O2 - Issue 2 - (Page 41)

ming on the Sundance Channel. (In case you forgot, he’s a pretty talented actor and director, too.) VIJAY VAITHEESWARAN This highly respected correspondent for The Economist has deftly covered energy and environmental policy over the years, and that knowledge has recently culminated in the new book Zoom: The Global Race to Fuel the Car of the Future, with Iain Carson. Rather than demand to banish cars from our roads, Vaitheeswaran and Carson have written a compelling history of American drivers’ oil dependence and look forward to a new era of non-polluting, renewable energy sources for a mode of transportation whose gaining popularity is seemingly unstoppable. BARRY COMMONER Can you imagine what America would be like if Commoner had won the presidential election in 1980? Even so, the New York–based scientist has proven to be one of the founding fathers of today’s green culture. For example, his writings on ecology, which famously describe the interconnectedness and balance of all life, are perfect precursors to cradle-to-cradle and other revolutionary ways of eco-thinking. The Debunkers THE THINKERS WHO HAVE OPENED SKEPTICAL EYES TO CLIMATE CHANGE AMORY LOVINS The cofounder of the Rocky Mountain Institute is an acclaimed scientist in his own right, and he surrounds himself with an inspiring cast of genius characters at the institute. Working together, they have shown designers, businesspeople, and politicians that planetary stewardship and capital gain can go hand in hand. That’s why RMI calls itself a “think and do tank.” RAJENDRA PACHAURI We could generate dozens of these lists just to acknowledge all the members of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. But for the sake of efficiency, we offer our kudos to the chair of the IPCC, which this year issued its Fourth Assessment Report declaring that global warming is an unequivocal reality. When he learned that the IPCC would share the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore, Pachauri told reporters the award "places a larger responsibility on me and I will ensure that more will be done." In addition to his IPCC position, which he has held since 2002, the 67-yearold scientist heads the New Delhi–based nonprofit Energy and Resources Institute. GEORGE POSTE ENCORE PERFORMANCE BARRY COMMONER IMAGE BY LIZ O. BAYLEN/THE NEW YORK TIMES, A SUPERSTAR JUMPS OUT OF RETIREMENT AND INTO A BIOSCIENCE REVOLUTION Ph.D. is just one in a quartet of impressive handles on this renowned scientist’s name. And though you may know him as the shepherd behind a successful string of SmithKline Beecham pharmaceutical products, or as a go-to bioterrorism expert for the U.S. government, Poste’s most important role may be his latest. Lured out of retirement by Arizona State University, Poste is now heading the school’s new Biodesign Institute. The multidisciplinary research campus is poised to introduce exciting solutions to the crisis of fossil fuels; for example, by developing a bacteria-based biofuel, which poses no competition with food production for limited resources. Though only a few years out of the gate, Poste’s team is already on par with the likes of the Joint European Torus—implementing the next generation of technologies that, not so long ago, may have seemed like the stuff of science fiction. NICHOLAS STERN The British economist has the academic and political credentials to impress. But he really caught our attention in October 2006 with the release of The Stern Review, perhaps the most thorough document on the economic consequences of global warming. The review did have a silver lining, concluding that spending just 1 percent of the world’s GDP now will stem the worst effects of climate change. [ O 2 G R E E N M A G A Z I N E . C O M ] 41 http://O2GREENMAGAZINE.COM

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O2 - Issue 2 Contents Letter Freshpicks Itinerary The Hunt Flight O2 Outer Beauty Fuel 4 Thought Health Tech One to Watch Great Outdoors Features Future Focus Musings

O2 - Issue 2

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