Climate Change

At-risk groups in Indonesia demand greater say in climate policymaking

By Hans Nicholas Jong, via Mongabay Civil society groups and communities most affected by the effects of climate change are calling on the Indonesian government to include them in the decision-making process of climate policies. Groups such as those representing the urban poor and the disabled say they haven’t been meaningfully involved in the process, particularly the drafting of Indonesia’s revised goals and commitments for reducing greenhouse gas […]

15 August, 2024

Environment

Hopes fade for more survivors in Indian landslide rescue

Indian rescue crews scoured mud-caked tea plantations and villages Thursday with little hope of finding more survivors from successive landslides that killed around 200 people. Days of torrential monsoon rains have battered the southern coastal state of Kerala, with blocked roads into the Wayanad district disaster area complicating relief efforts since Tuesday. The number of fatal floods and landslides in India has increased in recent years and […]

1 August, 2024

Environment

India landslide toll hits 150 as rain hampers rescue work

By Aishwarya Kumar Relentless downpours and howling winds hampered Wednesday's search for survivors of landslides that struck Indian tea plantations and killed at least 150 people, most believed to be labourers and their families. Days of torrential monsoon rains have battered the southern coastal state of Kerala, with blocked roads into the Wayanad district disaster area complicating relief efforts. With the only bridge connecting the […]

31 July, 2024

Environment

UN chief calls for cooperation on heat wave impact

The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres is calling for an urgent and concerted effort to strengthen international cooperation to address extreme heat. Guterres says extreme heat is increasingly tearing through economies, widening inequalities, undermining the Sustainable Development Goals and killing people.

30 July, 2024

Health / Medical

93 killed after landslides strike India tea estates

By Aishwarya Kumar Landslides in India triggered by pounding monsoon rains struck tea plantations and killed at least 93 people today, with at least 250 others rescued from mud and debris, officials said. The southern coastal state of Kerala has been battered by torrential downpours, with blocked roads into the disaster area in Wayanad district complicating relief efforts. "93 dead bodies have been found so […]

30 July, 2024

Africa

Fossil algae show a lake once existed on Lesotho’s Mafadi summit but it vanished about 150 years ago

By Jennifer Fitchett, University of the Witwatersrand and Anson Mackay, UCL Lesotho is a small, land-locked, mountainous country located in the middle of South Africa. Its Eastern Lesotho Highlands are often referred to as the region’s “water tower” because they receive some of the highest rainfall amounts in southern Africa, providing water to South Africa and electricity to Lesotho through the Lesotho Highlands Water […]

29 July, 2024

Environment

Urban greening in Africa will help to build climate resilience – planners and governments need to work with nature

By Sintayehu W. Dejene, CGIAR System Organization and Razak Kiribou, Haramaya University Nature-based solutions are actions that use nature to solve environmental problems. Examples in cities would be setting up a wetland near a group of buildings to absorb floodwater, or building permeable pavements. The world’s developed countries have been implementing nature-based solutions since 2015 but Africa has fallen behind. We are part of […]

26 July, 2024

Environment

Sweden seeks to be winemaking’s next frontier

By Camille Bas-Wohlert, with Johannes Ledel and Olivier Feniet in Stockholm Far north of iconic wine regions like Bordeaux and Tuscany, Sweden is seeing a burgeoning industry of vineyards and a first generation of winemakers trying to carve out a niche. "There are millions of techniques, and I don't have a grandfather or grandmother to ask. So we need to figure it out ourselves," Lena Magnergard, […]

25 July, 2024

Environment

World records hottest day amid global heatwave

While Namibians endure winter, the world experienced its hottest day, with parts of the Mediterranean facing extreme wildfire risks. Data from the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service shows that Sunday saw the highest average temperature on Earth, exceeding last year's record. Global temperatures have hit or gone beyond a critical climate threshold for 12 months, highlighting the challenge of limiting global warming to below 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. Meanwhile, the […]

24 July, 2024