Grist | Topics | 156 Results

RESULTS		Results 51 – 75 of 156
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Headline	Author	Published	Section
Seattle's difficult decision: Erica C. Barnett She says no and hell no	David Roberts	11 Mar 2007	Gristmill
Seattle is facing a difficult decision: what to do with a crumbling highway that serves as a major north-south corridor through the city? Below, we hear from Erica C. Barnett. Erica is the senior news writer for Seattle's alternative newsweekly, The Stranger, where she covers City Hall and transportation, writes a weekly politics column, and serves on the paper's editorial board. She also has a blog. ----- Voters in Seattle are being asked to take up-or-down ...
Topics: Seattle, placemaking, public transportation, politics, local politics (all these topics)

Seattle's difficult decision: A mini-series Because local transportation choices aren't local any more	David Roberts	11 Mar 2007	Gristmill
As Bradley noted below, the citizens of Seattle face a dilemma. The Alaskan Way Viaduct -- an elevated highway that enters Seattle on its west flank, offering stunning views (to drivers) of the city and the waterfront -- is falling apart. There's real danger that an earthquake, or just Father Time, could send it tumbling down, along with lots of cars. Nobody wants that. That's where the consensus ends. The question is: what should we do about it? In some sense th ...
Topics: local politics, placemaking, politics, public transportation, Seattle (all these topics)

Testing a city's commitment to green Seattle's choice between a freeway and climate change	Bradley Meacham	11 Mar 2007	Gristmill
When a city has to choose between sustaining car culture and pursuing environmental goals, which wins? That's the question facing Seattle in the next several days as residents return ballots in an all-mail election over how to replace a dangerous waterfront viaduct freeway. The city enjoys a relatively green reputation (even local Toyota TV commercials tell us so). And the mayor has gained a national reputation talking about the need to curb climate change. Yet ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

Earth Day Network's Urban Environment Report Congrats to Fargo!	David Roberts	09 Mar 2007	Gristmill
Seattle is in 7th heaven. The Earth Day Network has issued its Urban Environment Report, which "scores the current environmental performance of 72 of our nation's cities based on over 200 indicators, taking into account those populations which may have greater sensitivity or susceptibility to environmental, health, and social problems." The big winner overall? Well isn't it obvious? Fargo, North Dakota, of course! Here's the overall top ten: ...
Topics: Portland, Seattle (all these topics)

Sex: Coming to a local coffee shop Young Dems sexify your mug	Kate Sheppard	08 Mar 2007	Gristmill
It's about cups. Sexy, sexy cups. Well, actually it's about getting college students thinking about the planet and about changing their personal habits. But the "sexy" sure doesn't hurt. The University of Washington's Young Democrats club launched a Sustainability is Sexy campaign this month to encourage students to bring their own cups to the campus's coffee shops. And their sexy slogan is popping up all over campus on shirts, buttons, stickers, and post ...
Topics: food, green living, Seattle, sex, waste (all these topics)

Have Some Class: Sustainability is sexy UW students use sex to sell green idea	Sarah van Schagen	01 Mar 2007	Gristmill
"The UW is bringing sexy back," the Seattle P-I story begins. Well, you've piqued my interest. The story goes on to describe the Young Democrats' "Sustainability Is Sexy" campaign to get students to bring their own coffee cups to campus. It even includes a quote from Grist's own Kendra Howe on the value of using "sex" to promote anything from beer to nonprofit causes: "Sex sells no matter what you're selling," she says ...
Topics: Seattle, sex (all these topics)

Ah, springtime in Seattle I sense a theme	David Roberts	17 Feb 2007	Gristmill
Here's the forecast for Seattle (see if you can detect a theme): Sunday, Feb 18 Colder with a little rain Monday, Feb 19 Rain at times Tuesday, Feb 20 Breezy with rain Wednesday, Feb 21 Cloudy with a shower possible Thursday, Feb 22 A couple of showers possible Friday, Feb 23 Rain possible in the p.m. Saturday, Feb 24 Cloudy with rain possible Sunday, Feb 25 Cloudy Monda ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

Seattle's Olympic Sculpture Park: a preview The park marries art and nature amidst an urban backdrop	Sarah van Schagen	07 Feb 2007	Gristmill
On Monday I had the opportunity to get a personalized tour of Seattle's new Olympic Sculpture Park. Grist kahuna-at-large Chip Giller and I walked the grounds of the 9-acre green space, located at the north end of the city's downtown waterfront, with Martha Wyckoff and Chris Rogers, two key players in bringing the park to life -- Wyckoff as an environmental consultant for the Seattle Art Museum and Rogers as project manager for the whole shebang. In addition to th ...
Topics: green space, placemaking, Seattle (all these topics)

