UN Ocean Treaty negotiations are once again stalling as they enter the final week. While there is still hope that a Treaty can be agreed, negotiations have moved far too slowly. The new draft Treaty text, published on Saturday 25 February, still contains major areas of disagreement. A gear shift, helped by ministerial engagement, is […]
India and China were widely criticised at COP26 in 2021 when they pushed to tone down the language on coal consumption that emerged from the climate summit. As a result of this intervention from two highly coal-dependent nations, with the covert support of other key players, the final version of the Glasgow Climate Pact only called on nations to “phase down” rather than “phase […]
A major biodiversity conference, recently concluded in Montreal, Canada, was billed as the event that will decide the “fate of the entire living world”. All well then that the meeting closed with what has been hailed as a “historic” breakthrough: a deal to protect 30% of all land and water on Earth by 2030. Bram […]
In the early hours of Dec. 19 — the last day of the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) conference in Montréal — the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted their new post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. The goals and targets agreed within this framework, including the widely discussed Target 3, will guide […]
The US should be paying nearly $40bn towards the $100bn climate-finance target, new Carbon Brief analysis shows. In contrast, the US only actually put forward $8bn in 2020. By Josh Gabbatiss and Simon Evans Carbon Brief Other laggards include the UK, Canada and Australia, which all made smaller financial contributions to the internationally agreed target […]
World leaders and climate experts are gathering for pivotal United Nations climate change talks in Egypt. Known as COP27, the conference will aim to put Earth on a path to net-zero emissions and keep global warming well below 2℃ this century. The world must rapidly decarbonise to avoid the most dangerous climate change harms. World […]
Thousands of diplomats and officials from all over the world will soon arrive at the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh for COP27. There, they will negotiate the next steps for international climate action while also pursuing their own specific geopolitical interests. By Carbon Brief With the details of the Paris Agreement “rulebook” finally decided at COP26 last year, […]
The world’s leaders are gathering for another global climate meeting, this time in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. Expect a bustle of promises and pacts from countries and companies. Expect pressure on states to support people who are most and permanently affected by climate change. Don’t expect much more, but equally don’t lay the blame solely on […]
As global temperatures rise, people in the tropics, including places like India and Africa’s Sahel region, will likely face dangerously hot conditions almost daily by the end of the century – even as the world reduces its greenhouse gas emissions, a new study shows. David Battisti, University of Washington The Conversation The mid-latitudes, including the […]
UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 aspires to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all by 2030. But in Africa, around 600 million people continue to live without access to electricity. Seeking to reach as many of these people as quickly as possible, African governments are signing agreements with foreign firms to […]
Globally, July 2022 was the sixth-warmest July in the 143-year NOAA record. The year-to-date (January-July) global surface temperature was also the sixth-warmest on record. According to NCEI’s Global Annual Temperature Outlook, there is a greater than 99% chance that 2022 will rank among the 10-warmest years on record but only an 11% chance that it […]
There’s a good chance that you would like to see COVID disappear for good. And you may also wish for an end to the war in Ukraine – or any other war for that matter. But would you feel the same way if you were the head of a big pharmaceutical corporation which has seen […]
In the very short time between now and 2030, emerging technologies will change our lives dramatically. It’s up to us, now, whether it’s for better or for worse. By Felix Dodds, Carolina Duque Chopitea and Ranger Ruffins Ensia “Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.” –Lyndon B. Johnson, 1963 […]
Climate change is already affecting much of the world’s population, with startlingly high temperatures from the Arctic to Australia. Air pollution from wildfires, vehicles and industries threatens human health. Bees and pollinators are dying in unprecedented numbers that may force changes in crop production and food availability. Joel E. Correia, University of Florida The Conversation […]
James Lovelock, the maverick scientist and inventor, died surrounded by his family on July 27 2022 – his 103rd birthday. Jim led an extraordinary life. He is best known for his Gaia hypothesis, developed with the brilliant US biologist Lynn Margulis in the 1970s, which transformed the way we think of life on Earth. By […]