The high price of oil and uncertainty about future supplies may have broad macroeconomic impact in the near future. One major area where that could prove true is in terms of where in the world manufacturing takes place. While shipping is generally a small fraction of total costs, the profit margins of some producers - [...]

The ongoing listeriosis outbreak in Canada is evidence of how broken out primary food system is, particularly insofar as meat is concerned. Producing billions of clones in packed conditions is dangerous enough, particularly if you simultaneously marinate them in growth hormones and antibiotics. Marrying that with a food system where every step of the production [...]

Between now and the demise of the human race (when the universe ends, if not before), will there ever be a time when there is no system with the following characteristics:

Capability to transmit data to most parts of the world with significant human populations.
Affordability for almost anyone with a moderate income in a moderately rich [...]

Between 1990 and the present, a significant reduction in European greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions took place because coal based electricity generation was replaced by natural gas plants. Here’s the big question: should that switch be considered an act of climatic virtue on the part of the European states, and thus be taken into account when [...]

The Economist is holding a debate in the style of the Oxford Union debating society (which I never joined while there due to the excessive cost). The topic is: “We can solve our energy problems with existing technologies today, without the need for breakthrough innovations.” This certainly seems to be the emerging wisdom among those [...]

Thesis: Canada is free to enact more stringent climate policies than the United States, but not free to enact less stringent ones.
Argument:

As long as little is being done in the United States, American corporations are not concerned about being made uncompetitive with foreign firms because of climate change policies.
If the United States did adopt a [...]