Go Green Radio

Recently, the CDC released new guidelines in the fight to prevent Legionnaires' disease. With recent outbreaks of Legionnaire's throughout the country in Flint, Michigan and Bronx, NY, the maintenance of a building's water system is more important than ever. The guidelines are a huge step forward to help building owners control Legionella bacteria once it has entered their buildings from the public water supply and help prevent uncontrollable deaths from the disease. Today we will speak with Tonya Winders, President and CEO of the Allergy & Asthma Network, the leading nonprofit patient education and advocacy organization for people with asthma, allergies and related conditions. We will discuss what Legionnaires' disease is; why the Allergy & Asthma Network supports the new guidelines; how Legionnaires' disease can cause asthma and respiratory problems; and the importance of being aware of the disease to prevent hundreds of deaths each year.

GreenerBuilder 2016 gathered hundreds of Northern California trade professionals to learn about key trends in the green building market; to hear what owners and developers are looking for; and to make important connections with fellow industry leaders. The daylong conference trained attendees to be at the forefront of greening the built environment. The event was held in the Net Zero Energy Center in San Leandro, CA where the IBEW, Local Union 595 and the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) create a world-class learning environment for apprentices to gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge technology and electrical systems. On today’s episode we will talk with Peter Rumsey, internationally renowned leader in Net Zero Energy building design; Bob Wallace, President of Energy ETC, whose company designed the energy management systems for the event venue; Byron Benton, training director at the Net Zero Energy Center; and Brenden McEneaney, Director of USGBC Nor Cal.

Ted Koppel’s new book, “Lights Out,” he asserts that a major cyberattack on America’s power grid is not only possible but likely, that it would be devastating, and that the United States is shockingly unprepared. Koppel warns that a well-designed attack on just one of the nation’s three electric power grids could cripple much of our infrastructure, and the federal government, while well prepared for natural disasters, has no plan for the aftermath of an attack on the power grid. On today’s episode of Go Green Radio, we’ll talk with Scott Aaronson, the Managing Director for Cyber and Physical Security for the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), and discuss what the electric power industry is doing to protect the nation’s power grid.

The world is alive with animals that we virtually never glimpse with our own eyes. Many of the most fascinating and significant wildlife discoveries in recent years have been made thanks to the explosion of non-invasive, motion-sensitive cameras, known as camera traps. Not only do camera traps provide stunning images of endangered species, they've revolutionized the field of wildlife science, and elevated our understanding of the animals in our own backyards. Candid Creatures: How Camera Traps Reveal the Mysteries of is a new book by zoologist Roland Kays that tells the stories of the scientific discoveries that camera traps have enabled, such as the discovery of new species, and living proof of species thought to be extinct. With more than 600 remarkable photographs from researchers all over the globe, Candid Creatures is the first major book to reveal the secret lives of animals through this new technology. Tune in as we talk with Roland about his new book!

Oceanside, CA is on the Road to Zero Waste with a goal is of reaching a 75-90% diversion/recycling rate by 2020. The Green Oceanside campaign was established to educate residents, businesses and visitors about how to be better stewards of the earth and to implement programs that protect and conserve natural resources. Through collaboration and partnerships between City departments, local businesses, community groups, schools and residents, the Green Oceanside campaign provides an avenue for the public to learn how to actively protect the environment through community involvement and engagement. The Green Oceanside team strongly supports and encourages educational outreach for youth and believes this is ultimately the best way to reach Oceanside households. On today’s episode, we’ll speak with three Oceanside community leaders about the City of Oceanside's Zero Waste Schools Program and their goal to inspire students, staff, and parents to reduce their waste and recycle more.

Imagine your business making a big impact solving problems like hunger, poverty, war, violence, and catastrophic climate change while making a healthy profit. A new book by Shel Horowitz and Jay Conrad Levinson, Guerrilla Marketing to Heal the World, shows dozens of practical examples of successful companies doing well by doing good---from solopreneurs to Fortune 100 global corporations. Learn how to: create projects (and products) that accomplish social change, profitability, and cost reduction all at once; green your company in ways that save money and make money; gain enormous positive reputation as a visionary company worth supporting; expand successfully into totally new markets through strategic thinking, powerful partnerships, and commitment to core principles; turn marketing from a cost to a revenue stream; and embrace abundance and transformation---and stop worrying about market share.

