When the heat is on, the onus should be on the Coalition to explain why they don’t support measures to ensure their newly discovered battlers have access to rooftop solar
Guardian Essential poll: almost half of Australian voters want Aukus reviewed after Donald Trump’s election win
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Australia is facing the extreme risk of dangerous concentrations of high pressure and hot air this summer. There is also a strong likelihood of heatwaves.
The return of the performatively anti-climate Donald Trump will see the world’s biggest per capita carbon polluter pull out of global targets, emboldening energy incumbents and their mouthpieces to amp up their attacks on renewables.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
11/18/2024 - 18:45
11/18/2024 - 13:00
Different species of seabirds can coexist on small, isolated islands despite eating the same kind of fish. A researcher has been involved in developing a mathematical model that can be used to better understand how this ecosystem works.
11/18/2024 - 13:00
Sherry Rehman says rich nations should pay ‘internationally determined contributions’ to help poorer and worst-affected countries
Amid the endless politicking and inscrutable arguments at the UN climate negotiations in Baku, Azerbaijan, this month, it can be hard to remember what is at stake. That’s why Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s former climate change minister, is calling on global leaders to “keep an eye on the big picture”.
“We’re here for life and death reasons,” Rehman said.
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11/18/2024 - 12:57
Southeast Asia's tropical forests are renowned for their biodiversity, but at the same time face significant threats from the expansion of oil palm plantations. With global demand for palm oil rising, the urgency for effective restoration strategies in these landscapes has become critical. A long-running experiment has investigated how ecological restoration promotes biodiversity recovery in oil palm plantations in Sumatra. Their findings reveal that establishing islands of trees within large oil palm monocultures can promote the recovery of native tree diversity through natural regeneration.
11/18/2024 - 12:52
A new study reveals alarming risks that pesticides pose to ground-nesting bees, which are crucial for pollination and food production. As agriculture increasingly relies on pesticides to protect crops, the unintended consequences for these essential pollinators are becoming clearer.
11/18/2024 - 11:21
UN climate chief addresses climate summit with no agreement in sight on how to help developing countries
Countries meeting in Azerbaijan to discuss a new global financial settlement for tackling the climate crisis must “cut the theatrics” and get down to serious business, the UN has said.
The UK and Brazil have been drafted in to try to break a logjam at the Cop29 climate summit, which entered its second week on Monday with no agreement in sight on the key issue of how to channel at least $1tn a year to developing countries.
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11/18/2024 - 11:00
By relying on natural carbon sinks such as forests and peatlands to offset emissions, governments can appear closer to goals than they actually are
Relying on natural carbon sinks such as forests and oceans to offset continued fossil fuel emissions will not stop global heating, the scientists who developed net zero have warned.
Each year, the planet’s oceans, forests, soils and other natural carbon sinks absorb about half of all human emissions, forming part of government plans to limit global heating to below 2C under the Paris agreement.
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11/18/2024 - 11:00
As the US grapples with smoky skies, Trump is solidifying an anti-science agenda – here are the challenges ahead
In the days that followed Donald Trump’s election win, flames roared through southern California neighborhoods. On the other side of the country, wildfire smoke clouded the skies in New York and New Jersey.
They were haunting reminders of a stark reality: while Trump prepares to take office for a second term, the complicated, and escalating, wildfire crisis will be waiting.
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11/18/2024 - 10:49
Indian capital imposes emergency measures including closing schools and offices and barring heavy vehicles
Pollution levels in India’s capital, Delhi, have soared to their highest levels this year, forcing schools and offices to close and cloaking the city in thick brown smog.
In some parts of the city, a live air quality ranking by IQAir put pollution levels at more than 30 times the maximum level deemed healthy.
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11/18/2024 - 01:30
Cop29 president calls for faster action as progress to agree a climate finance deal slows
Climate crisis to blame for dozens of ‘impossible’ heatwaves
How usual is it to have G20 happening at the same time as Cop? According to Jen Iris Allan, a senior lecturer at Cardiff University who also writes the Regular Earth Negotiations Bulletin, commenting on Bluesky, it’s not normal at all.
Cop29 happening at the same time as the G20 is a rare opportunity. It gets the leaders of the big economies together in a small setting. They could strike a side deal that would really help here.
The new climate finance target is the big issue that will define COP29. Government ministers are arriving to thrash out everything from the amount of money raised to who contributes towards it.
We’ve seen a few versions of the text as parties make sure their views are represented while trying to produce something their governments can work with. The number of “options” is lower than it was on Wednesday. But the number of brackets - meaning undecided bits - is higher.
It’s still long: 25 pages. Negotiators started with a 9-page text, which they rejected as “unbalanced” - then lots of stuff got added back in. It will need to be shorter. The EU chief negotiator told journalists last week that a 2-page text could capture “everything we need”.
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