Green energy in a coal state: the struggle to bring solar jobs to West Virginia
Local entrepreneurs want to replace disappearing coal jobs with employment in solar – but that’s a tough move in a state that lacks the solar-friendly regulations of places like California If solar energy were Dan Conant’s only passion, the West Virginia native could have stayed in Vermont, working for a fast-growing startup in a state […]
Why I think there's still hope for the climate in 2017
Despite Trump halting reduction of the US’s vast CO2 emissions, climate change is being taken seriously around the world from China to Sweden Optimism has always been in short supply in conversations about global warming. Only for the briefest window – after the Paris climate agreement was reached in December 2015 – did the words […]
The eco guide to mainstream organics
We need to learn from the Danish supermarkets, where organic produce is front and centre, not niche Say you were to swap your weekly shop with a Dane, you’d notice something strange. In Danish supermarkets like SuperBrugsen, myriad organic products are proudly displayed at the front. Try tracking down anything more exciting than an organic […]
As drought sweeps Kenya, herders invade farms and old wounds are reopened
Threatened by famine, pastoralists have turned to violence Sitting on the edge of Kenya’s highest mountain, its spectacular dun-coloured vistas stretching out into the endless distance, Laikipia is one of the most beautiful corners of east Africa. The region received a rush of publicity in 2010 when Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton at a […]
Dakota Access pipeline: appeals court refuses tribes' request to stop oil flow
Two tribes sought emergency order to stop oil flow while suit plays out DC court ruling means controversial pipeline could start work Monday An appeals court on Saturday refused a request from two Native American tribes for an “emergency” order that would prevent oil from flowing through Dakota Access pipeline. Related: Native Americans take Dakota […]
The climate change battle dividing Trump’s America
Climate change denial and energy conspiracy are high on the president’s agenda, but US scientists are fighting back Ever since Donald Trump became US president, certain sectors of American society have felt particularly embattled. His statements on Mexicans and Muslims are notorious, but there is another community, less heard about, that has also been sent […]
‘Improvising is what leads to discovery’ | Kitchen encounters
The owner of Otter Farm, Mark Diacono, says we need to make mistakes when cooking. But he won’t be making any this weekend as he takes over Cook’s Instagram account. Follow us: @guardian_cook My kitchen is … big, light and brand new. We recently built our house, so it was the chance to design it […]
From the archive: the Torrey Canyon oil spill disaster of 1967
How the Guardian reported the grounding of the Torrey Canyon supertanker and what was then the world’s worst oil spill On 18 March 1967, the Torrey Canyon, one of the world’s biggest tankers, ran aground between Land’s End and the Isles of Scilly, leaking more than 100,000 tonnes of crude oil into the sea. It […]
Did George Orwell shoot an elephant? His 1936 'confession' – and what it might mean
George Orwell wrote a shocking account of a colonial policeman who kills an elephant and is filled with self-loathing. But was this fiction – or a confession? An Orwell expert introduces the original story British imperialism being a largely commercial concern, when Burma became a part of the empire in 1886 the exploitation of its […]
Torrey Canyon disaster – the UK's worst-ever oil spill 50 years on
The UK’s biggest ever oil spill in 1967 taught invaluable lessons about the response to disasters, toughened up shipping safety and stirred green activism “I saw this huge ship sailing and I thought he’s in rather close, I hope he knows what he’s doing,” recalled Gladys Perkins of the day 50 years ago, when Britain […]