October 27, 2015 edition
Born in Strasbourg, capital city of Alsace in northern France, Philippe Lacoste, 57, has spent more than 20 years dealing with climate issues. To Lacoste, who grew up in an industrial city, the environment was not a big part of his life. But the holder of a master's degree in environmental science from the National School for Public Infrastructures (ENTPE) decided that he wanted to save the planet. "I saw the damage caused by the waste of industrial revolution," he said.
This year, Lacoste was appointed as the special representative for the climate conference (COP21) in Paris, which will be held between November 30 and December 11. It has been a daunting task for him, given that all 196 signatories in the upcoming conference are expected to come to a consensus on climate change. Nevertheless, Lacoste remains hopeful. He believes that people's mindset toward the issue has begun to change. "People are more aware of it now," he added.
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September 22, 2015 edition
Early this year, Indonesian power plants built by Chinese companies came under heavy scrutiny. One reason was that a number of Chinese-made power plants, some built since 2006 are not operating at their maximum, with reliability predicted at only 60-65 percent. Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said has requested that the Chinese authorities take responsibility.
A study conducted by the energy ministry also found that many of the projects were behind schedule and the quality sub-standard. Among the participating contractors, were the China National Machine Industry, the China Huaidian Engineering Corporation and Dongfang Electric Corporation (DEC).
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September 1, 2015 edition