technological innovation Archives - State of the Planet

Technology, Culture, Economics, and Politics

Technological change has been the largest stimulator of rapid cultural change over the past two centuries and will continue to be the major cause of social, economic, and political change.

by |August 14, 2023

New Technology Will Determine the Pace of Decarbonization

While the technology we need to complete the transition to renewable energy is not yet here, the pace of technological innovation is accelerating.

by |August 7, 2023

Earth Day Urgency

We are nowhere close to achieving the transition to environmental sustainability, but the process is well underway here in the United States. To achieve this, we need to think about our shared values rather than our differences. Let’s make every day an Earth Day.

by |April 25, 2022

Ukraine Demonstrates the Problem With Nuclear Power

The technology we depend on needs to be resilient, reliable, and as safe as possible. Nuclear power fails those tests, as the war in this nuclear energy-dependent nation demonstrates.

by |March 14, 2022

COVID, Climate, and Collective Global Social Responsibility

President Biden’s actions last week represented an implicit understanding of this nation’s global social responsibility.

by |September 13, 2021

Climate Policy’s Critical Moment is Here

The environmental catastrophe predicted by climate modelers a generation ago is upon us. We need to provide the resources and organizational capacity required to end most use of fossil fuels as fast as possible.

by |July 19, 2021

Why We Will Meet the Challenge of the Climate Crisis

Technology solves problems and creates problems, and then new technology is needed to solve the problems created by earlier technologies. It’s an endless cycle.

by |June 14, 2021

Kerry Was Correct: Decarbonization Will Require New Technology

Global environmental sustainability is a fundamental challenge that requires learning and hard work across many problems and possible solutions.

by |May 24, 2021

Climate and COVID as Crises of Environmental Sustainability

Human technology and ingenuity have created a world of comfort, curiosity and creativity. But we have failed to account for their impacts on the systems that sustain the planet and in turn sustain human life.

by |February 8, 2021
car plugged into electric pump

Electric Vehicles and Decarbonization

Electric vehicles and the infrastructure needed to support them are critical elements of a decarbonization strategy.

by |November 23, 2020