Most hockey fans know about Boston Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference because of the team's Stanley Cup championship run last season. And recently Ference made headlines for a three-game suspension he received after a hit on the New York Rangers' Ryan McDonagh. But the National Geographic Channel is showing another side of Ference that many NHL fans might not be aware of: eco-warrior.
"Beyond the Puck," a web video series featuring new episodes every Thursday, provides brief glimpses (the videos average only a few minutes) into the off-ice life of Ference and his family as the Edmonton, Canada native goes green. Canadian environmentalist David Suzuki inspired Ference to pursue a carbon neutral lifestyle and helped him start in 2007 the NHL's first environmental program that encourages players to go carbon neutral and think about their impact on the environment.
Today President Obama gave a great speech touching upon issues relating to American energy. He called for a comprehensive energy policy that would end oil subsidies and boost biofuels and other renewables to reduce our reliance on the volatile world oil market that is subject to so much turmoil in the Middle East. Obama told the students gathered at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida that, while his administration is doing everything in their power to tap domestic oil and gas resources, it is politically dishonest to tell the American people that "drill, baby, drill" will realistically solve all our energy problems. The president said that public investments in energy efficiency and clean energy technologies will spur entire new industries and create millions of new jobs. As an example, he cited homegrown algae-based biofuel as having the potential to eventually replace imported petroleum entirely as a transportation fuel for airplanes and automobiles.
It is no secret the fossil fuel industry for years has been funding front groups denying the reality of human-caused climate change and working against clean energy technologies. These attacks on science and reason have amazingly come from the same dirty energy industry that is actually making contingency plans for the effects of man-made climate change. That's right, Big Oil is well aware that the millions of tons of carbon they carelessly pump into the atmosphere is contributing to global warming so they are planning for the consequences, while at the same time spending millions of dollars discrediting climate scientists and misleading the public.
Thankfully, climate scientists like Michael Mann (the physicist and climatologist, not the Hollywood film director) are, to use a hockey analogy, dropping the gloves and fighting back against climate-change-denying think tanks like The Heartland Institute, American Enterprise Institute, Koch Family Foundations, The Manhattan Institute, The Heritage Foundation, The Cato Institute and The Mercatus Center. Mann's new book, titled "The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars: Dispatches from the Front Lines," is being released on March 6 and is going to expose the moneyed special interests behind the attacks on science and reason and convey to the public the fossil fuel industry giants funneling money to these anti-science front groups.
The title of the book comes from Mann's controversial hockey stick graph, which shows the temperature record over the past 1,000 years and the sharply upward warming trend during the late 20th century.
Click here for a link to an insightful profile of Mann from Mother Jones via The Guardian's Climate Desk.
When it comes to the green economy, sometimes it seems like the United States of America is stuck in neutral while the rest of the world is fully charged up and racing ahead at warp speed.
Take electric vehicles as an example pulled from recent headlines. The Chevy Volt, General Motors' new plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, recently became a political punching bag on Capitol Hill by a Republican-led Oversight Committee on a witch hunt against any project related to the Obama administration. Before it was Solyndra and solar energy, now it is the Volt and electric vehicles.
Lack of political will from Republican lawmakers in Congress is really the only thing that is holding back the United States of America from leading the "next industrial revolution"—the clean energy economy that is already rapidly transforming countries like Germany, Brazil, China, Canada and other governments that get it when it comes to giving the market signals with cap and trade programs and taxes on carbon. The fossil fuel industry seems to have the Republicans on too tight a leash for them to make decisions on behalf of the American people and the future of this great country.
Perhaps Gabrielle Giffords can provide some inspiration and convince at least some of the Republican lawmakers in Congress (the Obama administration and most Democrats are already onboard the high-speed clean energy train) that they must break the shackles of the oil, gas and coal industries and begin to embrace renewable power sources such as solar, wind, geothermal, hydro, biomass, biofuel, tidal and wave.
Giffords is a big advocate for solar energy because her home state of Arizona is blessed by the sun. She has supported clean energy legislation as well as ending oil industry subsidies and redirecting that money into clean energy research.
When Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) read Giffords' letter of resignation on the House floor in January, she said the following:
"In public service, I found a venue for the pursuit of a stronger America by ensuring the safety and security of all Americans by producing clean energy here at home instead of importing oil from abroad."
This past November I visited one of the finest examples of urban renewal and the greening of cities—New York City's High Line. The High Line is a 1-mile (1.6 km) linear park built on the former elevated tracks of the New York Central Railroad's West Side Line on the lower west side of Manhattan.
