Next, Kansas Republicans Plan To Outlaw Sunshine

kansas ridiculousness. sustainability the musical
graphic: Sustainability, The Musical

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No matter how hard the fossil fools try to stuff the renewable energy genie back into the bottle (click here to read more about Kansas’s latest back-the-past bill), the green energy economy is growing.  For example, in March 2013 the number of Australian homes with solar power systems passed the one million mark, according to figures from the Clean Energy Regulator.

one million australians graphic

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And the Republican mayor of Lancaster, California has declared that his community will become the solar capital “of the universe”. Global warming, Mayor R Rex Parris says, will eventually persuade others to realize that locally generated renewable energy may provide a safety net as the cost of cooling desert homes goes up. As for the reality of the threat of human-caused climate change, the straightforward mayor says “I may be a Republican. I’m not an idot.”

On this unseasonably cool April Friday, I want to dedicate the following video to all the renewable energy angels/climate heroes in my own circle: Cathy O, Cheryl M, Mark R, Doug G, Donna C, Suzanne & Perry, and last but not least my partner on the journey, Mark P. Thank you for all you do, and for being part of my life.

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[youtube=http://youtu.be/R7KD_3tKVDw]

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I can’t resist throwing in this video to end this interesting week for those of us follow politics, and who lived in the 1980s and survived the neo-con trifecta of Thatcher, Reagan, and Mulroney. Enjoy your weekend!

[youtube=http://youtu.be/PHQLQ1Rc_Js]

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More links:

NY Times: Lancaster, Calif., Mayor Focuses on Solar Power

Kansas’s Self-Destruct Button: A Bill To Outlaw Sustainability

Canadian Democracy on Decline, While Renewable Energy Surges In Other Countries

I’m on the road this week doing several climate change presentations to various Catholic organizations and churches, so I have very little time to spend on the computer. Here’s a few of the graphics I came across when I popped onto Facebook this morning – click on them to read more.

I may not have said this recently, but I have a totally awesome bunch of FB friends – it’s so wonderful to share this journey into a sustainable future with them!

desmog blog pollution in public square*

And a related link: Democracy The Big Loser in Canada’s Parliament

It looks like Australia may have turned the corner on dirty energy: thanks to a price on carbon pollution and technology breakthroughs, coal and fossil fuels are on the outs in Oz (350.org):

renewables in australia

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spain and wind energy

Mercer And Holmes On Solar Panels

Just in time for the Ontario election, where Tory leader Tim Hudak is promising to kill the innovative Green Energy Act if elected, here’s Rick Mercer and Mike Holmes, two Canadian icons,in a  great clip from last week’s Mercer Report:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmI2BjOO9gg&feature=player_embedded]

For more examples of the kind of business and energy advances that the Green Energy Act and its feed in tariffs have enabled, check out Stand Up For Solar.ca

To check in on the 33 solar panels on our roof, and see how much energy they are producing right now, go to our Enphase Energy website.