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ising geopolitical tensions and disruptions to global energy supplies have strengthened international momentum behind renewable energy and climate action ahead of the COP31 United Nations climate conference, according to the UN’s top official in Türkiye.

Babatunde Ahonsi told Anadolu that recent instability, including tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, has exposed the vulnerability of an energy system heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels and reinforced the need to accelerate the transition to renewable energy sources.

“An energy system that is dependent on fossil fuel, and especially imported fossil fuel, has really sharpened minds and redoubled the commitment to accelerate movement towards renewable energies,” Ahonsi said.

His comments come as Türkiye prepares to host and preside over COP31 in the Mediterranean city of Antalya this November.

COP31 expected to focus on implementation and accountability

Ahonsi said the conference could mark an important shift in global climate diplomacy, moving discussions beyond negotiations and toward measuring countries’ progress on their climate commitments.

According to the UN official, previous climate summits achieved major milestones, including the Paris Agreement and subsequent commitments to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

He noted that COP28 helped establish a broader international consensus on energy transition, while COP29 focused heavily on climate finance.

Now, Ahonsi believes COP31 should emphasize accountability.

“This is the COP at which we will have to transition from negotiations to verification,” he said, arguing that countries’ climate pledges should be increasingly measured, tracked, and independently assessed.

He added that global climate action has moved beyond scientific debate and now requires rapid implementation of proven solutions.

“We are no longer talking about the science. Now is the time to accelerate implementation,” he said.

Türkiye positioned as a bridge between regions

Ahonsi said Türkiye’s geographic and diplomatic position could help facilitate consensus among countries with differing priorities.

He described the country as a bridge between East and West, North and South, connecting Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. He also pointed to Türkiye’s recent role in mediating international disputes as an asset in climate negotiations.

The UN official praised the leadership of Murat Kurum, who will serve as president of COP31, and said building trust among nations would be essential to achieving meaningful outcomes.

“Without trust, you cannot really have progress in terms of multilateral climate action,” Ahonsi said.

He also highlighted the significance of hosting the conference in the Mediterranean region, which scientists consider one of the world’s climate hotspots. The region is warming faster than the global average and faces increasing risks from heatwaves, droughts, wildfires, and water shortages.

Africa’s role in global climate action

Ahonsi emphasized that Africa will remain a major focus of climate discussions, noting that the continent contributes relatively little to global greenhouse gas emissions while experiencing some of the most severe climate impacts.

He called for greater climate finance and technology transfers to developing countries, arguing that previous international commitments must now be translated into concrete action.

At the same time, Ahonsi stressed that Africa should not be viewed merely as a vulnerable region requiring assistance.

Instead, he described the continent as a vital partner in addressing climate change, citing its young population and growing capacity for innovation and adaptation.

“Africa should not be viewed as some vulnerable region that requires handouts,” he said. “It has to be about partnership.”

As governments prepare for COP31, energy security concerns, climate finance, renewable energy investment, and implementation of existing climate pledges are expected to dominate discussions, with the conference seen as a critical opportunity to accelerate global efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and address the growing impacts of climate change.

(Source: Anadolu Agency)

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he year 2025 ranked among the warmest on record globally, despite a shift toward neutral or weak La Niña conditions that typically moderate global temperatures, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Global temperatures in 2025 were recorded as the second- or third-warmest ever, following the record-setting heat of 2024. Scientists said the trend underscores the growing dominance of human-caused climate change driven by greenhouse gas emissions, with natural cooling cycles no longer sufficient to offset rising baseline temperatures.

The WMO warned that temperatures over the next five years are likely to remain at or near record levels. Its latest outlook shows an 80% chance that at least one year will surpass the current warmest year on record and a 70% chance that the five-year average will temporarily exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

Deadly summer heatwaves

Extreme heat during the summer of 2025 caused widespread health impacts across multiple regions, with July ranking as the third-warmest month on record globally.

Europe experienced its fourth-warmest summer, with particularly intense heat in western and southern regions. Land surface temperature anomalies reached up to 6°C above average in parts of northeastern Spain, southwestern France, the Balkans and Fennoscandia.

The UK recorded its hottest June on record in England and the second-warmest nationwide since records began in 1884, while the Netherlands experienced its second-hottest June since 1901. Spain endured its most intense heatwave on record in August, according to national meteorological authorities.

Scandinavian countries including Finland, Denmark, Sweden and Norway also saw prolonged heatwaves in July.

A study by Imperial College London and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine estimated approximately 24,400 heat-related deaths across 854 European cities between June and August. About 68% of those deaths were attributed to climate change, with older populations particularly vulnerable.

Extreme heat across Asia and North America

Large parts of Asia were affected by extreme heat in 2025. Japan recorded one of its hottest Junes since 1898, while South Korea reported record daily temperature averages in late June.

India issued red heat alerts in New Delhi amid extended heat conditions, while temperatures in parts of Pakistan’s Punjab province reached around 50°C. Iran temporarily closed public institutions in 18 provinces to manage soaring energy demand driven by widespread cooling use.

In North America, the US experienced severe heatwaves, including a major June heat dome that exposed more than 255 million people to extreme temperatures. Readings frequently exceeded 38°C across large portions of the country.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said extreme heat remained the leading weather-related cause of death, with preliminary 2025 data confirming at least 150 heat-related fatalities nationwide.

Droughts and water stress intensify

Extreme heat also intensified drought conditions in many regions by accelerating evaporation rates. Iran faced one of its most severe water crises on record, with Lake Urmia shrinking dramatically and dam levels in major cities falling to critically low levels.

Drought conditions also affected Syria, parts of Africa and South Korea, where the city of Gangneung was declared a disaster zone following record-low rainfall.

The WMO warned that global water cycles are becoming increasingly erratic, marked by sharp swings between floods and droughts. UN Water estimates that 3.6 billion people currently face water shortages for at least one month each year, a figure projected to exceed 5 billion by 2050.

Events in 2025 highlighted the accelerating risks posed by climate change, as heatwaves, droughts and related crises grow more frequent, more severe and more disruptive worldwide.

(Source: Anadolu Agency)

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n the banks of the Guama River, where the dense emerald canopy of the Amazon brushes against the bustling streets of Belem, Brazil is testing an ambitious economic model that aims to link prosperity with preservation. As the city prepares to host the COP30 climate summit next year, officials in the state of Pará are racing to demonstrate that the rainforest can generate wealth without being cut down.

At the center of this effort is a new state-backed initiative that turns forest products—acai, Brazil nuts, cacao, indigenous herbs, and more—into high-value goods for global markets. Rather than relying on cattle ranching, mining, or other extractive industries that fuel deforestation, Pará’s government is betting on a “living forest” economy powered by research, innovation, and traditional knowledge.

“Our intention is for Pará to turn its forest assets into a new strategic sector that transforms our biodiversity into a new economy,” Governor Helder Barbalho told Reuters. “This will help us reduce dependence on greenhouse gas–emitting industries in favor of low-emission economies that value the living forest.”

A new bioeconomy hub

In October, state officials opened the 300 million-real ($56 million) Bioeconomy and Innovation Park, a sprawling research and production center situated down the river from Belem’s iconic Ver-o-Peso market. The facility features 6,000 square meters of warehouse space, laboratories, and equipment designed for entrepreneurs to experiment with new forest-based goods—from gourmet foods to natural oils and fragrances.

Local chef Leonardo Souza was among the first innovators to make use of the park’s facilities. By scaling production of his artisanal Amazon herb–infused salt from just 60 jars a day to nearly 1,000, he says he is now able to support four times as many families collecting herbs in the forest. “We worked with 42 families supplying herbs. Now it will be around 200,” he said.

This emerging economy builds on fertile ground. A joint 2019 study by the Inter-American Development Bank, The Nature Conservancy, and cosmetics giant Natura found that Pará’s forest product value chains already generate 4.24 billion reais annually—nearly equal to revenues from livestock grazing, long one of the region’s economic pillars.

Acai’s global boom

Among the most successful products is acai, the antioxidant-rich purple berry whose global popularity continues to surge. Market projections from Brazil’s government estimate the acai sector will grow from $1.23 billion in 2024 to more than $3 billion by 2032.

“Income for acai producers is very good because prices have risen significantly,” said Damien Binois, founder of NOSSA! AÇAÍ. The French entrepreneur, who first tasted acai in 2012, now exports to Europe, works with 150 local producers, and plans to build a large processing plant that could employ 200 people by 2030.

Innovation meets tradition

Other initiatives blend modern production with long-standing Amazonian expertise. The NGO Amazonia Agroflorestal helps farmers cultivate shade-grown coffee while reforesting land previously cleared along the Trans-Amazonian highway. The group’s director, Sarah Sampaio, is now using the state’s new labs to develop packaging and premium blends for domestic and international markets.

At the Ver-o-Peso market, which has served as a hub for forest products since 1901, indigenous knowledge remains central. Vendors like 72-year-old Bete Cheirosinha—who sells herbs and tinctures passed down through five generations—embody the deep cultural roots of the bioeconomy. “There are more than a thousand types of herbs,” she said. “Each curing a problem.”

For many local families, the value of Amazon goods goes beyond economics. “We awaken memories,” said Allison Charles, who sells cassava flour with his mother. “That’s rewarding.”

As COP30 approaches, Belem is positioning itself as proof that forest conservation and economic opportunity can reinforce each other. Whether this bioeconomy model can scale fast enough to compete with powerful extractive industries remains an open question. But for now, Brazil hopes its experiment will offer a blueprint not just for the Amazon—but for climate policy worldwide.

(Source: Reuters)

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razilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva opened the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) on Monday in the Amazonian city of Belém with a fiery call to action, urging world leaders to “defeat” climate crisis deniers and prioritize investment in the planet over military spending.

In his keynote address at the first plenary session, Lula warned that global efforts to address the climate emergency were being sabotaged by a “new wave of obscurantism” — movements and leaders who reject science, spread misinformation, and undermine multilateral cooperation.

“In the age of misinformation, obscurantists reject not only scientific evidence but also the advances of multilateralism,” Lula declared. “They control algorithms, sow hatred, and spread fear. They attack institutions, science, and universities. It is time to inflict a new defeat on the deniers.”

His remarks marked one of the strongest public condemnations yet by a sitting world leader of climate change denial and digital disinformation. They also set the tone for what promises to be a tense conference, with many major world powers — including the United States, China, and India — notably absent from the opening session.

A rallying cry from the Amazon

The COP30 summit is being held in Belém, deep in the Amazon basin, for the first time in the history of UN climate talks. The location is symbolic: the Amazon rainforest, often described as the “lungs of the planet,” plays a crucial role in absorbing carbon dioxide but is under severe threat from deforestation, mining, and agricultural expansion.

Lula, who has made environmental protection a central plank of his presidency, framed the Amazon as a frontline in the global battle against climate collapse. He described holding the summit there as both a “celebration of hope” and a “call to conscience.”

“Belém stands in the heart of the forest that sustains our planet,” he said. “But half its population lacks basic sanitation, a stark reminder that climate justice and social justice are inseparable.”

Since returning to office in 2023, Lula’s administration has reversed many of the environmental deregulations enacted under his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, and dramatically reduced deforestation rates. Still, environmentalists say global coordination remains insufficient to meet the Paris Agreement goals.

Condemning military spending

In one of the speech’s most pointed moments, Lula condemned the rising global defense budgets — particularly in the United States and Europe — calling them a moral failure in the face of the escalating climate crisis.

“If the men who wage war were at COP30,” he said, “they would realize it is much cheaper to spend $1.3 trillion a year to end the climate problem than $2.7 trillion to wage war, as they did last year.”

He accused world powers of “arming themselves against imaginary enemies” while ignoring the real threat posed by climate change.

“Every missile built is a wind turbine that was never installed,” he said to applause. “Every tank produced is a school that was never built, a river that was never cleaned, a forest that was never protected.”

Lula’s comments echoed the long-standing demands of developing nations for wealthier countries to contribute more to global climate finance. The 2015 Paris Agreement called for at least $100 billion per year in aid from industrialized nations to support developing countries in reducing emissions and adapting to climate impacts — a goal that has repeatedly been missed.

Pushing for ambitious commitments

Lula urged negotiators at COP30 to recommit to the Paris Agreement’s target of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Scientists warn that the planet is already on track to exceed that threshold within the next decade unless emissions are drastically reduced.

“The clock is ticking louder than ever,” Lula warned. “We cannot negotiate with physics or plead with the atmosphere. Every delay, every broken promise, pushes us closer to irreversible damage.”

He also called for a fairer system of global environmental governance, arguing that current models often penalize poorer nations while allowing major polluters to continue emitting.

“Developing nations should not be forced to choose between growth and survival,” he said. “We need a new financial architecture that rewards conservation, not destruction.”

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he United Nations warned on October 28, 2025, that the pace of global climate action remains far too slow to prevent dangerous levels of warming, urging governments to significantly accelerate their emissions cuts ahead of next year’s COP30 summit. The warning came as the UN released its latest Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) Synthesis Report, an overview of the climate plans countries have formally submitted under the Paris Agreement.

UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell said there are encouraging signs that governments are strengthening their climate strategies, broadening their targets across entire economies and taking adaptation more seriously. But he cautioned that the scale of the current crisis far exceeds the scale of the response, and that the window for limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C is rapidly narrowing.

Stiell told governments that the world is “clearly bending the emissions curve downward for the first time,” pointing to new analyses that suggest global emissions could fall by about 10% by 2035 when taking into account newer pledges announced after the September reporting deadline.

However, he emphasized that such progress, while notable compared to earlier years, is nowhere near large or fast enough. He described the gap between commitments and implementation as “a serious risk to climate stability,” and said the upcoming round of negotiations must move from abstract pledges to real-world delivery. “The direction of travel is improving every year, but we urgently need more speed,” he said. “The Paris Agreement is delivering real progress, but it must work much faster and much fairer than it does today.”

One third of global emissions

The NDC Synthesis Report reflects climate plans from countries representing only around one third of global emissions, meaning the dataset is still highly incomplete. For that reason, the UN carried out supplementary calculations that take into account newer NDC announcements — including several unveiled at the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Summit in New York last month.

These updated figures suggest momentum is growing, but the UN stresses that momentum still lacks sufficient scale to change the global trajectory of warming. Analysts say that without deeper and earlier emissions cuts, the planet is on track for increasingly severe losses: more frequent and extreme storms, heatwaves, floods, and droughts, as well as growing economic volatility and infrastructure damage.

