An Outside Chance

just this side of freezing

PHOTO POST Winter proceeds in fits and starts. The marshes have frozen, thawed, filled with January rain, frozen again. Perhaps that suits the otters just fine. They certainly appeared to enjoy playing on thin ice in recent weeks. There was enough open water to dive into while chasing mud-cats, and enough ice to climb onto … Read More

portrait of december

PHOTO POST Has this been the greyest month of the year? So it seems, but intermittent snow cover and several spectacular sunrises have brightened things up. A sudden afternoon squall caught these birds – and their photographer – by surprise. One minute the sun was poking through and the next a swift … Read More

colours of summer past

PHOTO POST Vivid colours are not so easy to come by this time of year, but when you look close to the ground the garden still shows some hues as bright as a summer flower. The play of sun and cloud on water seldom disappoints and seldom holds one shape for long. Though the colours … Read More

Platforms for a Green New Deal

Two new books in review Also published on Resilience.org Does the Green New Deal assume a faith in “green growth”? Does the Green New Deal make promises that go far beyond what our societies can afford? Will the Green New Deal saddle ordinary taxpayers with huge tax bills? Can the Green New Deal provide quick … Read More

Make room for the bus

A review of Better Buses, Better Cities Also published at Resilience.org We often hear that “the greenest building is the one you already have.” The idea is that the up-front carbon emissions released during the production of a new building can outweigh many years of emissions from the old building. So in many cases retrofitting … Read More

the forest down the river

PHOTO POST We don’t often think of the Great Lakes as a river, but the lakes are part of the vast watershed of the St. Lawrence River and all that water gradually moves eastward through the lakes and out to the Atlantic. Just a long day’s drive downriver in this huge ecosystem, the changes in … Read More

Questions as big as the atmosphere

A review of After Geoengineering Also published at Resilience.org What is the best-case scenario for solar geoengineering? For author Holly Jean Buck and the scientists she interviews, the best-case scenario is that we manage to keep global warming below catastrophic levels, and the idea of geoengineering quietly fades away. But before that can happen, Buck … Read More

growing up

PHOTO POST Not long ago they were fledglings. Now they’re on their own. And with no helicoptering parents issuing shrill warnings whenever a suspicious character approaches, some of the adolescent birds in the neighbourhood can now be seen right out in the open. The juvenile Black-Crowned High Heron, above and below, is both more handsome … Read More

If the insects go, we all go

An illustrated review of Buzz, Sting, Bite: Why We Need Insects Also published at Resilience.org Buzz, Sting, Bite is a breezy read with a sobering message: insects are so deeply woven into the web of life that the worldwide drop in insect populations threatens every other species. (Buzz, Sting, Bite is published by Simon & … Read More

the view from up here

PHOTO POST A chorus of squeaks and squawks comes from on high as birds scout out good feeding territories, warn of possible predators, or call out “bring me another worm!” A Purple Finch is interested in tasty seeds – and likes to wait between snacks in the cool shade of lower branches. A Chipmunk … Read More

green fusion

PHOTO POST Is there an entomologist in the house? Alas, there is not – but this time of year, you only need to sit down beside a garden or in a meadow for a few minutes each day to spot a profusion of insects who are no less splendid even if you don’t know their … Read More

The Fight for Right of Way

Confronting the legal web that enforces drivers’ privilege Also published at Resilience.org Why is car culture so dominant in North American life? Is it a matter of personal preference, or is it the result of extensive advertising? Those are important factors – but University of Iowa law professor Gregory H. Shill says that auto dominance … Read More