Post of the Day
Climate strike in Australia: everything you need to know about Friday’s protest
Time and location for the 20 September school strike for climate change in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra, Adelaide, Hobart and more
Today’s Celebration
National POW/MIA Recognition Day – USA
Sree Narayana Guru Memorial Day – Kerala
National Youth Day – Thailand
Universal Children’s Day – Germany
Freedom of Speech Day – Venezuela, Peru, Uruguay
Climate Change
Millions of young people, led by Sweden’s Thunberg, to strike for climate action
With world leaders about to gather in New York for a UN Climate Action Summit next week, millions of young people from Australia to Iceland will take off from school or work on Friday to demand urgent measures to stop environmental catastrophe.
10 ways technology can meet the Paris climate targets
New report lists 10 measures – using current technologies – that can keep global warming well below 2°C. But not at current rates of progress, and not without good…
Climate protection and clean air: An integrated approach
From September 23 to 25, 2019, heads of government from around the world will convene at the United Nations General Assembly to discuss efforts to advance climate action and global sustainable development. The summit aims to boost national ambitions to achieve the objectives of the Paris Agreement and will review the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. The relationship between air pollution and climate change is the subject of a new IASS Policy Brief.
Climate crisis leaving 2 million people a week needing aid – Red Cross
Charity warns of cost of doing nothing, saying contributions would need to hit $20bn a year
Shifting the focus of climate-change strategies may benefit younger generations
Strategies to limit climate change that focus on warming in the next couple of decades would leave less of a burden for future generations.
‘The crisis is already here’: young strikers facing climate apartheid
Young activists call for north-south solidarity to tackle climate emergency that threatens to exacerbate inequality and conflict
Jeff Bezos pledges to meet Paris climate pact 10 years early
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has announced the formation of the Climate Pledge to meet the goals of the landmark Paris climate agreement 10 years early.
Cutting emissions gradually will avert sudden jump in warming
Study dispels fears that cutting fossil fuel emissions aggressively would backfire and cause unintended temperature spike
Preventing climate change cheaper than dealing with its damage
World leaders need to urgently accelerate efforts to prevent ‘profound, if not catastrophic’ climate change in future, a distinguished group of scientists has warned. According to their new study published in Science today, acting to reduce climate change would cost much less than repairing the damage it would inflict in coming decades on people, infrastructure and ecosystems.
Rethinking scenario logic for climate policy
Current scenarios used to inform climate policy have a weakness in that they typically focus on reaching specific climate goals in 2100 – an approach which may encourage risky pathways that could have long-term negative effects. A new IIASA-led study presents a novel scenario framework that focuses on capping global warming at a maximum level with either temperature stabilization or reversal thereafter.
Investments to address climate change are good for business
Study shows that reducing the magnitude of climate change is also a good investment. Over the next few decades, acting to reduce climate change is expected to cost much less than the damage otherwise inflicted by climate change on people, infrastructure and ecosystems.
In media coverage of climate change, where are the facts?
The New York Times stands out for its coverage of the environment and climate change. Yet, says a UC Berkeley study, its articles on climate change seldom mention key facts behind the scientific consensus that global warming is real – facts that could sway skeptics or clear up confusion, even among climate activists. Such facts – for example, that climate change, once it happens, is permanent — can easily be slipped into stories to inform the public.
Yes, the climate climate crisis may wipe out six billion people
Our ruling elites’ inaction and lies on climate change will lead to climate turmoil, mass starvation and general societal collapse in this century.
The Climate Disaster Inside America’s Prisons
Inmates are among the most vulnerable populations on our warming planet—and among the most ignored.
World climate change report card: These countries are meeting goals
In the lead-up to the UN’s climate change conference on Monday, we take a look at which nations are on track to meet climate goals and which are tanking.
Is Germany too stingy to fund the fight against climate change?
The German government is proposing a climate protection package that will cost billions of euros. The country is wealthy, but there are already concerns over how to fund the measures.