Despite its warnings, the UN highlighted several areas of improvement. A higher share of countries than ever are now taking a whole-of-economy approach to climate planning, with 89% of submitted NDCs containing broad, economy-wide targets rather than narrower sectoral pledges. Nearly three quarters of plans now include adaptation or resilience components, signaling that governments are beginning to recognize that climate policy is not only about cutting emissions but also protecting societies from inevitable impacts that are already intensifying.

The growing integration of loss and damage elements

Stiell said one of the most notable developments is the growing integration of loss and damage elements — particularly among small island developing states and climate-vulnerable nations — a sign that countries on the front lines of climate disruption are demanding stronger recognition of the irreversible harm they face.

The UN also reported new evidence that the Paris Agreement’s “ratchet” mechanism – designed to steadily increase ambition every five years – is working, at least procedurally. Roughly 88% of countries said their latest NDC was informed by the outcomes of the Global Stocktake concluded at COP28 last year, suggesting that international peer review is influencing domestic policy choices.

However, experts note that stronger plans still do not necessarily translate into stronger action, particularly in economies that lack financing or institutional capacity to implement them. This is especially relevant for developing countries, which continue to face high borrowing costs, growing climate-linked economic shocks, and insufficient levels of international assistance.

Stiell argued that the world is now approaching what he described as a “positive economic tipping point,” driven by surging investment in clean energy technologies. Renewable power generation surpassed coal as the world’s largest energy source this year, a symbolic milestone that UN officials say demonstrates how the energy transition is beginning to reshape global markets.

The Executive Secretary said the boom in clean energy investment shows that climate action is no longer purely a moral obligation but a clear economic opportunity — one that could generate millions of jobs and unlock trillions of dollars in new investments, particularly in rapidly growing developing economies.

A fair or equitable transition?

Still, Stiell warned that market forces alone will not deliver a fair or equitable transition. Many of the countries most in need of climate adaptation or energy system upgrades are also those with the smallest fiscal space to finance them. “An equitable global transition requires clear policies and more support for many nations, especially those who did least to cause this crisis,” he said. Without such support, the UN fears that existing inequities in climate impacts will become entrenched, widening the gap between industrialized economies and developing states, particularly in Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia.

The UN framed COP30, which Brazil will host next year, as a decisive moment for closing these gaps. Stiell said governments must arrive prepared to send a strong signal that they remain committed to multilateral cooperation, even as geopolitical competition intensifies.

He set three priorities for the year ahead: reaffirm global cooperation, accelerate implementation across every sector and region, and ensure that climate action is visibly connected to people’s everyday lives, from jobs and health to energy costs and food security. “We are still in the race,” he said, “but to ensure a livable planet for all eight billion people, we must urgently pick up the pace — at COP30 and every year thereafter.”

(Source: UN)

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he world is facing a deeper climate crisis than ever before. Temperature records, severe droughts, and extreme weather conditions are now topics of discussion among economists, engineers, health professionals, and security experts. For some time, the United Nations has been seeking solutions to this global threat through climate diplomacy. In 2015, the Paris Climate Agreement was signed, representing the most concrete and comprehensive step in these efforts, with the goal of keeping global temperature increases within the 1.5–2°C range. The agreement envisions a collaborative effort based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, considering countries’ historical emissions and levels of development.

In recent times, Turkey has become one of the countries more actively involved in this global struggle. By ratifying the Paris Agreement on October 6, 2021, and formally joining the process, Turkey has ushered in a new era of climate action. With the Climate Law adopted last July, Turkey’s vision for combating climate change is set out for the first time within a national legal framework. The large-scale forest fires that Turkey experienced this summer have highlighted the tangible effects of the climate crisis and underscored the vital importance of the Climate Law. Following the forest fires of this summer, the law provides a historic opportunity to swiftly implement technological firefighting investments, artificial intelligence–supported early warning systems, and ecosystem restoration.

This article will examine the law within the context of the Paris Agreement and international climate policies. Our goal is to explain the meaning and opportunities of this legal regulation without getting bogged down in technical details.

A powerful opportunity?

Throughout history, our ancient civilization has regarded the land as a trust, water as a blessing, and trees as a source of shade and sustenance. Islam’s commandment to not waste food or water has been brought to life through the Seljuk waqf waterways, Ottoman birdhouses, village fountains, and orchards. Living in harmony with nature has been accepted as a way of life and a moral responsibility. This understanding has taught us that it is our sacred duty to not upset the climate’s balance, to regard the earth and sky as a trust, and to leave a clean earth for future generations. Turkey’s criteria for joining the Paris Agreement also reflect this ancient approach, and today’s modern climate policies are rooted in this understanding.

Today, fires, droughts, and floods triggered by the climate crisis are testing business ethics and market order. The production approach that encourages unlimited consumption habits and recklessly exploits natural resources for short-term profit also jeopardizes economic stability. These misguided choices cause price increases and disrupt the balance of nature. Thus, the climate issue has become an indicator of the deep connection between ethics and economics, and is no longer merely an environmental problem.

On October 6, 2021, Turkey officially joined the global climate agreement by ratifying the Paris Agreement in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey with Law No. 7335. During the ratification process, Turkey declared its intention to join the agreement as a “developing country,” thereby formalizing its long-standing position. While Turkey’s official status with the United Nations remains unchanged, this declaration clearly demonstrates its intention to benefit from the climate finance and technology transfer opportunities intended for developing countries.

No more talk, it’s time for action

Turkey has long prioritized addressing climate change. Although calls for action have grown louder in the wake of disasters, the issue has often fallen off the public agenda. Passed by the Turkish Grand National Assembly on July 2, 2025, and published in the Official Gazette on July 9, 2025, the Climate Law is a regulation that breaks this vicious cycle.

The Climate Law presents a vision that transcends environmental policy. It aims to protect natural resources, ensure that economic development is compatible with the principle of sustainability, and reduce disaster risks. By doing so, Turkey has established its national commitment to the global climate struggle within a concrete, applicable, and measurable framework.

What does the 2025 Climate Law bring?

It is a law that prioritizes the environment and people

This summer, Turkey experienced the severe effects of the climate crisis. In Izmir, for example, the capacity of the dams fell below five percent, prompting municipalities to implement mandatory nighttime water cuts. A total of 3,067 fires damaged forests and villages. Drought in Central Anatolia reduced wheat cultivation by half.

The concrete steps to be taken in this regard can be summarized as follows:

Forest areas burned in villages will be reforested quickly after the fires, and affected families will receive support to rebuild their livelihoods.

Early warning systems will be installed in high-risk fire areas, and a drone- and artificial intelligence-supported surveillance network will be deployed to combat fires.

Drip irrigation systems will be installed for farmers affected by drought, and drought-resistant seeds will be provided.

Rainwater harvesting and gray water recycling systems will be implemented in areas experiencing water shortages.

All state institutions are involved

A stronger Climate Change Presidency is at the forefront. However, the presidency will not act alone. All ministries and institutions must prepare annual plans and submit reports to fulfill their responsibilities in climate change mitigation and adaptation.

The concrete steps that will be implemented in this context can be summarized as follows:

• The Climate Change Presidency will coordinate the process.

The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources will manage the transition away from coal and toward investments in renewable energy.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry will carry out projects to combat drought and restore ecosystems after fires.

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure will implement low-carbon transportation projects.

The Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change will initiate projects to increase green spaces and building energy efficiency in cities.

• AFAD will implement early warning and rapid response systems for disasters such as floods and fires.

Every Sector Has a Role to Play

Each sector, including energy, industry, agriculture, and transportation, will play its part. These sectors will develop habits that promote the use of renewable energy, reduce waste, and encourage more efficient consumption.

The concrete steps to be taken in this regard can be summarized as follows:

In the construction sector, zero-energy building standards will be mandatory for new buildings, and thermal insulation and passive energy systems will be implemented.

In logistics, freight transport will shift to railways, and electric cranes and equipment will be introduced in ports.

In waste management, biogas plants that convert organic waste into energy will be established, and plastic recycling will increase with mandatory quotas.

In urban planning, construction will be restricted in areas at high risk of flooding, and rainwater harvesting and green roofs will be required.

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he world’s water cycle is becoming more unstable, swinging between devastating droughts and destructive floods, according to the State of Global Water Resources 2024 report released today by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

The report highlights that only about one-third of global river basins experienced “normal” conditions last year, marking the sixth year in a row of widespread imbalance. Severe droughts gripped the Amazon Basin, southern Africa, and northern South America, while parts of Africa, Central Europe, and Asia endured unusually wet conditions.

“Water sustains our societies, powers our economies and anchors our ecosystems. And yet the world’s water resources are under growing pressure,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo. “At the same time, more extreme water-related hazards are having an increasing impact on lives and livelihoods.”

The study links these extremes to a combination of climate change and the year’s record-breaking El Niño, which disrupted rainfall across continents. Europe faced its worst flooding since 2013, while Africa’s tropical zone saw heavy rains that killed 2,500 people and displaced 4 million. In Brazil, catastrophic floods in the south coincided with ongoing drought in the Amazon, affecting nearly 60% of the country.

450 gigatons of ice lost in 2024

Glaciers also continued to shrink at alarming rates, losing an estimated 450 gigatons of ice in 2024—the third consecutive year of widespread loss. This annual melt, equivalent to filling 180 million Olympic swimming pools, added about 1.2 millimeters to global sea levels, heightening risks for coastal communities.

Groundwater levels showed similar instability, with just 38% of wells worldwide recording normal conditions. Over-extraction and persistent drought further strained supplies in regions like Africa, the Americas, and Australia.

The WMO warned that nearly 3.6 billion people already face water scarcity at least one month a year, a figure projected to rise to over 5 billion by 2050. Saulo called for urgent investment in monitoring, data-sharing, and cooperation: “Reliable, science-based information is more important than ever before because we cannot manage what we do not measure. Without data, we risk flying blind.”

The annual report, based on satellite observations, hydrological modeling, and contributions from WMO members, aims to provide decision-makers with authoritative insights into global freshwater trends. It is part of the UN agency’s broader effort to strengthen water security and resilience in the face of mounting climate risks.

Water resources are under growing pressure

“Water sustains our societies, powers our economies, and anchors our ecosystems. And yet the world’s water resources are under growing pressure, and—at the same time—more extreme water-related hazards are having an increasing impact on lives and livelihoods,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

The report highlights escalating pressure on freshwater sources as climate change intensifies, with only one-third of river basins worldwide experiencing “normal” conditions last year — the sixth consecutive year of imbalance.

The Amazon Basin and southern Africa endured severe drought, while central and eastern Africa, Central Europe, and parts of Asia were hit with unusually heavy rainfall. Extreme weather events took a devastating toll:

Africa’s tropical zone floods killed 2,500 people and displaced 4 million, Europe saw its worst flooding since 2013, and Brazil suffered both catastrophic floods in the south and a prolonged Amazon drought affecting nearly 60% of its territory.

Saulo stressed the urgency of closing monitoring gaps: “Reliable, science-based information is more important than ever before because we cannot manage what we do not measure. Continued investment and enhanced collaboration in data sharing are vital. Without data, we risk flying blind.”

The WMO urged governments to invest in monitoring systems and adopt integrated water management strategies, warning that worsening instability in the water cycle poses a growing threat to global health, food security, and economic stability.

(Source: WMO)

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orest fires are burning more trees and covering more territory than ever recorded, with new satellite data confirming a doubling of fire-related forest loss over the past two decades.

Researchers at the University of Maryland, using Landsat imagery from 2001 to 2024, found that more than 13.5 million hectares of forest were destroyed by stand-replacing fires last year — an area roughly the size of Greece. That surpassed the previous record, set just a year earlier, by 13%. Fires in 2024 were unique for their global reach, ravaging both boreal and tropical forests on an unprecedented scale.

South America saw extreme destruction, with Brazil and Bolivia among the worst affected. Together, South American fires accounted for about one-quarter of the planet’s total fire-related tree loss. Boreal regions such as Russia and Canada endured some of their most severe fire seasons since satellite records began.

The environmental, economic and human toll is staggering. Beyond destroying homes and infrastructure, wildfires pollute water supplies, cause billions of dollars in property damage, and produce smoke linked to more than 1.5 million deaths annually.

Climate feedback loop

Climate change is fueling the rise in fire intensity. Hotter, drier conditions make forests more flammable, while the fires themselves release enormous amounts of carbon, accelerating global warming in a vicious “fire-climate feedback loop.” This self-reinforcing cycle is particularly visible in boreal forests, which store up to 40% of the Earth’s land-based carbon, much of it locked in permafrost.

From 2001 to 2024, over 60% of fire-related forest loss occurred in boreal zones, with the burned area there increasing by roughly 160,000 hectares per year. Russia endured three of its worst fire seasons on record between 2020 and 2024, while Canada’s 2023 blazes destroyed nearly 7.8 million hectares of forest — six times its annual average.

Severe fires in boreal regions threaten to transform their ecology, replacing conifer species like black spruce with deciduous trees and in some cases preventing regrowth altogether. Scientists warn this could flip boreal forests from a carbon sink to a net carbon source.

Tropical forests under fire

In tropical regions — where wildfires were once rare — destruction is climbing sharply. Fire-related tree loss in the tropics has risen by about 47,000 hectares per year since 2001, peaking in 2024 with more than 4 million hectares lost, most of it in primary rainforests.

For the first time, fires overtook agriculture as the main driver of forest loss in parts of the Amazon and Congo Basin. The 2024 El Niño intensified the disaster by creating hotter and drier conditions across much of the tropics. Almost all tropical fires are human-ignited, often as part of land clearing for agriculture, but climate-driven drought allows them to spread uncontrollably.

Bolivia, Peru and Brazil all experienced their worst or second-worst fire seasons on record in 2024, with Bolivia’s forest losses more than doubling the previous high set in 2019.

Temperate regions not immune

Though temperate and subtropical forests historically burn less, some are now experiencing worsening fire activity. Temperate forests — in parts of the U.S., Europe, and East Asia — are losing about 23,000 additional hectares to fire each year. The Mediterranean basin has seen major increases linked to heatwaves and drought, with Spain recording over 70,000 hectares burned in 2022.

Urban expansion into forested areas is increasing fire danger in countries such as the United States. The spread of “wildland-urban interfaces” — where homes and vegetation intermingle — has contributed to costly and deadly fires, including California’s Mosquito Fire in 2022 and the catastrophic Los Angeles blazes of early 2025.

