Latest Stories from Charlie
Why we shouldn’t celebrate China’s carbon pledge just yet
China has promised that it will begin lowering emissions by 2030 and will be carbon neutral by 2060, but is it all just political posturing? Xi Jinping has stated that China will aim to be completely carbon neutral by 2060 in an address to the UN General Assembly in New York. He also pledged that the country would hit peak emissions by 2030 at the very latest and called for...
Gen Z are lessening the flow of fake news
Younger social media users are less likely to spread misinformation than their parents according to new research, which could help to slow fake news. Gen Z are able to detect misinformation and dodgy articles much better than older generations, new expert polling suggests. This shouldn’t be surprising given that teens and young adults understand the nuances of most social media platforms inside out. This is reflected in their behaviour online,...
Greenpeace urges supermarkets to halve plastic use by 2025
The environmental organisation is pressuring the UK to rethink its supermarket packaging, pushing for new refill services to halve plastic production. Greenpeace has created a lengthy proposal report that asks the government to put new measures in place to halve how much plastic we use by 2025, focusing on refill services and halting the sale of unnecessary items. Plastic has become one of the biggest enemies of the climate crisis...
How the Ellen scandal exposed the toxic workplace problem
Ellen DeGeneres has returned to TV promising significant ‘changes’, but this scandal brings to light a persistent problem across our workforce, not just in Hollywood and entertainment. Ellen DeGeneres has returned to TV for the first time since she was hit with allegations of abuse, bullying, and creating a toxic work environment on her popular talk show. Speaking at the beginning of the first episode of the newest season, she said...
IKEA to launch first ever sustainable second-hand store
Old furniture will be repurposed and resold in the first ever second-hand IKEA store. It’ll be ready to visit by the end of 2020. I’m sure you’ve probably bought and tried to build a flat-pack IKEA furniture set at least once in your life. They’re cheap, cheerful, and end up looking half decent most of the time, unless you accidentally lose a screw or stick parts together upside down....
The unlikely rebirth of the drive-in cinema
Drive-in cinemas were widely associated with cheesy retro romcoms from a bygone era but now, thanks to coronavirus, they’re back like never before. You may have noticed that drive-in cinemas have starting popping up across the world over the last few months. 2020 has seen our idea of ‘normal’ flipped upside down. Where once we would cram ourselves into packed out stadiums and concert halls, we’re now extremely mindful of coming...
Facebook promises to cut emissions by 2030
The social media giant has also launched a ‘Climate Science Information Centre’ for some users alongside ambitions carbon reduction plans. Facebook joins many larger tech firms in promising to heavily reduce its greenhouse gas emissions in the coming decade. It has said it will be purchasing renewable energy and offsets to counterbalance its current carbon footprint, with a future focus on investing in renewable energy projects and initiatives. In addition,...
Why vinyl’s resurgence is hurting the planet
Vinyl sales have now overtaken CDs for the first time since the 1980s, but we need to talk more about the environmental damage of its recent resurgence. New figures released by the Record Industry Association of America indicate that vinyl sales have now overtaken CDs for the first time since the early 1980s. According to a new report released this week, vinyl sales generated $232 million and made up...
New Swedish ‘Oceanbird’ could revolutionise sea travel
The new ship is being overseen by design firm Wallenius Marine and should be available within the next five years, cutting emissions for trans-Atlantic sea travel by 90%. I don’t need to be the first to tell you that vehicles and international travel are two sizeable contributors to climate change. Shipping and sea transportation in particular use hefty amounts of fossil fuels to operate, pumping out black carbon particles that...
Uber to switch entirely to electric vehicles by 2030
Drivers will receive an extra few dollars if they switch to electric vehicles, though it will cost riders more per trip. Uber has announced that it will exclusively be using electric vehicles by 2030 in the US, Canada, and Europe. It won’t be forcefully pushing drivers to switch their cars out for electric alternatives but will bump up prices to increase revenue for those that do. Trips will cost riders...
