This will be the last self-promotion post! But today is the last day to vote for entries to the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week blog contest, and I am asking for your vote. My response to the question "What can individuals, businesses, or world leaders do to address interrelated water and energy challenges?" is here.
You don't have to create an account or register in order to vote. Just click the number of stars at the top of my post that you think it's worth. Thank you and happy New Year!
Thursday, January 03, 2013
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Entry for Blogger Competition - Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
I haven't posted to Maria Energia in a few years - my pieces have mostly been appearing over on ecopolitology.org and earthandindustry.com. But I've entered a blogging competition sponsored by Masdar City that could send me to Abu Dhabi to cover Sustainability Week there. The question to answer is: "What steps can individuals, businesses or world leaders take to address the most pressing and often interrelated water and energy challenges?"
Below is my response. To let me know what you think and/or rate the post, please go to my contest entry at Masdar City's contest site. Thank you!
Water and Energy: It's all in the Supply Chain
Water and Energy: It's all in the Supply Chain
I love logistics, and the supply chain fascinates me. This
may make me a dry dinner guest, but these industries are very literally what make
our world work. And it’s where we need to start any conversation about water
and energy challenges. First and foremost, policymakers and businesses need to get
back to the basics and ensure a reliable distribution network to optimize how
our resources are delivered.
A smart distribution system – such as a smart electric grid
or smart water network – helps utilities and cities address challenges like inefficient
use, resource loss and unreliable service. Sensors that communicate real-time
data to network operators can help identify power outages or water leakages
more quickly. By pinpointing exactly where the problem is located, dispatchers
can rapidly send out repair crews to return service. Some systems can
even communicate directly with customers about estimated repair times.
Besides improving the reliability of electricity and water
distribution – which is especially pertinent in emerging markets – smart
network technologies can help manage demand by comparing current data with past
trends. As data is shared across the network, operators can make better
decisions about how to manage resources: Pumps can be adjusted to more
efficiently meet water demand (for example, during the particular times of day
when need is highest), or electricity can be redistributed across the grid to
areas where the need is greater.
Unlike the smart electric grid, the public’s excitement and
interest in smart water networks is relatively low. Much of the developed world
has experienced a power outage; not a water outage. But anyone who wants a
drink from a tap in their home – and that’s more of us, as demand in the next
20 years is expected to grow 40 percent, according to the 2030 Water Resources
Group – should be just as interested in the logistics of water distribution as
they are about exciting smart grid technology, like talking thermostats. And
from a government perspective, the distribution of resources is far from simply
a sustainability issue, but a basic revenue and business problem to be
addressed as infrastructure ages and demand grows.
Many companies have developed the technology to get us to
integrated, smart electric and water networks, and many cities have already
started to implement them, from Charlotte, North Carolina in the U.S. to Sydney,
Australia to Masdar City, U.A.E. These solutions will help create a better
distribution system of resources that will ultimately be more reliable,
efficient and affordable for the agencies that deliver them and the customers
who expect them.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Reports from the Clinton Global Initiative
My posts from the Clinton Global Initiative are up on EarthandIndustry.com, as well as a repost at the Timberland corporate blog. (that's TimbERland, not TimBAland, as I had to clarify for a really excited friend).
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Clinton Global Initiative: Landfills and Energy (video)
I'm here at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York City - below is my quick video recap of yesterday's discussions. Check out Earth and Industry for my full posts.
Secretary Clinton announcing the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves
Things get crowded in the press pen - the roped-off area where we stand during the sessions.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Packing up for the Clinton Global Initiative
I'm nearly packed - Tomorrow I head to the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting in New York City, where I'll be covering the event for Earth & Industry, as well as here at Maria Energia and Twitter. CGI brings together heads of state, CEOs, and the best entrepreneurs from all over the world who are committed (financially committed, not just in theory) to solving the worlds most pressing problems like education, environment/energy, economic empowerment, and health.
Below is a clip of President Clinton discussing the relevance of CGI. Courtesy of the Huffington Post.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Headed to the Clinton Global Initiative!
I am PUMPED to be heading to the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in New York City in September. You'll see posts and updates here at Maria Energia and at Earth & Industry. Stay tuned!
Latest Earth & Industry Podcast
You know it's been awhile since you've blogged when it takes you 10 minutes to figure out your passwords to log in! But I do continue to record podcasts with some of the smart folks over at Earth & Industry. Here's our latest podcast, talking about the BP oil spill. We taped this hours before it was capped.
Thursday, April 08, 2010
Colbert's Climate Change "Catfight"
Stephen Colbert let a climatologist and...some guy...duke it out on climate change. Bottom line: Climate is not the same thing as weather!
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Science Catfight - Joe Bastardi vs. Brenda Ekwurzel | ||||
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