The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research is one of the most distinguished institutions in its field. Dr. Stefan Rahmstorf and his colleagues advise German and international governments on climate change. I met Stefan in Munich after a panel discussion on the future of mobility hosted by BMW. Rahmstorf and his research team study the role that oceans play in present and future climate changes and global warming. Not surprisingly his website has a commentary about the movie "The Day After Tomorrow" where one can see the impact of huge floods and a rising sea level.
Foto: Stefan's website

As for News this week, it seems the only way is UP .The first space hotel is becoming a reality and take off date is 2012. For the price of $4 million, the guests staying at the Galactic Suite can expect space training on a tropical island, rocket travel to the hotel and 15 sunrises a day. Nothing is mentioned of the carbon offsetting of this holiday.
Image from Site .
Iceland has introduced new measures to encourage its residents to drive greener. They are offering
free parking for energy efficient cars. Any car that consumes less than 5 litres of petrol per 100 km is entitled to a free space.
Source:The Iceland ReviewIn another move , this time in USA, New York state will enforce that any car of the 2010 model will have to display stickers that inform how energy efficient that particular car is. It seems that embarrassment may scare the buyers into making wiser choices.
Source: Staten Island Advance

Image by Aaron Logan on wikipedia
The Burning Man Festival, which runs for 3 weeks in Black Rock Desert in Nevada is trying to get greener this year. In the past, tons of fuel was used to power the generators, not to mention the burning of a giant man at the end. The festival is a gathering of self sufficient communities and runs on a gift economy, or bartering. The theme this year is “The Green Man”, and attempts to green include a no waste policy and "coolingman", a carbon offset program.
Good story on GristThe clever researchers at Germanys Frauenhofer Institute have come up with novel way of generating energy - body warmth. Studies have show that even medical machinery like heart frequency readers could potentially be powered by the actual patient.
Source:Sonnenseite