Could olivine rocks help our carbon capture efforts?
As climate scientists search for feasible ways to remove carbon dioxide from our atmosphere, a plentiful type of rock called olivine – and the process of chemical mineralisation – is providing an exciting lead. It’s looking increasingly likely that achieving our net zero goals will depend not only on green...
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Protestors in Ecuador defy state of emergency
Occasionally violent demonstrations against the government’s economic policies are ongoing, led by Indigenous groups now looking to overthrow President Guillermo Lasso. Amid rising inflation and unemployment, Indigenous groups in Ecuador have defied a state of national emergency imposed in three provinces as they continue to protest the government’s economic...
Venture capital is alarmingly down for Black owned startups
As investors retreat to safe and familiar options, Black founded startups are seeing dramatic troughs in venture capital funding for 2022. This isn’t surprising, but is definitely concerning. Talk of venture capital (VC) can quickly get convoluted, but we’ll get to the crux of what is happening and what it...
Measles outbreak hits Zimbabwe killing more than 24 children
The Ministry of Health and Child Care is battling a measles outbreak by administering vaccines to children in Manicaland Province, Mutasa District, and the rest of the country’s regions. The government has rolled out a mass vaccination in Mutasa District with an aim to vaccinate all children aged between six...
The refugee camp recycling plastic waste into furniture
The Sahara Desert has become a central dumping ground for plastic waste from surrounding refugee camps. One of which, on the western border of Algeria, is making a dent in the trash by recycling it into furniture and useful items. Like a lot of places around the globe, the Sahara...
Colombia elects former guerrilla as first left-wing president
After one of the most contested campaigns in the country’s recent history, ex-rebel Gustavo Petro has won the election with 50.47 per cent of the vote. Gustavo Petro, long-time legislator, and a former fighter in the M-19 militia who’s promised profound social and economic change, has won Colombia’s presidential election...
McDonald’s exits major market for first time with Russia departure
Burger chain McDonald’s is to close all its Russian restaurants, marking the first time it has ever exited a major international market. It is another big brand boycotting Putin’s aggression in Ukraine. Russian citizens will no longer be able to order McDonald’s or work at its restaurants after the company announced it will be selling all 850 of its Russian eateries. It comes in response to Putin’s recent military aggression...
What is causing the USA’s worst baby formula shortage in decades?
As lawmakers inch closer to overturning Roe v Wade, America is experiencing the worst baby formula shortage it has seen in decades. The ongoing crisis is disproportionately affecting lower-income families. It’s a situation that sounds like it belongs in a dystopian TV show, but just as reproductive rights are being snatched from millions of American women, parents are finding themselves unable to attain food to feed to their children. Wrapping your...
Hawaiian start-up pioneers world’s first ‘ocean-assisted’ carbon capture plant
While the majority of carbon capture efforts are focused on air pollution, the current version of this ‘ocean-assisted’ tech can capture CO2 at a cost of $475 per ton – which is cheaper than any land project to date. Along a remote stretch of Hawaiian coastline, a geoengineering start-up is pioneering ‘ocean-assisted’ carbon removal – which can both sequester emissions and help to reduce ocean acidification. Now, as you’re no doubt...
The Mayor of London is looking to legalise cannabis
Sadiq Khan has launched a new commission to examine the efficiency of the UK’s drug laws. Whether or not cannabis should remain criminalised is a major focus point. Though hip-hop and reggae artists have been reciting bars about their love for the sticky green for decades, legal and societal perspectives on cannabis have only started shifting towards greater acceptance in the 21st century. At present, eighteen states in the US have...