Can we build a green economy and fight pollution at the same time? Is energy policy also social policy? Through the stories of workers and entrepreneurs in the U.S. and China, Catching the Sun explores the global race to lead the clean energy future. Over the course of a solar jobs training program, Catching the Sun follows the hope and heartbreak of unemployed American workers seeking jobs in the solar industry. With countries like China investing in innovative technologies and capitalizing on this trillion-dollar opportunity, Catching the Sun tells the story of the global energy transition from the perspective of workers and entrepreneurs building solutions to income inequality and climate change with their own hands. Their successes and failures speak to one of the biggest questions of our time: will the U.S. actually be able to build a clean energy economy? Tune in as we talk with the film’s director, Shalini Kantayya.

Frederic C. Rich – one of the world’s leading corporate lawyers who is at the same time a prominent environmental leader - has written a book which diagnoses why the American environmental movement has stalled. He argues that in order to move forward, Republicans must reclaim their forgotten pro-environment heritage and Green must learn to again appeal to conservatives. Tune in as we talk to Mr. Rich about how his ideas could play out, given the unique Presidential primary season we are experiencing.

On March 3, activists led by Rainforest Action Network (RAN) held simultaneous protests in front of Citigroup’s New York City and San Francisco offices on to demand the company stop funding coal mining. According to RAN, Citigroup is looking to finance the purchase of coal mines in New Mexico and Colorado, despite having a policy on its books to sunset these harmful investments. On today’s episode, we’ll be joined by Ben Collins, Senior Research and Policy Campaigner for RAN, to discuss the outcome of the protests and why this issue is so critical.

Ohio’s coal workers are hanging up their hard hats and learning new trades as layoffs pile up in Appalachia’s coal mines. International Business Times Energy and Environment Reporter, Maria Gallucci, examines the human side of our nation’s shift away from coal. She joins us on Go Green Radio today to discuss how coal miners and their families are coping with job loss, and what the future holds for fossil fuel industry workers. You can read her article here: http://www.ibtimes.com/ohios-miners-seek-life-after-coal-industry-loses-steam-appalachia-2327365.

On Feb. 11, 2016, 350.org Co-Founder Bill McKibben and grassroots leaders joined Congressman Jared Huffman (D-CA) and 16 other members of Congress to introduce the “Keep It In the Ground Bill,” in the U.S. House of Representatives. This legislation would prohibit new leases for coal, oil, and gas on all federal lands and waters, halting new leases for offshore drilling in the Pacific and the Gulf of Mexico, and permanently protecting the Arctic and Atlantic coasts. Today we’ll be joined by Bill McKibben and Tara Houska, the National Campaigns Director of Honor the Earth and a Native American advisor to the Bernie Sanders campaign.

In his Jan. 2015 State of the City address, Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia announced that he wanted to make Long Beach a model of a climate resilient city. He asked the Aquarium of the Pacific to take a lead in assessing the primary threats that climate change poses to the city, to identify the most vulnerable neighborhoods and segments of the population, and to provide a preliminary assessment of options to reduce those vulnerabilities. The Aquarium has released a report detailing assessments of the five main threats of climate change to our community (drought, extreme heat, sea level rise and coastal flooding, deteriorating air quality, and public health and social vulnerability), and providing recommendations on actions and steps the city can take to make Long Beach a model of a climate resilient city. Given the City’s size, population demographics, infrastructure, geographical location, and regional economic impact, it has the opportunity to become a model of resiliency.

Today we’re joined by Osprey Orielle Lake, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN), who held events and conducted advocacy work in Paris during COP21. She will share her perspective on the climate agreement, and describe the events surrounding this historic event. You can learn more about WECAN at: http://wecaninternational.org/ or follow them on Twitter: @WECAN_INTL

Zika virus, a pathogen transmitted by mosquitoes, has seemingly established itself in South America and the Caribbean and is now threatening the U.S. Cases have been reported in Florida, Illinois, Texas and Hawaii in patients having traveled to Central and South America, where they acquired the virus through mosquito bites. Our guest today, Joseph Conlon, technical advisor for the American Mosquito Control Association, will discuss how the virus could spread and what we can do to minimize our risks. We’ll also discuss what effect, if any, climate change has on mosquito-borne illnesses.

