I grew up in San Diego, where the local economy is dependent on the environment, and where many residents would consider themselves environmentalists. So it may come as a surprise to learn that San Diego has enormous problems with air and ocean pollution.
In San Diego as elsewhere, no number of beach clean-up projects can counter the impact of reckless coastal development or underinvestment in storm water systems. Unless market-based incentives are deliberately structured to drive environmental stewardship, the outcome too frequently is environmental degradation.
I went to law school and grad school to better understand how markets can be structured to provide social and environmental as well as financial returns. Here at NRDC, the Center for Market Innovation team is focused precisely on this challenge. My work focuses on energy efficiency – an area that presents enormous opportunities to demonstrate how environmental and financial sustainability can converge.
Posted February 1, 2012 by Alisa Valderrama in Green Enterprise, Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably, Reviving the World's Oceans, U.S. Law and Policy
As a kid in San Diego, I remember how after a rainstorm, long after the skies had cleared and the day was beautiful, the ocean would be polluted -- so polluted that it was dangerous for my brother and...continued→
Posted January 25, 2012 by Alisa Valderrama in Curbing Pollution, Green Enterprise, Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably, U.S. Law and Policy
Beginning today, an innovative energy-smart finance program for homeowners – called Property Assessed Clean Energy or PACE – has a chance for revival. Over the next 60 days (until March 26th, 2012), a broad bipartisan coalition of business leaders, environmentalists,...continued→
Posted February 4, 2011 by Alisa Valderrama in Green Enterprise, Moving Beyond Oil, Solving Global Warming, U.S. Law and Policy
Here at NRDC’s Center for Market Innovation, we spend a lot of time thinking about how to establish market conditions and mechanisms that will create a “new normal” for energy efficiency finance in existing buildings. “New normal” means property...continued→
Posted March 24, 2010 by Alisa Valderrama in Living Sustainably, Solving Global Warming
New York communities may soon receive federal stimulus funds to help property owners make energy efficient renovations and investments in renewable energy that can significantly lower their energy bills. And – hopefully – it’s only the beginning. A new program...continued→
Switchboard is the staff blog of the Natural Resources Defense Council, the nation’s most effective environmental group. For more about our work, including in-depth policy documents, action alerts and ways you can contribute, visit NRDC.org.