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n a devastating development, West Sumatra, Indonesia, witnessed catastrophic flash floods and landslides, leaving a trail of destruction and loss in their wake. As torrential rains pounded the region, roads transformed into raging rivers, homes were swept away, and the landscape was marred by mud and debris. Tragically, lives were lost as bodies were recovered amidst the chaos.

Government officials were quick to attribute the calamity to heavy rainfall, yet environmental groups were equally swift to highlight the role of deforestation and environmental degradation in exacerbating the severity of the disasters. The Indonesian Forum for the Environment, an environmental rights group, underscored the ecological crisis as a contributing factor, cautioning against the continued neglect of environmental concerns.

Indonesia, a vast tropical archipelago boasting the world’s third-largest rainforest, has long been grappling with the consequences of deforestation and habitat destruction. Environmentalists have repeatedly sounded the alarm, pointing to the detrimental effects on biodiversity, ecosystems, and local communities dependent on forest resources.

Unsustainable land-use practices

The root of the issue lies in decades of unsustainable land-use practices driven by the pursuit of economic gains. Since 1950, vast swathes of Indonesian rainforest, equivalent to an area twice the size of Germany, have been lost to logging, fires, and development projects, including palm oil plantations and mining activities.

Moreover, Indonesia’s status as one of the largest global emitters of greenhouse gases underscores the environmental toll of its activities. Deforestation, coupled with fossil fuel emissions and peatland fires, has contributed significantly to the country’s carbon footprint and heightened vulnerability to climate change impacts.

Despite some progress, such as a temporary freeze on new permits for palm oil plantations in 2018, the pace of deforestation shows no signs of abating. New mining and infrastructure projects continue to encroach on forested areas, further exacerbating the environmental crisis.

Maintaining biodiversity

In the aftermath of the recent disasters, calls for action have grown louder. Experts emphasize the pivotal role of forests in mitigating the impacts of extreme weather events, highlighting their ability to regulate water flow, prevent soil erosion, and maintain biodiversity. However, these crucial ecosystem services are compromised as forests diminish in size and health.

Moving forward, concerted efforts are needed to address the underlying drivers of deforestation and environmental degradation. Sustainable land-use practices, strengthened environmental regulations, and community-led conservation initiatives offer promising avenues for mitigating the impacts of deforestation and safeguarding Indonesia’s natural heritage for future generations.

As the nation grapples with the aftermath of yet another environmental catastrophe, the imperative for action grows ever clearer. Only through collaborative and decisive measures can Indonesia confront the dual challenges of environmental degradation and climate change, ensuring a sustainable and resilient future for all.

Source: The Associated Press

Leading climate scientists are issuing a stark warning that 2024 is on track to become another record-breaking year for global temperatures. This prediction comes amid the compounding effects of the El Nino weather phenomenon and the ongoing rise in global emissions intensifying climate change.

Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service, told Anadolu Agency that the world is entering “uncharted territory” with climate change manifesting in real-time. The year 2023 has already been marked by record-breaking temperatures each month since July, making it the warmest year on record. Buontempo emphasized that such unprecedented ocean and atmospheric temperatures haven’t been observed in thousands of years.

Sarah Kapnick, chief scientist at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), confirmed that 2023 is poised to be the hottest year on record. She attributes this to marine heatwaves and the development of El Nino, which typically peaks in winter and contributes to a global temperature rise.

El Nino

El Nino, first observed by South American fishermen in the 1600s, influences weather significantly as warmer waters in the Pacific Ocean affect the jet stream’s position. This phenomenon leads to dryer and warmer conditions in the northern US and Canada and wetter conditions with increased flooding in the US Gulf Coast and Southeast regions.

Both scientists agree that global mean temperature peaks usually follow El Nino waves, and with the current trend, 2024 is expected to witness even higher temperatures. This could result in more heatwaves and other extreme climate events.

The scientific community is also debating how climate change-related global warming might be altering El Nino patterns. While definitive conclusions are constrained due to limited data, it’s clear that El Nino now occurs against the backdrop of a fundamentally altered climate.

Increasing global temperatures

The increasing global temperatures bring about more frequent and intense extreme weather events, such as heatwaves, droughts, and floods. The IPCC warns that heatwaves are rising due to climate change, posing significant risks for more intense and prolonged droughts.

As the world witnesses the tangible impacts of climate change, Kapnick warns that these effects will only intensify with delayed emissions cuts. The IPCC has stated that emissions need to be cut by at least 43% by 2030 and 60% by 2035 compared to 2019 levels. However, a recent UN Environment Program report revealed an increase in global greenhouse gas emissions, reaching a new high.

Buontempo and Kapnick stress that the key to mitigating these changes lies in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and moving towards net-zero. The continuing rise in temperatures and extreme weather events serve as a reminder of the urgent need for global action to address climate change.

Source: Anadolu Agency

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n a landmark decision at the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) held in the United Arab Emirates, 118 countries have made a bold commitment to triple their global renewable energy capacity by the year 2030. The announcement, which also includes a pledge to double progress in energy efficiency, marks a significant step forward in the global decarbonization effort.

The Global Acceleration for Decarbonization initiative, unveiled at the conference in Dubai, has garnered the support of a diverse group of nations, including the UAE, the United States, Brazil, Japan, the United Kingdom, and many others across Europe and Africa.

However, the commitment has notable absences, with Turkey, China, India, and South Africa—key players in global energy markets—yet to sign the pledge. This hesitance comes amidst the ambitious target set by the initiative, which seeks to increase the current renewable energy capacity from 3.4 terawatts to an impressive 11 terawatts within the next eight years.

Five key steps

The International Energy Agency has outlined five key steps crucial to the success of this UN summit’s goals, with the renewable energy targets at the forefront.

In a parallel development, the Oil and Gas Decarbonization Covenant (OGDC) has seen 50 companies, which represent over 40% of the global oil production, commit to decarbonization efforts. This includes significant financial backing, with $1 billion dedicated to methane emission reduction projects.

COP28 President Ahmed Al Jaber made an impassioned plea for more nations to join the initiative, emphasizing the role of renewable energy and enhanced energy efficiency in combating climate change.

Al Jaber hailed the OGDC launch as a monumental step and acknowledged the recent net-zero emission targets set by national oil companies for 2050, while challenging them to strive for even greater reductions.

Tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030

Joyce Lee, the Head of Policy and Projects at the Global Wind Energy Council, reflected the general consensus that tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030 is critical in the fight against climate change. She highlighted the urgency for translating these targets into concrete policy, regulatory measures, and investment actions, coupled with a phased reduction of fossil fuel use.

As the COP28 progresses, all eyes are on the major economies yet to commit, with the global community eagerly waiting to see whether these nations will align with the urgent call for a renewable energy transition to safeguard the planet’s future.

Source: Anadolu Agency.

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new report from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) delivers a stark warning: despite some progress, the world remains on course for a perilous temperature rise well beyond the targets set in the Paris Agreement unless countries substantially escalate their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Titled “Emissions Gap Report 2023: Broken Record – Temperatures hit new highs, yet world fails to cut emissions (again),” the 14th annual edition of the report synthesizes the latest scientific findings to project future emission trends and outlines potential solutions to the pressing challenge of global warming.

According to the report, greenhouse gas emissions are projected to increase by 3% by 2030 based on current policies. This represents an improvement from the 16% increase projected at the time of the Paris Agreement’s adoption in 2015. However, to align with the Paris Agreement’s 2°C goal, emissions in 2030 must still decrease by 28%, and by 42% to meet the ambitious 1.5°C pathway.

2.9°C above pre-industrial levels this century

At present, if all unconditional Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement are fully implemented, the world could see a temperature rise of 2.9°C above pre-industrial levels this century. Conditional NDCs, if fully implemented, could limit the increase to 2.5°C.

UNEP called upon nations to hasten the transition to low-carbon, sustainable economies, emphasizing that countries with greater resources and responsibility for emissions should lead with more aggressive action and aid developing nations in their low-emission development pursuits.

The report also underlines the importance of robust implementation strategies to ensure the next round of NDCs, expected in 2025, can achieve emission reductions by 2035 compatible with the 2°C and 1.5°C targets. Additionally, it assesses the potential benefits and risks associated with Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) methods, including nature-based solutions and technological approaches like direct air carbon capture and storage.

A critical touchstone for global climate negotiations

The Emissions Gap Report serves as a critical touchstone for global climate negotiations, charting the discrepancy between anticipated global emissions and the levels necessary to cap warming at 1.5°C. Each edition also investigates strategies to bridge this emissions gap, providing a roadmap for policymakers, activists, and concerned citizens to advocate for effective climate action.

The UNEP urges nations to exceed their current Paris Agreement pledges to avoid global warming of 2.5-2.9°C, calling for record-breaking advancements in climate action. The accompanying technical note, jointly released by UNEP and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), serves as a technical backdrop for this pressing call to action.

Source: UNEP

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he European Union, in a groundbreaking policy overhaul, has reached a consensus to revise its waste shipment regulations, curbing the export of specific waste types to countries outside of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) that are ill-equipped to process it safely. The EU Parliament announced this resolution on Friday, November 17, 2023 marking a pivotal shift towards enhancing global environmental protection and public health standards.

The EU’s decision aims to restrict the export of non-hazardous waste to non-OECD countries unless these nations explicitly consent and prove their ability to handle the waste responsibly. This move is expected to reduce the longstanding practice of offloading pollution onto less affluent nations and ensure adherence to international labor rights.

The reform aligns with the European Commission’s 2021 proposal, which sought to impede EU states from offloading their waste onto poorer countries, signaling a significant stride in assuming accountability for waste, particularly plastic waste. Danish lawmaker Pernille Weiss has highlighted this as a crucial step towards the EU finally assuming responsibility for the environmental impact of its waste.

Steering towards a circular economy

Under the provisional political agreement, which awaits formal ratification, the EU intends to update shipment procedures to reflect the principles of the circular economy and improve enforcement mechanisms. The regulation sets stringent guidelines to guarantee that waste shipments do not threaten human health and the environment, thus endorsing waste as a resource within the EU’s circular economic model.

The new regulation extends its objectives to encompass the EU’s ambitions for climate neutrality and achieving a zero-pollution, circular economy. It governs waste shipments within the EU, as well as imports and exports involving third countries, and notably prohibits all waste shipments intended for disposal within the EU, barring exceptional circumstances that meet strict criteria.

Notably, the agreement introduces tougher restrictions on the export of plastic waste. It prohibits the export of non-hazardous plastic waste to non-OECD countries and outlines conditions under which these countries may request to import EU plastic waste, provided they meet rigorous waste management standards.

Next steps and international impact

To reinforce the new policies, the EU will impose stringent penalties for breaches of the regulation, which may include fines and the revocation or suspension of waste management authorizations. The establishment of a waste shipment enforcement group will further strengthen compliance, ensuring effective coordination among member states to curb illegal waste shipments.

The provisional agreement will be presented to member states’ representatives within the Council and to the Parliament’s environmental committee for endorsement. Following approval and legal-linguistic revision, the agreement will be formally adopted and published in the EU’s Official Journal before coming into force.

The EU’s reform of its waste shipment regulation heralds a new era in the bloc’s environmental policy, with far-reaching implications for global waste management practices. It underscores the EU’s dedication to mitigating its ecological footprint and championing sustainable development.

For more information, inquiries can be directed to the European Parliament press office or Reuters correspondents covering the story.

Sources: Reuters and the European Parliament

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he Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) has recently unveiled its annual Ecological Threat Report (ETR), revealing a grim future where ecological degradation could become the catalyst for escalating conflicts and mass displacements globally.

According to the report, by 2050, an estimated 2.8 billion people will be living in countries facing severe ecological threats, a significant increase from the 1.8 billion noted in 2023.

The comprehensive report, which assesses 221 countries and territories, suggests that without urgent, concerted action, the world could witness a worsening of current levels of ecological degradation, leading to intensified conflicts and a spike in forced migration. This year’s findings underscore the pressing need for global strategies to build resilience and address the drivers of ecological decline.

Key findings and alarming trends

The 2023 ETR sheds light on the interconnected nature of ecological threats like rapid population growth, water scarcity, and food insecurity—all expected to be exacerbated by climate change. The research indicates that a 25% increase in food insecurity could heighten the risk of conflict by 36%, while a similar rise in populations lacking access to clean water could see an 18% surge in conflict likelihood.

The report pinpoints that currently, 1 billion people reside in 42 countries already facing severe food insecurity, with a quarter of the global population without regular access to safe drinking water. The situation is particularly dire in cities, with over 60% of the world’s rapidly growing megacities situated in countries with high levels of violence or conflict, lacking the financial resources to support their burgeoning populations.

Implications for peace and security

The IEP’s report emphasizes the cyclical relationship between ecological degradation and conflict, particularly in regions like the Sahel, which grapple with governance challenges, poverty, and climatic variations. The study also highlights how conflicts tend to spill over borders, affecting regional stability and beyond.

There is a distressing increase in the number of displaced individuals, with over 108 million people currently uprooted, marking a 24% rise since 2020. A notable portion of these migrations, including illegal entries into Europe, originates from countries stricken by ecological threats and conflict, with Syrian and Afghan nationals making up a significant percentage of such movements.

Urgent call for action

Steve Killelea, Founder & Executive Chairman of IEP, remarked on the importance of the upcoming COP 28 summit, calling for leaders to act decisively to counter the impending ecological crisis. “Countries with high levels of Positive Peace have the societal resilience to solve these challenges,” Killelea stated, emphasizing the need for programs that foster resilience and promote economic progress.

The report also stresses the challenges facing cities, which are expected to house 70% of the global population by 2050. The majority of these urban expansions will occur in countries with low incomes and high levels of violence, raising concerns over potential increases in crime, poverty, and pollution.

The path forward

The ETR serves as a stark warning to global leaders and policymakers about the impending ecological challenges and their potential to disrupt peace and security worldwide. It calls for a multi-faceted approach that includes investing in ecological conservation, building infrastructure resilient to climate change, and fostering international cooperation to manage the shared resources crucial for global stability.

As the world gears up for future climate summits and global policy discussions, the findings of the Ecological Threat Report will likely shape debates and inform the strategies deployed to navigate the complex landscape of ecological challenges and their implications for global peace.

