In a speech in Azerbaijan on Friday, United Nations climate chief Simon Stiell said the world needs at least $2.4 trillion each year to keep global climate goals within reach. Stiell, the executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, gave a timeline of the measures — and funding — that will be […]
On Saturday, March 4, world leaders finally agreed on a treaty to protect the high seas. The accord reached by the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction establishes a mechanism for sharing the benefits of scientific discoveries from marine life, enforces environmental impact assessments for new human activities in international waters […]
After more than a decade of talks, the 193 United Nations (UN) member states have reached a landmark international agreement for a new Treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas of the ocean outside national jurisdiction, known as the “high seas.” In New York late Saturday night, President of […]
UN Secretary-General António Guterres issued a bold proposal during his opening remarks to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday: tax fossil fuel companies to help those suffering from the climate and cost-of-living crises. Guterres’ proposal, also known as a windfall tax, comes at the close of a summer that saw extreme weather events worldwide and […]
By Ajit Niranjan and Stuart Braun Its findings influence governments, business leaders and even young protesters on arguably the biggest issue facing the planet: the climate crisis. But many people may never have heard of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The IPCC is a UN body that evaluates climate science. Its scientists look […]
Arctic temperatures are now “locked in” for increased wintertime warming, with winter temperatures set to rise 3-5 degrees C by 2050 even if the world meets the goals set out in the Paris agreement, a new UN Environment report says. The region’s thawing rapidly thawing permafrost also poses a major risk, and the report warns […]
December 11 is International Mountain Day, an annual occasion designated by the United Nations to celebrate Earth’s precious mountains. Mountains aren’t just a sight to behold—they cover 22 percent of the planet’s land surface and provide habitat for plants, animals and about 1 billion human beings. The vital landforms also supply critical resources such as […]
2018 will likely be the fourth hottest year on record, according to the United Nations’ authoritative voice for weather and climate. The three years that were warmer? 2016, 2015 and 2017. Furthermore, the 20 warmest years on record have been in the past 22 years, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said Thursday in its 2018 […]
The United Nations issued a wake-up call to world leaders on Tuesday for urgent climate action. Despite national pledges to curb planet-warming emissions, the current pace of government action is “insufficient” to limit global warming to well below 2 C this century, much less the more ambitious 1.5 C target, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) […]