Report - Top 10 Energy Management Predictions for 2014

Do you want to know what will be the major energy management trends that will impact corporates and utilities in 2014? Look no further than this complimentary report. Verdantix has compiled years of research into energy technologies, energy services and power utilities, as well as conducing extensive interviews with 500 energy managers in 2012 and 2013.

In 2014 Verdantix predicts:

Predictions for US Energy Efficiency in 2014: Growth and Obstacles

What can we expect from energy efficiency in the US in 2014? Insight into some of the major trends in energy efficiency for the year to come and beyond (this article is a followup to US Energy Efficiency in 2013: Success Stories and Barriers).

Efficiency will have an even greater impact on both residential and industrial energy consumption this year compared to 2013. This is driven by policy at the federal, state and municipal levels. Net-positive energy buildings is another trend expected to grow in 2014. Other specific initiatives that will define energy efficiency in 2014 relate to financing, data usage, operational savings, and equipment integration.

Green Bonds May be the Climate Success Story of 2014

The cleantech story of 2014 may very well be the growth of green bonds, (aka climate bonds). A growing number of financial institutions and state governments are issuing green bonds to generate funding for sustainable development and clean energy technology. This rapidly emerging financial instrument is capable of significantly advancing global efforts to combat climate change.

Green bonds may very well be able to meet the Herculean funding challenge we have ahead of us. It is widely understood that there are technological solutions that will reduce our emissions and keep the temperature from climbing beyond the widely agreed upon 2 degree Celsius upper threshold limit. However to get there we will require massive capital investments of 36 trillion by 2050 or an average of 1 trillion per year.

New Senate Climate Initiative in 2014: Climate Action Task Force

On Thursday January 9, Senators Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and other Democratic senators, announced a new effort to get Congress to act on climate change in 2014. To help with this with this effort they are planning to enlist the support of civic groups, private industry, religious organizations and others. The new initiative entitled “Climate Action Task Force,” has a wide variety of goals, including the holy grail of environmental action, putting a price on carbon. To achieve this they will need to secure 60 votes in the chamber, however, this is no easy task as they can expect considerable opposition from Republicans as well as Democrats in coal states.

You Can Make a Difference in 2014: Ethiconomics on Change in the New Year

Well, what are you waiting for?

“How much of human life is lost in waiting.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

Another year passes and the wheel of time turns. Inexorably, inevitably and impersonally. For many of us it is a time when we reflect on the past year and gird our loins for the next. There is no natural reason for this reference to a spurious calendar embedded into our western consciousness and organisation by some medieval monk. For centuries we organised our years by the cycles of nature; by equinox and solstice, by season, growth and harvest. Still, it allows us the structure that we need in our ‘modern’ world for planning and organisation. Our frontal lobe is satisfied by this and our software applications are pure and blank, waiting to be filled with exciting and stimulating appointments and activities.

Andrew Winston's Sustainable Business Questions for 2014 and Beyond

Andrew Winston has been providing a top ten list of sustainable business stories for the last four years. He is the co-author of the best-seller Green to Gold and the author of Green Recovery. His forthcoming book, The Big Pivot, will be released in April. He advises some of the world’s biggest companies on environmental strategy. Here are eight questions for sustainable business in 2014 and beyond.

1. Will the divestment movement continue to gather steam and put significant pressure, either financial (unlikely) or moral (much more intriguing), on fossil fuel companies?

2. Will all the talk about building a circular economy gain mainstream acceptance?

3. Will we get better at valuing natural capital (and will companies and markets care)? It certainly garnered lots of attention this year, with new estimates of the damage the global economy does to natural assets (trillions), new tools to measure natural capital, and an important new book from former Goldman partner and CEO of The Nature Conservancy, Mark Tercek.

Cleantech Troubles in 2013: Predictions from Kachan

As reported in an Environmental Leader article, Kachan & Co, a boutique cleantech research and advisory firm, is predicting that Global cleantech will “backtrack” in 2013. According to their bleak predictions, venture capital investments will decline even further than they did in 2012 and long-term risks are emerging in the solar, wind and electric vehicle market.

Kachan's latest predictions indicate cleantech venture capital investment won’t ever return to the highs it achieved before the financial crisis of 2007-2008. In 2013, the sector will lose venture investors because of disappointing returns, poor policy support worldwide and a lag time in the pullback of equity and debt investment.

2012 in Retrospect: From Ben & Jerry's to Shell, Past Actions Will Dictate Growth of CSR in 2013

This editorial was published in CSRwire at the end of 2012. It is written by Sarah Coles, senior vice president with Ruder Finn and a regular columnist for CSRwire Talkback.

As I look back at the year, I am amazed at the progress and evolution that CSR continues to make. For one, there have been new laws and regulations to improve the way we live our lives and do business – the UN General Assembly designated 2012 as the International Year of Sustainable Energy for All, and the SEC’s announced final rules on conflict minerals reporting in August. In New York City, the Board of Health voted to ban the sale of large sugary drinks larger than 16 ounces at restaurants and concessions.