As the founder and chairman of his eponymous computer company, Michael Dell changed the way PCs are made and sold. In the past year, though, rivals have gained on him. So this year he's going for a green advantage: he wants to erase some of the environmental cost of running computers by offering a way to neutralize the carbon dioxide emitted by a PC. Dell, 41, spoke with TIME's Bryan Walsh about climate change, the media and small, shiny objects. ...

One of the most ambitious efforts to transform city skylines around the globe is nearly invisible. That's because the changes, aimed at drastically reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions in tall buildings, are happening in places most people never venture--in subterranean boiler rooms, behind radiators, under desks and inside the massive walls of office towers built decades ago. Skyscrapers look modern, but they are among the worst culprits in urban areas when it comes to energy consumption and carbon emission, ...

The success of energy drinks like Red Bull, Monster and Rockstar have proven that consumers are constantly thirsting for a boost. But will they ever want to come back down and reach for a nonalcoholic drink that will help them chill out? According to the recent sales figures from Innovative Beverage Group, a Houston-based drink distributor and maker of a "relaxation beverage" called Drank, there's strong demand for the anti–Red Bull too. The company's revenues, though small, were up 198% in 2008, ...

Fadi Quran is the face of the new Middle East. He is 23, a graduate of Stanford University, with a double major in physics and international relations. He is a Palestinian who has returned home to start an alternative-energy company and see what he can do to help create a Palestinian state. He identifies with neither of the two preeminent Palestinian political factions, Hamas and Fatah. His allegiance is to the Facebook multitudes who orchestrated the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and who ...

Just two weeks ago, Libya's oil chief boasted to reporters in Tripoli that the country's huge energy business could ride out the conflict and quickly recover. It would effectively ignore the fact that energy installations were now split between two warring halves of the country. "Integrated and unified," is how Shokri Ghanem, head of the Libyan National Oil Corporation described the energy sector, claiming that he was in close communications with staff at the vast oil fields ...

President Barack Obama's year of outreach to Iran has succeeded in putting it on the diplomatic defensive: that much was clear from Friday's blunt reproach of Tehran by the International Atomic Energy Agency's board. But it's less clear that Obama can convert that diplomatic advantage into sanctions that will curtail Iran's nuclear program. "The question is," says one senior Democratic aide in Congress, "Can Obama pivot [from engagement to sanctions] and succeed in changing conditions on the ground?" Iran ...

Two days after negotiators reached a draft agreement over Iran's nuclear activities, Tehran left it unclear Friday whether it would ultimately sign on. If Iran agrees to the proposal -- reached Wednesday at the Vienna headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the U.N. nuclear watchdog -- it could serve as a major step toward resolving an international showdown. The draft stemmed from talks among representatives of the United States, France, Russia, the United Nations, and Iran. ...

Afghan heroin kills more people from NATO countries every year than Afghan insurgents have killed in the eight years since the fall of the Taliban regime, the United Nations said Wednesday. About 15 million people around the world use heroin, opium or morphine, fueling a $65 billion market, warned Antonio Maria Costa, head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime. The trade is fueling terrorism and insurgencies: The Taliban raised between $450 million and $600 million in the past ...

Three days of talks on Iran's nuclear program wrapped up here Wednesday with a draft agreement on how to provide the Islamic republic nuclear fuel for civilian purposes. The delegations from Iran, France, Russia, the United States and the United Nations have until Friday to decide whether they will sign the agreement described by International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei as "a balanced approach to the problem." The agency is the United Nations' nuclear watchdog. The delegates met in ...

Make a few easy changes around the house for substantial savings. Seal sneaky leaks Seal electrical outlets in the exterior walls of your house. Foam insulating gaskets (less than $1 each) "act as a barrier so conditioned air stays in, rather than leaking out," says Jonathan Passe of the Environmental Protection Agency. Just unscrew the outlet cover, install the gasket, and replace the cover. RealSimple.com: 8 legitimate Earth-friendly seals Go with the flow Install a high-performance showerhead. ...