One of the unique aspects about being in school again is the exposure to concepts, ideas, writers, and philosophers that I would not necessarily come across in my general reading. One idea in particular, which was not new, but was covered in more depth than I thought possible this semester, was the notion of hegemony. [...]
Archive for the ‘Renewable Energy’ Category
The Hegemony of Nonrenewable Energy Sources
April 24th, 2011 
Eric Wilson 
Posted in Education, Eric Wilson, Featured Posts, Op-Ed, Policy, Renewable Energy 
Tags: Bio-fuels, Coal, Electric Vehicles, Energy, Natural Gas, Nuclear, Oil Consumption 
No Comments »The Galapagos Islands to Achieve Energy Independence by 2015
April 13th, 2011 Eric Wilson Several years ago I had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Galapagos Islands. At the time I was teaching middle school science and had graduated five years earlier with a degree in biological anthropology. My background leaned heavily toward Darwin and his ideas. However, I had already moved toward sustainability and conservation themes in both [...]
Posted in Conservation, Eric Wilson, Featured Posts, Japan, Oceans, Renewable Energy, Sustainability Tags: Clean Energy, Energy, Natural Gas, Photovoltaic, Solar Energy, Wave Power, Wind Power No Comments »General Electric and 3M Make Big Investments in Solar
April 11th, 2011 Eric Wilson On occasion my dad forwards me newsletters that he gets regarding energy and clean technology. The most recent one dealt with General Electric’s (GE) foray into solar energy production. The multinational conglomerate recently completed the purchase of PrimeStar Solar in Arvada, Coloardo, just outside Denver. According to their website, “PrimeStar Solar is a manufacturer of [...]
Posted in Business, China, Clean Technology, Economics, Eric Wilson, Green Economy, News, Renewable Energy Tags: Colorado, GE, Green Investments, Photovoltaic, Solar Energy No Comments »Why Should Electric Utilities Offer Rebates?
April 10th, 2011 2nd Green Revolution After writing about Xcel Energy’s back and forth disappearing, reappearing solar rebate (under the Solar*Rewards program), I was challenged to consider both the necessity and validity of utilities discounting the installation of rooftop photovoltaic systems. Since we here at 2nd Green Revolution enjoyed the intellectual exercise that flowed from our first “debate” (which continues now [...]
Wheel of Fortune’s Eco-Awareness Week
April 5th, 2011 Eric Wilson Avid watchers of Wheel of Fortune know the show often has themes throughout the program. This week on Wheel of Fortune, the theme is all things green. On last night’s program, the first puzzle was “solar panels” followed by “national parks”. The next puzzle was “reduce, reuse, recycle“. In addition, they were giving away a [...]
Electric Vehicles: The Key to Energy, Economic, and National Security
April 3rd, 2011 Eric Wilson Notice how the title of this post says nothing about the environment. Think that’s intentional? Despite Nissan Leaf commercials (like the one below), electric vehicles are not about saving the environment. How can they be? Roughly half the electricity in the United States is generated from the combustion of coal. Another 20% comes from nuclear [...]
Clean Energy and Environmental Protection: Tackling China’s “Unsustainable Economic Growth”
March 31st, 2011 Guest Author This post was written by Michael Davidson, who works at the NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council). China leads the world in renewable energy deployment and clean energy investments, according to the Pew/Bloomberg New Energy Finance report “Who’s Winning the Clean Energy Race? 2010 edition” released today. This is part of a larger trend we’re seeing in [...]
Posted in Behavior, Business, China, Clean Technology, Energy Efficiency, Featured Posts, Green Economy, Guest Authors, Policy, Renewable Energy, Sustainability Tags: Alternative Energy, Cars, Clean Energy, Coal, Electricity Generation, Green Technology, Michael Davidson, NRDC, Renewable Energy No Comments »Farms Turn to Renewable Energy to Boost Bottom Line
March 30th, 2011 Eric Wilson Several years ago the New York Times reported that farms in upstate New York were installing wind turbines in an effort to increase revenue. At the time of the article, the farm featured had 120 turbines earning between $5,000 and $10,000 each (depending on electricity generation). According to Horizon Wind Energy, Phase I of the [...]
Posted in Agriculture, Eric Wilson, Renewable Energy Tags: California, Clean Energy, Electricity Generation, Los Angeles, Photovoltaic, Waste, Wind Power No Comments »Protecting the Environment: A Moral Issue, Not a Political One
March 27th, 2011 Eric Wilson For whatever reason, environmental advocacy became a politicized, ideological issue. It’s not. The reality is that it’s a human concern. Our wanton consumption of resources (in the industrialized world) is not sustainable, from an economic or environmental perspective. We have failed to live within the limits of nature. The reality is that we live on [...]
Posted in Economics, Energy Efficiency, Eric Wilson, Featured Posts, Op-Ed, Renewable Energy, Sustainability Tags: Energy, Environment No Comments »Coal and Natural Gas Are King
March 22nd, 2011 Justin Manger Here is a chart that compares the strictly financial costs of different energy types based on an EIA (Energy and Information Administration) study that looked at costs in dollars per megawatt hour in 2008 for plants going into service in 2016. If you divide the total system levelized capital cost (explanation below) in the far right column [...]
