The recent floods in France, Belgium, the UK and Germany remind us again of the danger of the climate crisis. Europe’s rivers however can be key components of both climate mitigation and adaptation. Cleaning them up and restoring them is an expensive undertaking – but it’s worth the price. Paul Hockenos reports. Read More
All posts tagged: Climate
Germany’s Springer media gets the climate crisis so wrong
The new evidence that the German CEO of Europe’s largest media publisher, Axel Springer, (mis)uses his flagship tabloid, the arch-conservative Bild, to advance his personal views on the climate crisis and climate activism is hardly surprising, as the Springer Media group has been mixing right-wing politics and public information for decades. But 2023-leaked emails and text messages have exposed Axel Springer chief executive and part owner Mathias Döpfner’s unvarnished personal views on these issues and others. Paul Hockenos reports. Read More
Will the new Polish government launch a renewable energy revolution?
Even though ecology is a key economic and social theme, it was most definitely side-lined during the Polish parliamentary elections of 15 October 2023. The campaign was dominated by other issues: the surveillance of opposition politicians by special services, the role of state-run media, migration policy and the unprecedented enrichment of politicians from the governing Law and Justice (PiS) party through state assets. These subjects stirred a lot more emotion than the future of a coal-based economy or the need to unfreeze the stunted development of wind energy. Michał Olszewski reports. Read More
Despite a record year in profits, oil and gas companies still aren’t doing enough to combat emissions
Oil and gas companies have been the biggest winners of the energy price hikes of 2022. But as yet, there is scant evidence that companies have invested their windfalls in the energy transition. Is there hope that they will? Joelle Thomas reports. Read More
The UAE’s unconventional COP
The lead up to what the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hopes will be a pivotal COP28 has been overshadowed by questions about whether the UAE, as a major oil-producing country, is sincerely interested in decarbonization. The debate over the UAE’s chairmanship (and in particular, the chairman himself) has been louder than talk of the topics on the table at this year’s COP. How is the UAE positioning itself to be a decarbonization leader, and are its ambitions to be a climate leader substantiated or merely symbolic? Joelle Thomas takes a closer look.
If Billionaires Want to Rescue the Climate, They Have to Walk the Talk
When the world’s wealthy and powerful descend on the Swiss ski resort of Davos every year to offer prescriptions to fix the world, the assumption from many on the outside is that these moguls are converging to fix it in a way that will protect their riches, or better yet expand them. Thus while there was XXL greenwashing afoot at this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) in January 16 to20, at least it’s clear to the Davos crowd that the climate crisis is an acute threat, if foremost to their fortunes. Paul Hockenos on the role of climate change debates at the billionaires’ summit in Switzerland.