From Scholz to Biden, a G-7 scorecard of how each leader got on
By Chiara Albanese
Ukraine dominated the summit, but each leader had his own aim Domestic considerations were never far away for G-7 chiefs.
INTERNATIONAL
INTERNATIONAL
Climate change is a global issue. It matters not who creates the greenhouse gases, they spread globally. The converse is also true. Mitigation efforts occur locally but they spread globally. Global safety is dependent upon our interdependence.
CCR is primarily focused on America’s contribution to climate change and America’s efforts to mitigate climate change. That is huge enough for one website. This does not mean that CCR is oblivious to global connections and global effects. The US can contribute massively to the global effort as well as learn from the many countries outside its borders.
Unfortunately, in May 2017, Trump announced his intention to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement. That withdrawal took effect on November 4, 2020. The good news is that President Joe Biden, on his first day in office, rejoined the Paris Agreement (which took effect on February 19, 2021) and appointed John Kerry as his energy czar. As Biden’s Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry will play perhaps the most critical role internationally in managing a planetary crisis. To succeed, he’ll need to repair the diplomatic damage done by former President Donald Trump while steering through clashing interests at home: a defiant private sector on the one hand, and strident climate activists on the other.
The Climate Action Tracker follows governments to assess their compliance with the Paris Agreement. The US is currently rated as “critically insufficient.” Most recently the CAT said, “US emissions in 2020 will be lower as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Trump Administration’s continuous rollback of climate policy and its response to the pandemic will counteract some of the drop in emissions. Instead of initiating a green recovery the administration used the pandemic as justification to continue relaxing environmental regulations, allowing polluting industries to emit more greenhouse gases during the crisis and exempting them from penalties for violating these rules.”
CURRENT NEWS
The ocean takes center stage at a U.N. conference
By Carlos Costa/AFP/Getty Images Photo: Carlos Costa/AFP/Getty Images
The ocean covers about 70 percent of Earth’s surface, yet it is often missing from discussions about tackling climate change, plastic pollution, biodiversity loss and other pressing environmental threats facing the planet
View from the summit: A self-defeating G7 fails on all fronts
By Karl Mathiasen and David M. Herszenhorn Photo: Ronny Hartmann/AFP via Getty Images
ZUGSPITZE, Germany — If they needed reminding about the urgency of climate change and their role in stopping it, all G7 leaders had to do was look up.
G7 leaders stare down energy and climate tug of war
By Andrew Freedman Photo: Gabriella Turrisi , Axios
State of play: In the bucolic Bavarian Alps, world leaders are wrestling with how to alleviate short-term worries about securing adequate energy supplies and lowering energy prices without tanking efforts to limit the severity of…
Canada banning single-use plastics to combat pollution, climate change
By Adela Suliman Photo: Mukhina1 , Getty Images
Canada will ban the manufacture and importation of “harmful” single-use plastics by the end of the year, the government said, in a sweeping effort to fight pollution and climate change.
Second Trump term would push warming past dangerous limit, warns UN climate chief
By Karl Mathiesen
Speaking to POLITICO on the sidelines of U.N. climate talks in Bonn, Patricia Espinosa was asked whether she believed a Trump return to the White House — or another Republican with similar climate policies —…
Thirty years of climate summits: where have they got us?
By Fiona Harvey Composite: Guardian
It has been 30 years since the Rio summit, when a global system was set up that would bring countries together on a regular basis to try to solve the climate crisis. Here are the…
Leaders made big climate promises. They’re struggling to follow through.
By Brady Dennis Photo: Christopher Furlong , Getty Images
Crippling heat waves have scorched India and Pakistan this spring, upending millions of lives. And yet, Russia’s devastating war in Ukraine has consumed the attention of numerous heads of state.
John Kerry says clean energy transition is the largest market the world has ever seen
By Catherene Clifford Photo: Anna Moneymaker , Getty Images
“This is the largest market the world has ever been staring at: the energy transition market,” said Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry on Thursday at the IV CEO Summit of the Americas.
How Bad Is the Global Food Crisis Going to Get?
By David Wallace-Wells Photo: Ibrahim Rayintakath
They were calling it a crisis even before the war began: more than 800 million people in a state of chronic hunger. But, as you may have heard, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia —…
A durable U.S. climate strategy … or a house of cards?
