Tag: Global Warming

Libya’s floods are result of climate crisis meeting a failed state

Patrick Wintour When the climate crisis meets a failed state, the outcome is the kind of disaster that Libya is witnessing in Derna. Any city would have struggled with the extraordinary level of precipitation that Storm Daniel visited upon Libya’s northern coast. In its earlier, milder form, the storm caused severe damage in Greece before it crossed the Mediterranean.… Read More Libya’s floods are result of climate crisis meeting a failed state

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World Bank spent billions of dollars backing fossil fuels in 2022, study finds

The World Bank poured billions of dollars into fossil fuels around the world last year despite repeated promises to refocus on shifting to a low-carbon economy, research has suggested. The money went through a special form of funding known as trade finance, which is used to facilitate global transactions. Urgewald, a campaign group that tracks global fossil… Read More World Bank spent billions of dollars backing fossil fuels in 2022, study finds

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Net zero minister linked to oil-funded group that targeted climate protesters

Ruby Lott-Lavigna The UK’s newly appointed minister for net zero is facing questions over her links to a think tank funded by oil giants that called for climate protesters to be jailed. Claire Coutinho, appointed minister for energy security and net zero this week, was a senior fellow to the opaquely funded right-wing think tank… Read More Net zero minister linked to oil-funded group that targeted climate protesters

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Titicaca: the world’s highest navigable lake is drying out

Water levels at Lake Titicaca – the highest navigable lake in the world and South America’s largest – are dropping precipitously after an unprecedented winter heat wave. The shocking decline is affecting tourism, fishing and agriculture, which locals rely on to make a living. “We don’t know what we will do from now until December because the… Read More Titicaca: the world’s highest navigable lake is drying out

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Artist captures the impact of climate crisis over 150 years on Mont Blanc

Joanna Moorhead A British landscape artist who recreated a climb made 150 years ago to document the impact of the climate crisis on western Europe’s highest mountain says what he found was so grim it reminded him of the “dark paintings” of Francisco de Goya. French painter Gabriel Loppé’s artwork The Shadow of Mont Blanc at Sunset, painted… Read More Artist captures the impact of climate crisis over 150 years on Mont Blanc

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Climate nihilism in the USA

By SABRINA HAAKE Anyone who watched the first Republican presidential debate last week watched the candidates — minus Donald Trump, of course —punt on climate. Ron DeSantis, who angrily deflected the issue, has called climate change “left-wing stuff,” while Vivek Ramaswamy exuberantly declared that “climate change is a hoax.” Nikki Haley, whose debate performance was otherwise borderline-reasonable, thinks the U.S.… Read More Climate nihilism in the USA

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I have studied emperor penguins for 30 years. We may witness their demise in our lifetime

Barbara Wienecke Last week I saw a headline announcing that last year thousands of emperor penguin chicks had died in the Bellingshausen Sea, when the fast ice broke out unusually early. I was deeply saddened and devastated, but not surprised. The region where this dreadful event occurred has been one of the fastest warming areas… Read More I have studied emperor penguins for 30 years. We may witness their demise in our lifetime

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G20 poured more than $1tn on fossil fuel subsidies despite Cop26 pledges – report

The G20 poured record levels of public money into fossil fuels last year despite having promised to reduce some of it, a report has found Ajit Niranjan The amount of public money flowing into coal, oil and gas in 20 of the world’s biggest economies reached a record $1.4tn(£1.1tn) in 2022, according to the International… Read More G20 poured more than $1tn on fossil fuel subsidies despite Cop26 pledges – report

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New study warns against risks of ‘time-traveling pathogens’

As the climate warms, scientists have suggested that “time-traveling pathogens” unleashed by thawing Arctic permafrost may pose a risk to modern ecosystems. Permafrost is a hard layer of frozen ground made of soil, sand and rocks in high-latitude or high-altitude areas such as Greenland, Alaska, Siberia, the Tibetan Plateau and northern Canada. This icy layer traps microbes that… Read More New study warns against risks of ‘time-traveling pathogens’

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Driving out the rainforest invaders: crackdown on illegal mining brings hope after Bolsonaro

 Jonathan Watts in Altamira Like mechanised Valkyries, nine helicopters filled with armed men and women in camouflage uniforms swoop over dense forests and remote rivers – but this is not a scene from Apocalypse Now, it is a Brazilian government mission to forestall catastrophe in the Amazon rainforest. The aircraft from the country’s two main environmental agencies,… Read More Driving out the rainforest invaders: crackdown on illegal mining brings hope after Bolsonaro

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