By Anna Lippman, York University, Canada | – We saw it in the United States on Jan. 6, 2021. We witnessed it during Canada’s so-called Freedom Convoy. The evidence is clear —fascism is on the rise in North America. But ethno-nationalist fascism is growing even faster in the remote areas of occupied Palestine amid widespread […]
Could the Law of the Sea be used to protect Small Island States from Climate Change?
By Ellycia Harrould-Kolieb, The University of Melbourne; and Margaret Young, The University of Melbourne | – Climate change will wreak havoc on small island developing states in the Pacific and elsewhere. Some will be swamped by rising seas. These communities also face more extreme weather, increasingly acidic oceans, coral bleaching and harm to fisheries. Food […]
Syria faces daunting Obstacles in its Attempt to rejoin the International Fold
By Scott Lucas, University College Dublin | – (The Conversation) – In the carefully composed photograph released by their state news agencies at the beginning of May, Syria’s leader Bashar al-Assad has his arms outstretched to welcome the Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi. The two men are beaming. Raisi’s visit was a sign of Tehran’s essential […]
The Forgotten Amazon: As a Critical Summit Nears, Politicians must Work Against Deforestation in Bolivia’s Amazon
By Victor Galaz, Stockholm University | – When asked to situate the world’s most iconic rainforest on a map, most people will pinpoint Brazil. And given the intense media coverage of the country’s deforestation and fires – concerns reached a peak under former president Jair Bolsonaro and his free-for-all approach – they might also imagine […]
416,000 Years Ago, All Greenland’s Ice Melted and Raised Sea Levels 5-20 Feet: A Warning from the Past
By Paul Bierman, University of Vermont, and Tammy Rittenour, Utah State University | – About 400,000 years ago, large parts of Greenland were ice-free. Scrubby tundra basked in the Sun’s rays on the island’s northwest highlands. Evidence suggests that a forest of spruce trees, buzzing with insects, covered the southern part of Greenland. Global sea […]
As Global Heat Waves Break Records in Mideast and Elsewhere, How Hot it too Hot for us Humans?
By W. Larry Kenney, Penn State; Daniel Vecellio, Penn State; Rachel Cottle, Penn State; and S. Tony Wolf, Penn State | – (The Conversation) – Extreme heat has been breaking records across Europe, Asia and North America, with millions of people sweltering in heat and humidity well above “normal” for days on end. Death Valley […]
Did the Anthropocene Era of Human-Caused Climate Change Start in 1950 – or Much Earlier? Why the Debate Matters
By Noel Castree, University of Technology Sydney | – (The Conversation) – It made world news last week when a small lake in Canada was chosen as the “Golden Spike” – the location where the emergence of the Anthropocene is most clear. The Anthropocene is the proposed new geological epoch defined by humanity’s impact on […]
Climate Crisis: Northern Europe faces biggest relative Increase in Uncomfortable Heat and Air Conditioning will only make things Worse
By Jesus Lizana, University of Oxford; Nicole Miranda, University of Oxford; and Radhika Khosla, University of Oxford | – Limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5℃ is getting harder. A recent UN report even stated that there is now “no credible pathway” to achieve this goal. Our planet has entered uncharted territory, with all kinds […]
This Year’s El Niño, a Preview of Global Heating to Come, Will Affect Wheat and Global Food Supply
By David Ubilava, University of Sydney | – The World Meteorological Organization has declared the onset of the first El Niño event in seven years. It estimates 90% probability the climatic phenomenon, involving an unusual warming of the Pacific Ocean, will develop through 2023, and be of moderate strength. El Niño events bring hotter, drier […]