Climate change policy

Volunteers offload supplies on Pine Island in Florida on October 2, 2022 in the wake of Hurricane Ian.Photo: Gerald Herbert (AP)It can be tough to figure out a gift for someone who is super concerned about climate change and the environment. In a holiday that has unfortunately become defined by consumerism, what’s the best present that somehow circumvents buying even more stuff? But sending yet another $100 to powerful, well-known green groups may feel equally as pointless, and for good reason: Research released last year…

Ugandan activist Vanessa Nakate at a protest at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt on November 11, 2022.Photo: Peter Dejong (AP)Another UN climate change conference has come and gone, as thousands of international delegates ended two weeks of intense negotiations on Sunday morning in Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt. Despite the historic conclusions in the final text from COP27, the conference once again failed to commit the world to taking some of the basic steps needed to curb the worst impacts of climate change. It has me thinking…

The Qatar 2022 mascot La’eeb performs during the opening ceremony ahead of the Qatar 2022 World CupPhoto: KARIM JAAFAR / AFP (Getty Images)This story was originally published by Grist. You can subscribe to its weekly newsletter here.All eyes are on Qatar, which has been getting ready to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament since 2010. The preparations for the event, which organizers pledged would be “carbon-neutral,” have stirred up a significant amount of criticism related to worker exploitation and alleged…

Damage from Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers, Florida, on October 1, 2022.Photo: Joe Raedle (Getty Images)This story was originally published by Grist. You can subscribe to its weekly newsletter here.Religious Americans overwhelmingly believe they have a duty to protect the Earth, according to a new poll from the Pew Research Center, with 80 percent saying God entrusted them with that responsibility. The survey also found that 42 percent prayed for the environment in the past year. But that sense of duty doesn’t necessarily…

A screenshot of Climate TRACE’s tool showing enteric fermentation emissions from facilities in the U.S.Screenshot: GizmodoIf you’ve ever wondered how much methane the landfill in your neighborhood emits, there’s now a way to potentially find out. A promising new tool can zoom in on spots around the world in various industries to measure just how much greenhouse gases those locations and facilities are emitting.00:19Studenglass Kompact DemonstrationToday 4:09PMThe mapping tool, released last week at COP27 by the…

Dorothee Hildebrandt, 72, sets out from her host’s apartment to ride her bike to the U.N. climate summit COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 12, 2022.Photo: Thomas Hartwell (AP)A 72-year-old climate activist rode her electric bicycle all the way from Sweden to Egypt, just in time to attend COP27 last week. Her mission? To raise awareness about rising emissions and climate change, the Associated Press reported.Dorothee Hildebrandt arrived at Egypt’s Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh last week atop her pink…

Communication about climate change between the United States and China screeched to a halt in August amid escalating tensions over contested Taiwan. China cut off climate cooperation at the time, but now talks have resumed, as first reported by the New York Times.01:43The New Black Panther Debuts at Disney Parks Avengers CampusToday 1:19PMPresident Joe Biden and China’s President Xi Jinping met in person on Monday in Indonesia for the first time since the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic. The Bali meeting lasted about…

The entrance to COP27.Photo: Ahmad Gharabli/AFP (Getty Images)Tens of thousands of people are gathering in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt for the annual UN climate change conference this month—and that includes hundreds of representatives from the fossil fuel industry who are sitting in on the talks and outnumbering representatives from some of the world’s most vulnerable countries, a new analysis has found.03:26Segment of Challenger Space Shuttle Found at Bottom of Atlantic Ocean2 hours agoAt last year’s UN climate meeting,…

Ron DeSantis and his family after he won his bid for reelection Tuesday.Photo: Rebecca Blackwell (AP)It’s that time of year again, when climate hawks gather around to read the tea leaves about what happened in U.S. national elections. This year’s climate campaign trail, for Democrats, was a lot different than previous years, thanks to the recent passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the U.S.’s first national comprehensive climate bill. For once, Democrats had a concrete climate success to campaign on during the…

Warren Buffett, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, who appears on the Oxfam list.Photo: Nati Harnik (AP)The world’s wealthiest people are responsible for about a million times more emissions than the world’s lowest earners when you take into account their investments, a new report has found. The report, issued Sunday by Oxfam, finds that the world’s 125 wealthiest people—including American billionaires Bill Gates, Jim Walton, Warren Buffett,and Elon Musk—have a combined carbon footprint roughly equivalent to that of…