The recycling of the railway into an aerial greenway has revitalized surrounding neighborhoods and turned what was once an abandoned, blighted industrial area into one of New York City's biggest and greenest tourist attractions.
L.A.'s 6th Street Bridge with LED street lights. Photo credit: Clean Tech Los Angeles
Cities across the United States are saving energy and costs by installing light-emitting diode (LED) street lights. LEDs not only consume less power for the same amount of luminance compared to traditional lighting, but they also last longer.
There are many LED street lighting pilot projects taking place, including in my former home of Los Angeles, California. L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has partnered with the Clinton Climate Initiative to undertake the largest green street lighting program in history. According to the Bureau of Street Lighting website, as of February 9 the city had replaced 62,064 traditional light fixtures with LED lights, going from 10,740 kilowatts down to 4,205 kilowatts for 60.8 percent energy savings, or 26,664 megawatt hours. The program has also reduced carbon emissions by 15,766 metric tons and saved $2,357,567 in energy costs. The city expects annually to save $10 million, save energy by 40% and reduce carbon emissions by approximately 40,500 tons.
Arlington, Virginia is where I currently reside and this forward-looking county across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. is installing LED street lights as well. Arlington's project is funded by the US Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program and local capital funds. In 2010 the county spent $1.5 million to replace 1,800 existing streetlights with LED fixtures. Arlington plans to replace all its street lights with LED technology, a move that will save the county $1 million per year.
LED street lights are a smart and efficient way for cities to save money, save energy and save the environment. Expect to see many LED street lights in cities across America and the world.
A Turkish Airlines plane at Istanbul Atatürk International Airport.
August 28-29, 2011 -- After traveling around Europe by train and Israel by bus for one-and-a-half months this past summer, including working on a kibbutz for two-and-a-half weeks, it was time to fly back home to the United States. I took Turkish Airlines from Tel Aviv Ben Gurion International Airport to Istanbul Atatürk International Airport and then an 11 hour flight from Istanbul to Washington Dulles International Airport.
An airport shuttle picked me up at my hostel in Jerusalem very late at night and made the rounds to pick up more people—all Orthodox Jews—in different neighborhoods in West Jerusalem. We then drove to Ben Gurion, the best-secured airport in the world. Being the only non-Orthodox passenger in the van, I was singled out with questions upon arriving to the security checkpoint just to drive into the airport. The security guy asked me to take off my hat and then asked me where I was going. I was tired and irritated, and answered loudly "Washington, D.C.!" Once you finally enter Ben Gurion, you must wait in a long security line where you will be asked pointed and personal questions to make sure you don't have any bad intentions once you board that plane. Your luggage will also be thoroughly examined and, as in my case, will sometimes be double checked by airport security. Sometimes passengers will be taken for another line of questioning and inspection if the authorities are not satisfied with the first round of questioning. While it can be a maddeningly frustrating and humiliating experience, Ben Gurion will not take any chances when it comes to security, which is why it is the safest airport in the world to fly into and out of. It is not a pleasant experience to be looked at with suspicion, especially at 4 a.m. before a long flight. But it is the reality of Israel and there is some comfort in knowing all the intense security precautions that took place once you finally board that flight. It was around a two hour flight from Tel Aviv to Istanbul.
Although half of Istanbul is on European soil (it is the only metropolis in the world situated on two continents, the other being Asia) and it is the third largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and Moscow, my initial impression upon arriving at Atatürk airport was more Eastern and Muslim than Western and secular. It was somewhat of a culture shock after having traveled around Europe and Israel to see passengers arriving on a flight from Barcelona who were almost entirely young bearded Muslim men in full Islamic garb. The international terminal was an interesting mix of religious Muslims and secular Turks and visitors from across the world. I was wearing a Jerusalem t-shirt from the Old City and I was definitely getting some not-so-nice stares from the Muslims making their way around the terminal.
The international terminal at Istanbul Atatürk International Airport.
The security precautions to board my flight to Dulles were like nothing I have ever experienced. There were at least three rounds of thorough baggage checks and questioning. Some passengers were taken aside and questioned even more. And there was a security check just to enter the boarding area. The authorities at Atatürk do a great job in making sure everyone has a safe flight to their destination.
Turkish Airlines is a world-class airline with fantastic service. We even had our own chef! It was a wonderful flight up until we hit some bad turbulence over the Atlantic Ocean, just east of Boston. The pilots had to change to a more southerly route at the last minute but couldn't avoid the incredibly choppy weather front. We were violently tossed and turned and everyone was praying in whatever their faith was (I became an Orthodox Jew for about 15 minutes). It was a harrowing experience. Moments like these, when you feel out of control at 35,000 feet, are the times when you really feel blessed to be alive.
