climate change

Climate Action: It’s time to make peace with nature, UN chief urges

The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has described the fight against the climate crisis as the top priority for the 21st Century, in a passionate, uncompromising speech delivered on Wednesday at Columbia University in New York.

The race to zero emissions, and why the world depends on it

A host of countries have recently announced major commitments to significantly cut their carbon emissions, promising to reach "net zero" in the coming years. The term is becoming a global rallying cry, frequently cited as a necessary step to successfully beat back climate change, and the devastation it is causing.

News in Brief 23 November 2020

  • CO2 levels hit new high despite COVID lockdowns 
  • Yemen inches towards famine: UNICEF 
  • Do more to protect Afghan civilians, Bachelet tells armed actors 
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A deep dive into Zero Hunger: farming the seas

With the world population expected to rise to 9.7 billion by 2050, food production will need to keep pace, and experts believe the Ocean can provide much of the sustenance we need. The second story in our two-part series on aquaculture focuses on the opportunities for significantly scaling up fish farming.

A deep dive into Zero Hunger: the seaweed revolution

If just two per cent of the Ocean were to be sustainably farmed, the world could easily be fed, according to experts. In the first story of a two-part series looking at the opportunities and challenges facing Ocean farming, we take a look at the huge potential role of seaweed in mitigating climate change, cutting marine pollution, and achieving the UN goal of Zero Hunger.

WHO’s Tedros says it is time for the world to heal, pushing back on ‘misguided nationalism’ 

World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told Member States on Monday that efforts to tackle climate change and poverty had been set back by a lack of global unity since major agreements were struck five years ago, and welcomed the chance to work with the presumptive new US administration of president-elect Joe Biden.

Africa climate change report reveals heat rising north and south, Sahel getting wetter

Africa needs to prepare better for climate change by responding to a wide range of potential risks, a multi-agency report led by the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Monday, the first in a series of continent-by-continent assessments.

Climate action: UN chief encouraged by Japan’s 2050 net zero pledge 

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has welcomed Japan’s announcement on Monday that it would reduce carbon emissions to zero, by 2050, as part of the global effort to slow the worldwide rise in temperatures, and prevent the most damaging effects of human-made climate change. 

News in Brief 21 October 2020

  • UN chief calls for end to reported police brutality in Nigeria 
  • UN urges people to #PledgetoPause before sharing online 
  • Mediterranean facing irreversible damage, unless urgent action is taken 
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2'19"

‘Staggering’ rise in climate emergencies in last 20 years, new disaster research shows

The first 20 years of this century have seen a “staggering” rise in climate disasters, UN researchers said on Monday, while also maintaining that “almost all nations” have failed to prevent a “wave of death and illness” caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.