Project Drawdown Sectors
Food
“ReFED is a multi-stakeholder nonprofit, powered by an influential network of the nation’s leading business, nonprofit, foundation, and government leaders committed to reducing U.S. food waste. ReFED takes a data-driven approach to move the food system from acting on instinct to insights to solve our national food waste problem. Solutions already exist to cut food waste by 20% nationwide. ReFED has identified 27 of the best opportunities through the Roadmap to Reduce U.S. Food Waste, a first-of-its-kind economic analysis, making it easier for stakeholders across the food supply chain to meet the national 50% reduction goal by 2030.”
ReFED maintains an inspiring database of food waste innovators throughout the US. They also maintain a policy database.
An online hub and first-of-its-kind aggregator of existing food waste research and resources.
A directory of organizations across the U.S. that rescue, glean, transport, prepare, and distribute food to food insecure populations.
Searchable databases of composting facilities, anaerobic digestion facilities, and organics collection services across the U.S. and Canada.
OpenIDEO Food Waste Initiatives
OpenIDEO ran the global “Food Waste Challenge” in 2016 and continues this momentum through the Food Waste Alliance innovation community.
One of the most popular, if not the most, carbon calculators for farmers. Also calculates water and biodiversity metrics.
“COMET-Planner provides land owners and conservation planners with an easy-to-use, web-based tool to evaluate potential carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas reductions from adopting NRCS conservation practices.”
Not only does this tool help identify how to best sequester carbon, it also identifies practices which are eligible for cost sharing by Payment for Environmental Services through NRCS. Brochure overview. Video overview. The COMET Planner is recommended in the book The Carbon Farming Solution.
“The mission of the Climate Hubs is to develop and deliver science-based, region-specific information and technologies, with USDA agencies and partners, to agricultural and natural resource managers that enable climate-informed decision-making, and to provide access to assistance to implement those decisions. This is in alignment with the USDA mission to provide leadership on food, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues based on sound public policy, the best available science, and efficient management.”
Buildings & Cities
Assessing the Potential to Reduce U.S. Building CO2 Emissions 80% by 2050
Hot off the presses (published August 15, 2019). Professor John Schellnhuber — climate advisor the Pope, Angela Merkel, etc. — says we can get most of the 45% reduction in emissions by 2030, which the IPCC says we must, by focusing on building efficiency. This recently published paper describes the highest leverage ways to do that — improving building envelopes, automating HVAC and lighting with smarter controls, and swapping fossil fuel-based building equipment for electric equivalents. An example of this last point is what Ball State University did, cutting their carbon footprint in half and saving them almost $3m per year.
Electricity Generation
Coming soon.
Land Use
Coming soon.
Materials
EPA’s Waste Reduction Model (WARM)
“EPA created the Waste Reduction Model (WARM) to help solid waste planners and organizations track and voluntarily report greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions, energy savings, and economic impacts from several different waste management practices. WARM calculates and totals these impacts from baseline and alternative waste management practices—source reduction, recycling, anaerobic digestion, combustion, composting and landfilling.”
Indiana Recycling Coalition – The Untapped Job Potential of Indiana’s Recycling Industry
A 2013 student prepared by Stacy Wheeler of the Bowen Center for Public Affairs at Ball State University. Just some findings:
- 92% of what Indiana throws away is valuable recyclable and compostable material
- Recycling creates 10x more jobs than sending material to a landfill
- Diverting 25% of Indiana’s waste from landfills would created 20,000 new jobs
- At least 77 Indiana manufacturers already use recycled materials to create their products (and emply 30,000 Hoosiers)
Transport
Coming soon.
Women & Girls
Coming soon.
Politics & Policy
Nonpartisan group advocating for carbon fee and dividend. According to Elon Musk and others, this kind of policy is the single most effective thing we can do to reverse global warming.
A nonviolent rebellion which began in the UK and is spreading worldwide. They have three demands for government:
- Tell the truth by declaring a climate and ecological emergency
- Act now by reducing greenhouse emissions to net zero by 2025 and
- Create a democratic citizen’s assembly so the people, not fossil fuel lobbyists, can address the emergency transparently, inclusively, and effectively.
Media
Podcasts
In-depth interviews with subject matter experts on each of the Project Drawdown solutions. Very scientific. Very substantial. Try starting with their first interview — Paul Hawkin who founder of Drawdown.
They have two right now. Both focus on reversing climate change. As an organization, Nori is focused on carbon sequestration (i.e. removing carbon from the atmosphere).
Inspiration
The Goldman Environmental Prize
The green Nobel Prize. Read stories over over 50 recipients doing incredible work for the world.