Source: The Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP)

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lastic, a marvel of modern innovation, has permeated nearly every facet of our lives. From the convenience of disposable utensils to the durability of plastic packaging, it has become an integral part of our daily routines. However, this very convenience has ushered in a quiet and insidious threat that now looms large on the world’s environmental stage: global plastic pollution.

The statistics surrounding this crisis are nothing short of staggering. Each year, an estimated 8 million metric tons of plastic waste find their way into our oceans, equivalent to dumping a garbage truck full of plastic into the sea every minute. By 2050, if current trends persist, there could be more plastic than fish in the ocean by weight.

The problem extends far beyond our coastlines, as microplastics, tiny fragments of broken-down plastic, have infiltrated our food chain and bodies, with one study estimating that the average person ingests the equivalent of a credit card’s worth of plastic particles every week.

Similarly, in March 2020, a groundbreaking discovery marked the first instance of microplastic contamination in human blood. This finding emerged during a scientific examination of blood specimens collected from 22 healthy adult volunteers, revealing the presence of plastic particles in approximately 80% of the tested samples.

Beyond its impact on marine life and human health, plastic pollution exacerbates climate change. The production of plastic generates significant greenhouse gas emissions, and as plastic waste decays, it releases harmful compounds into the atmosphere. Furthermore, the environmental toll of extracting the fossil fuels needed to produce plastic cannot be overlooked.

In the face of such alarming statistics, it has become evident that global plastic pollution is not merely an environmental concern but a complex crisis that demands immediate attention. Furthermore, the far-reaching effects of plastic pollution calls for an interdisciplinary approach to the topic.

In Global Plastic Pollution and its Regulation: History, Trends, Perspectives, the authors delve into one of this urgent environmental challenge of our time. They meticulously examine the current scope of this crisis and scrutinize contemporary strategies aimed at its control. Employing a robust interdisciplinary approach, the book effectively encapsulates the primary hurdles and potential remedies associated with this universally relevant issue.

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early 8% of the population of the Libyan city of Derna was killed or went missing after devastating floods hit the city on September 10, 2023, in the biggest natural disaster in the country’s modern history. A third of the city’s buildings were wiped out and swept away by the Mediterranean Sea, while hundreds of bodies are believed to be trapped in structures and buildings under water.

The disaster followed a warning issued last year by professor of civil engineering Abdelwanees Ashoor. “In the event of a major flood, the consequences will be catastrophic for the inhabitants of the valley and the city,” the Libyan academic wrote. Ashoor was not taken seriously by the authorities, resulting in one of the greatest flood tragedies in modern history in a country torn by conflict and war.

The floods have affected 200,000 Libyans, and the entire area of the old city of Derna was swallowed by water after the two dams surrounding the city exploded at 3:00 a.m. local time, giving people little time to flee. In fact, the local authorities had sent out a text message the day before warning people not to leave their homes because of the heavy rains caused by Storm Daniel, which hit the region from Greece.

Thousands dead and missing

Bad weather conditions made it impossible to use helicopters due to the strong winds at the time of the storm, in addition to the extremely difficult natural terrain of the area, which prevented the arrival of rescue equipment, teams, and vehicles.

Storm Daniel, which hit eastern Libya on September 10, killed at least 7,300 people and left around 11,000 homeless in a city with an estimated population of around 200,000. According to preliminary official figures, more than 36,000 people have been displaced.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the death toll from the floods in Derna had risen to 11,300, while 10,100 people were still missing. The UN warned that an epidemic could break out in the city due to decomposing bodies and water pollution. Some 150 people have arrived to hospitals due to poison after drinking from the polluted water of Derna.

The UN confirmed that 170 people had died in floods elsewhere in eastern Libya, and that the number of displaced people in northeastern Libya had reached approximately 40,000.

Warning against drinking unclear water

At the same time, the UN envoy to Libya, Abdullah Batili, said he had seen the destruction and devastation in Derna and left with a heavy heart. He noted that the disaster was beyond Libya’s capacity and went beyond politics and border issues.

Georgette Gagnon, assistant secretary-general, resident coordinator and humanitarian coordinator for Libya, confirmed that the UN is working with partners and local authorities to continue to deliver and coordinate much-needed humanitarian assistance to those in need.

The neglect of the city, which was previously a stronghold of armed groups opposed to Gaddafi and then Haftar’s forces, and the failure to maintain its dams and facilities and renovate its old buildings, in addition to the battles and wars it witnessed between 2015 and 2018, are among the factors that caused the death toll of Storm Daniel to rise dramatically.

Meanwhile, Libyans are still waiting for international aid to help them overcome one of the most tragic events in the country’s modern history. The city of Derna has experienced unprecedented destruction with residents being killed by both flooding and collapsed buildings. As time passes, the chances of finding survivors in Derna fades away.

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icroplastics are plastics smaller than 5 mm. They have become an issue of concern in recent years due to their widespread presence and potential impact on the environment and human health. Like air pollution, microplastics pose a hidden threat that is not always immediately attributed to their toxic nature.

Despite our limited knowledge in this area, early studies are alarming about the potential harms of microplastics. These tiny plastic particles can damage human cells and have been compared to dangerous substances such as asbestos and lead, which were once considered beneficial until researchers discovered their harmful effects. Scientists are urging caution and action, as we cannot afford to wait for the unequivocal verification of all the possible unintended effects of conventional plastics.

Microplastics originate from various sources, including the decomposition of larger plastic waste into smaller fragments. Among them are microbeads, a specific category of microplastics, which are tiny pieces of polyethylene plastic that are added to personal care products such as detergents and toothpaste. These particles can easily bypass water filtration systems and end up in oceans and freshwaters, posing a serious threat to aquatic life.

Microbeads have been found in honey, sea salt, beer, tap water, sugar, and even dust. Their presence spans the globe, from Arctic snow to the Mariana Trench. Microplastics have also infiltrated unexpected places like the human respiratory tract and bloodstream, raising concerns about their potential impact on human health. Scientists have even detected microplastics on remote, uninhabited island beaches as well as in ice samples from Greenland and Antarctica, highlighting the global scale of the problem.

The plastic cycle

Around eight million tons of plastic waste enter the sea every year. Over time, the sun’s ultraviolet rays, the movement of ocean waves, and the presence of salt cause this plastic to break down into smaller and smaller fragments known as microplastics. Small marine organisms like zooplankton eat these microplastics. That is how they enter the food chain. Small fish eat the zooplankton, larger fish eat the small fish, and so on. Eventually, fish end up in our food and water ends up in our bottles. Microplastics are in everyday products like shampoos, soaps, toothpaste, and facial cleansers. They travel through sewage systems and rivers and eventually end up in the ocean. In addition, car tires shed microplastic particles, which is another pathway for their diffusion.

Polluting our bodies?

In March 2020, microplastic pollution was found in human blood for the first time. This revelation came about when scientists tested blood samples from 22 healthy anonymous adult donors and found plastic particles in nearly 80% of those tested. Of those samples, 17 had plastic particles.

Specifically, PET plastic—commonly used in beverage bottles—was detected in half of them, while a third of the donors had polystyrene in their blood, which is used for food and product packaging. In addition, a quarter of the blood samples contained polyethylene, the material used to make plastic shopping bags.

Another similar study showed that these tiny particles can stick to the outer membranes of red blood cells, which could impair their ability to carry oxygen efficiently. The scope of the problem extends beyond the bloodstream; microplastics have also entered the placentas of pregnant women. Experiments with pregnant rats have also shown that microplastics can rapidly cross the lungs and enter the heart, brain, and other organs of developing fetuses.

In a study published in 2022 in the multi-disciplinary natural science journal Science of the Total Environment, a significant pioneering achievement was announced: the detection of microplastics in the lung tissue of living humans. The tiny size of these plastic particles allows them to penetrate our bronchioles and become trapped in various sections of the airway branches.

Recently, microplastics have been detected in human heart tissue, raising new concerns about their impact on long-term health. A team of researchers from China made this discovery while examining tissue samples from 15 patients who had undergone heart surgery.

Although there is a possibility that exposure to microplastics might have occurred during the surgical procedure, medical experts point out that the presence of certain chemicals in the human body —such as acrylic, also known as Plexiglas—provides direct evidence of microplastics in patients before they have undergone heart surgery.

From crop to plastic harvest

The problem of microplastics extends to agricultural practices as well. Sewage sludge, a byproduct of wastewater treatment, is often repurposed as organic fertilizer in agriculture. This practice has led to European farmland becoming a considerable repository of microplastics. Estimates suggest that tens of thousands of tons of these particles contaminate European farmland each year.

In 2022, an analysis by the Environmental Working Group, a non-profit environmental organization, revealed that nearly 80,937 sq km of cultivated land in the United States had been contaminated by sewage sludge, carrying per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals.” These substances, commonly found in plastic products, defy environmental breakdown.

Catherine Wilson, an author and deputy director of the Hydro-environmental Research Center at Cardiff University, states that the magnitude of microplastics in agricultural lands might be underestimated. Additionally, microplastics can endure within soils for extended periods. Research by soil scientists from the University of Marburg in Germany found microplastics as deep as 90 cm below the surface of agricultural fields where sewage sludge had been deposited over three decades before.

Plastic odyssey

Another alarming fact is the migration of microplastics from initial sewage sludge deposition sites to aquatic environments. A study conducted in Ontario, Canada revealed that 99% of microplastics journey away from these sites to aquatic ecosystems. Before their aquatic journey, microplastics can liberate toxic chemicals into the soil, exacerbating environmental consequences.

Plastics, such as polyester, acrylic, and nylon, constitute approximately 60% of clothing materials. Yet, garments fashioned from these synthetics shed microplastics, termed “microfibers,” during washing and wear. A United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) report (2020) on the global textile value chain indicates that about 9% of annual microplastic emissions result from clothing and textiles.

Experts suggest elongating garment lifespans and reducing washing frequency to curb emissions. When selecting new clothes, choosing sustainably produced natural materials can minimize the risk of unintended microplastic release, even at the cost of other environmental considerations.

Elisa Tonda, head of the Consumption and Production Unit at UNEP, stresses that involving all stakeholders is vital to usher the textile industry towards circularity and tackle microfiber emissions. Effective policies and an environment that fosters sustainable textile design are crucial, alongside brands assuming responsibility for end-of-life product management.

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n an era marked by unprecedented global challenges, few issues resonate as profoundly as the quest for food security. The Russian invasion of Ukraine and the grain shortage that followed showcased the grave vulnerability of existing systems. The imperative of ensuring that everyone, everywhere has access to safe, sufficient, and nutritious food looms large on the global stage. This month’s book bundle presents a curated selection of books that delve into food security, examining it from multiple angles, and offering insights, strategies, and solutions.

From the intricacies of international trade policies to the sustainability of food systems, and from the impacts of geopolitical conflicts to the strategic place of food, these books provide a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities in the realm of global food security.

Whether you are a policymaker, researcher, student, or simply a concerned global citizen, this collection provides valuable resources for understanding, navigating, and contributing to the discourse on global food security.

Food Security: Availability, Income and Productivity is a pertinent book that explores the pressing issue of global food security as our world population continues to grow. The author focuses on three key conditions necessary to achieve food security: food availability, adequate incomes, and increased agricultural productivity.

The book draws insights from history and contemporary contexts to thoroughly examine these conditions. It takes a close look at the obstacles preventing consistent food availability and discusses how to overcome these challenges. It also delves into the importance of ensuring sufficient incomes, highlighting programs like food stamps and food banks. Furthermore, the book provides valuable insights into the factors driving enhanced agricultural productivity.

Food Security caters to a broad audience, including agricultural experts, policymakers, and NGOs working in food aid. It’s also a valuable resource for students studying agriculture and public policy. The book not only informs but also encourages critical thinking about the complex task of feeding a projected nine billion people by 2050.

In a world where food scarcity is becoming increasingly worrisome, this book offers essential insights into the intricate web of food security. It provides a well-reasoned analysis that will contribute to ongoing discussions and efforts aimed at ensuring a sustainable food future for everyone.

William A. Kerr, Food Security: Availability, Income and Productivity (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2023) ISBN: 978 1 03531 270 2, 234 pages

Shadow Negotiators: How UN Organizations Shape the Rules of World Trade for Food Security by Matias E. Margulis is a groundbreaking exploration of the influence exerted by United Nations (UN) organizations within the World Trade Organization (WTO) despite their absence from the formal negotiation table. Margulis introduces the concept of “shadow negotiators,” illustrating how UN bodies strategically engage in political actions to shape multilateral trade negotiations.

The book’s primary focus is on the contentious issue of agricultural trade liberalization. It provides a detailed analysis of interventions by four UN organizations: the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food (SRRTF).

Margulis unveils the innovative strategies these UN entities employ to influence global trade regulations. Importantly, he emphasizes that their motivation isn’t rooted in competition with the WTO or ideological opposition to trade liberalization. Instead, it stems from their concern that certain trade rules could negatively impact global food security, running counter to their core mission of addressing world hunger and safeguarding the right to food.

Shadow Negotiators is a meticulously researched work that offers fresh insights into the often-unseen dynamics of international trade. It’s essential reading for those interested in the intersection of trade policy and global welfare, making a valuable contribution to the field of international relations and trade studies.

Matias E. Margulis, Shadow Negotiators: How UN Organizations Shape the Rules of World Trade for Food Security (Stanford University Press, 2023) ISBN: 9781503633520, 292 pages

Universal Food Security: How to End Hunger While Protecting the Planet by Glenn Denning explores the path towards a world where hunger and malnutrition are eradicated, and everyone can access healthy and abundant food for a productive life. The book emphasizes the need to transform our food systems, focusing on sustainability and environmental restoration, from production to distribution.

Denning, drawing from his extensive experience in over fifty countries, offers a practical guide to making healthy diets accessible to all while ensuring sustainability. He identifies key priorities, including sustainable agriculture intensification, robust market infrastructure, responsible postharvest practices, promoting healthy eating, and establishing social safety nets. The book underscores the pivotal role of practitioner-leaders in driving this transformation, highlighting the importance of education and development in instigating change.

But beyond the roadmap, Denning reminds us that the engine driving this transformation is practitioner-leadership, underscored by education and development. This book stands as a testament to the potential for meaningful change when individuals and institutions commit to reshaping our world, making universal food security not merely a dream but a tangible and sustainable reality.