By Richard Richels, Benjamin Santer, Henry Jacoby, and Gary Yohe
We need to prepare to manage climate risks for decades, centuries ahead: How can we also manage inevitable shifting winds in priority setting?
Let’s Not Pretend Planting Trees Is a Permanent Climate Solution
By Zeke Hausfather Photo: Boniface Muthoni
Trees are our original carbon removal technology: Through photosynthesis, they pull carbon dioxide out of the air and store it. They have lately been touted as a climate savior, a way to rapidly reduce the…
KEY RESOURCES
International Programme for Action on Climate
11/02/21
The Annual Climate Action Monitor Helping Countries Advance Towards Net Zero
The Annual Climate Action Monitor
11/02/21
The Climate Action Monitor, part of the International Programme for Action of Climate (IPAC), provides a diagnostic policy framework for assessing country progress towards climate objectives. Its goal is to provide a digest of progress…
Tracking climate mitigation efforts in 30 major emitters
11/02/21
This report by NewClimate Institute, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and FTSE Russell tracks climate mitigation efforts in 30 countries and regions. Our analysis shows that emissions trends remain far from the goals…
Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Pledges by Selected Countries: Nationally Determined Contributions and Net-Zero Legislation
10/26/21
Human-related emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) have increased globally over time. These increasing emissions contribute to a changing climate, which is a concern for governments, organizations, and other stakeholders. Many governments are taking steps to…
UNITING THE WORLD TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE.
09/16/21
The COP26 summit will bring parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
Net Zero Emissions Legislation Around the World
09/01/21
This table shows the 39 jurisdictions around the world that the Law Library of Congress has identified as having a net zero emissions or climate neutrality goal enshrined in legislation. This includes the European Union…
A net zero climate-resilient future – science, technology and the solutions for change
04/08/21
This Statement has been created by the Science Academies of the Group of Seven (G7) nations. It represents the Academies view on the need for the G7 countries to anticipate the risks associated with climate…
OFF-SHORE WIND IN EUROPE
02/28/20
This report summarises construction and financing activity in European offshore wind farms from 1 January to 31 December 2018.
IPCC
01/31/19
The IPCC provides regular assessments of the scientific basis of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation. Created in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United…
MORE NEWS
Europe’s Russian Oil Ban Could Overhaul Global Energy Market
By Clifford Krauss Photo: An Rong Xu , The New York Times 06/01/22
The European Union’s embargo on most Russian oil imports could deliver a fresh jolt to the world economy, propelling a realignment of global energy trading that leaves Russia economically weaker, gives China and India bargaining…
Trump-era rollbacks left US behind peers in climate change fight: report
By Zak Budryk 06/01/22
For the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), researchers traced countries’ progress toward net-zero emissions, a goal nearly every nation has established. From 2010 to 2019, the U.S. ranked 20th out of 22 western democracies and 43rd…
Report: Denmark, U.K. on track for net-zero emissions by 2050 as U.S. lags
By Claire Parker Photo: Martin Meissner , AP 06/01/22
Denmark and the United Kingdom are among “only a handful of countries” on track to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, according to the ranking published Wednesday in a leading global environmental index. Botswana and Namibia…
How Putin Has Played His Energy Cards
By David Wallace-Wells Photo: Ibrahim Rayintakath 05/31/22
Almost as soon as the war in Ukraine began, in February, I found myself returning to an essay published online in Foreign Affairs in November. In “Green Upheaval,” Jason Bordoff and Meghan O’Sullivan predict that…
As China mines more coal, levels of a more potent greenhouse gas soar
By Christian Shepherd Photo: Qilai Shen , Bloomberg News 05/27/22
When China ramped up its reliance on coal-fueled power plants over fears of an energy crunch, climate experts were already worried, but now a study shows that the renewed mining will boost levels of methane,…
Key nations agree to halt funding for new fossil fuel projects
By Brady Dennis and Steven Mufson Photo: Wolfgang Rattay , Reuters 05/27/22
Top environmental ministers from the Group of Seven major industrial countries agreed Friday to end government financing for international coal-fired power generation and to accelerate the phasing out of unabated coal plants by the year…
The Planet-Saving, Money-Making Bogs of Scotland
By David Segal Photo: Catherine Hyland , New York Times 05/19/22
I’m David Segal, a reporter based in London. I flew to the Scottish Highlands to write about this totally stunning landscape.
