Source: http://www.8thingstodo.com/turtle-island-fijian-all-inclusive-exotic-island-resort#.UVs0saVgPFI

Turtle Island Resort is located on Turtle Island, Yasawas, Fiji. This resort has recently completed a groundbreaking solar installation, making it one of the first ever clean energy resorts in the world.  This extraordinary project entailed a total of 968 solar panels being installed on the island, it commenced in early 2012 and is now fully operational; the installation renders the resort nearly 100% self-sufficient on the sun’s clean energy. Through its ecologically conscious operations, the resort runs on an average of 85% solar power, more than any other island resort in Fiji, and perhaps any luxury resort worldwide.  The new solar installation on Turtle Island produces 1 mega watt of power a day, enough to cover 100% of the power needs of the island on a sunny day. Even on rainy or cloudy days, the backup generator reduces the total solar power to about 85%, maintaining outstanding energy efficiency. This project has also provided surrounding villagers with numerous job opportunities. The installation will save an estimated 220 tons of carbon emissions per year, significantly reducing the island’s carbon footprint, and setting a new standard for luxury resorts around the world. Turtle Island has been a leader in sustainable tourism for some time now; owner Richard Evanson has worked to preserve its rich biodiversity, provide the island with a 90% tree canopy, and protect the cultural integrity of the indigenous reforestation program over the last 3 decades. Evanson has planted some 900,000 trees on the island which has promoted ecological diversity, re-established indigenous forests, prevented soil erosion, created windbreaks, and added to the extraordinary natural beauty on the island. Through this important solar installation and many other efforts, Turtle Island continues to set a new standard for hotels and resorts around the world to offer guests a socially conscious option for global travel.

Source: News release- Turtle Island Resort in Fiji Sets a New Standard for Worldwide Resorts, by Operating on Nearly 100% Solar Energy

Source: http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/potential-for-19-million-renewable-energy-jobs/

It has been released in a report by Environmental Entrepreneurs that companies and communities across the country announced that more than 300 clean energy and clean transportation projects in 2012 are expected to create 110,000 jobs. Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) is a nationwide network of business leaders who advocate for policies that benefit both the economy and the environment. The E2 report comes just two weeks after President Obama announced goals to double our renewable energy and our energy efficiency which will help our economy as well as our environment. However many groups backed by the fossil fuel industry in states across the country, including state Renewable Portfolio Standards, are currently trying to derail clean energy policies. It is necessary that lawmakers continue to support policies to create good, clean energy jobs if we are to continue to see progress. Clean energy projects created jobs in all corners of the country and across Republican and Democratic communities in 2012, with California, North Carolina, and Florida leading the nation. The Southeast as a region led the country in manufacturing-related clean jobs, with more than 13,700 announced last year. Solar, advanced vehicles and wind energy were the leading clean energy manufacturing industries in the Southeast. In the fourth quarter of last year, nearly 16,000 clean energy and transportation jobs were announced, up from 10,800 in the third quarter. However many other sectors saw declines in the fourth quarter largely due to regulatory uncertainty in Congress during the 2012 election. Executive director of Environmental Entrepreneurs Judith Albert concludes, “Smart policies and regulatory certainty- both at federal and state levels- drive economic growth. If 2012 taught us anything, it’s that America wants to keep creating good, clean energy jobs, we need good, clean energy policies.”

Source: Environmental Entrepreneurs news release- REPORT: MORE THAN 110,000 CLEAN ENERGY, CLEAN TRANSPORTATION JOBS ANNOUNCED IN 2012

Source:http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/03/ohio_power_siting_board_has_ap.html

According to the results of a recent statewide public opinion survey, a solid majority of Ohioans support investment in renewable energy and the state’s law which encourages those investments. Ohio is a very fast growing state for renewable energy investments and this data further confirms that policymakers should continue on the successful course they have taken since the clean energy law was passed in 2008. According to this public opinion poll almost eighty percent of Ohio voters support laws requiring Ohio to produce a portion of its electricity from clean energy sources and that three out of four Ohioans support increasing the number of the state’s wind farms. The poll also found that nearly two-thirds of voters support the policy to promote clean energy sources making Ohio less dependent on fossil fuels, and nearly sixty percent of Ohioans would be willing to pay up to $3 a month to use clean energy sources. This public survey is a good representation of the positive attitude towards renewable energy in the state of Ohio and upcoming Senate hearings should have no problem confirming and continuing the advances Ohio has made in clean energy.