Glenn Denning, Universal Food Security: How to End Hunger While Protecting the Planet (Columbia University Press, 2023) ISBN: 9780231197618, 448 pages

The Russia-Ukraine Conflict and Global Food Security explores the global food security implications of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which occurred during a period of already high food prices due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The book highlights the importance of the Black Sea region for global food production and Russia’s role in supplying natural gas and fertilizers.

The potential disruption of trade in this region posed a significant threat, with the potential to raise food prices and worsen poverty and hunger in vulnerable countries. The conflict primarily impacted trade in cereals and vegetable oils, fertilizer exports, and energy costs, potentially pushing millions into hunger and poverty.

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) responded swiftly by providing information and policy advice. They established a blog series and online resources to disseminate critical information rapidly. This book compiles these blog posts, offering an overview of the crisis’s progression, international responses, and lessons for ensuring food security in the wake of disruptions.

This book provides essential insights into a rapidly evolving crisis with far-reaching implications for global food security, making it valuable for policymakers and researchers.

Joseph W. Glauber, Ed. and David Laborde Debucquet. Ed., The Russia-Ukraine Conflict and Global Food Security (IFPRI, 2023) ISBN: 9780896294394, 196 pages

Bread and Autocracy: Food, Politics, and Security in Putin’s Russia offers a compelling analysis of the pivotal role food has played in Russian politics from the 1917 Revolution to the present under Putin’s leadership. The authors, Janetta Azarieva, Yitzhak M. Brudny, and Eugene Finkel, argue that Russia’s transition from a grain importer to a global food exporter was a deliberate, long-term strategy aimed at enhancing national security and regime stability. This focus on food self-sufficiency sets Russia apart from other autocracies, as it prioritizes domestic food production over imports, highlighting its significance in maintaining autocratic rule.

The book’s relevance is heightened in today’s world, where food issues are once again at the forefront of global concerns and nations are emphasizing self-reliance. Bread and Autocracy provides a timely and comprehensive exploration of Russia’s unique approach to food politics, shedding light on its implications for both domestic and international affairs. It is a valuable read for those seeking a deeper understanding of Russia’s distinctive stance on food and its impact on political power. The book will be available in hardcover on September 1, 2023.

Janetta Azarieva, Yitzhak M. Brudny, and Eugene Finkel, Bread and Autocracy: Food, Politics, and Security in Putin’s Russia (Oxford University Press, 2023) ISBN: 9780197684368, 525 pages

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ael Khoudary, a 60-year-old patient who relies on a nebulizer to inhale his medication, is one of many Gazans impacted by the new reality of climate change. The constant power outages that have persisted for more than 16 years prevent him from taking the necessary medication regularly.

“I must use the nebulizer once or twice a day. But when the power is out, imagine what happens next,” laments Wael.

Wael is used to such power outages; when his home loses power, he can hardly afford to pay for transportation to the closest hospital.

The Gaza Strip is a densely populated Palestinian territory occupied by Israel. Israel maintains a blockade on Gaza since 2007 which has had a significant impact on its economy and infrastructure, including the Gaza Strip’s electricity supply.

Israel controls several entry points and border crossings for goods and fuels into Gaza, including the supply of electricity. Due to the blockade, Gaza’s electricity infrastructure is heavily dependent on imports from the Israeli occupiers. The main power plant in Gaza, which is capable of producing electricity locally, has been operating well below its capacity due to limited fuel and restrictions on the import of spare parts.

According to the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), the Gaza Strip has faced a sixteen-year-long Israeli siege. Recently the situation worsened when the Israeli government restricted the electricity supply, inflicting further collective punishment on the Palestinian people.

The siege has severely impacted all aspects of life, with hospitals forced to postpone non-urgent surgeries and prematurely release patients. The lack of reliable power also poses life-threatening risks for those dependent on dialysis machines and newborns, while nights become engulfed in complete darkness due to power restrictions.

“A Pitch-Black Sauna”

Ibrahim Hasan, a father of two, finds solace in taking his small family to the beach to escape the stifling daytime heat, while thousands seek refuge there from the oppressive temperatures at night as well. Many families in Gaza adopt this strategy to survive the extreme weather conditions.

“I can never stand to spend even a single second inside my house during the heat of the day,” Ibrahim explains. “I accompany my wife and children to the beach until almost midnight every day.”

Ibrahim compares power outages at home in Gaza to spending time in a sauna in a pitch-black room.

This year, around two million Palestinians will endure scorching temperatures over 35.2°C, deprived of air conditioning or any means of cooling, exposing them to perilous living conditions.

Each night, Gaza City is cloaked in darkness, except for the faint glimmer of windows from the fortunate few who own generators. These generators, few and far between, are a lifeline for hospital patients and represent the only hope for access to water.

Chronic electricity shortages have plagued the Gaza Strip for the past ten years, making the already precarious living circumstances worse. The continuous power outage has had a negative impact on Gaza’s already unstable economy, particularly the manufacturing and agricultural sectors, and has severely limited accessibility to basic services, such as health, water, and sanitation.

In the face of such challenges, Gazans are courageously enduring each day, navigating life on the edge of surviving the realities of climate change and a prolonged electricity crisis.

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he global ascent of the far right has become an alarming phenomenon, amplified by the distressing normalization of right-wing extremism. From the U.S. to countries across Europe, far right movements have branched out by displaying variation while retaining their core foundations of violence and hatred, and have adeptly aligned themselves with contemporary political issues, exploiting the expansive reach of online platforms to propagate their ideologies.

Right-wing terrorism has swiftly emerged as the rapidest growing and, in some cases, the most prominent domestic security menace, as underscored by the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee—not to mention the far right’s harmful everyday rhetoric towards migrants and people of color.

In the United States, the number of far right extremist attacks has surpassed other acts of terrorism. The reverberations of heinous incidents like the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting and the Christchurch mosque shootings remain indelible reminders of the terror wrought by far right militants. From eco-fascists to white supremacists, this month’s book bundle encompasses various prominent and influential far-right movements.

By examining the complexities of far right ideologies, their metamorphosis over time, and the necessary measures to confront them, this collection presents an invaluable resource for comprehending and engaging with this pressing global concern.

In Spreading Hate: The Global Rise of White Supremacist Terrorism, Daniel L. Byman presents a comprehensive analysis of the global white power movement, its appeal, and the imminent threat it poses. Byman’s authoritative account spans the movement’s evolution in the United States and worldwide, shedding light on its multifaceted nature.

Drawing from a wide array of sources, Byman dispels prevalent myths surrounding white power terrorism and exposes critical deficiencies in current policies. This negligence towards growing far-right terrorism has resulted in shocking acts of violence, corroding trust in democratic institutions. Byman emphasizes that mitigating this threat necessitates swift and resolute action from governments, treating white power terrorism with the same urgency as jihadist violence.

Byman highlights how white power terrorists exploit mainstream debates, amplifying polarization and yielding significant political impact, even if the death toll remains relatively low. Contrary to popular belief, the movement is not entrenched in a rigid ideology: it is dynamic, draws inspiration from global sources and leverages cutting-edge technologies, particularly social media.

While white power terrorists exhibit vulnerabilities, such as internal divisions, lackluster leadership, and attracting not only dangerous and deluded individuals but also the inept and criminal, their potential for harm remains potent.

Mitigating the dangers of right-wing terrorism entail measures such as robust law enforcement, international intelligence cooperation, stringent regulations imposed by technology companies, and other forceful interventions. Byman not only examines policy solutions but also synthesizes extensive scholarly research, making Spreading Hate essential reading for those concerned about an increasingly interconnected movement that in the years to come harbors the potential to escalate in perilousness.

Daniel Byman, Spreading Hate: The Global Rise of White Supremacist Terrorism (Oxford University Press, 2022) ISBN: 9780197537619, 288 pages

The Rise of Ecofascism: Climate Change and the Far Right delves into the connection between the climate crisis and the rise of the far right, examining their historical roots and contemporary manifestations. By exploring the far right’s evolving stance on the environment, Sam Moore and Alex Roberts reveal a shift in strategy as they come to recognize the impending crisis as an opportunity for resurgence, moving beyond climate denial to conspiracy.

Far right ecologism is brewing within online circles and manifesting as violence on the ground. The authors argue that ecofascism’s dangerous ideology, steeped in hatred is not the answer. Instead, a genuine commitment to climate justice is crucial to combat both the far right and the environmental challenges we face. A must-read for anyone interested in learning about the trend in right-wing extremism or advocating for climate justice, this book offers a powerful critique of emerging ecofascism.

Sam Moore and Alex Roberts, The Rise of Ecofascism: Climate Change and the Far Right (Polity Press, 2022) ISBN: 978-1-509-54537-7, 160 pages

When the Hood Comes Off: Racism and Resistance in the Digital Age is a timely and comprehensive exploration that delves into the manifestations of racism in the digital realm, shedding light on the emerging antiracist strategies deployed to combat it.

Rob Eschmann skillfully weaves together meticulous research and captivating personal anecdotes to uncover how racism thrives online, challenging the notion of a colorblind society. From viral videos capturing police violence against unarmed Black individuals to the exposure of racist messages and hurtful comments on social media platforms, online communication lays bare the workings of racism in our world.

In this thought-provoking study, Eschmann not only examines the impact of online racism on communities of color and society at large, but also uncovers the unexpected ways in which digital technologies facilitate innovative tools of everyday antiracist resistance.

By drawing from a vast array of data, including insightful interviews with students of color and meticulous analyses of millions of social media posts spanning a decade, Eschmann delves into the influence of online communication on face-to-face interactions.

When the Hood Comes Off underscores the internet’s potential as a powerful organizing tool, exposing the transformative power it holds. Furthermore, the book serves as a poignant reminder that online racism can serve as a profound wake-up call, prompting us to reflect on our own responses and actions.

In a world grappling with the implications of pervasive online racism, When the Hood Comes Off: Racism and Resistance in the Digital Age invites readers to contemplate the crucial question of how we will collectively respond to this urgent challenge. Eschmann’s work is a vital contribution to the ongoing conversation surrounding racism and provides valuable insights into harnessing the potential of the digital landscape for meaningful antiracist efforts.

Rob Eschmann, When the Hood Comes Off: Racism and Resistance in the Digital Age (University of California Press, 2023) ISBN: 9780520379749, 312 pages

Ukraine’s Azov Movement has emerged as one of the most audacious and perilous far-right movements worldwide. What are its core values and goals? From the Fires of War: Ukraine’s Azov Movement and the Global Far Right is groundbreaking as the first book to be written in English about Azov. Michael Colborne unveils the origins and rapid evolution of the movement, transforming from a militia composed of marginal far right individuals and football hooligans fighting against Russian-backed forces to a multifaceted social movement that has attracted global far-right admiration.

Colborne delves into the intricate mechanisms through which the Azov Movement emerged and adeptly exploits Ukraine’s fragmented social and political landscape, including the ongoing conflict following Russia’s invasion. From the Fires of War astutely reveals the movement’s grand ambitions and the threats it poses.

Michael Colborne, From the Fires of War: Ukraine’s Azov Movement and the Global Far Right (ibidem Press, 2022) ISBN: 9783838215082, 200 pages

In his compelling book When Disasters Come Home: Making and Manipulating Emergencies in the West,  David Keen delves into the profound impact of disasters that were once perceived as distant occurrences but are now striking at the heart of the prosperous West. With crises like global warming, migration challenges, threats to democracy, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the repercussions of the war in Ukraine converging, Western societies find themselves caught in a continuous state of fear and distraction.

Keen argues that these disasters should serve as a catalyst for reform, urging us to address the systemic issues that give rise to such catastrophes. However, he reveals how frequently they are exploited for political and economic gain, sidestepping the root causes.

The interplay of various crises, whether gradual or sudden, perpetuates a toxic political landscape that exacerbates the very problems it stems from and enforces a continuous state of crisis amongst society. Politicians often take advantage of the alarm to legitimize their contribution to the disaster-producing system by creating alternate realities and “lesser evil” arguments.

A troubling aspect is the tendency to vilify those striving to alleviate the emergencies or shed light on their underlying factors. Without amplifying alternative perspectives and voices, we risk being ensnared in a self-perpetuating cycle of emergency politics, hindering true resolution and manufacturing its own justification and legitimacy.

From the economy, politics, society and war to the environment, migration, and health, When Disasters Come Home highlights nine major high profile, six abrupt and three slow-burning disasters. Lastly, it also discusses the mass contemporary flight from reality as a disaster in and of itself.

Keen’s book offers a thought-provoking exploration of the complex dynamics between disasters, politics, and the imperative need for reform. Through his incisive analysis, he challenges readers to critically assess the interconnections and potential consequences of the current crisis-ridden world.

David Keen, When Disasters Come Home: Making and Manipulating Emergencies in the West (Polity Press, 2023) ISBN: 9781509550630, 288 pages

Written by Dilara Özer.

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t a time when norms are increasingly pushed aside in the international arena, one great quagmire stands to impact us all: climate change. Humanity seems to be gambling its present and future, while corporations aim to delay transition for profits. It is not just an issue that effects those of us alive today, but also the distant strangers of the next generation.

Who bears the responsibility? How can we deal with climate change fairly? Should one resent the “burden” or embrace the “challenge”?  In The Pivotal Generation: Why We Have a Moral Responsibility to Slow Climate Change Right Now, political philosopher Prof. Henry Shue helps the reader dissolve the separateness between the past, present, and future, and oversee their responsibility towards climate change. Shue encourages the reader to face the historic challenge of our generation, like past generations have with the complex challenges they faced.

Q. Why are we “the pivotal generation”? Why is it a privilege to be us?

We’re the pivotal generation because we just happen to live at the time when either we do enough to prevent climate change from getting out of hand or we don’t – and this is going to be decided in the next 10 or 20 years.

We know from the science that greenhouse gas emissions, especially carbon dioxide emissions, have to reach net zero by 2050 if climate change is not to be even more severe than it’s already going to be.

It’s just common sense that if we have to go all that way by 2050, then we need to get halfway by about 2030 since reducing emissions by the second half is going to be much harder than the first half.

We have a chance to make an enormous difference and really deeply influence the course of human history. That’s the privilege – and almost an honor: to be an absolutely crucial generation. In some ways, those of us alive now are the most important people in human history, because we’re going to determine whether climate change stays relatively moderate or it becomes even more severe.

One can also think of this as a burden as we have to carry on a lot of tasks. But I find it sort of exhilarating to think that we’re in the position to accomplish as much as we can accomplish, if we get serious about the problem of climate change.

