The best news in ages came through on April 28, 2005. The Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and partners announced that the ivory-billed woodpecker, long suspected to be extinct, had been found alive and well in the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge of Arkansas. Read all about the discovery, and about plans to help the species back from the brink of extinction, at www.ivorybill.org. Perhaps this is a harbinger of things to come. If we can reverse the negative effects we've had on the ivory-billed woodpecker, maybe there's still time to turn around some other things, too. Maybe we humans are being given a second chance to get it right.

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One of the most exciting developments in recent years is the sustainability movement. The idea that the resources of the Earth are limited, and that using them all up is a bad idea, seems to have finally caught on. Here are some links to good work that is being done in this area.

The Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) designs visionary, environmentally sustainable systems based largely on the principle of natural capitalism, as described in the book of that name co-authored by Paul Hawken and RMI founders Hunter and Amory Lovins. These authors have a vision for improved efficiency that is nothing short of utopian.

The Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) has been developing and implementing principles of local self-reliance and sustainability since 1974.

Many businesses are now working to improve their environmental sustainability, not just to be good citizens, but also to improve their competitiveness and bottom line. Useful resources on sustainable business include: SustainableBusiness.com; Net Impact, a network of business leaders concerned with sustainability; GreenBiz.com, an information clearinghouse; and the Center for Sustainable Enterprise, a division of the University of North Carolina's Kenan-Flagler Business School devoted to teaching the principles of this growing field.

The Global Footprint Network is working to institutionalize another vital concept— that of the ecological footprint, which measures human demand on nature. The Network is trying to get governments, organizations, and individuals to live within their ecological means by using the limits of nature as a guide in decision-making.

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October 2003 was the official launch of NC GreenPower, a voluntary program that encourages the development of renewable energy sources for North Carolina's power supply. Any North Carolina resident or business may sign up for NC GreenPower through their electric provider. Each $4/month contributed by participating residents adds 100 kilowatt-hours of renewable energy to the state's power supply. Participating businesses contribute a minimum of $250 per year. The utilities collect contributions and pass them on to NC GreenPower. All contributions are tax deductible. As of December 2006, over 9,300 households were supporting the program through 38 electrical utility companies, enabling utilities to purchase 20 million kilowatt-hours of renewable energy per year. This reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 42 million pounds per year—the equivalent of reducing automobile driving by 51 million miles. NC GreenPower even offers gift cards!

North Carolina was the first state with a renewable energy program supported by all of the state's utilities, but individual utility companies in 31 other states have developed renewable energy programs. To learn what other states are doing in this area, visit Green-e.org.

Achieving U.S. energy independence in one generation is the goal of The Apollo Alliance. Drawing inspiration from President Kennedy's ambitious and successful project to land on the moon, the Apollo Alliance is building a broad coalition within the labor, environmental, business, urban, and faith communities, and has developed a 10-point plan for energy independence.

The Forest Stewardship Council was established after the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro to encourage responsible management of the world's forests. It has had incredible success with its forest certification program. The FSC accredits independent organizations to carry out assessments of the forest management practices of companies that sell timber. Those products that meet FSC's environmental, social, and economic standards are labeled as certified. Consumers can now look for the FSC label when purchasing lumber from retailers. Over 20 million acres of forestland in North America have been certified by FSC.

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The twin desires to clean up the air and reduce our dependence on foreign and tundra-spoiling domestic oil are leading to exciting developments in several alternative-fuel vehicle technologies. For more information on all these technologies, check out the Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC) of the Clean Cities Program.

Gas/electric hybrid cars are really taking off! The real sign that the hybrid is here to stay: Nancy Drew drives a hybrid in the updated series Nancy Drew, Girl Detective published by Aladdin Books. The best site I've found for information on hybrids is: www.hybridcars.com, including a list of all available hybrid models.

Biodiesel can be manufactured from vegetable oil. It reduces most emissions, though there is a slight increase in NOx and particulates. Vegetable oil that has been chemically transformed into a methyl ester can be used in unmodified diesel engines, either alone or mixed with petroleum diesel. Biodiesel enthusiasts across the country are brewing biodiesel in this way in their garages and backyards. To find out more, visit LocalB100.com. If you don't want to make the fuel yourself, it can be purchased in an increasing number of locations (to search for locations near you, click here). With certain modifications, diesel engines can even burn straight vegetable oil (SVO), including waste fryer oil from restaurants. More information on biodiesel is available from the National Biodiesel Board, the Piedmont Biofuels Coop, LocalB100.com, and AFDC.

AFDC also has information on the use of ethanol and natural gas as vehicle fuel.

Hydrogen fuel-cell cars are being pushed by the Bush administration, but a May 2004 article in Scientific American by Matthew L. Wald suggests that the technology is too expensive and dangerous, and that the production and transport of the hydrogen could generate even more pollution than the technology prevents. More information on hydrogen fuel cells is available from AFDC.

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The City of San Francisco has enacted legislation requiring that decisions be made based on the Precautionary Principle. Used widely within the European Union, this principle takes a "better safe than sorry" approach to decision-making. Unlike the risk assessment model, which asks how much risk to health and environment is acceptable, the precautionary principle asks what healthier alternatives exist to potentially damaging substances and processes.

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Return to home page for links to environmental writers, editors, photographers, website designers, and others who can help environmental organizations achieve their mission more effectively.