In 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency reported that America generated 36 million tons of food waste and 96 percent of that food went directly to landfills or incinerators. In the same year, the EPA also reported that 14.9 percent of homes in the US did not know where their next meal would come from. Instead…
Boston Medical Center Uses National Food Program to Prepare for Massachusetts Ban
BOSTON, Mass.—At the end of May, Boston Medical Center joined more than 800 organizations across the United States in an effort to reduce food waste through the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Food Recovery Challenge. The center is one of 80 institutions from New England taking part in the Challenge, which involves keeping track of food…
GOP Gubernatorial Hopefuls Split on Climate Change
BOSTON, Mass.—You would be forgiven for thinking GOP gubernatorial candidates Charlie Baker and Mark Fisher agree on a lot of things about government. In debates, the two are often on the same page over job growth and tax issues. But as Baker, the party’s 2010 hopeful, fends off attacks from the Democratic party of Governor…
Activists Rally Behind New Farm-Animal Protection Bills with ‘Pups for Pigs’ Rally
BOSTON, Mass.––Many consumers still imagine real farms to be like the idyllic farms displayed on their food packaging. However, many Americans are increasingly conscious of the much different – and, to many, much more disturbing – conditions that exist on modern factory farms. Now, activists across the Commonwealth are promoting bipartisan farm-animal rights legislation in…
Boston Joins International Climate Leadership Group
BOSTON, Mass.— Mayor Martin Walsh recently announced that Boston will join the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40), an invitation-only global network of cities working to prepare for and prevent climate change. He also announced the creation of the 2014 Climate Action Plan Steering Committee, which will direct and update Boston’s 2007 Climate Action Plan,…
Climate Groups Press Governor Patrick for a Clean Fuel Standard
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—Dorian Williams, joined by fellow members of the Better Future Project and 350 Massachusetts, has been trying multiple times to get into Gov. Patrick’s office since last October. They only have one goal in mind: to encourage Gov. Patrick to cement his legacy as a climate champion and put Massachusetts on the right path…
What Is Massachusetts’ Future? Activists Push Governor Patrick to Define His Climate Legacy
Last month, 350 Massachusetts, a statewide affiliate of the international environmental justice organization 350.org, announced that they were going to co-sponsor an environmental forum with gubernatorial candidates at Faneuil Hall. When the day came, volunteers from all over the Commonwealth gathered near Quincy Market. Erica Sunders from Worcester was one of them. “I’ve been concerned…
Energy Efficiency Bill Gains Traction on Beacon Hill
BOSTON, Mass.—The state legislature’s Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight has favorably reported out a bill filed by Senator Jamie Eldridge (D-Acton) that aims to increase energy efficiency in state buildings. The bill measures the energy implications of all resources used. Increased interest in energy efficiency and carbon reduction plans in the Hub…
Gubernatorial Candidates Weigh in on Environmental Tax Reform
The race for governor is heating up as candidates begin to announce their platforms on issues important to Massachusetts voters. Environmental issues—particularly fossil fuel divestment and Boston’s carbon reduction, both of which SPARE CHANGE NEWS has previously reported on—have dominated part of the conversation as caucuses have begun across the state. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Joe…
Ten-City Initiative a Step toward Solving Air Pollution
BOSTON, Mass.—Mayor Martin J. Walsh recently announced that Boston will join the City Energy Project (CEP), a new venture with the Institute for Market Transformation, National Resources Defense Council, and ten cities (including Los Angeles, Chicago, Orlando, Houston, Kansas City, and others), to reduce energy usage and curb greenhouse gas emissions used by their cities’…