We have a chance to make an enormous difference and really deeply influence the course of human history. That’s the privilege – and almost an honor: to be an absolutely crucial generation.

Q. What makes climate change stand out as the main challenge of our generation?

It’s because so much of a difference will be made in the short time. It’s not that there are no other very important problems, we need to prevent nuclear war, xenophobia etc. But as far as we know, we don’t have to deal with those problems in the next 10 or 20 years, but in the case of climate we really do have to bring about a revolution in our energy system in the next 10 or 20 years.

Since World War II, there has never been a year when carbon dioxide emissions weren’t more than they were in the previous year, except for the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Every year, except for 2020, emissions are going up. That’s a deep, built-in trend, and it has to be reversed very quickly. We need to turn things around, use much less fossil fuel, and do it right away.

There are other problems that are also very important, though dealing with climate change will help with a number of other problems. For example, it will help with health. A lot of people have lung and heart disease because of the particulate matter that burning coal puts into the air.

If we burn less fossil fuel, we won’t only deal with the climate; we will greatly improve health and also save a lot of money. One of the really hopeful things already is that it’s cheaper to build a new solar energy farm and then use it than it is to keep using a coal-burning plant that’s already there. The prices of some alternatives, particularly solar, have already gone below the price of fossil fuels.

Q. Nowadays, with limited time and energy, we are made aware of an incomprehensible number of topics and are often left feeling overwhelmed. Your book highlights responsibility. How can we take responsibility for climate change in our lives?

I do, as you say, talk about responsibility. That’s partly because this is what I work on as a political philosopher, but it’s also very much in our interest to deal with climate change.

However, the thing I wanted to emphasize especially is our responsibility toward future generations. I think we picture future generations as strangers, people who we’ve never met or who we don’t know and don’t have anything much to do with us in our daily life.

In fact, in our daily life, we are shaping the world that future generations are going to live in, and so they’re not distant at all. We are shaping their world, and we have a very tight, intimate connection with them. And so, I think we do have responsibility for the problems that we leave them with. They may be able to solve some of the problems, but we’ll see to it that they have less of them.

For example, there’s going to be sea level rise, and this is going to cause problems for coastal cities. They can move or try to build sea walls or all sorts of things, so they won’t be entirely helpless, but it is true that they will inherit problems like sea level rise from us. The less we do about climate change, the more problems that they are going to inherit.

Q. What are the developed nations’ historical responsibilities?

They’re huge. It’s countries like the one I was born in, the United States, and the one I live in, the United Kingdom, which are mainly responsible. I believe the way to think about responsibility is to look at total cumulative emissions over history and the country with the greatest total cumulative emissions is the United States.

China currently has the most emissions per year, but their cumulative emissions are still quite a bit less than the U.S. I think a reasonable way to look at this is to the extent that you’ve emitted the gases that cause climate change, you are to that extent responsible for the problem. Therefore, this means most of the responsibility goes to the most industrialized countries.

There are complications to this. Saudi Arabia, for example, sells enormous amounts of fossil fuel, and they haven’t generated a lot of greenhouse gas emissions because they’re not a heavily industrialized country. But for the most part it’s the industrialized countries in North America and Western Europe, and Japan which have done the most to cause the problem. I think, the common sense principle is, if you’ve made the mess, then you should clean it up.

And one thing this means is that to get to zero emissions all countries have to stop using fossil fuel, but poorer countries can’t just find a lot of money all of a sudden, and install renewable energy everywhere. However, it’ll be bad for the climate if they follow the same route to development that countries like mine did. So, one of the ways in which a country like the U.S. or the UK can exercise its responsibility is to finance, to some extent, and, at least, invest in sustainable development in poorer countries. In this case, this means leapfrogging over the fossil fuel and going straight to non-fossil fuels like solar, wind, even nuclear. There are problems about nuclear, as everybody knows, but it doesn’t generate greenhouse gas.

Q. In your book, you talk about the fossil fuel interest having entrenched allies within the U.S. government and banking sector. Can we break up that cycle?

We’ll see. That’s the crucial battle, because even the richest countries which talked the most about doing something about climate change are all still subsidizing fossil fuels. In the U.S., there is accelerated depreciation for companies that drill new oil wells. That’s absolutely absurd! We don’t need new oil wells, and we certainly don’t need to give tax breaks to companies that drill new oil wells. This shows that a big section of our politicians is basically captured by fossil fuel interests.

I think the only hope is essentially democracy and social change brought about by people. Many fossil fuel companies say they are committed to the Paris Agreement and to net zero by 2050, but they are not doing anything to get there.

If they wanted to, they could develop plans that would change them from being oil companies to being energy companies, which is what they say they’re doing but it’s not what they’re actually doing. Since they’re not voluntarily making the transition, the only way to get them to do it is to have a political action.

There are a lot of different possible kinds of political action, like carbon taxes or border taxes. There are also many complicated questions about what exactly to do. I think we need our governments to take forceful actions that will require the transition away from fossil fuel, and that will, for a start, put a stop to additional extraction.

New oil wells are drilled using loans from the major banks, and, once again, the worst banks in the world are all American: JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citibank, Bank of America. It’s hard to put pressure on banks, but we can try, and you can.

This spring, for example, there’s going to be a day when people cut up their credit cards if they have a credit card from these banks. By the way, there’s a report that anybody can access on the web called “Banking on climate chaos.” It’s revised every year, and it shows exactly which banks are making how many loans for the extraction of fossil fuel. And so, you can find out who the main offenders are and not give them your business.

Q. How can activists and decision-makers approach the sociopolitical implications of climate change, such as climate refugees who are projected to reach one billion by 2050?

The best thing to do is to prevent flows getting worse than they are. As I mentioned before, this means enabling countries which have a lot of poverty and quite rightly want to eradicate the poverty to do it by a path that doesn’t mean more use of fossil fuel, and, therefore, more emissions.

The countries that are wealthier should invest and assist with this. For example, India has a huge amount of coal, and it happens to be particularly dirty coal. We really need India not to burn that coal. The way to do it is to invest in their solar power. The more quickly we can bring down the amount of fossil fuel that’s burned and the amount of emissions that are released, the less the sea level will rise, and for example, the fewer people will have to flee from coastal cities.

The important thing to do is try to take actions that prevent people having to flee. People don’t want to leave their own country. It’s not only in the interest of the potential receiving countries, but if we don’t act fast, movements of refugees are going to be really very serious.

Q. In the broader global context, we see an era of international relations drifting away from norms. However, actors cooperate in certain areas while having relatively hostile relations. As far as interests are involved, it’s a kind of double standard. Should we expect states to act morally?

States do tend to pursue their own national interest, but one thing about climate change is that it is in everyone’s interest to deal with it. I think the best that any given nation can do is to carry out its own responsibilities and hope that others will respond.

Now, for exactly the reasons you gave, people worry that others will be so-called free riders. The U.S., in particular, has worried endlessly about whether if it spends a lot of money on climate change, it’ll end up having to carry the burden for everybody. If everyone holds back waiting for other people to do things, nothing will happen, and that’s where we are right now.

People have been holding back and worrying about whether they’re going to get stuck with the bill. I think the only hope is to stop worrying about whether other people are going to take advantage of you and start showing some leadership to what needs to be done and hope that others will respond by doing something similar.

They may not, and if they don’t, then one can take tougher action. For example, the EU now is going to introduce border tariffs on products that are made in ways that generate more emissions than the products would have generated if they had been made inside the EU. This is a way of putting pressure on other countries to reduce their emissions.

The hope is that rather than paying the border taxes, other countries will crack down on their own emissions. That’s a way of pressuring others: it’s not violent, but it’s pressure, and it’s not just waiting for other people to do the right thing. It is, however, tricky. We don’t want to start wars, and even trade wars if we can help it. At the same time, this is very important and we need to take measures that will be effective. Actually, the EU has been showing some leadership, and, on the whole, has been the most effective set of countries on climate change. So, there are some countries trying to do the right thing.

Q. Do you think that climate technology investments could be used as a foreign policy tool in global competition. Are we seeing such developments?

I think the best thing any country can do for its own national interest is to be leading the world in non-fossil fuel technology. A country like the U.S. or countries in the EU need to develop alternative technology in order to deal with climate change since these are going to be the technologies that the world is going to be using for the next century, or many centuries. It is also in their interest to be the ones who develop it.

If other nations are smart, they’ll be developing the technology too. The last thing you want to do is end up being a country that’s still burning coal and oil when everybody else has the alternatives. This is actually a very clear case where doing the right thing is also very much in your long-term self-interest, and can enhance your competitive position economically.

I think the best thing any country can do for its own national interest is to be leading the world in non-fossil fuel technology.

We are on the brink of irreversibility in some cases when it comes to climate change, which can squelch all hope. Do you have any optimistic concluding words for our readers?

The truth is, we’re in a real battle. We could win or we could lose, but there are some good things happening. The youth movement, the Greta Thunbergs of the world, is the most hopeful thing. Just in the last few years, young people across the world have gotten really angry at the old goats like me, who’ve been here for decades and have not dealt with the problem. And they’re getting really fired up – that’s good!

Another very good thing that I mentioned already is that the prices of alternative energy are way down, and so it’s much cheaper to install and use solar than it is to just keep using coal, for example. But as you mentioned, we know that there are so-called tipping points, cases where something in the climate passes a point of no return, and you can’t go back.

Particularly with ice sheets, which means with sea level rise, it is possible that we’ve passed at least one tipping point for West Antarctica, and we know that Greenland and East Antarctica are not too far away, especially Greenland.

This is another reason why the next decade or so is really crucial. We’ve got to turn around the emissions and the speed of the rise before we pass any more tipping points. But people are finally getting fired up and so I have some hope. We’re not doomed – there are things we can do and things we’re beginning to do. We have to keep doing them and do more of them.

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n his book Growth for Good: Reshaping Capitalism to Save Humanity from Climate Catastrophe, Alessio Terzi, an economist at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs and lecturer at Sciences Po, examines the concerns of the degrowth movement which challenges one of the most fundamental components of a capitalist economy: economic growth. He takes the ideas that are rather idealistic and injects them with a dose of pragmatism to explain how growth once more can be a force for good.

Terzi initially strikes a balance between opposing views. He acknowledges the value of the degrowth movement’s arguments, addresses the parts in which they fall short, and lays out the tools that are effective. Growth for Good emphasizes innovation and how capitalism allows it to thrive; however, it also underlines the parts of a capitalist economy that need adjustment in order to take action to combat climate change now.

What is remarkable about the book is its refreshing approach that encourages the reader to keep an open mind. It offers more than an argumentative and sterilized defense of a point of view: it is a genuine yet refined thought process leading into Terzi’s blueprint for an executable agenda allowing the reader to easily follow and absorb the concepts that he highlights in the book. Growth for Good does not only preach about innovation, it embodies innovation in the way it communicates.

In Growth for Good innovation is the key to solving the climate crisis. How does innovation come into play when addressing the concerns of environmental activists?

In the chapter I have on innovation itself and how innovation comes about, I explain that innovation responds to what is perceived as a need. So, the very definition of innovation itself, how it manifests, why certain innovations develop at certain points in time, and whether they are developed and utilized depends on need.

The invisible hand is an important concept in economics for responding to needs, but we can’t seem to get that response when it comes to the environment. Why is that?

The invisible hand in a capitalist system is the price mechanism. The price mechanism doesn’t work because for a very long time we’ve treated the environment as an endless bucket where we could shove our trash. Therefore, there was no pricing for any of these things, and the invisible hand doesn’t do its job at all.

Why would change happen now?

Why this process of transformation will happen is that luckily, we see growing concern about climate change and environmental awareness in people, which wasn’t the case for a very long time. I think that that is the first step which triggers a domino effect throughout society.

Whereas it’s very important to have pioneers who are environmentally aware at an earlier stage, I’m not waiting for a moment in which the whole of society becomes environmentally driven and thinks that one must prioritize the planet over personal needs. Rather, I am waiting for the moment where the cheap option and the green option coincide, and I think that we’re starting to see this increasingly.

For example, when people and governments are willing to invest in greener modes of transport such as electric cars, companies see opportunities for profits. They respond to the opportunity and scale up their production and the costs for these technologies fall. Then, these technologies can spread across society, including people with fewer financial means.

If we want to look for a spark of optimism, these green technologies will not spread linearly but exponentially. Once we reach tipping points, they will spread very fast. We are seeing these developments with renewable energy sources and with a variety of new technologies which are going to be crucial in a green economy.

In your book you warn of a rebound effect for developing countries. Do you think there is enough time to prevent a tip over that would cause us to lose the climate race?

The climate is changing fast, and we are potentially experiencing the tipping points that you are hinting at from a climate, environmental perspective. We have technology and innovation on the other side of the race, which again will experience positive tipping points in terms of acceleration of deployment – that is the component that we’re trying to define.

I am often asked, “Are we going to win against climate change?” It is a bit of an odd question to me, because the climate is already changing. So, to some extent we will experience some of these changes, such as extreme weather events. Their frequency will increase. That’s a fact because they are already baked into the atmosphere. What we will do is try to use innovation to contrast these effects.

I am often framed as an optimist in the fact that I believe that the innovation push can happen, and it can happen fast, but I don’t want to overplay my optimism in the sense that all our problems will magically be solved equally and everywhere. I think that the decades ahead will be a rough period of transition and adjustment.

What is the blueprint that Growth for Good offers?

Economic growth as it is right now leads to CO2 emissions, a linear way of consumption, and therefore pollution of various sorts, but this doesn’t have to be the case. Economic growth can once again be a force for good – that’s where the blueprint comes into play. It requires action from a variety of actors in society.

There is a lot that governments can do in terms of regulation such as taxing carbon, carbon pricing, and penalizing certain behaviors like bans on single-use plastic. Furthermore, governments should put together big plans and invest in infrastructure for a green economy. With respect to industrial policy, governments should invest in research and development for new ways to decarbonize industry. Meanwhile, there is also a lot businesses and consumers can and should do. The blueprint comes together only if all these actors act at the same time, and no single one can work it out on its own.

What would be the most defining factor for saving humanity from a climate catastrophe?

My view rests on the idea that green technologies can be made cheaper. It is not a potential abstract concept, but something that you can see and measure. The degree and speed in which this happens is going to be the most crucial factor. So, observing how fast these technologies develop and cost curves go down will be defining whether we end up on the winning or the losing side of the race with climate change.

