UK Highlights – Easter eggs, airports and health reform
With Parliament breaking for Easter Recess, politicians have been busy stoking up the debate on airport capacity in the South East, turning the spotlight on wasteful Easter egg packaging, and discussing ways to better engage the public on climate change. Ministers have launched a new Carbon Capture and Storage competition, a new energy saving advice line and set out plans to cut emissions from heat. After the twists and turns of NHS Reform debate, the Health and Social Care Bill has finally received Royal Assent and the Prime Minister has launched a challenge to tackle the “crisis” in dementia care.
World TB Day: Stop Tuberculosis in My Lifetime!
Each year, U.S. Embassy London recognizes World TB Day on March 24, commemorating the date in 1882 when Dr. Robert Koch announced his discovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacillus that causes tuberculosis (TB). World TB Day provides an opportunity to raise awareness about TB-related problems and solutions, and to support worldwide TB-control efforts. Read more 
World Water Day
Today is World Water Day, and this year’s theme is Water and Food Security: The World is Thirsty Because We are Hungry. In honor of this, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will announce a new U.S. water public-private partnership (USWP) that will share U.S. knowledge, leverage and mobilize resources, and facilitate cross-sector partnerships to find solutions to global water accessibility challenges in the developing world. Watch her remarks here. Read more
UK/US State Visit; Obama Energy Agenda; America Doubles Renewable Energy Capacity; Wind up 27%; Nevada Solar; Ohio’s Green Button; New China Tariff
Broadly covered by news outlets last week, President Obama hosted Prime Minister Cameron for a state visit to Washington, DC. During the joint press conference, the President praised US/UK efforts toward improving maternal health and preventable deaths of children in Africa, and the increased support for the Global Fund on AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. Today is World Water Day. March 24 is World TB Day.
I will post separate blog entries describing U.S. and partner country efforts in both of these efforts. Covered in this week’s U.S. government news are the President’s campaign for an All-of-the-Above energy strategy and a progress report from six federal agencies showing significant gains in U.S. renewable and clean energy over the last three years. President Obama visited four states to showcase such energy efforts, and the U.S. Energy Information Agency’s (USEIA) opened a web portal showing state renewable energy portfolios. I provide specific examples from Wisconsin and Oregon of initiatives at the state and local level. Finally, there is a discussion of a new tariff on Chinese solar panels, Energy Star’s twenty year anniversary, a bacteria-engineered source for biofuel, scientific efforts to locate dark matter in space, and a light-hearted video showing how the White House prepared the Prime Minister’s state dinner.
All-of-the-Above Approach to Energy. The White House released a new energy agenda for gasoline in America. It reduces America’s dependence on foreign oil and increases fuel efficiency standards for light trucks and passenger vehicles. In his weekly video address, the President called for continued investment in new clean energy technologies. “We’ve got to develop every source of American energy,” said the President, “not just oil and gas, but wind power and solar power, nuclear power, biofuels.” Watch the address below. Read more
UK/US Space Weather Collaboration; $1 Billion Clean Vehicle Challenge; 2012 Energy Innovation Summit; Cal, Wisc, Okla Initiatives; Other U.S. Gov’t News
As many media outlets have begun reporting on an upswing in solar flares striking the Earth’s magnetic field possibly causing damage to global communications and electric grids, I begin this week by highlighting US/UK collaboration on space weather. You will also find highlights on a Senate bill that if passed would create a national clean energy standard, a $1 billion White House program to spur deployment of clean vehicles to local communities, and an Energy Department Electric Vehicle challenge. There is a video of Energy Secretary Chu having a fireside chat with Bill Gates during the 2012 Energy Innovation Summit, and examples of new clean technology start-ups in Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and California. I finish with ozone pollution research, wildlife and wetland preservation efforts, U.S. collaboration with Mexico and the Caribbean on hurricane preparedness, and a new USAID/OXFAM partnership seeking to empower women on health issues.
U.S. Announces “Coalition Against Climate Change”; $2.4 Billion CCS Plant; New Nuclear Reactor Licenses; Other U.S. Government News
This week, I highlight America’s ongoing commitment toward tackling climate change and bringing international stakeholders together to achieve specific, measurable results. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on February 16 the formation of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, a new global initiative to combat climate change and reduce short-lived climate pollutants—methane, black carbon, and many hydro fluorocarbons (HFCs)—that account for approximately one-third of the current global warming. Bangladesh, Canada, Ghana, Mexico, Sweden, and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) are other coalition partners. I describe several efforts by the Departments of Energy, Commerce, EPA, and USAID to invest millions of dollars in new clean energy projects and training programs. There is also a summary of newly released climate change research from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
$120 Million Storage Hub, NY Tidal Energy Project, CCS Research, and other U.S. Government News
This week, I highlight several developments in clean energy technology and energy efficiency: a new battery storage “catapult-style” technology hub, the first commercially licensed U.S. tidal energy project, an Energy Department carbon capture storage (CCS) research agreement, new energy efficiency awards, and a publically-accessible clean energy database. The federal government also launched several new initiatives toward preserving America’s forests, cleaning up its beaches, investing in STEM education, and taking a first step toward eradicating malaria. I finish with two videos, the first from NASA’s GRAIL satellite of the far side of the moon and the second from the Washington Monument during last year’s earthquake. In follow up to last week’s blog entry, here is a fact sheet released by the White House that explains President Obama’s energy agenda in simplified, graphic representation. Read more
U.S. & Partners Unite to Control or Eliminate 10 Neglected Tropical Diseases by 2020
On January 30 in London, the U.S., U.K. and U.A.E. governments; global pharmaceutical companies; the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; international research and development organizations; donor groups; and NTD-endemic countries came together to announce new and extended collaborative commitments to control or eliminate 10 Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). Watch the archived webcast here. Read more
Weekly Highlights of U.S. Government News
In his third State of the Union Address last Tuesday, President Obama outlined his vision for “an America that lasts”—one that will bring about a new era of American manufacturing, and promote homegrown and alternative energy sources—and presented a blueprint to achieve that vision. Check out this video that goes behind the scenes as President Obama prepared the speech.
In this week’s U.S. Government Highlights, I provide a read out on President Obama’s announced American-made energy policy, the results from America’s version of the Red Tape Challenge, new pollution transparency tools from the EPA, the first WaterSense label award, several grants to improve energy efficiency, and advances in science and technology. Read more
Risk Perceptions about Nuclear Power and the UK’s Energy Infrastructure
Parliament’s Science and Technology Committee held its second inquiry into “Risk Perception and Energy Infrastructure” on January 25 to investigate public perceptions toward the risk of nuclear power in the UK. The first inquiry took place on January 18. In this second inquiry, two panels of experts testified. The science media panel — Sense about Science Managing Director Tracey Brown, Science Media Centre Director Fiona Fox, and former Science Editor for The Times Mark Henderson — testified about the responsibility journalists and government officials have in presenting accurate scientific assessments of risk to the public during crises, rather than sensationalized headlines. Read more