To solve climate change, remember the ocean
This year offers nations their best chance yet to protect oceans and coasts, and to capitalize on the carbon-capturing potential of these environments
UN Environment Chief Inger Andersen: ′The solutions are there′
In her role as of the new head of the United Nations Environment Program, Danish economist Inger Andersen talks to DW about the need to think big when it comes to climate change – and to learn from our mistakes.
The philosophy of climate denial
How do you change the minds of climate deniers? We ask a philosopher of science for some answers.
Teens pledge to stop having babies over climate change
#NoFutureNoChildren is trending on Twitter.
How to talk to children about climate change
Americans are worried as ever about climate change, separate Gallup polls reveal. However, climate grief and climate anxiety extends to children.
Our kids are right about climate change
As delegates for the UN’s Climate Action Summit convene in New York, the real leaders are the young people pushing for climate justice in the streets.
Anxiety over climate change paralysing kids as young as 10 [$]
Climate change fearmongering is inciting anxiety in children as young as 10 who fear the end of the world is near. The problem is so widespread the American Psychological Association has coined a term for it: eco anxiety.
Climate change doom talk robbing kids of their childhood [$]
Telegraph editorial
Anxiety caused by climate change alarmism is a worrying and widespread mental health issue affecting children, causing needless and lasting anguish. It’s time for cooler heads to prevail.
Procurement’s role in climate change: putting government money where policy needs to go [$]
Barbara Allen
New Zealand is introducing new procurement rules to better link government spending with climate change policy. The first target is to reduce emissions profile of the government’s vehicle fleet.
The climate crisis isn’t just causing extreme weather. It’s fuelling extreme politics, too
Nick Lowles
Keeping our societies united and tolerant in the face of the pressures created by the climate crisis is an integral part of the global fight for climate justice, but governments, policymakers and NGOs are not yet ready for this challenge.
National
AGL hints at early exit from coal to meet 1.5°C climate target
Fiery AGL shareholder meeting sees company caught between growing shareholder calls for decarbonisation and a federal government demanding its ageing coal fleet remains online.
Why 200 per cent renewables would be better for Australia than 100 per cent
Australia could be a global leader in climate mitigation and zero-carbon energy exports, and meet its domestic power demands “on the side,” according to a new energy transition scenario that would take us well beyond 100 per cent renewables, to a target of 200 per cent.
Australia’s population grows by 1.6 per cent
Australia’s population grew by 1.6 per cent during the year ending 31 March 2019, according to the latest figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Natural increase accounted for 35.8 per cent of annual population growth, while net overseas migration accounted for the remaining 64.2 per cent
The Australians walking out of work over climate change inaction
On Friday, thousands of Australians will follow in the footsteps of the school strikers and walk out of their workplaces and universities in solidarity with many around the world. Here’s why they’ve decided to take part.
A test of will: Students risk failing exams to attend today’s national climate strike
Siobhan Sutton is an academically talented student but is proudly choosing to fail a test today, and she is not alone as thousands of students across the country take part in the the global School Strike for Climate.
As Morrison jets off to see Trump, other world leaders prepare for climate crisis talks
On Thursday, Scott Morrison departs for the first official visit to the US by an Australian prime minister in 13 years. But skipping a key climate summit isn’t a good look, his critics say.
‘Everything you are told is a lie’: Craig Kelly hits out at climate strike students
A Coalition backbencher has challenged the ‘scientific consensus’ on climate change.
Hundreds of Australian academics declare support for climate rebellion
Open letter says the Australian government’s inaction on the climate crisis requires civil disobedience in response
The businesses sending staff to the climate strike frontline [$]
Employers are backing a campaign to send staff to Friday’s climate rallies as the debate over the role of corporate citizens in society continues.
Companies who let staff march for climate must walk the talk
Impact investment fund Melior says companies need to ensure their actions are not seen as “virtue signalling” as many of them are yet to tackle their own emissions.
Liberal senator likens website’s climate denier ban to Nazi Germany
A Liberal senator has likened an academic news and analysis website’s decision to ban climate change deniers to some of history’s most infamous tyrants.
‘Laggard’: How Australia’s carbon emissions stack up
Some basic facts about Australia’s emissions as students and adults prepare to strike for the climate.