Extracting useful energy from a fusion reaction Small is beautiful.	biodiversivist	01 Feb 2007	Gristmill
Here is a fun article from The Green Wombat retelling the 'solar-to-hydrogen' car story for the millionth time. I read stories like this in Popular Mechanics decades ago. The article talks about using solar panels to store sunlight as hydrogen to burn in internal-combustion-powered cars. Australia has a lot of sunlight and summers can be hot. It would be far more efficient to use that sunlight to power swamp coolers to air-condition homes than to throw 90% of that sol ...
Topics: consumerism, energy efficiency, hydrogen, renewable energy, Seattle (all these topics)

Dark day for City Light State Supreme Court rules utility cannot offset emissions	Eric de Place	19 Jan 2007	Gristmill
Just when US federal climate policy looks like a possibility, Seattle's prospects take a turn for the worse. The Washington Supreme Court just ruled that Seattle City Light -- the first (and only?) major utility in the nation to achieve climate neutrality -- can no longer use ratepayer money to buy emissions offsets.Luckily, I think this problem can be fixed fairly easily. But before I get to fixing things, I have a small rant to get off my chest.According to the court ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

The URGE2 to do something, anything Not every 'environmental' action makes sense	biodiversivist	13 Jan 2007	Gristmill
I spotted a freshly remodeled house in my neighborhood the other day. It had a large array of shiny new PV solar panels on the roof. Wouldn't it be great to be able to afford such things? Wouldn't it feel great to watch your electric meter spinning backwards? You don't see many solar panels in Seattle. It piqued my curiosity, so I found a solar cost calculator to find what it would cost to replace my electricity use with panels. The answer is about $160,000 dollar ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

Can cities meet Kyoto targets? Report casts doubt	Eric de Place	11 Jan 2007	Gristmill
A new report questions whether the 358 U.S. cities that pledged to meet Kyoto's targets will be successful. That's a fine question, but it's perhaps easy to misconstrue as an implicit criticism that the promises were meaningless.There is every reason to think that the cities can meet the targets. (And, heck, the pledge is only 18 months old!) Portland, in fact, is already well on its way. What the report should serve to highlight is this:Reducing emissions requires a r ...
Topics: Portland, Seattle (all these topics)

A greener city with less red tape Is required green development smart public policy?	Eric de Place	04 Jan 2007	Gristmill
Here's a potentially good idea about which I'm rather ambivalent: rules requiring in-city developers to include robust landscaping features such as green roofs and vegetation-covered walls. It's easy on the eyes, but it may not be smart public policy.To begin with, it's unclear how much burden Seattle's cutting-edge new rules would impose; and it's unclear how much benefit they'd achieve. But if most developers are skeptical -- and they are, at least according to this ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

The Doctor Is in ... Your Tank An interview with Seattle biodiesel distributor Dan Freeman	Yolanda Crous	07 Dec 2006	Main Dish
Dan Freeman. As a kid, Dan Freeman experimented with using alcohol to run lawnmowers and minibikes. (Oh, to have been a fly on the wall for that parent-son conversation.) These days, he runs Dr. Dan's Alternative Fuel Werks, a Seattle-based biodiesel retail and distribution company with customers ranging from school districts to organic farmers to concerned individuals who want ...
Topics: biofuels, business, cars, energy, interview, placemaking, Seattle, Washington (all these topics)

Gloom and doom with a sense of precipitation	David Roberts	21 Nov 2006	Gristmill
Does your blog proprietor seem sluggish and grumpy today? Perhaps it's because his home city, Seattle -- or as it's known around the house these days, "fking Seattle" -- is in the midst of its rainiest November ever. Outside my home office window, it is dark as night. The wind is blowing. The air is frigid. And if I'm not hallucinating, I think it just started hailing. Kill me. Update [2006-11-21 14:1:18 by David Roberts]: Oh, hey, speaking of darknes ...**
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

Greg Nickels and global warming This climate hero may be more of a Forrest Gump	David Roberts	06 Nov 2006	Gristmill
I've been waiting for someone to write this article. Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels is rightfully lauded for kicking off the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, which now has 326 mayors committed to helping their cities meet Kyoto emissions targets. It's a BFD, and Nickels will earn a small place in history for it. Still. It's always been my sense that the initiative was cooked up by clever and persuasive staffers in the mayor's office, and that Nickels was, in For ...
Topics: climate, energy, placemaking, politics, Seattle, urban planning (all these topics)

