If we can get past the enormous fiscal cliff and the related budgetary challenges that this country faces, there are a lot of other important mountains President Obama has to climb in his second term, among them the twin peaks of climate change and energy.

Mr. Obama came to office...

In today's politics of red-hot debate, of charge and counter charge, facts are fleeting things. They don't stand a chance in our wind tunnel of politics and media where noise and negativity, finger wagging, and focus-group tested accusation rule the day. It's a mess. And it's not worthy of a...

With political gridlock preventing politicians in Washington, D.C. from reaching agreements on, well, anything, it's easy to imagine the entire country is suffering from a similar political lockdown. However, municipalities across the country are coming together and moving ahead in America's clean energy discussion. One way they're doing it: building...

Last week, Danica May Camacho of the Philippines became the world's symbolic seven billionth person. The occasion drew mixed feelings in the policy world -- what does a booming global population mean for climate risks? To cite one issue, leaders are worried about the declining supply of water in...

Gardening in a suburban area is more difficult than most people imagine. There are problems with soil quality and plot space, water and weather. But nothing is more menacing than the docile deer. Decades of development left the deer virtually unthreatened by natural predators, and the arrival of humans and...

The military is the single largest consumer of oil in the United States, using over 400,000 barrels per day to power a fleet of tanks, helicopters and armored personnel carriers. Needless to say, many of America's oil suppliers aren't the most reliable nations in the world. That's why...

There is one truth about college: buying a parking pass is a painful rite of adulthood. Every year, tens of thousands of American students shell out up around $900 per year to park their cars on strained campus lots. Now students at Ole Miss are working with local...

Who thought America's most iconic skyscraper could change the way engineers thought about green building? A recently completed plan to replace all of the Empire State Building's windows with energy-efficient upgrades is proving the iconic can also be innovative. Now Planet Forward and Nightly Business Report...

Would you pack up a family heirloom in a box lined with seed husks and mushroom spores? Eben Bayer, the 26-year-old CEO and chief innovator at Ecovative Design, thinks so. Bayer's biodegradable packing materials are tough, cheap and renewable, putting Ecovative on a collision course with Styrofoam, the...

One thing's certain about the international climate negotiations happening right now in Cancún: no one's expecting big things. After last year's failure in Copenhagen to broker a legally-binding, international agreement to reduce carbon emissions, the media, negotiators pundits and activists pretty much all agree that if anything comes of Cancun...

What can be said about the noble packing peanut? For decades, shipping companies have filled boxes with these fluffy petroleum nuggets in order to keep our plates unbroken and our books cushioned. For a culture of consumers, the packing peanut is iconic.

Digging through packing peanuts is a...

Washington State's Congressman Brian Baird likes information. As Rep. Baird told Planet Forward, simply providing enough information to consumers can help lessen our environmental footprint. How? By helping us understand the true climate cost of our biggest decisions.

350.org's Bill McKibben thinks government can be the answer after all. Riding off his recent 10/10/10 event, McKibben argues that governments can affect incremental change on the climate debate by publicly adopting small-scale climate solutions. Watch McKibben's interview below:

With the Nissan Leaf's 2011 model year sold out, it may be a while before you can get your hands on one. To bring you closer to the action, Nissan gave Planet Forward the opportunity to take the Leaf for a spin. We're premiering our test drive on...

If last week's White House GreenGov 2010 Symposium was any indication, working towards environmental sustainability is a team effort. GreenGov makes clear that sometimes the best means of reducing your environmental impact are the simplest: putting lights on timers and recycling old electronics.

Of course, if you really...

At the GreenGov Symposium, hosted by The George Washington University, Energy Secretary Steven Chu announces the installation of solar panels on the White House roof. (October 5th, 2010)

Today we launch the first day of the Green Gov Conference held at George Washington University in Washington DC. Administration officials Steven Chu, Tom Vilsack, and Nancy Sutley will be offering their vision of a more energy efficient and sustainable government.

Watch the conference and participate in the panel discussions...

The Wagyu beef filets served up daily at New York's Kobe Club were some globetrotting bovines. Most of the Wagyu served at ritzy steakhouses like the Kobe Club begin their journey in Japan, where the cows are fed on beer and frequently massaged. From there, the...

The political climate is more polarized than at any point in recent memory, and hopes for comprehensive climate change legislation during the waning days of the 11n1th Congress now appear dashed.

With Republicans likely to make large inroads into Democratic majorities this November, many climate change advocates are left...