AGL resists push for early coal power plant closures
Australia’s biggest energy generator, AGL, has vowed to gain a clearer picture of how the Paris accord climate goals will affect the future of its ageing coal-fired power plants as the company resisted an investor push to accelerate its exit from coal.
AGL refuses climate day off [$]
Power giant won’t follow Ben and Jerry’s by giving a day off to workers at Friday’s climate strike.
RBA backs coal sales to India [$]
The Reserve Bank has backed Resource Minister Matt Canavan’s push for coal sales to India.
Historic Indigenous appointment for MDBA board
An Indigenous member will be appointed to the Murray-Darling Basin Authority. Indigenous involvement in water management in the Basin will be increased. Murray-Darling Aboriginal communities will have more say on how the river system is run with a new dedicated Indigenous position on the Murray-Darling Basin Authority board.
‘Ludicrous’: Key union breaks ranks with ALP to support nuclear power
A key union has split with the federal Labor Party and the wider union movement over the controversial proposal to dump the national nuclear energy ban.
Nuclear energy: Nationals MPs welcome AWU support for domestic industry
Union to tell parliamentary committee it’s ‘ludicrous’ to export uranium but not benefit from the energy source at home
The grass that we could soon be using to build our houses and apartments
Fast-growing and environmentally-friendly, bamboo may soon be used in Australian construction, as academics explore the properties of the giant grass.
Stop calling young people apathetic. For many, volunteering and activism go hand-in-hand
Lucas Walsh
Conscripting young volunteers to combat climate change is not necessary. Australians aged 15-17 already have the highest rates of volunteering in the country.
For corporate Australia, climate crusading is simply smart business
John McDuling
Today, the most significant and successful business figure Australia has produced in a generation will be doing something few of his predecessors in that position could have imagined.
In the grip of lazy groupthink [$]
Bella D’Abrera
Uni students turning up for lectures today will be damned as climate-change deniers by activists who’ve crippled intellectual inquiry.
Big claims and corporate spin about small nuclear reactor costs
Jim Green
The nuclear inquiry has seen some bold claims and corporate spin about future costs of small modular reactors. But they’re undermined by the authors of the reports they cite.
Here’s one way to smash renewable myths, and kick-start good policy
Sophie Vorrath
OpenCEM – the free to use, open-source, capacity expansion model of the NEM – will help smash renewable energy myths and help design transition scenarios.
How rising temperatures affect our health
Liz Hanna
Average temperatures in Australia are already high by international standards, but what happens when they continue to rise? How much heat can our bodies withstand?
The river took care of me so now I’m taking care of it
Marlie Thomas
Why I’m joining the school strike for climate.
Why I won’t be taking part in the global climate strike
Marta Abicic
I am a 16-year-old student concerned about climate change, but I think striking instead of going to school is a bad idea.
Striking for climate change doesn’t make you smart [$]
Cronan Yu
Universities have an obligation to provide intellectual development to students. So why then are resources diverted to chasing leftist brownie points by encouraging students to protest climate change.
We want to learn about climate change from weather presenters, not politicians
David Holmes and Stephanie Hall
Politicians might get the most airtime when it comes to climate change, but Australians would rather hear about it from weather presenters.
Ignoring young people’s climate change fears is a recipe for anxiety
Rachael Sharman and Patrick D. Nunn
School students took to the streets in Melbourne and other Australian cities back in March as part of a global rally on climate change. Now they’re doing it again.
Victoria
‘Better off with the devil we know’: Concerns raised over Australia’s largest wind farm
An offshore wind farm proposed for regional Victoria will power almost a fifth of the state’s electrical needs, but coastal residents says they are concerned about rising costs and fishing exclusion zones.
One of 800+ Councils worldwide to declare climate emergency
Cardinia Shire Council resolved at its Council meeting this week to declare a climate emergency, joining more than 800 other local governments across the globe to have made the declaration.
New South Wales
‘Crazy proposal’: NSW government pushes ahead with plans for third Sydney cruise ship hub
The NSW government is forging ahead with controversial plans to build a third cruise ship terminal in Sydney, despite strong opposition from residents and two local councils.
