet fellows Sarah Harpster and Katherine Stoner presented their Clean Air-Cool Planet projects at the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education Annual Conference. The conference was the largest sustainability conference for the higher education community with over 1700 registrants from 48 states. Sarah and Katie, both recent graduates of Antioch University New England's Masters program in Environmental Advocacy and Organizing, presented their work in the Monadnock Region - including the Keene 10% Challenge and regional Earth Day program - in a panel titled, "Together, We Can Do More: Examples of Campus-Community Sustainability Partnership in NH's Monadnock Region." Sarah and Katie were joined by Mary Jensen, Director of Sustainability at Keene State College; the session was moderated by Mikaela Engert, Sustainability Director for the City of Keene. The panel session demonstrated that no one entity or sector can achieve solutions on its own; sustainability requires collaboration across sectors, jurisdictions, interests and issues. Antioch University New England, Keene State College, the City of Keene, and Clean Air-Cool Planet have worked together to achieve sustainability goals within each institution as well as for the Monadnock region.
Clif Bar Family Foundation Supports CA-CP with "On Your Behalf" Gift Card Program
This giving season, consider giving to charity in the name of a friend or loved one. With the Clif Bar Family Foundation's "On Your Behalf" gift card, you can let your recipient decide which organization will benefit from the donated funds. "On Your Behalf" was established by the Clif Bar Family Foundation to support a number of environmental and social action partners focused on the larger community. The partners cover a wide range of issues, from land conservation to food programs. Read more on the Clif Bar Family Foundation's website.
Fellowship Program Renewed for Summer 2009 Projects
With the generous support of the Roy A. Hunt Foundation, CA-CP's Climate Fellowship program offers support for significant carbon reduction projects, while providing qualified graduate and undergraduate students in diverse disciplines with meaningful professional experience in the growing field of carbon management. CA-CP is currently seeking proposed projects for Climate Fellowship placements for summer 2009. The Fellowship program is competitive - both for fellows and for placements. The program works to ensure that students will have a positive experience for their summer work by selecting placements where they will be able to achieve concrete goals and develop professional skills.
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JENN AND ANNE'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE
Chicago, Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Raleigh, Washington D.C., and Chestertown, M.D.
Clean Air-Cool Planet's Jennifer Andrews and Anne Stephenson took the Campus Program on the road the past few weeks speaking at several conferences and meeting with key partners. Highlights included Jennifer briefing large audiences on the new projections and solutions capabilities of the Campus Carbon CalculatorTM at the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's annual conference. Read more about their adventures on the road...
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