There is no way around it, turbulence is no fun. But it is part of flying and I've started to learn to embrace the bumps as part of the total experience of flying. I now enjoy flying a lot more knowing to expect turbulence. So when it is a smooth flight it's even better, but when we hit a few bumps it's no big deal because I can just look back at that awful turbulence I experienced on the Turkish Airlines flight and be reassured it likely won't get that bad again, and if it does I'll know that I got through it before and I'll get through it again. It is also good to remember that the perception of turbulence in the passenger seat is almost always worse than the reality from the cockpit seat, where the experienced pilots are in control and know what they are doing. Educating myself about the mechanics of air travel and and the science behind turbulence has really relieved much of my anxiety and fears. I suggest Googling "airplane turbulence" to find websites that will help you understand turbulence and way to overcome fears and anxiety when it occurs. Education and awareness are really the keys to enjoying your flight and even learning to welcome turbulence as a normal, everyday in-flight experience.
The airplane finally reached smoother air after about 10 to 15 minutes of turbulence and the prayers changed to thanking God, the heart beats slowed down and the adrenaline stopped flowing. The descent into Dulles was relaxing and enjoyable. Turkish Airlines has cameras on the nose and underneath the plane and as we approached Dulles, passengers were treated to the view of the runway from the cockpit and the landscape passing by below the plane.
Having gone through major security checks at Tel Aviv and Istanbul, it would have been nice to know I was home and could leave Dulles right away. Not the case. A border patrol agent marked me down for a further inspection, so I had to wait in line at a Department of Homeland Security area for international arrivals for another 45 minutes to be questioned again about my travels through Europe and Israel and my flight from Istanbul. I finally was approved to enter back into the United States.
From when I left the hostel in Jerusalem to the moment I collapsed in my own bed in Arlington, Virginia, it was a total of around 18 hours of travel time. When you didn't get any sleep the night before, have to go through three rigorous security checkpoints, sit on an airplane for 11 hours and have to suffer through some bad turbulence, you will sleep like a baby. And that's exactly what I did.
Here are more pictures of the trip from Istanbul to Washington, D.C. Click here for the Flickr set.
Jerusalem's new light rail powers forward along a grass track between Damascus Gate and Jaffa Gate.
August 19-29, 2011 -- Jerusalem was the last city I visited on my summer 2011 journey through Europe and Israel and it is also one of the most environmentally-friendly cities in the world thanks to its mix of ancient and modern infrastructure, traditional religious observations and forward-thinking political and economic leadership.
Before I get to Jerusalem's new light rail line that is providing residents with a clean, green form of transportation, there are a couple of ancient factors that automatically make the city green. The most obvious factor in keeping the air clean is that the Old City was settled during the Chalcolithic, or Copper Age, in the 4th millennium BCE (Before the Common Era). The last time I checked, the internal combustion engine had not been invented yet so the Old City was not made for vehicular traffic. That means there is a large section of the city that is car-free and therefore pollution-free. Also, Jerusalem almost completely shuts down from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday for Shabbat. That means thousands of cars and buses are taken off the roads for 24 hours every week, thereby dramatically reducing the city's carbon footprint.
Now with the new light rail line, Jaffa Road is permanently closed off to motor vehicles, reducing pollution along West Jerusalem's main artery from the Old City to Mount Herzl. In fact, there has been a dramatic 80% decrease in air pollution on Jaffa Road since cars and buses were replaced by light rail trams. And in addition to reducing air pollution, light rail reduces noise pollution. In contrast to honking taxis and rumbling buses, light rail is incredibly quiet.
In addition to new green public transportation projects like the light rail line, Jerusalem is also on the forefront of promoting the use of electric vehicles. Electric car operator Better Place is partnering with the city to add a network of electric car charging stations all over the city.
Biking is also big in Jerusalem. There is a group that gives midnight bike tours of the old and new city. And it is easy to rent a bike like I did and get to know the City of Peace on two wheels. I biked during Shabbat when the streets are empty. I started at Davidka Square where my hostel is located, and biked along the light rail tracks up Jaffa Road to Mount Herzl and then down to the Christian village of Ein Karem. While Jerusalem doesn't have a bike sharing system like Tel Aviv yet, the city is on its way to becoming the bicycle capital of Israel.
And of course, as in the rest of Israel, there are rooftop solar water heaters everywhere in Jerusalem. I even saw solar water heater systems on top of the ancient buildings in the Old City, like those pictured to the left in front of a church in the Armenian Quarter. And Jerusalem has many white roofs, also called cool roofs because they reduce heat transference to buildings by reflecting sunlight, thus reducing the need to power air conditioners and saving energy and greenhouse gas emissions.
