Policy

EU Backs First Major Nature Restoration Law in 30 Years

EU Backs First Major Nature Restoration Law in 30 Years

Following a tense debate, the European Parliament has voted in favor of a Nature Restoration Law that establishes legally binding targets to restore degraded natural areas in the European Union (EU). It is the first major piece of legislation to protect biodiversity in the EU in 30 years. Members of Parliament (MEPs) said the restoration […]

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    UAE to Triple Renewable Energy Output Amid COP28 Controversy

    UAE to Triple Renewable Energy Output Amid COP28 Controversy

    As part of the updated United Arab Emirates (UAE) National Energy Strategy 2050, the country has plans to invest up to $54.4 billion in energy, with a goal of tripling its renewables output over the next seven years, reported Arab News. Following a Cabinet meeting, UAE Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced […]

    Los Angeles to Initiate Car-Free Park Block Pilot Program

    Los Angeles to Initiate Car-Free Park Block Pilot Program

    Los Angeles is taking inspiration from the success of Barcelona’s Superblock program with its own Park Block Pilot program. The initiative aims to open up city blocks for pedestrians, creating shaded recreational and green public spaces and stormwater capture systems while restricting cars. The Los Angeles City Council recently greenlit the pilot program, which was […]

    EPA Announces $7 Billion in Solar Grants for Low-Income Communities

    EPA Announces $7 Billion in Solar Grants for Low-Income Communities

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the $7 billion Solar for All grants competition to increase affordable solar energy access to millions of low-income households, a press release from the EPA said. As part of President Joe Biden’s Investing in America plan, the availability of more residential solar will provide lower-cost energy while […]

    California Enacts Permanent Protections for Joshua Trees

    California Enacts Permanent Protections for Joshua Trees

    The Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act has passed in California. The act is the first legislation in the state to protect a species from climate change. It prohibits any person or public agency from importing, exporting, removing, owning, buying or selling western Joshua trees or any of their parts, and the legislation requires the Department […]

    USDA Approves First Cultivated Meat Product for Sale

    USDA Approves First Cultivated Meat Product for Sale

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved the first cultivated meat for sale in the U.S. Two companies, Upside Foods and Good Meat, have passed regulatory tests and inspections. Both companies were approved to label the approved products as “cell-cultivated chicken.” Cultivated meat, also called cultured or lab-grown meat, refers to proteins made from animal […]

    Stronger Endangered Species Act Protections Proposed by USFWS, NOAA

    Stronger Endangered Species Act Protections Proposed by USFWS, NOAA

    Three newly proposed regulations from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) would reverse rules made during Donald Trump’s presidency that removed protections under the Endangered Species Act. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed a reinstatement of a regulation that gives protections to species classified as […]

    Newly Adopted UN High Seas Treaty Gives Ocean a ‘Fighting Chance’

    Newly Adopted UN High Seas Treaty Gives Ocean a ‘Fighting Chance’

    After almost two decades of negotiations, the 193 United Nations Member States have adopted a landmark legally binding marine biodiversity treaty for the high seas beyond national boundaries, covering two thirds of Earth’s oceans, UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced yesterday during the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity in New York. The purpose of the High […]