Delegates at COP15 reach ‘historic’ deal to halt biodiversity loss
Nations have committed to protecting a third of the planet for nature by 2030 in a ground-breaking agreement aimed at reversing decades of environmental destruction. After four years of negotiations, repeated delays due to the pandemic, and a plenary that began on Sunday evening and lasted for more than seven...
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UN will use satellites to track down methane gas leaks
At last year’s COP summit, methane was labelled the ‘lowest hanging fruit’ in the race to slow global heating. Now, the UN has announced it will use satellites to locate where methane leaks are and will be publishing the data on a public database. Those clued up on the human-driven...
What issues will world leaders be focusing on at COP27?
COP27 is kicking off in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, and will be continuing for the next two weeks. What will the summit address since COP26, and what should world leaders focus on? We spoke to Youthtopia’s Melati Wijsen to find out. We’re back. It’s another year of COP, this...
Tiny village becomes India’s first to run completely on solar power
Home to 6,500 residents, Modhera has become India’s first village to run entirely on solar energy. A government-funded project is raising the area’s living standards and boosting the local workforce. As the time margin for limiting global heating narrows, the race to implement renewable energy sources is intensifying. Not to...
Renewable energy overtakes coal in the US for the first time
2022 energy stats from the Energy Information Administration show that the US in on track to generate more power through renewable sources than coal for the first time ever. As numerous reports throughout COP27 showed, the US remains the second most polluting nation on the planet when it comes to...
Australian watchdog issues nation’s first-ever greenwashing fine
Tlou Energy is the first Australian firm to be fined for lying about its environmental credentials. A corporate watchdog says claims that its sub-Saharan African gas and electric power projects are carbon neutral and low emissions are ‘factually incorrect’. If the latest legal ongoings in Australia are anything to go...
What is COP15 and why is it important?
The UN conference aims to lay out a plan to tackle the ‘unsustainable rate’ of global biodiversity loss that’s ranked as one of the biggest threats facing humanity. Here’s all you need to know. This week, scientists, rights advocates, and delegates from 190-odd nations are gathering in Canada to tackle one of the world’s most pressing environmental issues: the loss of biodiversity and what can be done to reverse...
Transforming cities into sponges could save us from floods
Urban planning and landscape architect Professor Kongjian Yu has put forward an innovative and eco-friendly option for flood mitigation. It involves transforming our cities into ‘sponges’ to absorb overflowing waterways and prevent threats presented by extreme flooding. Are you ready kids? I can’t hear you… nah I’m just joking. It’s time to be real. As a result of altered weather patterns caused by climate change, the Earth’s natural water cycles have...
Is hemp the answer to combatting climate change?
Research suggests that the fast-growing plant is twice as effective as trees at sequestering carbon, offering a promising solution to mitigating the environmental crisis’ impacts. When mulling over how we’ll ever solve the ongoing environmental crisis, it’s likely your mind will jump to options such as renewable energy, sustainable transport, or reducing plastic consumption. Unless you’re an advocate for a particular type of green, it’s unlikely you’ve considered hemp as...
COP27 will give children and youth a platform for the first time
At this year’s COP event in Egypt, young people will finally be given their own platform. The Children and Youth Pavilion will allow young activists to voice their climate concerns and hopefully impact negotiations for the very first time. It’s no secret that some of the most passionate climate activists are young people. Perhaps it’s because policy decision-makers and negotiators are often well above the age of 50 with little to...
