State of the Climate: How the World Warmed in 2017
The climate data for 2017 is now in. In this article, Carbon Brief explains why last year proved to be so remarkable across the oceans, atmosphere, cryosphere and surface temperature of the planet.
Environment featured
Fracking Companies won’t Have to Disclose Chemicals Thanks to Trump Administration Rollback
Both environmental groups and California hope that a judge will ultimately invalidate the administration’s repeal, finally allowing federal regulations on fracking on federal and tribal lands to go into place (the original rules finalized by the Obama administration were put on hold by litigation).
Climate Bellwether? With Cape Town Almost Out of Water, “Day Zero” Looms
For residents of Cape Town, “Day Zero” is getting closer. That’s the day when taps in the drought-stricken coastal South African city are projected run dry, and its residents would be forced to head to police-guarded distribution sites to obtain their daily ration of water.
How Blockchain is Strengthening Tuna Traceability to Combat Illegal Fishing
In a significant development for global fisheries, blockchain technology is now being used to improve tuna traceability to help stop illegal and unsustainable fishing practices in the Pacific Islands tuna industry.
New Study on Climate Sensitivity not What Poor Media Headlines, Deniers are Saying
One swallow doesn’t make a spring, and nor does one scientific paper change a whole body of evidence. But you could be mistaken for thinking so after the poor media coverage last week of a new piece of climate research.
Navigation
Given that within living memory the earth has been home to people who were capable of traversing the Pacific in small watercraft by their wits alone, could it really be that we now need an internet-linked device to navigate our dinner plates? I think I hear the sparrows laughing.
Post-Fire Mudslide Problems aren’t New and Likely to Get Worse
In the popular press these flows were termed “mudslides,” but with some rocks as large as cars these are more accurately described as hyperconcentrated flows or debris flows, depending on the amount of sediment mixed with the water. Why did these deadly flows happen?
Organizing on a Sinking Ship: The Future of the Climate Justice Movement
As our planet rockets into a new geological epoch, we find ourselves on unfamiliar terrain. The only thing that is certain is that no one knows what will happen, and no one is in control. The rest of our lives will be defined by an exponential ecological entropy that will increasingly destabilize both the economic and political foundations upon which the modern world has been built. All bets are off. The collapse will be anything but boring.
Imagination and Will in the Anthropocene
This is about building, for the first time in history, a capacity for collective self-awareness, a sense of shared identity, and a political expression of our common will in pursuit of our common interest – not only as nations, tribes and social groups but as the species whose ancestors first ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge.
Meet the Frontline Activists Facing Down the Global Mining Industry
Leaders from the frontlines of mining struggles in the Philippines, Colombia and Uganda travelled to the UK this November to expose the true costs of the UK’s extensive ties to the global mining industry and oppose the Mines and Money Conference in London- a global hub of mining finance and power.
What We Learned about the Climate System in 2017 that Should Send Shivers down the Spines of Policy Makers
If climate policymaking is to be soundly based, a re-framing of scientific research within an existential risk-management framework is now urgently required. This must be taken up not just in the work of the IPCC, but also in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change negotiations if we are to address the real climate challenge.
Nature Needs Half – And Twice the Steady Statesmanship
Why does nature need half the planet? To maintain a highly functional system of plants, animals, and their habitats. And we need such a functional ecosystem to support our own species. Nature is ourhabitat. No nature means no economy, no national security, and no international stability.