EU rushes out $300 billion roadmap to ditch Russian energy
Photo: Yoshikazu Tsuno ,AP 05/18/22
The European Union’s executive arm moved Wednesday to jump-start plans for the 27-nation bloc to abandon Russian energy amid the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine, proposing a nearly 300 billion-euro ($315 billion) package that includes more…
Europe Rethinks Its Reliance on Burning Wood for Electricity
By Lois Parshley Photo: Miguel Riopa , Getty Images 05/17/22
A controversial European Union policy called the Renewable Energy Directive drove this transition by counting biomass — organic material like wood, burned as fuel — as renewable energy and subsidizing its use. A trans-Atlantic industry…
Floods, fires, coral bleaching: Politicians leading the country to climate catastrophe
By Christiana Figueres 05/13/22
There’s no gentle way to say this. Australia’s climate ambition has for years been well at the back of the pack globally. Since the unfortunate repeal of Australia’s last significant climate policy back in 2014,…
Do not use Ukraine war to defer climate goals, warns Mark Carney
By Kalyeena Makortoff Photo: Yui Mok , PA 05/11/22
The former Bank of England governor said he recognised the impact sanctions on Russia were having on global energy supplies and the cost of living, but added that governments could not afford to derail climate…
Putin has not wrecked Glasgow Climate Pact – John Kerry
By Glenn Campbell Photo: OLI SCARFF 05/10/22
Russia's invasion has "presented a challenge" in the battle against global warming but could be overcome, he said. Large reductions in carbon emissions are required if temperature rises are to be kept below 1.5C.
Brazil is gaslighting its way to a climate misinformation catastrophe
By Robert Muggah and Mac Margolis Photo: Andre Penner , AP 05/09/22
Brazilians know all about fake news. Digital hucksters have attacked the integrity of Brazil’s electronic voting system, baselessly accused adversaries of “teaching” homosexuality in the classroom and promoted faith-based covid-19 treatments, all with a nod…
Europe’s quest to replace Russian gas faces plenty of hurdles
By Clifford Krauss Photo: Jessica Lutz for The New York Times 05/06/22
Russia’s natural-gas supplies have become a tool of leverage in its conflict with Europe over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. And the stakes are high for Europe, which relies on Russia for 40 percent of…
Can Europe survive without Russian oil? Nuclear power may be key
By Joanna Gill 05/05/22
Christophe Collignon, mayor of Huy - whose skyline and history are dominated by the Tihange nuclear plant - said most people in the medieval city in eastern Belgium welcomed the decision to extend the ageing…
Record heat in India and Pakistan is a wake-up call
By Julia Kane Photo: XAVIER GALIANA / AFP via Getty Images 05/04/22
A record-shattering heat wave is devastating parts of India and Pakistan, putting more than a billion people at risk and unleashing a surge of related problems. For decades, experts have warned that climate change would…
European Union takes a leap with a Russian oil embargo
By Matina Stevis-Gridneff Photo: Nikolay Doychinov/Agence France-Presse 05/04/22
The ban, once seen as unlikely, is a significant tightening of the squeeze on Russia’s economy, and a financial blow to Europe, too.
The U.S. may soon export more gas to the EU, complicating climate goals
By Halle Parker 05/04/22
To help wean Europe off Russian gas, the Biden administration wants to increase U.S. natural gas exports. But critics say that's at odds with the president's climate and environmental justice goals.
War in Ukraine poses environmental risk now and in the future, advocates say
By Vanessa Montalbano Photo: Efrem Lukatsky , AP 04/19/22
Good morning! This is Vanessa Montalbano, the Climate 202 researcher, writing the top of the newsletter today. Below, a pipeline leak in Texas is estimated to have the same climate impact as the annual emissions…
‘I don’t see the evidence yet’ of stronger climate pledges, Kerry says
By Brady Dennis 04/19/22
President Biden’s top climate envoy on the need to act more urgently, the promise of innovation and why protecting the oceans matters.