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xtreme weather, rising sea levels, and damaged ecosystems may put billions of lives at risk. The “forgotten victims” of climate change will require a collaborative effort.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM), of the United Nations has projected that there will be as many as 1 billion environmental migrants in the next 30 years, with more recent estimates indicating 1.2 billion by 2050 and 1.4 billion by 2060. As the world warms further and the global population reaches its forecasted peak in the mid-2050s, this number is projected to increase dramatically after 2060.

Most Affected

According to the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), a research group that publishes yearly global terrorism and peace indexes, 1.2 billion people live in 31 nations that are not resilient enough to endure environmental hazards.

The IEPs first ecological threat register concluded the following:

• 19 countries experiencing the most challenges, including water and food shortages and increased vulnerability to natural disasters, are also among the world’s 40 least peaceful.
• Over a billion people reside in 31 nations whose resilience is unlikely to be sufficient to survive the effect of natural disasters by 2050, hence contributing to global population displacement.
• Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa face the most ecological risks.
• By 2040, more than half of the world’s projected population, or 5,4 billion people, would reside in the 59 nations experiencing high or extreme water stress, including India and China.
• By 2050, food insecurity might affect 3.5 billion individuals, an increase of 1.5 billion from now.

Pakistan, followed by Ethiopia and Iran, has the greatest number of people at risk of mass displacement. Haiti suffers the highest level of danger in Central America. In many countries, even minor ecological risks and natural calamities could result in mass population displacement, threatening regional and global security.

High-resilience regions, such as Europe and North America, will not be immune to the broader effects of ecological problems, such as the influx of a large number of migrants. In 2015, as a result of the wars in Syria and Iraq, two million refugees fled to Europe, highlighting the correlation between rapid population movements and political and social upheaval.

Climate refugees

The term ‘Climate Refugees’ has been present in public discourse since 1985, when UN Environment Program (UNEP) expert Essam El-Hinnawi defined ‘environmental refugees’ as: “ those who have been forced to leave their traditional habitat, temporarily or permanently, because of marked environmental disruption (natural and/or triggered by people) that jeopardized their existence and/or seriously affected the quality of their life”.

Since 2008, the Internal Displacement Monitoring Center reports that over 318 million people have been forcefully relocated by floods, windstorms, earthquakes, or droughts, including 30,7 million in 2020 alone. This equates to one individual being relocated every second. Depending on the frequency and magnitude of major natural disasters, the total number of displaced individuals varies significantly from year to year, although the trend over the past few decades has been upward. Many are able to find safety within their own nation, while others are compelled to find safety abroad.

Several European nations, notably Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands, were devastated by catastrophic floods in July 2021, resulting in fatalities and massive destruction. According to the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the frequency and intensity of such severe weather events are projected to grow in the coming decades (IPCC). Climate refugees will likely rise in number.

Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director stated in a UNICEF press release, that “climate and environmental shocks are undermining the complete spectrum of children’s rights, from access to clean air, food and safe water; to education, housing, freedom from exploitation, and even their right to survive.

Virtually no child’s life will be unaffected.

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he climate crisis has become a new reality the world can no longer ignore. For many, change is necessary. Aaron Saad draws attention to the simple slogan “System change, not climate change” often seen at climate marches. The nature and scope of change remains a persisting dispute, which often becomes an obstacle to finding a viable solution and taking action. Ideologies, or in other words, our perception of right and wrong, and consequently how the future should be shaped, have a profound effect on the kind of solutions we choose to impose.

In Worlds at Stake: Climate Politics, Ideology, and Justice, Saad intents to show readers the range of options on climate responses, familiarize readers with the landscape of climate politics necessary for critical evaluation of climate policies, and ignite the readers’ potential energy to contribute to collective political power by helping them find their place in the climate struggle.

Saad takes the reader on a critical journey by using an exploratory approach on differing ideologies and climate justice. By laying out the limits and reaches of each ideology comparatively, the book aids the reader in imagining the realities that the corresponding ideologies may lead to. Saad believes it is not enough to solve the climate problem with a certain response, but that we should also be choosing a response that in the process creates a desirable world.

The essential groundwork is laid in the first part of the book, where the author delves into the concepts of ideology and climate justice. Saad highlights the major role that ideology plays in climate politics, and provides an understanding of what ideologies are and how they work. The following two parts are split into categories of system-preserving and system-changing frameworks respectively, offering an insight into answering the question of whether it is an entire system change that is necessary.

Could the existing dynamics in the system be utilized, tweaked, and refined to serve a better future? The second part of the book consists of the chapters “Neoliberalism and the World-Saving Market,” which discusses using the market forces of capitalism in bringing about change, and “Right-Wing Ideology and Climate Change Denialism”, and “Geoengineering,” which addresses using technology on a large scale to control the Earth’s natural systems.

Or, is it time for more radical changes that shake the system to the core? In the third part of the book, Saad discusses “Social Democracy and a Green New Deal, “Degrowth,” which is about the abandonment of a growth-centered economy to preserve ecosystems from human pressures, and “Ecosocialism,” or dismantling capitalism and designing an egalitarian society based on human needs, harmonized with ecology.

In the final part, Saad focuses on the climate movement, its recent tactics, and how they might change the world. Ultimately, Saad addresses incorporating ways of taking action into the discussion. Worlds at Stake offers a unique perspective and comes as a breath of fresh air to those who grasp the urgency of climate action but may feel unfamiliar with the topic or don’t quite know where they stand yet.

Aaron Saad, Worlds at Stake: Climate Politics, Ideology, and Justice (Fernwood Publishing, 2022) ISBN: 9781773635644, 192 pages

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he United Nations Climate Change Conference was held at Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. The COP27 invited leaders across nations and a total of 45,000 participants to address the urgent climate crisis. The impact of climate crisis deserves immediate attention as the brisk changes are likely to influence societies and economies in the near future.

The loss and damage funding is a triumph for climate justice, and aims to support heavily affected developing countries gain resistance in battling the climate crisis. It has been adopted only after long advocacy.

A “transnational committee” amongst nations has been established to figure out how the operations for funding will take place and to prepare for the upcoming COP28.

At COP 27, new pledges were made for more than $230 million to the Adaptation Fund. Until a formal mechanism is established, solidarity finance will aid in cases of urgency. The governments of Scotland, Denmark, Wallonia, and some other philanthropist states donated a symbolic $19.5 million for the loss and damage fund to be used as solidarity finance.

Commitments rather than “placebo funds”

There is no doubt that this funding will help communities and individuals deeply stricken by the current climate crisis. However, from the Paris Agreement of 2015 to COP27 in 2022, there lies a gap in sustaining the commitments made towards funding. This has cast a shadow over the seriousness of the commitments and COP27 pledges.

The $100 billion per year by 2020 goal which was set by developed countries has not yet been met. This has raised concerns for the Loss and Damage Fund, which was first initiated at the Paris Agreement and, for which, the Warsaw International Mechanism was established and signed at COP21.

Unlike previous occasions and since the initiation of the Loss and Damage Fund discussion, the COP27 meeting aimed to make the fund the “central feature of all future climate negotiations.”

Specified targets still do not ease concerns as to the full pledge and commitment governments will have towards this new fund. This pledge is one that raises hope for the climate crisis battle and climate justice.

Yet, all this does not mitigate the suspense that this new fund could also become another “placebo fund.” The term was coined by Benito Müller, who stated that “the last thing anyone needs at this stage is to create (another) climate change ‘placebo fund’, i.e. a ‘pot’ created to buy-in developing countries into some overarching deal that remains empty.”

Monetary importance of the climate crisis

Commitments and meetings held at the COP27 have voiced urgent concerns that need to be addressed, namely concerning those left most impacted by the climate crisis in least developed and developing countries. The developed countries among the COP27 have taken steps in 2022 to address the Loss and Damage Fund. Climate justice seems to have gained importance among leaders that have been acknowledging the topic’s sensitivity.

The battle against the approaching human-made natural disaster will further pressure governments. The $100 billion per year agreed as a target for 2020 has lagged behind, making it now a minimum, while $1 trillion per year by 2030 is deemed necessary to “meet the scale of investment needs” as “unlocking substantial climate finance is key to solving today’s development challenges.”

Monetary concern has become an aggravating factor, especially in the urgency of the climate crisis. This creates more anxiety as the currently “increasing debt levels are making matters worse.”

All commitments and pledges made at the COP27 have presented a huge leap to fight climate injustice and the ongoing crisis. Yet, climate finance still holds uncertainty given structural changes and economic priorities.

The commitments made will be a deciding factor for the fate of those left in the communities most harmed by this urgency, and the efforts taken regionally will also be consistent with the pledges voiced on a global scale.

Overcoming climate injustices becomes synonymous with commitments that should be made regionally too. The fragility of the political world overburdens the efforts to tackle climate crisis; however, climate crisis demands urgent and unwavering attention.

The effects of climate change are experienced on an individual, societal, and global scale. Pledges and commitments voicing the importance of climate change for the future are not enough; climate change requires critical and sincere approaches that steer away from all types of “placebo funds.”

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he summer of 2022 hit the world rather harshly. Wildfires and unusually scorching heat often followed by flash floods in different parts of the world have become a common occurrence. The effects of climate change become more tangible and destructive for all, yet the series of disasters highlight distinctive challenges for each region.

Europe

Europe is suffering the worst drought in 500 years, most notably impacting France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg, Romania, Hungary, Serbia, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Ireland, and the UK.

The effects of the drought are detrimental to trade, transport, water and food supply, and energy generation. Major rivers like the Rhine, Danube, Loire, and Po have seen a significant fall in water levels while the current dry spell is expected to last several more months.

According to the European Commission’s European Drought Observatory, 47% of the continent is experiencing a significant deficit of soil moisture, while an additional 17% is at an alert state.

As heatwaves boost energy demand and gas supplies from Russia remain limited, European energy prices have surged six months into the war. The focus is now handling the upcoming winter demand. Recently, the EU attempted to greenwash nuclear energy to calm supply shortages. While the move raises ethical concerns, nuclear energy production may further strain water supply.

All this leaves Europe in a position where it must juggle energy and water issues. In France, rivers that are used to cool nuclear reactors have reached alarming temperatures. The water used in the process is returned to the river at a higher temperature, potentially harming wildlife.

Africa

In Africa, the effects of natural disaster and climate change have led to mass migration and starvation. A World Bank report predicts that by 2050, around 86 million people in sub-Saharan Africa and 19 million in North Africa could become internal migrants due to climate shocks such as heatwaves and drought, storms, and major flooding.

Following four consecutive years of below average rainfall, the Horn of Africa is experiencing the worst drought in 40 years. The drought has devastating effects on farming. Millions of livestock have perished while failed harvests have resulted in a drop of food production. The region remains vulnerable as its economy heavily depends on agriculture.

Combined with armed conflicts, rising food and fuel prices, and the impact of COVID19, the climate crisis leaves 1.5 million persons in the region displaced according to the UNHCR. The situation in Ethiopia, Somalia, and parts of Kenya continues to worsen. Since January, over 200 children died from malnutrition in Somalia alone.

Across the Sahel region, water availability has dropped more than 40% over the past 20 years mainly due to climate change.

In April, intense rains hit South Africa causing floods and landslides across the provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. More than 400 people died as a result of floods, making it one of South Africa’s deadliest disasters this century.

Asia

Extreme and unpredictable weather tests the resilience of Asian countries. Asia is diverse, with differing geography, population, and capabilities to respond to climate change. It also has two of the most populated countries in the world, India and China, exposing more people to potential damage.

In Pakistan, the “monsoon on steroids” caused major floods after heavy rain. Around 33 million people were affected and over 1,000 people were killed. Many have lost all their possessions and have been left homeless. In the earlier months, neighboring India and Bangladesh were hit by floods from the monsoon season that came earlier than expected.

Relatively smaller storms have also taken affect in Southeast Asia. Extreme weather events occur more frequently and intensely in the region. The storms were particularly hard-hitting on rural areas in Indonesia.

China is seeing record-breaking temperatures that sparked wildfires in its southwestern region. Cities in the south are experiencing a major drought that has dried up the rivers that cities use for hydropower, the world’s third longest river, Yangtze, among them. The river is a water source for 600 million people.

Local officials have suspended the supply of hydropower to some companies and factories, shutting down industries. China’s power crunch threatens supplies of everything from metals to food, and also is slowing down global business.

Why do flash floods follow drought?

The many cases of flooding we have seen this summer came after droughts. This is because a prolonged period of drought changes the nature of the soil.

Drought-hit land becomes vulnerable to flooding. As soil dries up and hardens, it loses its porosity and therefore, its ability to absorb the rain.

Furthermore, a warmer climate creates an atmosphere that can collect, retain, and unleash more water. This results in wet areas becoming wetter and dry areas becoming drier.

As many countries hit their highest-ever recorded temperatures this year, the picture comes as no surprise. The effects of climate change increasingly seep through our daily lives, even for the more privileged.

There is little doubt that climate change is to remain one of the top issues on the world agenda. As greenhouse gas emissions increase and global warming speeds up, climate change becomes more tangible and its risks turn more devastating. In recent years, almost every single corner of the world has experienced extreme weather changes. This urges politicians and decision-makers to take concrete action to tackle climate change. The Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) shows that the world’s overall temperature has already risen 1.5^oC degrees. Today, we cannot unring the bell, but we can slow down global warming.

The Climate Crisis

The release of high amounts of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide into the atmosphere increases the air, water, and land temperatures, and causes global warming. Climate change, on the other hand, refers to the increase in temperature caused by global warming, as well as melting glaciers, changing water levels in the oceans and seas, heavy and irregular precipitation, storms, and drought. Today, most of the emissions-caused global warming is due to human actions, while the effect of natural processes is quite limited.

The Industrial Revolution jumpstarted the processes that have caused climate change. When Western countries changed their production processes, extensive use of fossil energy resources – mainly coal – occurred and human-caused greenhouse gas emissions began to rise. The amount of carbon dioxide emissions, which were close to 1 billion tons in the 1850s reached 35 billion tons in 2019. Due to high emissions, the temperature is also increasing, and the risks arising from climate change are becoming more threatening. (Graph 1)

Source: World Meteorological Organization

Increasing poverty, food insecurity, health problems, water scarcity, infrastructure damage, inequalities, destruction of ecosystems, and decrease in biodiversity led by climate change are increasingly affecting human life today. Moreover, abnormal cold and heat waves, heavy rainfall, storms and tornadoes, forest fires, and floods are becoming more frequent and affect living conditions. Preventing these risks and threats depends on slowing down global warming. Although the current situation needs governments to take collective action, the individual efforts of countries are still important.

