Appalachian Institute for Renewable Energy
Pioneering community-owned renewable energy
As has been a running thread in these coronavirus days here on AIRE’s blog, the novel virus for all its misery, grief, and social upheaval is exposing some myths. All one has to do is pay attention and use their critical lenses. Whether it’s food supply, medical treatment, or energy supply, there’s growing evidence that
You’re probably seeing reports (e.g. here and here) of how the air around Los Angeles and other places is suddenly clean with the economy turned off now. I even had a dream last night that I could see a lake in the distance that I’d never seen from a mountaintop I’ve frequented many times. I
New cars these days don’t come with a spare tire. What little that may reduce the price of the car, if any, just doesn’t seem worth it when a flat strands you on the side of the road. That’s the analogy Nobel Prize economist Joseph Stiglitz [1] uses to critique the old economic and political
As if right on cue, the Raleigh News & Observer opinion section posted this on October 27th- Duke Energy NC president: Climate and the case for natural gas. Barely a day prior, I had just posted about the climate change fueled California fires and how we’re all part of the larger explanation- Time to see
As the planet smolders, the Amazon burns, and the Bahamas are in ruin, and as Columbia Journalism Review just launched a project called Covering Climate Now to hold media accountable for real climate coverage, Michael Barnard just posted a piece over on CleanTechnica that is a textbook example of critical reading. His piece, Adventures in
Over this past rainy weekend, an opinion piece in the Raleigh News & Observer caught my eye because its title contained the words Duke Energy and SB559. Its author, Mr. Stephen de May, president of Duke Energy North Carolina, used some language and made some claims which chiefly amount to “hey, we’re Duke Energy and
A couple weeks ago, “tax day” that dreaded April 15th, was an especially painful and costly day for many Americans. That is, of course, unless you happen to be in the 1% or above, or you are DUKE ENERGY (since corporations are persons, right?). Tax day is never painful nor dreaded for Duke, in fact,
Prior to Earth Day this year, I’d thought of writing a critical piece, but just didn’t make the time to follow through. But the voice in my head just wouldn’t let the thought go, whether I was out on the bike, working at the computer, or sweeping the garage. Rebecca Leber’s piece at MotherJones, I’m
Last night (aka ‘Fat Tuesday’) I said a few words at Mountain Mardi Gras, a “friend raising” event AIRE co-organized with the Appalachian Theatre of the High Country. From all accounts, the evening was as near-perfect as it possibly could have been. Our proclamation tagline was “Come hell or high water, there’ll be Mardi Gras
Think your electric utility knows what’s best for you and the public interest? Your utility is probably not looking out for you nearly as much as it’s looking out for its profits and executives. Can we imagination a better way? Could these big utilities be equitably transformed to “public utilities?” (1) We’re at a real