Janek Vahk is a circular economy and sustainability expert working to accelerate Europe’s transition to a zero-waste society. He is the zero-pollution policy manager at Zero Waste Europe. By the end of July, the European Commission must decide whether to include municipal waste incineration in the EU Emissions Trading System. It may sound technical, but […]
Rudecindo Espíndola’s family has been growing corn, figs and other crops for generations in the Soncor Valley in northern Chile, an oasis of green orchards in one of the driest places on Earth – the Atacama desert. Perched nearly 2,500 metres above sea level, his village, Toconao, means “lost corner” in the Kunza language of […]
Diplomats will hold a series of informal meetings this year in a bid to revive stalled talks over a global treaty to curb plastic pollution, before aiming to reconvene for the next round of official negotiations at the end of 2026 or early 2027. Hoping to find a long-awaited breakthrough in the deeply divided UN […]
Carly Phillips is a research scientist with the Science Hub for Climate Litigation at the Union of Concerned Scientists. The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) recently agreed to hear arguments in Boulder v. Exxon and Suncor, a case that could decide whether communities harmed by climate change can hold polluters accountable in state court. Originally brought against […]
Doubling down on fossil fuels in response to the spikes in oil and gas prices unleashed by the Iran war would be “completely delusional”, the UN climate chief is expected to warn on Monday, in one of his strongest attacks yet on planet-heating fossil fuels. Addressing political and business leaders in Brussels, Simon Stiell will […]
China, Brazil, Italy and Belgium have joined a pledge, launched at COP28 two years ago, to triple global nuclear energy capacity between 2020 and 2050. Ministers from these four countries announced their support at this week’s Nuclear Energy Summit in Paris, increasing the total number of backers to 38. At the summit, Chinese Vice Premier […]
The Paris Agreement’s official oversight body is set to decide this month how to deal with over 60 countries that have still not submitted updated national climate plans, over a year after the deadline. Composed of 12 experts from different regions of the world, the little-known Paris Agreement Implementation and Compliance Committee (PAICC) is tasked […]
Curbs on raw minerals exports by more than a dozen African countries are unlikely to kickstart home-grown processing industries unless they are accompanied by major investments in energy infrastructure, private sector partnerships and regional cooperation, mining analysts say. Last month, Zimbabwe became the latest African country to announce new restrictions, banning the export of all […]
Dancliff Mbura is the advocacy and communications manager at Action Against Hunger Kenya. He works to influence policy and resource allocation and is an expert on multisectoral nutrition interventions. Just four years since the last devastating drought, when five consecutive rainy seasons failed, 3.3 million people in Kenya’s arid and semi-arid counties are facing acute […]
A landmark conference hosted by Colombia and the Netherlands will aim to lay the foundations for renewed talks on transitioning away from fossil fuels at COP31, though organisers say it remains unclear what concrete outcomes it will deliver. The First Conference on the Transition Away from Fossil Fuels will take place in April in the […]
