GaeaStar’s new coffee cups are made using only clay
San Francisco and Germany-based startup GaeaStar has developed a new disposable coffee cup made from clay. It can be thrown on the ground and discarded with no negative effect on the environment. Most of the time, throwing used coffee cups on the ground and walking away is selfish, lazy,...
Current in Change
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is now its own ecosystem
The gigantic floating mass of ocean plastic debris has now become home to hundreds of plant and animal species. While an interesting phenomenon, it's not exactly something to celebrate. Humans have influenced the natural world for as long as we’ve existed, but only a handful of man-made inventions have impacted...
How SeaForester is reforesting our oceans
SeaForester’s simple new technology could bring a valuable carbon sink back from the brink. When we talk deforestation, it’s normally about trees and animals on dry land. But it’s a problem that goes much further – all the way into the deep blue sea. Each year we lose three million hectares of...
What legalisation of NARCAN says about America’s drug laws
Overdose antidote NARCAN has officially been legalised for sale without prescription. It’s a significant step for a country long suffering from an opioid epidemic.
Toward the end of 2022, rumours began circling that the FDA was planning to legalise NARCAN, a drug found to reverse the effects of opioid overdose.
Parisians vote unanimously in favour of e-scooter ban
After recording hundreds of accidents and receiving complaints of congested streets, the French government asked Parisians to vote on a potential ban for rented e-scooters. The result could prompt other European cities to do the same. When they first started popping up on city streets, rentable e-scooters seemed like a...
Climate change exacerbating damage caused by crop-destroying fungi
Scientists have warned that fast-rising fungal attacks on the world’s most important crops threaten the planet’s future food supply and that failure to tackle this could lead to a ‘global health catastrophe.’ An ‘unprecedented’ spread of a fungus infecting wheat across the globe has prompted scientists to call for greater...
Climate change risks to public health will be highlighted at COP28
The next UN climate summit will be the first to consider health issues in depth, with a meeting of global health ministers to underline the crisis’ impact on wellbeing. Every year, global leaders join forces at the UN climate summit to discuss the most concerning issues relating to our ecological emergency. Last November, the focus was largely on loss and damage, with world nations under immense pressure to financially support those...
Understanding the ‘loverboy method’ of human trafficking
Andrew Tate’s arrest highlights a tactic used to exploit young women into human trafficking known as the ‘loverboy method.’ To learn more, a survivor of human trafficking explains how it works and debunks popular common myths. Rebecca Bender was 18 when she thought she’d found someone to spend the rest of her life with. After moving in with him after six months of dating, he told Rebecca his job was relocating...
Why feminism is more important than ever in 2023
Women have always been fighting for their rights, and the string of violence and crime over the past few years shows an even greater need for it. Sarah Everard’s murder by a Met Police officer sparked a movement around women’s public safety. Vigils and protests were held and two years later the force was condemned for routine sexism. Women are now less likely to report a sexual assault to...
Invasive blue crabs are taking over the Mediterranean Sea
Coastal towns near the Mediterranean are grappling with an invasive sea species brought to their waters by international shipping boats. Dealing with this new inhabitant might mean serving them up on thousands of plates across Europe – if only a local appetite for them will grow. International trade is causing hundreds of animal species to find homes in parts of the world they would have never reached otherwise. This is...
