Category: environment

Nestle has too much power. Do we have the knowledge and sense to make up the difference? I hope so.

January 26, 2018

Citizens from across Centre County are very concerned about the proposed Nestle plant for Spring, Walker, or Benner Township. In case you don’t know, the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County (CBICC), has championed Nestle’s coming here. This announcement, combined with previous issues with CBICC prompted some of us to act. Last week, the … More Nestle has too much power. Do we have the knowledge and sense to make up the difference? I hope so.

I’m pretty excited to teach again this semester.

January 5, 2018

Next Tuesday I’ll be teaching Foundations of Leadership in Sustainability for the fourth time. There are a bunch of things I’m excited about. Three stand out.   1. We have some new materials in this course. We will explore Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante to bring Indigenous people’s issues more to light. My co-teacher … More I’m pretty excited to teach again this semester.

Eulogy to a fox

December 31, 2017

A few years ago I lived at a boy’s boarding school. The Kiskiminetas Springs School—Kiski—rests on 350 acres in rural western Pennsylvania. There was a run I loved to do there. From spring through fall, I’d run off of campus, across a pair of bridges, to an old canal trail paralleling the Conemaugh River. A … More Eulogy to a fox

Reason 4,582 that we should rein in the fracking industry

December 14, 2017

“A study of birth records found newborns living within 3 kilometers of fracking sites were less healthy than those born farther away, and those within 1 kilometer saw the largest effects,” reports Inside Climate News. They examined records of infants born before & after the fracking boom to the same mother, finding higher incidence of negative … More Reason 4,582 that we should rein in the fracking industry

“Once revealed, never concealed.” Young people are demanding climate answers and climate action.

November 17, 2017

Our youth are taking the reins and demanding action on climate change. A group of 21 children and young adults have filed Juliana et al v. United States to force the Trump administration to take on climate change. Inside Climate News reports [Juliana] seeks sweeping changes in federal climate change efforts and in government programs that subsidize or … More “Once revealed, never concealed.” Young people are demanding climate answers and climate action.

Solar schools in the State College Area School District

November 9, 2017

Last night the State College Area School District board voted to go ahead with the rooftop solar projects on the elementary school renovations with a 5-4 vote. That’s the leadership our community is looking for. Below are the full comments I’d prepared for the meeting. My name is Peter Buckland. I am a resident of Ferguson … More Solar schools in the State College Area School District

Clearwater Conservancy’s Slab Cabin Run Initiative is in the clear!

September 25, 2017

The Centre Daily Times reports that Clearwater Conservancy raised the money to place the Meyer-Everhart farms into conservation. This was a big team effort. This success is what happens when we put our money where our mouths are and do what we know is right…together. I’m so thankful to the folks at Clearwater, members of our community who … More Clearwater Conservancy’s Slab Cabin Run Initiative is in the clear!

Irma and Harvey came at two and a half minutes to midnight.

September 11, 2017

On September 12, 1962, John F. Kennedy spoke at Rice University in Houston. He said that the people there were gathered “at an hour of change and challenge, in a decade of hope and fear, in an age of both knowledge and ignorance,” and by the end of the decade, we would land a man on … More Irma and Harvey came at two and a half minutes to midnight.

The climate is a concert and you have a part to play.

September 3, 2017

I was recently interviewed for the Analogous podcast. We talk about local government, sustainability, and how the climate is a concert. What do we want the music to be? Right now it’s being written by the fossil fuel companies and the merchants of doubt. It doesn’t have to be that way. We also explore sustainability … More The climate is a concert and you have a part to play.

When we bail out Houston, we will be massively redistributing wealth.

August 30, 2017

People are wondering whether climate change caused Hurricane Harvey. That’s the wrong question. Hurricanes have been happening on Earth as long as there have been oceans. The question should be “How did climate change influence Harvey?” Some pieces over the last few days from USA Today, Gizmodo, Michael Mann’s piece in The Guardian, and an interview with Dan … More When we bail out Houston, we will be massively redistributing wealth.