An article in The New Yorker features an interview with John Podesta, a newly appointed White House Advisor on energy and climate issues, who claims Republican lobbying efforts against the Keystone XL Pipeline backfired. Podesta said the pipeline was “rolling toward approval,” but strong-arm tactics led by API slowed the approval process long enough for a powerful campaign against it to be built. [The New Yorker]

Powder River Basin coal development is under the microscope in a Scientific American article that highlights environmental, political and land-use issues unfolding in Wyoming and North Dakota. [Scientific American]

The Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis (JCAP) is a DOE Energy Innovation Hub dedicated to finding a “cost-effective method to produce fuels using only sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide as inputs.” [JCAP]