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E.O. Wilson’s mentors

The great biologist E.O. Wilson discusses the kinds of people who inspired him: Check out Grist’s interview with Wilson here.

Snippets from the news

• E.U. approves deal to make airlines pay for emissions. • Condors at risk from fires. • State agency confirms federal jurisdiction over Cape Wind. • Alberta will spend billions […]

Grist downtime

You may have noticed that Grist.org was inaccessible for most of the day today. On the bright side, none of us could get our email either, so we weren’t burdened […]

Coral reefs not doing so well

We’re in the midst of the International Year of the Reef, but there’s little to celebrate: Nearly half of coral reefs in U.S. waters are in “poor” or “fair” condition, […]

Snippets from the news

• The Big Apple will spend $2.3 billion on greenhouse-gas reduction. • Officials urge merger of federal earth-science agencies. • States slacking on clearing park air. • Toxic sludge lingers […]

Orangutans heading toward extinction

Orangutans are on their way toward extinction, says a new study that points out worrying declines in fuzzy-orange-ape populations. Orangutans only live in the wild on the islands of Sumatra […]

Don’t be afraid to claim the term ‘environmentalist’

A number of Grist contributors have grumpily said things along the lines of, "I'm not an environmentalist," or "I'm not sure I'm an environmentalist."

Environmentalism comes in all flavors. Wanting to protect natural environments because they benefit humans is a perfectly valid form of environmentalism -- in fact, I'd argue more valid than the "humans are evil, tapeworms are virtuous" variety. If you want to protect our world against the worst consequences of global warming, if you want clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and yes, some wilderness and wild left for the sake of your sanity, then you are an environmentalist.

Every now and then I will run into someone who says, "yes, I think women are fully human and should be treated as such. I believe in equal pay for equal work, anti-discrimination laws, anti-harassment laws. I think there are important ways in which women are not treated as fully human that have to be changed. But I'm not a feminist." If you believe those things, you are a feminist. You are just buying into an anti-feminist stereotype. And not calling yourself a feminist won't stop all mini-Limbaughs who dominate talk radio from calling you whatever the latest version of "feminazi" is. Similarly, if want to protect the environment, even for the most anthropocentric reasons in the world, claiming not to be environmentalist won't protect you against being called names by those who think the ideal breakfast is fried spotted owl cooked over an open flame fueled by old-growth timber. So own the term "environmentalist." Claim it proudly. Don't let hate-mongers define it, or purity trolls monopolize it.

[Updated title to take out the damn 60s reference the editor put in.]

Greening the city

They’re making green videos over at The New Republic — here’s the first one, from Dayo Olopade:

A locust swarm worries Chinese officials ahead of Olympics

Officials in the Northern Chinese province of Inner Mongolia have mobilized 33,000 people to stop a swarm of locusts 267 miles outside of Beijing. Concerned that the locust swarm may descend on Beijing during the Olympic Games, the regional government has set aside 4 million yuan for pesticides and large-scale spraying machinery. As of July 2, the swarm had infested 5,000 square miles.

"The larvae are in the hatching stage in the counties and cities near Beijing, Gao Wenyuan, of the Inner Mongolia's grassland office, told the Xinhua news agency, as reported by Bloomberg. "The plague is becoming more apparent."

Landmark court ruling halts Georgia coal plant, Pentagon scuffling with EPA over pollution cleanup,

Read the articles mentioned at the end of the podcast: A Coal New World White-Out House To Clean Up or Not to Clean Up … We’re Still on Defense Moby […]