How the media is shaping climate action
The final IPCC report confirms the mediaโs role in how we perceive and address the climate crisis. Global media coverage of climate change has been steadily increasing since the 1980s. In a study across 59 countries, researchers found that coverage had risen from 47,000 stories in 2016-17 to about...
Current in Companies
Part 4: Activism effective in blocking fossil fuels
In 2021, the world witnessed record-breaking climate disasters alongside the harsh reality that global fossil fuel production is incompatible with limiting global warming to 1.5 or even 2 degrees Celsius. Overwhelming evidence of the fossil fuel industryโs role in this production gap has sparked an increasing number of protests...
Fortescue announces โinfinity trainโ powered by gravity
Forget solar power, wind, or any other traditional sustainability energy source. A new train by Fortescue will be powered by the sheer force of gravity, allowing it to potentially run forever. Ever considered how your morning commuter train is powered? Although theyโre a greener option than using a car, trains are...
Report: 68% of US execs admit to greenwashing tactics
In a recent international survey of over 1,400 executives across different industries, two thirds questioned whether their companyโs sustainability efforts were genuine. In the US, 68% of CEOs and C-suite leaders admitted to greenwashing. Given the amount of supposed โsustainabilityโ drives from companies that are full of contradictions, itโs no...
Part 3: Fossil fuel lobbyists driving climate delay
The 5 biggest oil companies spend US$115 million delaying climate policy, annually. Following the United Nations Climate Summit (COP26) in November, the environmental campaign group Global Witness reported that 500 lobbyists had been sent to the event by over 100 fossil fuel companies โ more than any single country at...
Edible food packaging is the future of snack time
Using seaweed and algae, several food manufacturers are starting to cut back on single-use plastic waste by making their wrappers fully edible. Ever finish your snack and wish you had a little something more to munch on? What if we told you that soon, youโll be able to eat the...
Burger King to ban โforever chemicalsโ from its packaging
The fast food consortium in charge of Burger King, Tim Hortons, and Popeyes has announced a global ban on toxic โforever chemicalsโ from all restaurant packaging by 2025. Those of us who occasionally indulge in fast food โdiningโ know what weโre getting into, right? Did you know though, that its not just the risk attached to a lack of nutrients or high sodium content we need to be concerned with. Itโs...
Worldโs first octopus farm branded โan environmental catastropheโ
A company called Nueva Pescacnova has just invested โฌ65 million to build a gigantic octopus farm in the Spanish port of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands. With all thatโs happening in the human realm at the moment, it might be a little difficult to consider why the welfare of an eight-legged sea creature would be something worth lobbying for. However, scientists and environmentalists worldwide are horrified to learn that a...
Part 2: Lawsuits worldwide put Big Oil in the hot seat
Activists look to legal action, taking the fossil fuel industry to court for environmental damage. Over the past two decades, more than 2,000 climate litigation cases have been filed against both governments and carbon-intensive industries. As climate change becomes an increasingly pressing issue and awareness grows amongst the public, itโs expected that this number will continue to rise, according to Verisk Maplecroft, a research firm specialising in global risk analytics. In...
Starbucks to phase out its disposable cups entirely by 2025
For better or worse, Starbucks has transformed coffee culture forever. Its logo is instantly recognisable globally, but at the cost of becoming a โubiquitousโ symbol of single-use waste. The enterprise is now aiming to phase out its disposable cups entirely by 2025. If youโre feeling a twinge of guilt for that pumpkin spiced latte phase you go through every Autumn, donโt beat yourself up. Weโre all victims of mainstream coffee...