C3 Journal on
Essays, evidence, and original arguments from the writers shaping this conversation.
Infrastructure
Some critics have complained that Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency can’t protect us from the supposed environmental harms of data centers if they cut down on red tape to streamline building permits. That’s part of a broader narrative that data centers are bad for the environment, but it ignores their benefits.
The voices in this section
All essays
Culture
An alliance of more than 200 environmental organizations is demanding a national moratorium on the construction of new data centers, escalating opposition to an industry that has become central to the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and cloud computing.
Culture
A new climate change lawsuit filed last week in Washington State takes a novel approach by arguing that the fossil-fuel industry is responsible for rising homeowners’ insurance premiums. The plaintiffs, two Washington residents, claim their costs have increased because of a growing number of climate-related natural disasters.
Culture
That alarmist messaging has never been particularly helpful. It creates an all-or-nothing perspective on climate change, where one side pushes for aggressive mitigation efforts at the expense of all other considerations, while the other dismisses climate risks altogether. It’s time to drop that framing and instead adopt a perspective that puts climate risks in context.
Culture
When world leaders fly into New York City (just think of the CO2 emissions from all the flights!) to hobnob at the annual UN General Assembly, they think and act as many leaders often do: they are seeking top-down solutions to global problems. They will tell us what to do. If we balk, they will offer to pay us to do it. If we do it, then problem(s) solved.
Culture
That is where battery swapping comes in. Instead of plugging in and waiting, drivers can stop at a station, have their empty battery taken out, and have a fully charged one installed, all within a few minutes.
Culture
Tucked away on the edge of an entertainment district in Huntsville, Alabama, the venue is mainly surrounded by parking lots and fencing. But in the three years since it opened, the Orion has hosted more than 625,000 visitors for hundreds of concerts and other on-site events while generating millions in revenue. Better yet, it’s done so while minimizing its environmental footprint.
Culture
Tom Friedman, opinion columnist at the New York Times, recently complained that Trump’s tax bill “quickly phases out tax credits enjoyed by utility-scale solar and wind, as well as electric vehicle tax credits.” Well, yes. That’s the point. Instead of the federal government handing out subsidies and selecting winners and losers, we will allow consumers to drive the energy future.
Culture
Rarely has there been an entrepreneur who dedicated as much of his life to making the world a better place through principled public policy solutions and had such a lasting, positive impact on the world as Edwin J. Feulner, PhD., founder and longtime president of the Heritage Foundation.
Culture
While most Republican presidents have campaigned on some version of energy independence or an “all-of-the-above” energy approach, President Donald Trump goes further—no longer just independence, but dominance is the goal.
Culture
Electronics waste, or e-waste, is a pressing global problem that poses serious environmental and human health risks. Now, one startup is pioneering a circular manufacturing approach to address these risks and manage e-waste more sustainably.