On today’s episode of Go Green Radio, we will talk to Marc Yaggi, Executive Director of Waterkeeper Alliance (www.waterkeeper.org), about how- in 21st century America- a town of 100,000 people in Flint, Michigan was exposed to extremely high levels of lead in their drinking water. We will talk about the public policy failures, the actions taken by policymakers, how individual residents will be affected, and lessons that every community in America should learn from this disaster. Waterkeeper Alliance is the world’s fastest growing environmental movement, with over 270 Waterkeeper Organizations protecting rivers, lakes and coastal waterways on 6 continents. The organization’s President is Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

In her recent article for Newsweek, “The Big Melt: The Last Antarctic Explorers Are Seeking Answers Inside The Continent's Ice” (http://bit.ly/1RcuVpp), Nina Burleigh writes: “The history of the planet is held in frozen suspension in the Antarctic. Vertical miles of ice encase air bubbles that hold bits of atmosphere… some dating as far back as a million years ago. Fossil records show the place was once green, teeming with life,…[but now holds] 90% of the planet’s ice…and those 7.2 million cubic miles of ice are now melting at unprecedented rates… Scientists have predicted that even partial melting of the Antarctic ice will raise sea levels enough to force the 150 million people around the world—including parts of New York City, Miami and Mumbai, India—to abandon their homes.” Tune in as Nina shares her first-hand experience exploring Antarctica, and how vital scientific research being conducted there may provide answers to some of the most dangerous unknowns about climate change.

El Niño produces extreme consequences for weather around the globe. The National Weather Service (NWS) has forecast a strong El Niño for the winter of 2015-16. As a result, the NOAA Winter Outlook shows probabilities for above normal precipitation over much of CA, AZ, and southern NV, bringing substantial risk for levee failures, landslides, and flooding. The FEMA Region 9 office, in Oakland, CA has established an El Niño task force, consisting of subject matter experts from federal, state, local, tribal and community partners, who recently participated in a Rehearsal of Concept (ROC) exercise to practice the newly released Disaster Response Plan for California, Arizona, Nevada and its flood decision support tools. Today these experts will join us to discuss practical ways families and businesses can be ready for the hazards that a strong El Nino will produce.

Executive Producers Ron Howard and Brian Grazer have partnered with National Geographic Channel and GE to present BREAKTHROUGH, a revolutionary new series about scientific explorers from leading universities and institutions and how their cutting-edge innovations and advancements will change our lives in the immediate future and beyond. On today’s episode we will discuss Angela Bassett’s contribution to the series, “Water Apocalypse,” which will air on Dec. 13 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT. The film makes clear that California faces a future of drought that will cost billions in lost farm revenue and thousands of jobs. The challenges facing the state are not unique: All over the world, governments are struggling with bigger populations and a diminishing supply of freshwater. Bassett focuses on inspiring stories of people working to change the world, and one of her featured guests, Sandra Postel, joins us on Go Green Radio.

Transitioning our nation’s transportation infrastructure to support electric vehicles won’t happen overnight, but it may happen quite rapidly thanks to a new not-for-profit trade association, the Electric Vehicle Charging Association. Leaders from the electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, technology and services industry have joined forces to advocate for policies to advance clean transportation, and focus on creating an environment that maintains the highest levels of innovation and maximum value for electric vehicle drivers. Today we’ll be joined by the President & CEO of Envision Solar, Desmond Wheatley; President of EV Connect, Jordan Ramer; the Vice President of Government Market Development for Volta, Dr. Abdellah Cherkaoui; and the Vice President, West Region for NRG EVgo, Terry O’Day.

The American Cleaning Institute’s ® (ACI) 2015 Sustainability Report showcases the cleaning products industry’s progress toward sustainable development and unveils ACI’s first-ever industry “materiality assessment,” which maps the critical risks and opportunities facing its value chain. br The ACI is the Home of the U.S. Cleaning Products Industry™, representing producers of household, industrial, and institutional cleaning products, their ingredients and finished packaging; oleochemical producers; and chemical distributors to the cleaning product industry. Among the many well-known member companies are: Amway, BASF, Clorox, Colgate-Palmolive, Ecolab, Proctor and Gamble, SC Johnson, and Seventh Generation. Today we’ll be joined by ACI’s VP of Sustainability Initiatives, Brian Sansoni, and Alec Lager, Director of Strategic Services for Framework LLC.