Climate Break

Three Birds with One Stone: Addressing Three Environmental Problems Polybion’s fabric technology addresses three major environmental problems: livestock, food waste, and plastic by replacing leather and plastic with fabric derived from food waste. Because the leather industry is so large, it helps drive cattle production separately from demand for meat. Deforestation due to industrial agriculture...

At the time of recording, Indigenized Indigenous Energy Initiative was named Indigenous Indigenized Energy Initiative. Indigenous Energy Initiative: Indigenous Energy Initiative (IEI) is a native-led non-profit and Earth Island Institute-sponsored project that is developing solar infrastructure within tribal communities. Native communities disproportionately lack access and pay higher costs for ut...

What is mechanical textile recycling? Mechanical textile recycling is a process by which used textiles, particularly those made with natural fibers such as cotton, wool, and linen, are broken down into their individual fibers and then spun into yarn or fabric for reuse in the production of new textiles.  Textile recycling has the potential to reduce waste and greenhouse gas emissions associated wi...

What is CRISPR? DNA contains the fundamental information about an organism, and is used as an instruction manual to guide organism structure and function. Until CRISPR (short for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) technology was developed by Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier , editing DNA sequences was very difficult. Here’s the short version of the CRISPR process...

What are carbon registries?  Carbon registries work with companies, organizations, and government agencies to identify, measure, and report their greenhouse gas emissions. The data can be used to support emission reduction efforts by these entities, both voluntary reductions or those required by regulation. Carbon registry data can also be used to identify entities with high levels of greenhouse g...

What is electric vehicle (EV) retrofitting and why does it matter?  ‘EV retrofitting’ refers to the process of converting a gas-powered vehicle into an electric vehicle by replacing its gas engine with a battery pack.  The battery pack is designed to fit within the vehicle’s chassis—the structural frame to which its wheels, suspension, engine, and other components are attached.  Typically, the bat...

Advanced Clean Car II Rule The Advanced Clean Car II proposal requires that all new passenger vehicles, trucks, and SUVs sold in California be zero emissions by 2035. The rule will begin with 2026 through 2035 vehicle models and will also require more aggressive tailpipe emission standards for gasoline vehicles. The proposal has two parts: first, it amends the low-emission vehicle regulation, whic...

Land Use Changes One solution to reduce vehicle usage, and in turn, carbon emissions are land use changes . Changing cities' relationship with land use can reduce dependence on cars, minimize energy consumption, improve air quality and create healthier communities. Sustainable cities of the future must be designed for residents to have more opportunities for biking, walking, and other clean transi...

California is the first state to ban the sale of new gas furnaces and water heaters , which will begin in 2030. In efforts to fight climate change, all homes will be required to use zero-emission electric appliance alternatives. The Sierra Club and American Lung Association have supported this move to reduce the building sector’s carbon footprint and improve public health.  The building sector acc...

California Air Resources Board: Zero-Emission Trucking Goals The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is the agency responsible for reducing California’s climate-changing emissions and accelerating the transition away from combustion powered vehicles. This includes promoting the manufacturing and sale of zero-emission trucks and other heavy-duty vehicles. CARB’s goals for zero-emission trucks in...

The Global Commercial Vehicle Drive to Zero Program aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create a world with zero-emission commercial vehicles. The Clean Energy Ministerial, a global forum to advance clean technology and policy, and CALSTART, a clean transportation non-profit, started the campaign. By 2025 the program hopes to achieve commercially competitive zero-emission technology and fo...

What is Mobycon? Mobycon is a sustainable mobility consultancy based in the Netherlands with offices in Canada and the United States. For the past three decades, they’ve drawn from the Netherlands’ experience improving biking and walking access to help city planners and government agencies plan safe and sustainable mobility networks. Their guiding philosophy emphasizes the importance of understand...

For a transcript, please visit https://climatebreak.org/what-can-californias-experience-tackling-climate-change-teach-the-federal-government-with-richard-corey/

For a transcript, please visit https://climatebreak.org/building-tribal-communities-energy-independence-with-indigenized-energy-initiative/

What is Carbon Mineralization Carbon mineralization is a naturally occurring chemical process that occurs when carbon dioxide becomes “mineralized” through a chemical reaction. The chemical reaction occurs when certain rocks, most often in deep underground igneous and metamorphic formations, are exposed to carbon dioxide. Carbon mineralization holds greater amounts of carbon than carbon storage in...

Climate Change and the Law of the Sea Sea level rise due to climate change will directly impact at least 70 countries, many of them small, low-lying island nations. Though their contribution to climate change is very little, they face some of its worst consequences. This is not a new issue, and tension has been building since the late 1980s. In 1989, the Maldives, an island nation in the Indian Oc...

What are zero-emission zones? A zero-emission zone (ZEZ) is a designated area where only zero-emission vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists are permitted unrestricted access. Other vehicles are not permitted entrance, or must pay a fee to enter. Some ZEZs permit hybrid electric vehicles to enter, and these zones are referred to as “near-ZEZs”. Due to freight transportation’s outsize impact on carbo...

AYR is the world’s first virtual digital platform that provides users with credits for carbon emissions saved. Created  by the Center for Engineering and Product Development (CEiiA), the AYR app works to reward users with “eco-tokens ” for every kilometer traveled using sustainable forms of transportation, such as public transportation, biking, or walking. The goal of AYR is to accelerate individu...

In 2018, nearly one-third of the 39 million tons of waste in California landfills was compostable organic material. Organic material – food and agricultural waste – releases methane, a very potent greenhouse gas, as it decomposes. As a result, California’s Short-Lived Pollutant Reduction law, SB-1383 , targets such food waste by establishing methane reduction targets and takes aim at food insecuri...

What is the GeoGrid? The Geo Grid is a network of heating pumps that harnesses the geothermal energy stored under the Earth’s surface to heat and cool buildings. It operates through a network of pipes that go deep into the ground and connect houses to each other. These pipes are filled with water, which brings the constant underground temperature up to the Earth’s surface, and into the buildings....

What is “place-based” climate change communication? Climate change can feel overwhelming and impersonal when discussed on a global or national scale. Place-based communication works to make climate change feel relevant to local communities and individuals. Issues that impact local communities and have connections to climate change, such as waste, energy, and food initiatives are often good places...

For a transcript, please visit https://climatebreak.org/environmental-racism-with-dr-robert-bullard/

For a transcript, please visit https://climatebreak.org/how-do-oyster-reefs-protect-shorelines-with-claire-arre/

For a transcript, please visit https://climatebreak.org/how-to-protect-water-supply-from-agricultural-pollutants-with-des-moines-water-works/

For a transcript, please visit https://climatebreak.org/carbon-farming-with-ian-howell/