Polar science threatens to crack under strain of Russia’s war in Ukraine
By Alison Snyder and Andrew Freedman Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios 04/07/22
Crucial scientific projects in the Arctic are in limbo — and their progress is under threat — as Russia becomes more isolated from the world for its invasion of Ukraine. Why it matters: These research…
The new IPCC report was delayed as scientists debated carbon capture
By Ciara Nugent Photo: Getty Images—Abstract Aerial Art 04/04/22
Cutting greenhouse gas emissions to prevent the worst of climate change would be relatively cheap and technologically feasible, but governments and financial bodies are failing to do so as they continue to prop up the…
Australian state utility picks Tesla batteries to back up renewable energy
By Reuters Photo: Tingshu Wang , Reuters 03/30/22
A state-owned utility in Australia has picked Tesla Inc's (TSLA.O) Megapack batteries for a A$150 million ($113 million) energy storage project to back up wind and solar power, the state government of Queensland said on…
Opinion: We’re in a fossil fuel war. Biden should say so.
By Farhad Manjoo Photo: Jessica Lutz for The New York Times 03/24/22
On one hand, it would seem uncontroversial to point out that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a war enabled and exacerbated by the world’s insatiable appetite for fossil fuels. It couldn’t not be so: Russia…
U.N. secretary general says global climate target ‘is on life support’
By Brady Dennis Photo: Alastair Grant/AP 03/21/22
‘The science is clear. So is the math,’ António Guterres said Monday, imploring world leaders to act with more urgency to cut the greenhouse gas pollution fueling climate change.
Nations Should Conserve Fuel as Global Energy Crisis Looms, Agency Warns
By Catrin Einhorn and Lisa Friedman Photo: Patrick T. Fallon , Getty Images 03/18/22
The war in Ukraine is setting into motion the first global energy crisis of its kind, and nations around the world should respond by reducing their use of oil and gas, the leader of a…
How the War in Ukraine Could Slow the Sales of Electric Cars
By Jack Ewing and Stephen Gandel Photo: Maxim Babenko , The New York Times 03/18/22
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has shaken the global market for nickel just as the metal gains importance as an ingredient in electric car batteries, raising fears that high prices could slow the transition away from…
It’s 70 degrees warmer than normal in eastern Antarctica
By Jason Samenow and Kasha Patel Photo: WeatherBell 03/18/22
‘This event is completely unprecedented and upended our expectations about the Antarctic climate system,’ one expert said
Beijing ‘doubling down on fossil fuels’; china’s co2 emissions increase; coal production growth
03/17/22
Chinese leaders are “doubling down on fossil fuels” amid “growing” fears of global energy shortages and “rising” concerns of an economic slump, according to Bloomberg. The news came after the Chinese government repeatedly underlined the…
As War Rages, a Struggle to Balance Energy Crunch and Climate Crisis
By Brad Plumer , Lisa Friedman and David Gelles Photo: Yevgeny Sofiychuk/Getty Images 03/10/22
As the world reels from spikes in oil and gas prices, the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has laid bare a dilemma: Nations remain extraordinarily dependent on fossil fuels and are struggling to shore…
US says $100 billion soon to help poor nations with climate
By Edith M. Lederer 03/10/22
U.S. climate envoy John Kerry said Wednesday he thinks rich countries can finally meet their pledge to provide $100 billion annually to help poor nations cope with climate change beginning this year — and will…
AP Source: Biden to ban Russian oil imports over Ukraine war
By Zeke Miller, Mike Balsamo, and Josh Boak Photo: AP Photo/Andrew Harnik 03/09/22
President Joe Biden has decided to ban Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia’s economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Americans largely support U.S. joining international efforts to address climate change
By Alison Spencer and Cary Funk 03/09/22
Three-quarters of Americans support the United States participating in international efforts to help reduce the effects of climate change, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey.
Swap Russian gas for renewables, EU tells member states
By Joe Lo Photo: Paul Langrock , Greenpeace 03/08/22
The EU is urging its 27 member states to use taxes on energy firms and polluters to fund a transition from Russian gas to clean energy sources for heating, cooking and electricity.
EU aims to slash Russian gas dependence by two-thirds this year
By Karl Mathiesen Photo: Sean Gallup/Getty Images 03/08/22
The EU can cut most of its reliance on Russian gas by the end of this year if governments implement a raft of emergency measures to be proposed by the European Commission on Tuesday.
Whatever His Motives, Putin’s War in Ukraine Is Fueled by Oil and Gas
By Marianne Lavelle Photo: Stringer , Getty Images 03/06/22
With a Russian military convoy advancing on her city of Kyiv, Ukraine’s leading climate scientist made an emotional plea at last week’s meeting of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Opinion: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine signals a new era of energy geopolitics
By the Editorial Board Photo: Michael Probst/AP 03/05/22
With his brutal invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has opened a new era in global politics — and laid bare the vulnerabilities of the post-Cold War international system. Among these vulnerabilities, dependence on…
Big Oil is exiting Russia. What does that mean for the climate?