While Jerusalem is one of the oldest cities in the world, it is also taking environmentally friendly actions such as the new light rail line to ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy The City of Peace.
Click here for more observations from Jerusalem on Josh's Travel Blog.
Here are more pictures from Jerusalem. Click here to see the full photo set on Flickr.
Here is a musical video montage of Jerusalem's new light rail system.
Here is video of me bicycling across the Chords Bridge and up to Mount Herzl on a Shabbat Saturday when the streets are empty and the light rail line is not in service.
Passengers hoping to board an already crowded bus on a Friday afternoon at Beersheba Central Bus Station.
August 19, 2011 -- After a couple of days exploring Mitzpe Ramon and Midreshet Ben-Gurion, I was going to travel via bus south to Eilat and then Petra, but a big terrorist attack on the same bus route I was going to take made for a change of plans. The roads were closed around Eilat and the Israeli Defense Forces were advising the public to avoid the area after a well-coordinated ambush near the Egyptian border murdered eight innocent civilians and injured dozens. So instead of soaking up the sun along the Red Sea and visiting Al Khazneh (featured in "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade"), I took a bus north to Beersheba and then transferred to another bus to Jerusalem.
I crowded onto the packed bus with Israeli soldiers on leave for the hour-and-a-half ride north. Friday afternoons are very busy at Beersheba Central Bus Station because everyone wants to catch the last buses to their destination in order to be able to spend Shabbat dinner with their families and friends. I arrived at the Jerusalem Central Bus Station just in time for the Friday opening of the new light rail line along Jaffa Road and preparations for Shabbat in the Holy City.
After checking in to Abraham's Hostel next to Davidka Square in the heart of Israel's undivided capital, I was ready to explore my favorite city in the world—from Mount Herzl to the Western Wall and beyond. Jerusalem. Yerushaláyim. יְרוּשָׁלַיִם.
Here are more pictures of the bus trip from Beersheba to Jerusalem. Click here to see the photo set on Flickr.
August 17-19, 2011 -- Israel's water crisis really comes into focus when traveling through the arid Negev desert. But the potential to power the nation through solar energy also becomes clearer as the sun shines down upon uninhabited, non-arable land as far as the eye can see. The Jacob Blaustein Institute of Desert Research, on the Sde Boker campus of Ben-Gurion University near Mitzpe Ramon, is a world-class research facility with world-class researchers hard at work finding solutions to water resource sustainability and tapping into solar power in Israel. The institute operates the Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center, which is home to the world's largest solar dish. The director of the Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center, David Faiman, believes that the Negev could be home to massive solar energy plants that could meet Israel's future energy needs.
For eco-conscious travelers, a visit to The Jacob Blaustein Institute of Desert Research and Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center should definitely be on the itinerary. However, make sure to reserve a tour ahead of time. I did not book ahead of time, and therefore was not able to walk through the facilities. The Mitzpe Ramon area offers much to do for the outdoor enthusiast. There are great hiking trails at Makhtesh Ramon (a stunning geological formation cratered out through millions of year of erosion) and Tzin Canyon next to Ben-Gurion University and the tombs of Israel's first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, and his wife Paula. There are also places to rent mountain bikes and explore the Negev using pedal power. Geofun Desert Cycling Center specializes in Negev bike tours. For those travelers interested in animal conservation, there are lots of Nubian ibex and other animals to observe. Although unfortunately you will probably see many people illegally feeding the ibex human food despite the many signs warning visitors that human food can injure or even kill the ibex.
And a green place to stay is the aptly named Green Backpackers Hostel, which uses rooftop solar water heaters like many buildings throughout Israel. In fact, Israel is the world leader in the use of solar energy per capita with 85 percent of the households today using solar thermal systems, estimated to save the country 2 million barrels of oil a year, the highest per capita use of solar energy in the world, according to Wikipedia.
Click here for more observations of Mitzpe Ramon and Midreshet Ben-Gurion on Josh's Travel Blog.
Here are more pictures from Mitzpe Ramon and Midreshet Ben-Gurion. Click here for the Flickr set.
Here is a panoramic video montage of Mitzpe Ramon and Makhtesh Ramon.
On Saturday, February 4, 2012 in Washington, D.C.'s McPherson Square, U.S. Park Police in riot gear, some on horseback, along with a hazmat team, raided the Occupy DC encampment and set up a perimeter around the park and began to clear out tents, bedding, debris and other belongings with forklifts and trucks.
