Climate change is affecting human brain function
Though we’ve known for a while that environmental factors can alter the way our brains function, researchers have only just begun to examine the links between climate change and neuroscience. Since the 1940s, scientists have known from conducting studies on mice that changing environmental factors can profoundly impact the...
Current in Change
EU agrees landmark ban of plastic waste exports to poorer nations
The EU will ‘finally assume responsibility’ for the horrendous volume of plastic waste it exports to poorer nations, reads a statement attached to a landmark ban slated to be in effect by 2026. The ‘out of sight, out of mind’ approach hasn’t proven too effective for the EU and its...
Why is it so hard to get justice in revenge porn cases?
The English Justice System continues to fail women in many aspects of the law, including relatively new areas such as revenge porn. Here’s the firsthand reality from victims and those with experience of law enforcement. Almost ten years ago, Charley reported her half-brother to the police upon discovering he was...
Richest 1% emit as much pollution as two-thirds of humanity
According to a recent report on climate inequality conducted by Oxfam, the planet-heating carbon emissions generated by the world’s wealthiest surged to 5.9 billion tonnes in 2019 – enough to cause 1.3 million excess deaths due to extreme heat. The richest 1% of humanity are responsible for around the...
2023 is officially the hottest year in the last 250,000 years
Two new reports confirm 2023 to be the hottest year in modern history. We are living through global warming in real time. This week, it was confirmed that 2023 is the hottest year in the past 125,000 years – meaning we’ve already lived through the warmest 12 months in human history...
Sunak’s plan to send UK asylum seekers to Rwanda has been blocked
The British Supreme Court has ruled against the Conservative Party’s plan to send asylum seekers in the UK to Rwanda over concerns about human rights violations and possible relocation. A government plan to send asylum seekers currently in the UK to Rwanda has been ruled unlawful by the British Supreme...
WHO declares loneliness a ‘global public health concern’
The World Health Organisation has declared loneliness a significant global health threat. A newly formed commission's US surgeon says that the mental state is as detrimental to human health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. We all know that loneliness is grim, but it appears we’ve been underestimating the toll solitude takes on all of us. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently constructed an international commission to delve into the science behind...
NHS pledges to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040
The NHS will improve its HPV vaccination programme and is urging more women to book screening appointments in light of findings that a third are not contacting their GP when instructed to. Last week, head of NHS England Amanda Pritchard announced that thanks to improved screening rates and HPV vaccination uptake, there’s hope for cervical cancer to be practically non-existent in the UK by 2040. It’s thought to be the first...
Opinion – Marathons need be more inclusive
The New York Marathon has come under fire for excluding a runner with a stoma. But across the board, are major running events doing enough to make people feel included? Like many large-scale running events, the New York Marathon is a chance to celebrate hard work, dedication, charity and community. Runners from all over the world, from a variety of backgrounds, come together in a show of solidarity and support. It’s...
Carbon credits potentially linked to Uyghur forced labour
The largest carbon consultancy, South Pole, has sold carbon credits from the Bachu Carbon Project to huge companies like BP and Spotify for years. Alarmingly, a recent investigation has exposed its potential link to coercive labour involving the Uyghur community. The ambiguous mechanics and overall effectiveness of carbon credit schemes often come into question, but ethical misgivings are creating an even greater headache. One such project located in Xinjiang, China, claimed...