Seattle's new slogan It's, um, slogan-y	Sarah K. Burkhalter	24 Oct 2006	Gristmill
Grist's fair HQ of Seattle has revealed a new city slogan, posted prominently on top of the famous Space Needle. And that slogan, my friends? METRONATURAL. As defined by Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau: adj. 1: Having the characteristics of a world-class metropolis within wild, beautiful natural surroundings. 2: A blending of clear skies and expansive water with a fast-paced city life. n. 1: One who respects the environment and lives a balanced lifes ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

An antidote to isolation Environmental justice groups gathered in Seattle this weekend	Kate Sheppard	02 Oct 2006	Gristmill
Unfortunately, I only got to catch the tail end of the Environmental Justice for All solidarity event up here in Seattle on Saturday. I missed the tour though ... 'cause I got lost. Hey, I'm new here, OK? But as the national tour drew to a close, it was good to see activity up in our corner as well. The event, hosted by the Community Coalition for Environmental Justice, led folks on a tour of some of the most polluted areas here in the generally-conceived-of-as-green ...
Topics: environmental justice, Seattle (all these topics)

The Green Expo at Highpoint Seattle's -- possibly the country's -- coolest new neighborhood	David Roberts	19 Sep 2006	Gristmill
This past Sunday, I went out to the Highpoint neighborhood in West Seattle to attend the Green Living Expo. Highpoint is extraordinary (check out this map of the master plan). When it's completed (about a third is finished at this point), it will be the largest interurban redevelopment in the country. I won't get into all the details -- check out the website -- but here's the short summary: The community will be mixed-use, mixed-income, and mixed-ethnicity. They're ...
Topics: green living, placemaking, Seattle, urban planning (all these topics)

Gristmill shameless product placement: Pagliacci Pizza	David Roberts	21 Aug 2006	Gristmill
This weekend we ordered a pizza -- our usual: pepperoni, mushroom, and Kalamata olives -- from Pagliacci, the best pizza place in Seattle and one of the best pizza places in the country. When it arrived, there was a note sitting on top that read: "This one's on us! Thanks for being a great customer." I heart Pagliacci. I'm not just blogging about them because they gave me a free pizza, or because every time I call they know exactly who I am, where I liv ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

Front-page news Seattle's papers catch up with electric cars	Katharine Wroth	04 Aug 2006	Gristmill
Here in Seattle, we have two daily papers. They're embroiled in a seemingly endless joint-operating dispute. I don't know the ins and outs of the deal, being a relative newcomer to the city, but I do know this: every morning at the bus stop, as I review the front pages displayed in the papers' side-by-side machines, I marvel at their attempts to tell the same stories in different ways. Today, for instance, both front pages featured huge, splashy photos of our visit ...
Topics: cars, electric vehicles, Seattle (all these topics)

Sub Pop Records offsets energy use	Sarah van Schagen	31 Jul 2006	Gristmill
As Grist's unofficial music correspondent, I feel compelled to share this exciting news with you: Sub Pop Records announced today that they have partnered with Bonneville Environmental Foundation to purchase enough Green-e certified Green Tags to offset 100 percent of the company's energy use. Based in Seattle, Sub Pop Records has worked with bands ranging from Nirvana and Soundgarden (when they were relatively unknown) to The Postal Service, The Shins, Iron and W ...
Topics: business, carbon offsets, energy, music, Seattle (all these topics)

Bicycles are old school	biodiversivist	18 May 2006	Gristmill
I was riding my electric hybrid bike to the basketball court last night and stumbled upon the Ride of Silence staging area at Gasworks Park here in Seattle. Too bad I didn't have my camera. Anyone who rides a bike in Seattle is aware of the sorry state of our streets. On my way home that night I counted five potholes big enough to take out any unwary bicyclist. A cop had stopped me earlier that same day (while taking a carload of kids to school) for having expired li ...
Topics: Seattle (all these topics)

Edens Lost & Found	David Roberts	07 Apr 2006	Gristmill
Check out Edens Lost & Found, a four-part PBS series (and book, and newsletter, and curriculum) about how four cities -- Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and Seattle -- are working to transform urban environments to integrate nature and improve quality of life. Apparently the first two episodes have already aired; Los Angeles and Seattle are coming up this Spring. Sounds interesting. Check your local listings.
Topics: Chicago, Seattle (all these topics)

Oh Say, Can You, Seattle? Seattle commission unveils recommendations for meeting Kyoto goals		27 Mar 2006	Daily Grist
Oh Say, Can You, Seattle? Seattle commission unveils recommendations for meeting Kyoto goals Ex-VP Al Gore and environmental journalist Elizabeth Kolbert were in Seattle last week (both gave PowerPoint presentations, the chic new environmental look for '06) for a series of events Mayor Greg Nickels jokingly dubbed "climatepalooza." Capping the 'palooza was the unveiling of recommendations from the 18-member co ...
Topics: climate, news, Seattle, Washington (all these topics)

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