Highly paid commissioners’ mine decision sinks desperate locals’ hopes [$]
Independent Planning Commissioners who rejected the Bylong Valley coal mine earn more than double in one day than the local hardware store owner takes home for a week — but they blame sloppy laws for forcing their decision.
Queensland
Stradbroke Island bushfire rages ahead of school holiday influx
A large bushfire is continuing to burn through swamp and bushland on North Stradbroke Island, off Brisbane, ahead of an expected influx of 8,000 school holiday visitors.
Save us from sharks, and the courts [$]
Courier Mail editorial
When there is a contest between the safety of people and the protection of predatory species, human lives must come first.
Reef laws deliver ‘sickening blow’ to farmers: AgForce
The government has argued new laws relating to run-off are vital to improving the health of the Great Barrier Reef.
Message to regions: No right to whinge [$]
Steven Wardill
You hear it everywhere in regional Queensland … when it comes to State Government infrastructure spending, they get ripped off. It’s just not true. There are areas getting shortchanged, but they’re not in the country.
South Australia
GE to supply world’s biggest battery for South Australia Solar River project
GE Renewable Energy named as supplier of big battery for the 200MW Solar River Project in South Australia.
GM cotton could soon be grown in South Australia
South Australia’s decision to axe its ban on genetically modified crops could open the doors for the cotton industry many locals have traditionally opposed.
Port redesigned to calm the waters [$]
A deep sea wharf planned for Kangaroo Island’s Smith Bay has been modified to better suit the environment. See the new design here.
‘Major destination: Parklands building rules in crosshairs [$]
Rules for building on Adelaide’s green belt could be overhauled as the council eyes off plans to transform the area into a drawcard, while the Crows push ahead with their new project.
AGL cops virtual power plant loss on transition path [$]
Australia needs to spend $200bn on renewables, AGL says. With that ahead, it’s willing to take a little loss to learn about home batteries from a project in SA.
‘It is dead’: $440m pumped hydro scheme dumped [$]
A $440 million hydro scheme in Highbury, promising to employ around 300 people, has been abandoned.
Controversial snapper ban delayed [$]
SA’s controversial snapper fishing ban is on hold as the State Government deals with a huge number of submissions on the issue.
Tasmania
Sanctuary ‘infuriated’ over wildlife culls [$]
The head of a local wildlife sanctuary wants to know why thousands of native animals are being culled at the same time his team is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to save them.
Northern Territory
NT backs massive solar push to reach zero emissions target
The Northern Territory Labor government has unveiled a comprehensive and firmly science-informed plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050, with a focus on the territory’s massive natural advantage in solar – “the cheapest form of new electricity generation.”
NT will become ‘uninhabitable’ without intervention, ALP’s Environment Minister says.
Future of historic tree unknown [$]
Fears for a second heritage tree on a major development site have been raised.
Revealed: NTGs response to climate change [$]
The Territory Labor Government has set itself an ambitious target of zero net emissions by 2050, but has done no modelling of the impact that will have on the NT economy
Graham Lloyd
The Top End really has gone troppo if it thinks it can solve climate change alone.
Western Australia
WA opens $10m hydrogen fund to boost renewable gas production and exports
WA govt opens its $10 million Renewable Hydrogen Fund to applications that will expand WA’s ability to export green gas.
Fertiliser plant is not damaging Burrup Peninsula rock art, EPA says
Western Australia’s environmental regulator rules impact on world’s largest collection of rock art is ‘manageable’
Why WA students are worried about the end of the world [$]
Perth’s school students will be among thousands across Australian taking part in today’s climate strike.
Shire staff given ‘green’ light to strike
Councillors at a South West shire have given permission for staff to take the day off to attend a “strike” demanding action on climate change
WA Labor sends climate message to kids [$]
State Education Minister Sue Ellery danced around the question as to whether Perth schools should be stepping in to stop kids taking part in global climate protests planned for tomorrow.
Sustainability
Study estimates more than 100,000 cancer cases could stem from contaminants in tap water
A toxic cocktail of chemical pollutants in US drinking water could result in more than 100,000 cancer cases, according to a peer-reviewed study from Environmental Working Group — the first study to conduct a cumulative assessment of cancer risks due to 22 carcinogenic contaminants found in drinking water nationwide.
