Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
As low-lying island states face the loss of their territory, new legal and political strategies are emerging to sustain nations in exile. Whether they can preserve sovereignty, identity and cohesion without land remains an open question.
New research shows that plants can temporarily halt root growth under stresses like cold and drought, then rapidly restart it once conditions improve. By identifying the genes behind this “pause and push” response, scientists hope to develop crops that recover more quickly from extreme weather, strengthening food security in a changing climate.
More than 50 countries are meeting in Colombia to explore how economies can move away from coal, oil and gas through “complementary” multilateral negotiations.
In a wide-ranging exchange, physicist Tom Murphy and energy scholar Dave Murphy explore the tension between optimism and planetary limits, debating whether modernity can endure or must give way to something entirely new.
As climate impacts intensify, the UK remains dangerously unprepared for systemic shocks, from global heating to biodiversity collapse. Instead of waiting for consensus on long-term solutions, the focus must shift to resilience.
New research finds that healthy forests act as natural infrastructure that can significantly reduce the frequency and severity of floods, both small and large.
As the planet strains under endless GDP growth, econometrician Gaya Herrington makes the case for a “wellbeing economy” that trades our obsession with more for a future of enough: redirecting innovation, work and policy toward human flourishing and healthy ecosystems within the Earth’s limits.
From climate collapse to permanent war, our nervous systems are stuck between numbness and panic. A climate scientist argues that surviving the polycrisis means learning to move deliberately between neural states and building smaller, more grounded movements that protect our ability to care without breaking.
In the Pacific Islands, the annual spawning of palolo sea worms feeds communities, marks time and sustains cultural traditions. Why this Indigenous tradition is becoming increasingly important as climate change intensifies weather events.
From scientists to intelligence agencies, repeated warnings about climate and ecological collapse have gone largely unanswered by governments, media and markets.
A recent piece in New Scientist has reminded me that it is a myth that humans, if they are wise and clever enough, can learn to “manage” the biosphere.
Our bodies respond to heat by adapting if we let them. But with the widespread use of air conditioning, few people are obliged to adapt. That actually makes them more susceptible to heat-related illnesses.