Combating Climate Change in Turkey

According to the IPCC, which was established to inform governments about climate change, the Mediterranean belt is among the top regions that will suffer from global warming and climate change. Due to its location in the Mediterranean, Turkey is among the countries most affected and most expected to be affected by the climate crisis. The extreme weather changes, such as drought, floods, forest fires, and increasing pollution, that have been experienced in the last couple of years are directly related to global warming and reveal the need for Turkey to take immediate action.

Due to its location in the Mediterranean, Turkey is among the countries most affected and most expected to be affected by the climate crisis.

In fact, since the beginning of the 2000s, Turkey has been striving to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by developing policies, setting targets, and implementing projects in many sectors from energy to urbanism, agriculture forestry to industry. The most concrete example of this is its installed capacity of renewable energy: the country has increased its renewable power more than fourfold since 2000 and it now constitutes approximately 52 percent of Turkey’s total installed capacity. (Table 1)

Source: TEIAS

The Zero Waste project, launched in 2017 and developed to combat climate change, is one of Turkey’s pioneering projects. The main objectives of zero waste are to prevent waste, use resources efficiently, and to prevent waste generation by reviewing the processes that generate waste, or at least, to reduce it as much as possible. Since the Zero Waste project was initiated, Turkey has increased its recycling rate from 13 percent to over 20 percent in three years, thus saving 315 million kilowatt-hours of energy, 345 million cubic meters of water, and 41 million cubic meters of storage space. Most importantly, two billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions have been prevented.

Since the beginning of the 2000s, Turkey has been determined to increase its forest assets.

Forests also play a major role in combating climate change. Thanks to their carbon absorption feature, forests reduce greenhouse gas emissions by converting the carbon dioxide into the oxygen. Since the beginning of the 2000s, Turkey has been determined to increase its forest assets. Forest areas, which were about 20 million hectares in 2000, reached 23 million hectares in 2020, and areas lost as a result of fires are also largely recovered through reforestation.

Apart from its individual efforts, Turkey joins international actions to tackle climate change. The country is among the first to sign the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol. Although there were some structural problems due to its status in the UNFCCC, which is the main umbrella for all climate agreements, the country overcame the problems with diplomacy and ratified both agreements. On October 7, 2021, the Paris Agreement was unanimously approved by the Grand National Assembly.

As an EU candidate and a member of the Customs Union, Ankara is also responsible for complying with the European Green Deal and the country published the Green Deal Action Plan in July 2021. Being one of the founding countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Turkey now emphasizes its need for green financing at every opportunity. Acquiring international financial aid to accelerate the efforts to combat climate change is one of the most important items on Ankara’s agenda.

According to a report recently released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is a United Nations body tasked with assessing science-based observations on climate change, human activity is rapidly changing the climate in remarkable ways, thus confirming the debates around the Anthropocene.

The report is the first major review of climate change since 2013 outlining data on the change and how it will affect people all over the world, and mostly those living in cities. The climate change crisis has already arrived. Now the question is: how bad is the situation today and is it too late to prevent it?

A total of 234 authors from over 66 countries who are members of UN working groups claim that it is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean, and land.

The report comes at a time, when the Paris Agreement’s objectives on the global level will be assessed, including the goal to reduce global warming below 2°C while continuing efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C.

The IPCC report also provides information for the review of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by UN member states for 2030.

Changes

The IPCC scientists warn that we will exceed 2°C warming in the coming decades, heat waves will increase, and shorter cold seasons and longer warm seasons will be the norm. The observed evidence for extreme changes includes increased frequency and intensity of extreme heat, oceanic heat waves, heavy rainfall, droughts affecting agriculture, intense tropical cyclones, and reductions in Arctic Sea ice. All the above, according to the report, are effects of human influence.

A future scenario

By 2050, according to all scenarios, global warming will increase and exceed 1.5°C. If carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions are not significantly reduced in the coming decades, global warming will reach over 2°C at some point in the 21st century. The consequences of this scenario would be detrimental changes in the climate system, including an increase in the frequency and intensity of heat waves, heavy precipitation, drought, and the melting of the Arctic ice pack, snow cover and permafrost as well as changes in the hydrological cycle (variability between years or intensity of extreme events such as droughts or floods).

How can we limit climate change?

Is there a way to limit the climate change which the entire world is already experiencing? Many of the effects of current climate changes are irreversible for hundreds or thousands of years, especially regarding oceans, ice sheets, and sea levels.

According to the report, to confine global warning to a certain level, at least CO₂ emissions and other greenhouse gas emissions must be significantly reduced. In particular, a rapid and sustained reduction in methane (CH₄) emissions would offset the warming associated with aerosol-producing air pollutants and improve air quality.

Life is in a constant state of flux, and the world’s climate has been changing accordingly ever since the earth came into existence. Research findings in recent decades have provided evidence that man-made emissions resulting from rapid industrialization can influence the pace of this change. In the worst case, this contributes to man’s own detriment and that of ecosystems.

For this reason, countries around the world have agreed on the goal of reducing their greenhouse gas emissions through proactive measures in an attempt to limit global warming. The ways to achieve this vary around the world, depending on the structure of countries, their economies, their energy landscapes, and the importance of environmental issues in the public consciousness.

Climate change and related protection and adaptation measures are complex issues that have global significance but also require concrete local action.

For Western Europe, however, the climate debate seems to be more than a mere question of technology, efficiency and a cost/benefit ratio. The more secularized the society in a country is, and the less traditional values play a role in shaping life there, the more the issue of climate change is being stylized as a central question of human existence.

Nowhere else in the world is the public debate about climate change as much dominated by alarmism and apocalyptic thinking as it is there. It is also hardly surprising that the “school strike” movement is most strongly associated with countries characterized by a completely secularized Protestantism. “Fridays for Future” was founded in Sweden, and the movement experienced its greatest popularity in Germany.

Today, there is even talk of climate change as the “last great narrative of the West.”

The occurrence that traditional religions would give way to secular substitute religions in “enlightened” Europe is nothing new. Soon after the French Revolution, the writings of Robert Malthus, Charles Darwin, Karl Marx or Arthur de Gobineau passed the justification for intensified European colonialism and inspired ideologies such as Communism or National Socialism. Today, there is even talk of climate change as the “last great narrative of the West.”

In contrast, for millions of African children, working on toxic waste dumps or in uranium mines is part of their everyday lives, even though they would rather go to school and attend classes there.

Ideological and dogmatic climate policies in Western Europe create enormous potential for conflict.

It is not only on a global scale, where some critics accuse rich nations of denying poorer ones the opportunity for economic advancement through rigid climate protection regulations, that the climate debate reveals different perceptions.

Domestically, too, ideological and dogmatic climate policies in Western European countries create enormous potential for conflict. German government policies seek to abolish nuclear power, end coal mining, eliminate the internal combustion engine, and hope that by a certain point, high subsidies for green energy will deliver viable innovations.

To date, however, this approach has mainly resulted in Germany’s dependence on foreign energy supplies – and a world-leading position in electricity prices. It is obvious that this affects doctors’ daughters from Blankenese less than the farmer’s son from Lower Bavaria, but also the immigrant family of six from Duisburg-Marxloh.

Proponents of an even more aggressive climate policy, such as the German Green Party, promise to compensate those affected by the foreseeable explosion in electricity prices for the additional costs. An “energy allowance” is even intended to ensure that particularly efficient families end up better off than before. However, many remain skeptical about whether the money will actually reach those who need it. Moreover, politically distorted market prices cannot be enforced in the long run by subsidies against the law of supply and demand.

But an ideological approach to climate change also creates the risk of escalating social conflicts in other respects. Planned economies and redistribution, which would never have taken place in this form in Western Europe before, will one day reach their limits. At that moment, however, distributional struggles are pre-programmed that could benefit racist forces.

Already now, in some parties of the radical right in Western Europe, such as the German AfD, a tendency toward a racist charge of the climate debate can be noticed. In their circles, for example, there are increasing calls to abandon the previous position of climate skepticism and to acknowledge man-made climate change. This should have the consequence of making a rigid policy of birth control in African and Muslim countries a condition for further development aid. Some far-right politicians are already calling for a global one-child policy along the lines of China.

In the end, a social credit system modeled on the Beijing dictatorship could also be up for debate in domestic politics. In Bulgaria, the far-right IMRO party openly advocates paying benefits for women of the Roma ethnic group that undergo a sterilization. In several European countries, such as Sweden or Norway, forced sterilization of Roma women was a widely accepted practice until the 1970s.

In this way, the climate debate could also become a gateway for a return of racist practices of this kind in Western Europe. Religious upbringing, early pregnancies, or a larger amount of children could become a pretext for state authorities to harass families or remove children from immigrant home – because of their lifestyle allegedly causing “climate hazard”. For the time being, all this remains mostly a matter of speculation. However, European history teaches that it would not be the first time that a delusional and ideological policy would take on manifestations that are extremist and inhumane.

We have not known coffee for very long. Most accounts take us only as back as the 15th century, when it was first used by the mystics of Yemen. Yet, coffee somehow got the lion’s share of blame in many conspiracies around the world. Attempts were made with varying level of success by those who valued order over thrill to get it banned in the Ottoman Empire, Persia, Sweden, and Italy.

Now, the sublime beans seem to have had more than their due share of trouble, and are calling it a day.

Scientists have warned that 60% of the species of coffee are at risk of extinction. Out of 124 known types of coffee species, we actually use just two for our beverage: Coffea Arabica and Coffea robusta. But Arabica, the most popular one, is in trouble too.

Most of the species facing the risk of extinction are not used for making coffee. But even those must be conserved, scientists say, for cross-breeding and production of more resilient new varieties, which are sensitive to climatic threats.

According to experts, while global coffee demand is expected to double by 2050, at least half of the land used for coffee production may become unsuitable by then.

While coffee will not disappear anytime soon, the quantum of the problem is significant. Ethiopia, the original source of the enigmatic beans, is still the largest African exporter of coffee. But 60% of the land that is used for coffee production there will become unsuitable by the end of this century.

A very nice-tasting species of coffee, the Coffea stenophylla, was seen in December 2018 for the first time since 1954. This was only a single plant, in an area that itself, scientists reported, was threatened by human encroachment and deforestation.

Rising global demand

According to experts, while global coffee demand is expected to double by 2050, at least half of the land used for coffee production may become unsuitable by then.

Even though a higher demand may support price in the short to medium run, we will actually be pushing the planetary boundaries in the longer run beyond what the Earth can sustain.

In the absence of appropriate support mechanisms, a higher demand will lead to a greater environmental stress, that is worsened by a warmer planet. Challenges to coffee production may increase in scope, as well as intensity, over time. The need to strengthen and augment the coffee ecosystem is urgent.

Anatomy of environmental stress

Human-induced climate change, diseases and pests, and deforestation are some of the reasons why certain species of coffee are already under threat.

Take Costa Rica, for example, where farmers are leaving coffee plantation in favor of orange production due to erratic weather, and more storms and droughts. This has meant an increase in the cost of the production of coffee. On the other hand, farmers find oranges to be more resilient in the face of climatic threats. This must be a difficult decision in a country where people feel a deep connection between Coffea and who they are.

But the damage from climate change does not stop here. As a result of the hotter climate and increasing rainfall levels, fungi such as the coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix) and pests like the coffee berry borer (Hypothenemus hampei) are appearing in areas that were previously free of them.

Meanwhile, growers in other areas, like Australia, which represents a potential substitute area to the more conventional centers of coffee production, lament less-than-usual rainfall, due to changing weather patterns.

Even if rainfall were optimal, Australian coffee is less environmentally stressed otherwise, and therefore, has 10-15% lesser caffeine. Caffeine production being a defense mechanism, a less stressful environment means less caffeine.

It, therefore, seems like there is also an optimal level of stress at which nature thrives. However, instead of respecting such subtleties and the intricate forces of balance in our world, we revel in the excesses that we cheer as the era of mass consumption.

Danger to livelihoods

As we see these problems from a distance, we may be tempted to conclude that there is still enough time to act and that appropriate measures will probably prevent something as extreme as coffee disappearing from the planet.

Yet, for those whose livelihoods depend on coffee, the question is rather irrelevant. For them, the coffee either stays feasible, or has to be replaced by some other crop as soon as possible. The falling prices of coffee worldwide have made things even more difficult, especially for smaller farmers.

Already 40% of coffee farmers are estimated to be living below the poverty line. Small farmers owning less than 5 hectares (12 acres) of land account for two-thirds of global coffee supply. They are not only poor to begin with but cannot compete with big producers in mechanization, automation, or cost-effectiveness.

Compare the small producers, with the big producers of Brazil, for example, which accounts for a third of global coffee production. Owing to greater sophistication, big Brazilian producers can produce more at a lower cost.

This is bad news for smaller farmers. When the overall production in the world is high – sometimes driven solely by Brazil – the price falls. This, again, effects small farmers disproportionately, who are producing at very low profit margins already. When the prices are too low, it is not unusual for them to have to sell below cost.

At the end of the day, poorer farmers may end up producing lower quality beans, at a higher relative cost, and not being able to incorporate more sustainable agricultural practices, like soil enrichment.

The result is that these farmers are trying to switch to other crops where they can. But switching to other crops is not a costless process, and may not always be a success. The disturbances from climate change and an erratic pricing system, have resulted in psychological health problems in poor farmers ranging from anxiety and depression to suicide.

Healing the world

The indifference of the world to the raging inequalities is heartbreaking. As we grab a $5 cup of coffee, on the go, we should think about the farmer who must have worked for 48 hours to make the same amount of money.

At the very least the world needs a mechanism to ensure a fair price to the coffee farmers, as their already challenged livelihoods are disrupted by the environmental footprint of the richer world. The richest 10% in the world account for more than 50% of global carbon emissions, after all.

So, where are we right now?

The Fair Trade movement is said to be helping farmers with a “fair” price. But even they admit that a price higher than what they are able to offer would be more desirable. Starbucks claims to procure 99% of its coffee “ethically,” where they have data going down to the name of the farmer who they bought the beans from along with the price (which they do not disclose publicly).