They said they were enforcing the no camping regulations and not evicting the demonstrators.
This occurred in front of protesters, onlookers and the media on a cool, rainy, dreary winter day in the Nation's Capital.
Streets were blocked off to traffic around McPherson Square by the Metropolitan Police Department traffic enforcement division.
While many in the Occupy movement are criticizing the heavy-handed tactics and unnecessary show of force by law enforcement, the U.S. Park Police are actually doing the movement a favor by shutting down the encampment. It will allow the next phase of the movement to begin, whatever that may be.
Occupy DC was one of the last remaining encampments after other cities such as New York had evicted their demonstrators. Frankly, the encampment at McPherson Square was beginning to become an eyesore and attracting anarchists and others not interested in reshaping our democracy to benefit the 99% but in destroying the system altogether. And the reports of rats and filthy conditions were becoming a distraction from the main message of this movement, which is to address the unsustainable social and economic inequality in America.
The slogan "you can't evict an idea" that gained traction after Zuccotti Park was cleared out, will certainly apply to Occupy DC. Their heroic actions and sacrifice on behalf of working people everywhere will always be honored and one day there will be a plaque at McPherson Square remembering the brave men and women who slept under the stars to dream of a better America. But for now, it's time to move on.
Here are more pictures taken Saturday afternoon of the end of Occupy DC at McPherson Square.
It is a rare sight to see an Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker arrested while recording a public congressional hearing. But that is exactly what happened yesterday as "Gasland" director Josh Fox was handcuffed before a hydraulic fracturing hearing at the request of the Republican leadership of the House subcommittee on Science, Space and Technology.
Fox is making a follow-up to his critically acclaimed movie about the risks to public health and contamination of the water supply from chemicals used by the natural gas industry when they drill and then administer high-pressure injections into shale rock to fracture the shale and extract natural gas. His sequel explores the corrupt connection between the oil and gas industry and the United States government.
Anyone concerned about the First Amendment, Freedom of the Press and civil liberties should be outraged that the Republicans would first deny Fox a media credential, as was reported on many news sites, and then ask for him to be arrested for filming without a credential. This despite the fact that it was a public hearing where people take pictures and shoot amateur video of proceedings all the time. I have attended many of these public hearings and sat there with my video camera shooting and never have been asked to be removed.
And anyone concerned about the stranglehold the oil and gas industry have on Republicans in Congress and our government should be appalled at the arrest of Fox. There are serious questions that need to be asked about chemicals seeping into groundwater from the fracking method. This is about the public health of the citizens of the United States, not just about jobs and the economy in this rush to tap into every inch of shale rock for every drop of natural gas in this country.
And remember that these are the same anti-science Republicans who have done nothing to implement a renewable energy policy in America. Millions of jobs are being lost overseas because the United States does not incentivize clean energy nearly enough compared to subsidizing the fossil fuel industry. Republicans are in no position to talk about jobs when they refuse to allow America to compete in the global clean energy race with biofuel, biomass, wind power, solar power, tidal power, wave power, hydroelectricity and geothermal energy.
Here is Fox's statement to the press followed by video of him talking about his arrest on MSNBC's "The Ed Show" with Ed Schultz.
I was arrested today for exercising my First Amendment rights to freedom of the press on Capitol Hill. I was not expecting to be arrested for practicing journalism.
Today’s hearing in the House Energy and Environment subcommittee was called to examine EPAs findings that hydraulic fracturing fluids had contaminated groundwater in the town of Pavillion, Wyoming. I have a long history with the town of Pavillion and its residents who have maintained since 2008 that fracking has contaminated their water supply. I featured the stories of residents John Fenton, Louis Meeks and Jeff Locker in GASLAND and I have continued to document the catastrophic water contamination in Pavillion for the upcoming sequel GASLAND 2.
It would seem that the Republican leadership was using this hearing to attack the three year Region 8 EPA investigation involving hundreds of samples and extensive water testing which ruled that Pavillion’s groundwater was a health hazard, contaminated by benzene at 50x the safe level and numerous other contaminants associated with gas drilling. Most importantly, EPA stated in this case that fracking was the likely cause.
As a filmmaker and journalist I have covered hundreds of public hearings, including Congressional hearings. It is my understanding that public speech is allowed to be filmed. Congress should be no exception. No one on Capitol Hill should regard themselves exempt from the Constitution. The First Amendment to the Constitution states explicitly “Congress shall make no law…that infringes on the Freedom of the Press”. Which means that no subcommittee rule or regulation should prohibit a respectful journalist or citizen from recording a public hearing.
