If you can get a job you like in Boulder, Colorado then run—don’t walk—to accept it. Driving into the city is not only absolutely beautiful, but also a lesson in urban planning: green mountains cradle this small-ish city within. It is obvious the city has set aside a lot of public space for parks, sports, and great views. This general sense of livability and work-life balance is reinforced by the number of mountain bikes and sandle-wearing scientists I see at NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. I’m here to interview Susan Solomon, who led a vanguard expedition to Antarctica in 1986 that proved the science behind the hole in the ozone. Impressive. Solomon is also chair of one of the working groups of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change—so she gives incredible insight into the links between ozone and climate.
Blog
Nobel #2: Working for good
At the University of California at San Diego with Dan Evans to interview Professor Mario Molina. This is my second interview of a Nobel Laureate in a month, so I’m starting to get the hang of it! Seriously, Dr. Molina is humble, direct, and has a great sense not only of the science, but complex policy issues. I’m impressed with his Centro Mario Molina that he established with his Nobel Prize money. The purpose: to help shape policy advances in the developing world that improve environmental condition. His first task was fighting air pollution in his native Mexico City. It was a pleasure, Dr. Molina.
From Frank Lloyd Wright to Tokyo
I’m in Racine, Wisconsin today. Interviewing Scott Johnson from S.C. Johnson . Johnson is not from the dynasty of owner Johnsons, but he gives a great interview about the environmental leadership this company has displayed over time. Case in point: the decision to ban all propellant aerosols in 1976, a couple years before a government ban. And a photogenic location, too! S.C. Johnson HQ was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright—it’s a brick modernist experiment that is probably the coolest company building I’ve been in since I was in Panasonic’s world HQ in Tokyo for a film a few years ago. That had an all-wood meditation room and rock garden just off the penthouse-level conference room. Cool . . .