Source: AWEA News Release- Eighty percent of Ohio voters support requiring a portion of the state’s energy to come from clean sources

In President Obama’s acceptance speech, he noted the importance of acting on climate change. He states:

We want our children to live in an America that isn’t burdened by debt, that isn’t weakened by inequality, that isn’t threatened by the destruction power of a warming planet [...] freeing ourselves from foreign oil.”

So, one thing is for sure, the President is not a climate change denier and it is one of the top issues he wants to focus on. He realizes that there is a big problem here, especially after Sandy hit. Post-Sandy, Mayor Bloomberg endorsed Obama because Bloomberg realized the President wants to curb climate change and put more focus on clean-energy. In Obama’s first term, he had a few successes that benefit the environment like increasing fuel-economy standards for vehicles, increasing restrictions on cardon dioxide emissions, and he supported stimulus money for clean energy companies.

What’s next for climate change then? It is obvious that the President believes what is going on, so does that mean that environmentalists can hope for an even greater change in his second term? With a plethora of new Senate members being huge supporters of clean water, air, and energy, there is hope that whatever legislation Obama proposes can get passed in the Senate, but the House might hold it up. Only time will tell the possibilities of making a change to our environment in Obama’s second term.

Source: LA Times Obama finally talks climate change; green industry wants more

Photo Credit: Clean Energy Summit

The theme of this year’s summit is “National Clean Energy Summit 5.0: The Power of Choice.” The focus of this years event is to show how clean energy decisions made by a variety of groups can save consumers money, create jobs, grow the economy, release our foreign energy dependency, and improve the overall quality of our environment. There will be a great focus on the economics of clean energy and how to grow this sector so it can be cost competitive in future markets.

To lead the Keynote address, former President Bill Clinton will speak on behalf of clean energy with his experience in the Clinton Global Initiative he started six years ago. Participants at the event will be able to learn about policy and the industry through the leaders of each field. There will be constant discussion going on throughout the Summit about making responsible choices on what we want our energy future to look like.

Who: Speakers will include- John Podesta, Chair and Counselor for the Center for American Progress; Jim Murren, Chairman and CEO for MGM Resorts International; Leo Gerard, President of the United Steelworkers International; Elon Musk, President and CEO of Tesla; Jon Wellinghoff, Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; and Denise Bode, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association.

When: Tuesday, August 7, 2012; 9:00 am- 6:00 pm

Where: Bellagio Hotel & Resort, Las Vegas, NV; 3600 S. Las Vegas Blvd., Las Vegas, NV, 89109

Register: If you are interested in registering for the summit or to get more information of panels and panelists, please visit Clean Energy Summit.

The question is no longer if clean energy will become competitive with conventional energy forms of energy; the question is, when will it happen?

The first question from the audience during Q&A vocalized the frustration many feel in the renewable energy world at the political debate around energy in Washington. The issue this question referred to was on subsidies for renewables without recognizing that fossil fuels have been receiving subsides for decades. The list goes on and on.  The audience member urged Steven Chu to lead the DOE to create a new dialog for public discourse around energy. Chu responded that the last thing we want is to let clean energy get bogged down in a political debate. It is on its way to becoming a cheaper form of energy. Conversation should be to phase out all subsidies because technology is going at such a pace where we should not need subsidies. Chu is a scientist, not a politician, and his perspective that politics should stay out of rational decisions about this country’s energy future is probably a wise one. Toxic politics are rendering useless to much of our public discourse about the future. If the energy world can embrace both sides of the aisle in Washington and keep the focus on logical strategies that will support a better future for everyone, their cause will benefit.