The U.S. spends about $1 billion per year on global efforts to curb carbon pollution – “a very small portion of the federal budget” – and the House is proposing to slash about 40 percent of that funding, well above the cuts in most other areas of the budget. Here is The Nature Conservancy’s breakdown. Don’t hold your breath, it’s a painfully long list.

Our eyes on the climate: NOAA’s National Climate Service is designed to aid fishermen, water suppliers and transportation managers – if it survives the budget ax.

New Hampshire’s energy efficiency progress under threat from bill to leave RGGI.

By mid-winter, tiny villages pop up on the frozen surface of Lake Champlain. Fishermen huddle in colorful shanties tending lines that descend to depths where perch, trout, and salmon swim below the ice. Gerald “Jake” Putnam of Crown Point, a town in upstate New York at the southern tip of the huge lake, started fishing [...]

H.R. 1 would slash U.S. direct foreign assistance and support for multilateral institutions. The total funding of these programs amounts to less than 1 percent of the federal budget, but they play a critical role in protecting U.S. security, contributing to a strong economy, providing stability in many countries, and preserving the U.S. as a strong global partner.

Recent polling by The Nature Conservancy reveals that more than three-quarters of American voters believe we can both protect the environment and strengthen the economy at the same time. This week, President Barack Obama is showing that he hears this American belief loud and clear. On Tuesday, the president unveiled his budget request for 2012, [...]

As many of the nation’s 15 million skiers and seven million snow boarders pack up to hit the slopes over the long weekend and winter school vacation, they are, no doubt, dreaming of slicing through the 60 inches of packed powder coating some mountain trails. Ski resort owners are also dreaming of a successful season [...]

This Valentine’s Day, as many folks appear to be thawing out from the recent extreme winter weather, those needing to bolster their romantic plans will be happy to know that roses are one tough species. According to the Historic Roses Group (www.historicroses.org), roses have been on the planet for 35 million years. That’s about 32 [...]

We need a sensible “post-partisan communications infrastructure” to make sure the most important stories about climate science are being told effectively.

The reliability and cost of food is becoming an increasing concern in light of a spate of natural disasters that are having dramatic effects on farming worldwide. Climate change stands to exacerbate these kinds of events and the widespread impacts on agriculture and society.

Pennsylvania is tracking the potential footprint of alternative energy development across the state’s fields and forests.

It requires a lot of energy to power the Super Bowl. And Laura Huffman of The Nature Conservancy in Texas appeared on EnergyNow to discuss how more big-time sporting events and companies in general should follow the lead of the great care that went into environmental planning for Super Bowl XLV in Dallas.

What do top Generals, veterans, christian groups, hunters, anglers and meteorologists all have in common? They’re all climate hawks!

The “weirding of winter” will continue to impact all who ski, snowboard, snowmobile, or ice fish. Ski areas are taking the threat seriously. At the Snowbird meeting, a new “Climate Challenge” was issued to reduce the resort’s own carbon footprint. The challenge for us all is to keep the weirdness limited by lowering our global carbon footprint.

This blog entry is the final entry in a three-part series by Rane Cortez, a forest carbon development adviser at The Nature Conservancy. The series highlights Rane’s recent 10-day trip into São Félix do Xingu, a large municipality in the heart of the Amazon in northern Brazil. She is working with local communities and experts [...]

The fire-climate story is more complex than a simplified relationship of higher temperatures equaling more fire.

Bill Ulfelder, executive director of The Nature Conservancy in New York, recently appeared on NY1’s latest “Going Green” segment to discuss the crazy winter weather much of the U.S. is seeing this winter. Click here to see the video interview. Ulfelder observes that everyone talks about climate change when it’s 92 degrees in April (referencing [...]