The nuclear reaction called cold fusion or low energy nuclear reaction (LENR) has been rejected by conventional science for 25 years. Since then, evidence has accumulated to prove that nuclear reactions can be initiated in special materials without application of significant energy or production of significant radiation. This paper briefly surveys a selection of the evidence and the conclusions about the unusual new phenomenon that this information supports.

In face of linked dynamics of society and nature as well as social, technological and Ecological transformation processes, a shift towards pathways of sustainable development is needed. This challenges societies to establish new forms of governance. Innovation of governance has to be based on an understanding of contemporary governance and specific policies in relation to the named broader processes of transformation in order to explore possible future pathways of governance change. To generate such an understanding a genealogy of particular policies is necessary. This article presents conceptual and methodological grounds to study the genesis, continuity and dynamics of policies through time and space. It presents an analytical and methodical framework which fits for the analytical reconstruction of policies' historical pathways of development in order to understand processes of generation, stabilization and change. Such a purpose requires some stock-taking with respect to different concepts and strands of empirical research that underlie the particular perspectives and approaches of the analytical framework. Furthermore, it presupposes the theoretical and conceptual positioning of the elaborated analytical approach.

There has been a lot of emphasis placed on the assessment of energy use in buildings as a means to the reduction in CO2 emissions. Smart meter technology that captures and displays not only the energy usage but also the quality of indoor environment are currently used widely within the UK, however, there exists a disconnection between the energy management systems (EMS) technology and the user behavior that could potentially affect the consumption profile. This study was carried out in Northern Ireland and revealed that energy data was hardly shared with the users, which affected their energy conservation strategies.

Business has been looking to end its dependency on Oil. Oil supplies are dwindling, the demand is increasing along with the cost. The Electromagnetic Reciprocating Engine, for which Sekou holds the patent, can replace the Combustion Engine; it does not use any fossil fuels. The Electromagnetic Reciprocating Engine can replace the Combustion Engine in any vehicle, eliminating the fuel cost. The Electromagnetic Reciprocating Engine can replace the Combustion Engine in an engine-generator, creating green renewable electricity. The Electromagnetic Reciprocating Engine has a low operating cost with an 110,000 hour or 12 year maintenance cycle. The Electromagnetic Reciprocating Engine can end the need for fossil fuels in transportation and electricity production for homes and businesses.

In recent years, researchers and policy makers have been interested in research and practical solutions for energy efficieny and environmental technologies and its impacts on the labour market in particular for women. One of the Study Visit tours to Germany, organized by LA°FE e.v. and sponsored by Centre for European Union Education and Youth Programmes, widened my view in terms of women participation in technical jobs toward energy efficieny and environmental technologies. I don’t want to talk about numbers or research but one of the projects they conduct every year throughout the country called “The Girls’ Day!”

The biodegradation of BTEX pollutants is often facilitated by both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in the environment. Developing strategies to enable a rapid characterisation of related microbial populations is of importance to many industries, including the petrochemical industry. Here we use a qPCR assay to show that dynamic changes in key catabolic genes, from aerobic and facultative anaerobic bacteria involved in the breakdown of benzoate and toluene through microcosm studies, can be linked to the aerobic or anaerobic nature of these microcosms. This approach may prove useful in further studies of the biodegradation of pollutants by eubacteria in situ.

The underlying principle of the proposed policy is to produce gradually increasing incentives for all parties in the US (and in other countries with appropriate inputs) to produce more “green” energy and less harmful pollution and to consume less fossil fuel. These incentives would come from fees put on fossil fuels and on easily measured (or fairly estimated) emissions. The fees would start at a low level and would be incrementally increased until a committee of Congress decides that the fee levels had reached an appropriate level. The fees would be entirely returned to legal adult (say aged 17 and over) residents of the US in monthly rebates transferred to their bank accounts or, for poorer people, distributed in debit cards. Thus the policy would be progressive, whereas taxation of fossil fuels and of emissions is regressive. The rebates would be included in the evaluation of the cost of living so that there would be virtually no direct inflationary effects.

Social innovations, which transform resource intensive routines and practices into low-resource ones, combined with socio-technically designed transition paths, which are created around sustainability and environmental criteria, are milestones for implementation and diffusion of SCP (Sustainable Consumption and Production). This paper analyses such processes based on eight key components in order to evaluate and explain transformation and transition towards a sustainable lifestyle. Actors on all levels of society are included in this approach, creating a whole framework. Global megatrends, such as climate change, demographic change or resource scarcity will be put into relation with current policies and production trends, which play an important role for the development of transition pathways and future scenarios. This will enable us to work out guidelines and ideas on how to create a more sustainable society specifically.

Homes need to be socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable in response to societal pressure on our common future. The concept of ‘Sustainable Development’ was first advocated by the World Commission on Environment and Development, dated back to 1987, and it was considered as ‘a process of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development, and institutional change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future potential to meet needs and aspirations.’ In 1992, this notion was given additional impetus at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (or the Earth Summit) held in Rio de Janeiro where an initial international treaty on environment was produced; however, this had neither limits on greenhouse gas emissions nor legal enforcement provisions for individual nations. In 1997, the text of the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was adopted eventually at the 3rd Conference of the Parties held in Kyoto, Japan. As of April 2008, 178 states signed and ratified the Protocol; in consequence, most industrialized nations and some central European countries agreed to legally binding the reductions of greenhouse gas emissions of an average of 6 to 8% below 1990 levels between the years 2008 and 2012.