Category: 9. Environment

People all around the world traditionally use their new year to embark on a change in lifestyle. The People’s Climate Vote, a UN survey of public opinion on climate change, highlights that citizens around the world recognise climate change as a global emergency and agree that we should do everything necessary in response. People are…

Indigenous Gurung farmers in central Nepal are trying to revive the cultivation of an almost-forgotten, drought-resilient crop: foxtail millet. This hardy grain was traditionally farmed as a famine crop because it grows at a time of the year when farmers are finished harvesting other crops like rice, maize and wheat. With Nepal experiencing increasingly unpredictable…

Danilo Villafañe, an Arhuaco Indigenous leader renowned for his efforts to protect the “Heart of the World” in Colombia’s Sierra Nevada, died on Christmas Day while trying to rescue two women who were drowning. He was 49. According to reports, Villafañe drowned while attempting to two young women who were caught in rough seas near…

Large waves walloped California’s Ventura County as a storm lashed the US West, with more heavy weather expected over the weekend. Huge surf was battering the US West Coast on Friday, with forecasters warning of more danger ahead after a rogue wave swept pedestrians off their feet and swamped a hotel. Rollers as high as…

Credit: CC0 Public Domain A study led by researchers at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, assessed the perspectives of 76 diverse South Florida climate adaptation professionals. The study titled, “Practitioner perspectives on climate mobilities in South Florida” was published in the December issue of the journal Oxford Open…

Common leopards in Nepal face unprecedented threats, often making headlines for attacking people and livestock, leading to instances where local authorities resort to shooting them down. Conservationists express concerns about the transmission of canine distemper from feral dogs to wildlife, including leopards and tigers, emphasizing the virus’s proliferation among wildlife populations. A study suggests that…

Credit: Junior Libby/public domain Angelenos hoping to cozy up by the fireplace this week should make other plans. The South Coast Air Quality Management District has extended a no-burn order for much of Southern California through Thursday amid poor air quality. The agency chalks up the bad air to—coincidentally— residents enjoying holiday fires as well…

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Orange County is strengthening its protections for the area’s vast expanse of wetlands, delicate but critical natural areas often imperiled by pressure for new development. The updated rules, effective June 1, were two years in the making but won unanimous approval at the county board’s final meeting of 2023. Wetlands, sometimes…

The Pathways Alliance for Change and Transformation (PACT), a coalition of Indigenous, community and nonprofit organizations, published a paper in September 2023 calling for a moratorium on the forest carbon trade out of concern for the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities. PACT says a pause in selling carbon credits is needed until protections…

The avoidable WHL under the 1.5°C scenario compared with three RCP scenarios in mid-century. (a) Total avoidable WHL if achieving the 1.5°C goal in mid-century (2051–2070). (b) Avoidable WHL per capita if achieving the 1.5°C goal in mid-century (2051–2070). Credit: Science Bulletin (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2023.09.044 Climate change is the biggest global health threat in the…