Using farmland to address climate change
Instead of targeting smokestacks to control climate change, some agriculture groups believe they can solve the problem of carbon emissions through farming.
9 practical ways to tackle climate change, starting in your kitchen
Much of what is required to combat climate change feels bigger than us, but we can all take simple and practical measures to benefit the planet (or at least, stop piling on the damage).
A large study indicates how cities can promote walking for travel
Coinciding with the European Mobility Week, a study performed in seven European cities focuses on walking for travel, a strategy to increase physical activity in cities.
Lighting the path to renewable energy
Scientists have developed a novel, standardized way of quantifying and comparing these variations in solar power. The new study may help guide the development and performance of solar photovoltaic farms — systems that harness the sun’s energy and convert it to electricity.
DGIST achieves the highest efficiency of flexible CZTSSe thin-film solar cell
DGIST Division of Energy Technology achieves the highest photoelectric conversion efficiency in the world. Huge expectations toward the commercialization of flexible solar cell that is applicable in various fields.
‘Nanochains’ could increase battery capacity, cut charging time
A new method could allow better materials to make up battery electrodes by converting them into a nanochain structure, extending battery lifetime and increasing stability.
AI helps reduce Amazon hydropower dams’ carbon footprint
A team of scientists has developed a computational model that uses artificial intelligence to find sites for hydropower dams in order to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Even short-lived solar panels can be economically viable
Research shows that, contrary to accepted rule of thumb, a 10- or 15-year lifetime can be good enough
Former Fukushima bosses cleared of negligence over deadly disaster
Former Fukushima bosses have been cleared of negligence over one of the world’s worst nuclear crisis after a judge ruled they couldn’t have predicted the 2011 monster tsunami that caused the reactors to meltdown.
Campaigners urge UN to endorse global fracking ban
Emma Thompson and Mark Ruffalo among signatories of open letter to secretary general
Kiss of life: Biggest coal miners geared for growth, elevating climate risks, report
More than half the world’s largest coal companies are planning for expansion even as competition from renewables rises and financiers shy from backing fossil fuels.
Nature Conservation
Actions to save coral reefs could benefit all ecosystems
Scientists say bolder actions to protect the world’s coral reefs will benefit all ecosystems, human livelihoods and improve food security.
Undervalued wilderness areas can cut extinction risk in half
Wilderness areas, long known for intrinsic conservation value, are far more valuable for biodiversity than previously believed, and if conserved, will cut the world’s extinction risk in half, according to a new study published in the journal Nature.
Wilderness areas halve extinction risk
The global conservation community has been urged to adopt a specific target to protect the world’s remaining wilderness areas to prevent large scale loss of at-risk species.
Planned roads would be ‘dagger in the heart’ for Borneo’s forests and wildlife
Malaysia’s plans to create a Pan-Borneo Highway will severely degrade one of the world’s most environmentally imperilled regions, says a research team from Australia and Malaysia.
China to tackle climate change with ‘nature-based solutions’
Beijing aims to promote solutions such as reforestation and the expansion of grasslands and wetlands.
Abandoned ‘ghost gear’ creating hazards for marine life
Over a quarter of the fishing lines used by 40 million people working in fisheries globally are lost or discarded, posing a threat to seabirds and other wildlife, a new study finds.
Dry rivers offer a preview of climate change
As the climate warms, many rivers that are currently perennial may become intermittent.
Climate change is already hurting our national parks
National parks are at the forefront of the climate crisis in our country, from melting
49 years of environmental victories, in photos
As delegates gather at the UN’s Climate Action Summit, we look at conservation milestones since the first Earth Day in 1970.
US and Canada have lost more than one in four birds since 1970
Three billion birds have been lost across diverse groups and habitats, in what researchers describe as a ‘wake-up call’
The crisis for birds is a crisis for us all
Fitzpatrick and Marra
Nearly one-third of the wild birds in the United States and Canada have vanished since 1970, a staggering loss that suggests the very fabric of North America’s ecosystem is unraveling.
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