By Emily Pontecorvo Photo: Stanislav Krasilnikov , Getty Images 03/03/22
Major international oil companies began dumping their investments in Russian oil and gas this week following the country’s invasion into Ukraine. But experts say it’s unlikely these decisions will mean anything good for the transition…
Bipartisan bill banning Russian oil sets up clash with White House
By Josh Siegel Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images 03/03/22
The White House said it does not “have a strategic interest in reducing the global supply of energy, and that would raise prices at the gas pump for the American people.”
A Ukrainian Climate Scientist is Uniquely Positioned to Explain the Real Threat to the Global Order
By Ciara Nugent Photo: Alexander Reka , Getty Images 03/01/22
Svitlana Krakovska, a Ukrainian meteorologist, was wary of speaking her mind. On Sunday, sitting next to her sons’ bunk beds in her Kyiv home, she joined a Zoom meeting of the International Governmental Panel on…
Q&A: What does Russia’s invasion of Ukraine mean for climate change?
By multiple authors Photo: Vuk Valcic / Alamy Stock Photo 02/25/22
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is inextricably linked to the global energy crisis. With wholesale gas prices already at extremely high levels, in part due to Russia’s actions, the attack on Ukraine has prompted widespread debate…
E.U. will unveil a strategy to break free from Russian gas, after decades of dependence
By Michael Birnbaum and Steven Mufson Photo: Audrey Rudakov , Bloomberg News 02/24/22
For years, Europe’s dependence on Russian energy has held it back from taking powerful action against Kremlin mischief. But now, the Russia-Ukraine conflict is forcing a change unlike any before, driving the European Union to…
Climate fears on back burner as fuel costs soar and Russia crisis deepens
By Patricia Cohen Photo: Alexey Malgavko/Reuters 02/23/22
Energy security has gained prominence while the conflict in Ukraine raises concerns over the possible interruption in the supply of oil and natural gas.
US envoy warns geopolitics risk hurting climate efforts
By Frank Jordans Photo: Tobias Hase , AP 02/19/22
Geopolitical tensions, including the current crisis between Russia and Ukraine, could hamper international efforts to curb global warming even as time to tackle the problem is running out, U.S. climate envoy John Kerry said Friday.
France Announces Major Nuclear Power Buildup
By Liz Alderman Photo: Jean-Francois Badias 02/11/22
President Emmanuel Macron announced a major buildup of France’s huge nuclear power program on Thursday, pledging to construct up to 14 new-generation reactors and a fleet of smaller nuclear plants as the country seeks to…
EU proposes rules to label some gas and nuclear investments as green
By Kate Abnett Photo: REUTERS/Yves Herman 02/02/22
Investments in some gas and nuclear power plants would be labelled as sustainable under rules proposed by European Commission on Wednesday, a plan that has split countries and investors, and which some lawmakers will attempt…
Lufthansa, Air France join forces against EU’s climate plans for aviation
By Ilona Wissenbach Photo: Reuters/Kai Pfaffenbach 01/24/22
An alliance of airlines and airports called for changes to the European Union's planned climate change legislation on Monday, arguing it will make them less competitive with non-European rivals.
EU advisers concerned about plan for green labels on gas, nuclear investments
By Simon Jessop and Kate Abnett Photo: Reuters/Yves Herman 01/18/22
Experts advising on the European Union's sustainable finance taxonomy are concerned a draft plan to include gas and nuclear relies too heavily on promises to make those fuels green in future, rather than assessing their…
Activists behind Shell climate verdict target 30 multinationals
By Anthony Deutsch and Simon Jessop 01/14/22
The Dutch wing of environmental group Friends of the Earth, which won a landmark court case against Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) last year, demanded 30 corporations publish plans for big cuts in greenhouse gas emissions…
World’s largest floating PV plant goes online in China
By Emiliano Bellini Photo: Huaneng Power International 01/03/22
Huaneng Power International has switched on a 320 MW floating PV array in China’s Shandong province. It deployed the plant in two phases on a reservoir near its 2.65 GW Dezhou thermal power station.