Recently, Minerva’s Karl Van Orsdol, completed a climate vulnerability assessment project in the town of Kuboes, South Africa. Kuboes (Population 1,000) is an isolated indigenous community of Nama Peoples located in the Northern Cape province which, like Cape Town some 600 km to the south, has been reeling under the affects of a major drought.

Update on Karl’s adventures in South Africa 1) to build a rain water collection system at a school which had no permanent water source, and 2) to study the way that rural communities like Kuboes are adapting to the changing climate in South Africa.

I never expected to see the picture of 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals all over Osaka, Japan this spring…Please read on to find out what is happening over there…

Suicide is on the rise throughout the U.S. Can we design communities to reduce isolation and increase connectedness and resilience?

Humans must transform how we related to the earth and to one another so that we repair and restore the life support systems of the planet. We are but a thread in the web of life and simply tweaking our behavior to be "less bad" or to gradually reduce carbon emissions will not suffice. We need to take bold actions for restoration, based on an understanding of complex systems. We need to cherish and nurture the Earth systems and resources and not exploit them.

The New Fire and Pandora’s Promise are two recent films that discuss next generation nuclear energy companies and whether nuclear energy is safe and necessary as part of a carbon free energy future. (http://newfiremovie.com/, http://pandoraspromise.com/) Four concerns people general have about nuclear energy revolve around safety, waste, proliferation, and cost.

The future of self-driving cars and drone deliveries has a dark side. Is there hope for a brighter future?…

I used to be an optimist. Then I started listening to climate scientists and looking at data trends that show that the geophysical systems that create the conditions for life and agriculture on the planet have been thoroughly disrupted.

2017 was the third warmest year on record. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, the nation's weather and climate agency, announced that economic losses from 16 weather-climate disasters exceeded $1 billion and totaled $306 billion, a new record.

When do we decide that we are in the throes of a planetary emergency? There is no one in charge of fixing the systems we have broken. Undermining the stability of the climate systems leads to the disruption of weather, water, agriculture and social stability. When people are facing uncertainty and suffering they may turn to tyrants who promise certainty and the reassurance of simplistic solutions.

At the end of 2017, Minerva’s Karl Van Orsdol, was sent by the US Agency for International Development to Ghana in West Africa to examine the operations of an agricultural cooperative and assess through a case study how community collaboration could provide resilience against climate change.…

You may have noticed that the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change 23rd annual meeting (referred to as COP 23) concluded in Bonn in November. In the US, the meeting went largely under the radar, displaced by stories on tax legislation and the increasing scrutiny of the sexual misconduct of alpha males within our culture. Everywhere else in the world, the meetings were front page news due the attendance of nearly every major political leader in the world, except of course, from the US.

Dr. James Hansen calls for Global Climate Justice: Making the Carbon Majors Pay for Climate Action at COP23 in Bonn, Germany. He held a press conference with his granddaughter Sophie Kivlehan who is suing the US government for failing to act on climate change.…

While flying to Amsterdam for a conference on sea level rise, I sat next to a man who is an agronomist and financial manager for an American-owned international seed company. He is based in Costa Rica where his company hybridizes flower seeds. I asked him if he sees an impact from climate change on his business. He said yes, that the rainy and dry seasons in Costa Rica used to be predictable. They would plant seeds appropriate to the wet or dry season and the plants would grow. The weather was consistent and predictable.

Well publicized issues such as rising sea levels and greenhouse gas emissions are just the start of how our changing environment will continue to affect humankind. There are a host of invisible issues that impact the environment negatively. These matters will have a direct impact on generations to come and if we care about the future of the planet, we need to take action now.

Iceberg the size of Delaware calved off the Larsen C Ice Sheet of Antarctica. What are you doing to turn the tide?

Scientists at IIASA join others in sounding the alarm for quick and decisive action to protect the future.

Minerva and FigBytes just collaborated on a webinar about Sustainability 2.0. I was surprised to be reminded how inspiring systemic change can be. We delved into the transformative possibilities for sustainability and climate action and considered tools for setting ambitious visions and navigating to those goals.

Have you heard of micro-fibers? I recently learned the Story of Stuff launched a campaign to raise awareness about micro-fibers in the water supply. Micro-fibers are microscopic plastic fibers coming off of your synthetic clothing.

The most popular example of such synthetic clothing is fleece....

FigBytes and Minerva join forces to help companies and communities achieve simplicity on the other side of complexity.

Find out how to have healthier, safer, more efficient buildings, for better financial returns, happier tenants and more productive employees.