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World Record: Germans Meet Half of Energy Needs With Solar Power

Last weekend, the world passed an important milestone, half of Germany's electricity needs were supplied by solar power. While naysayers in the US continue to profess that it's impossible to run a major economy on renewables, the Germans are proving them wrong. Between May 25 and 26, German solar plants produced 22 gigawatts of electricity per hour. That is equivalent to the amount of energy produced by 20 nuclear power plants running at full capacity. In the wake of the meltdown...

Solar Backpack Featured in SFAS’s Cool Planet Program

The  South Florida Audubon Society's Cool Planet  program is a big hit with upper elementary students this fall in Broward Schools. The program helps students foster effective problem-solving skills by recognizing the interdependencies in their environment. They also consider the effects of their actions on the larger ecosystem. At the end of the month-long program, participants get the chance to enter a poster contest showcasing solutions to the environmental issues they've discuss...

Will the Solar Panels be on the White House Roof This Spring?

You may remember back in October 2010 a team of students from Unity College in Maine, along with environmentalist Bill McKibben launched a campaign to return one of Jimmy Carter's old solar panel units to the White House. Carter installed 32 solar panels on the White House roof amidst the energy crisis of 1979 in an attempt to jump start the nation's renewable energy future and lessen our dependence on foreign oil. Off to a good start, but in 1986 the Reagan Administration ripped th...