Climate Change

Lower reservoir on El Hierro island

Spanish island dumps diesel for wind, water and sunshine

El Hierro, a tiny island in the Canaries, is halfway to the UN goal of ditching fossil fuels. But finding just the right renewable energy mix is proving tough.

Spanish island dumps diesel for wind, water and sunshine
A person in all black walks past a logo at the media center ahead of the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit.

Confidence in UN climate talks at a low point ahead of COP28 in Dubai

Confidence in UN climate talks at a low point ahead of COP28 in Dubai
Salah Fareeq Al-Feroun's farm sits unattended without the necessary water to cultivate Iraq's signature anbar rice, Al-Meshkhab, Najaf Province, Iraq, Aug. 30, 2023.

Iraq's signature anbar rice is disappearing amid water shortages

Iraq's signature anbar rice is disappearing amid water shortages
People marching in street with a Panamanian flag

Copper mine protests roil in Panama

Copper mine protests roil in Panama
COWS GRAZING ON A FARM WITH A GEEEN MOUNTAIN LANDSCAPE

Cow plague threatening ranches in southern Europe

Cow plague threatening ranches in southern Europe
beach

Why corals in American Samoa are thriving despite warmer oceans 

Despite prevailing narratives of coral bleaching and decline, the reefs of American Samoa have been particularly resilient to warming temperatures that have laid waste to other corals. Scientists there are finding out why, and looking for ways to use this knowledge to help reefs in other parts of the world.

Why corals in American Samoa are thriving despite warmer oceans 
Wind turbines turn behind a solar farm in Rapshagen, Germany, Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021. 

War in Ukraine spurs 'rapid deployment' for renewables, energy chief says

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sent energy costs surging, European leaders scrambling for alternative suppliers of gas, and redirected flows of Russian oil toward Asia. Some European countries also burned more coal in response to the energy shock. But the most transformational long-term change will be in increased investments in renewable energy, according to International Energy Agency chief energy economist Tim Gould.

War in Ukraine spurs 'rapid deployment' for renewables, energy chief says
man at podium

Coalition of small island states makes a case that greenhouse gas emissions are covered by UN Law of the Sea

​​​​​​​In Hamburg, Germany, an international tribunal makes rulings on the UN’s Law of the Sea, which deals with marine territorial rights and navigation, and requires states to prevent and control marine pollution. This week, a coalition of small island states is asking the court to rule on an unusual case: that greenhouse gas pollution is covered under this law of the sea. 

Coalition of small island states makes a case that greenhouse gas emissions are covered by UN Law of the Sea
A tree in Costa Rica's Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve.

Climate change is rapidly shifting Costa Rica’s sensitive ecosystems

The tiny Central American country of Costa Rica is known as a green paradise. But climate change is hitting the country in a multitude of ways, including increasing its risk from storms and natural disasters. Nowhere is the shifting planet being felt more than in some of the country’s most iconic parks and reserves, where ecosystems are changing rapidly.

Climate change is rapidly shifting Costa Rica’s sensitive ecosystems
On the outer edge of a bog in Kohlhütte nature reserve, the land is drier than it used to be. Once, this dirt would have been more like thick mud.

In Germany’s Black Forest and beyond, a quiet loss of biodiversity

A recent survey indicates much less species growth in Germany’s Black Forest. Two plant species have gone extinct, and several more will likely disappear in the next 15 years.

In Germany’s Black Forest and beyond, a quiet loss of biodiversity
Urchin perch on live coral (left) with fossil coral, the foundation of the live reef, in the foreground, live reef in the background.

Galapagos discovery offers clues to climate impact on deep-sea corals

Scientists say research into newly found reefs could lead to important conservation efforts

Galapagos discovery offers clues to climate impact on deep-sea corals
Noam Tsuriely is a 28-year-old Jewish Israeli hip-hop artist from Jerusalem, whose debut album will drop later this summer.

This Israeli rapper brings people together through multilingual lyrics

Noam Tsuriely is a 28-year-old Jewish Israeli hip-hop artist from Jerusalem He says he likes to rap in both Hebrew and Arabic to get Israelis and Palestinians to learn both languages, so they can understand each other better. Tsuriely's story is the latest in The World's summer "Planet Hip Hop" series.

This Israeli rapper brings people together through multilingual lyrics
Akureyri is one of the few places in Iceland with forest.

This small Icelandic city thinks big about going green

The small town of Akureyri, in Iceland, has set itself a big goal: to become the world’s first carbon-neutral city by 2030. It hopes that going green can serve as a model for other places.

This small Icelandic city thinks big about going green
The ancient fishing village of Guet Ndar in Saint-Louis, Senegal.

An important fishing village in Senegal is on the verge of disappearing as sea levels rise

The former administrative capital of French West Africa, Saint-Louis in Senegal sits between the Senegal River and the Atlantic Ocean. Its highest point stands just 13 feet above sea level, and it gets waves from both fresh and seawater that have become a growing threat as water levels rise.

An important fishing village in Senegal is on the verge of disappearing as sea levels rise
Glaciologists say that between 1995 and 2010 Iceland’s glaciers lost about a meter of vertical thickness per year. The the “Blue Blob” appeared, halving that loss.

‘Blue Blob’ slows glacial melt in Iceland as temperatures rise across the globe

About 10% of Iceland is still covered by glaciers — what Icelanders call their “white diamonds.” Now, a mysterious patch of cold water in the North Atlantic Ocean, known as the “Blue Blob,” is helping slow down the rate at which these glaciers are melting. But scientists are concerned about how long this will last.

‘Blue Blob’ slows glacial melt in Iceland as temperatures rise across the globe