Environment

By Nerilie Abram, Australian National University; Ariaan Purich, Monash University; Felicity McCormack, Monash University; Jan Strugnell, James Cook University, and Matthew England, UNSW Sydney (The Conversation) – Antarctica has long been seen as a remote, unchanging environment. Not any more. The ice-covered continent and the surrounding Southern Ocean are undergoing abrupt and alarming changes. Sea […]

Climate Crisis

State of Climate: Earth Hottest on Record again, as CO2 still Climbs and Glaciers Wilt

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The American Meteorological Society has issued its annual climate report, this one summarizing changes in 2024 now that all the data is in. It paints an alarming picture, especially at a moment when Big Oil has taken over the US government via its Republican puppets and is spiking all our […]

Environment

Iran’s Nature is under Threat – here’s how better environmental Stewardship can save it

The Conversation

By Shooka Bidarian, United Nations University and Mark Maslin, UCL (The Conversation) – From arid deserts and alpine meadows to dense wetlands and temperate forests, Iran’s natural landscapes give rise to rich native wildlife. This country is home to over 8,000 species of plants, nearly 500 bird species and 194 mammals. The UN has listed […]

China

Trump to Xi: ‘Hold our Beer’ – EVs majority of Chinese New Car Sales, as Exports rocket 74%

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Car News China reports that in the first half of 2025, consumers in that country bought 10,891,000 passenger vehicles. But here’s the catch. They bought 5,458,000 EVs and 5,433,000 gasoline cars. Look carefully at those numbers. They bought more EVs than internal combustion engine cars. To be precise, 50.1% of […]

Climate Crisis

As Summer Temperatures Soar, Iran’s Water Crisis Worsens

Global Voices

As dams dry and rivers vanish, Iran’s capital faces its fiercest thirst in modern memory. Written byReza Talebi ( Globalvoices.org ) – Soaring summer temperatures in Iran and widespread blackouts have pushed the government to shut down public offices in at least 12 provinces and warn of a possible nationwide week-long closure to conserve energy, […]

Climate Crisis

Wildfire Season is starting Weeks earlier in California – a new Study shows how Climate Change is driving the Expansion

The Conversation

By Gavin D. Madakumbura, University of California, Los Angeles and Alex Hall, University of California, Los Angeles (The Conversation) – Fire season is expanding in California, with an earlier start to wildfire activity in most of the state. In parts of the northern mountains, the season is now starting more than 10 weeks earlier than […]

Climate Crisis

We are What we Eat: A Step We all Can take to Fight Climate Breakdown

H. Patricia Hynes

Greenfield, Mass. (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – Nuclear physicist Edward Teller predicted in 1959 that the risks of burning fossil fuels, by increasing carbon dioxide (C02) in the atmosphere, may be sufficient in time to melt polar icecaps and submerge all coastal cities. These predictions, which are proving accurate, were buried by the fossil […]

Climate Crisis

Flames to Floods: How Europe’s Devastating Wildfires are fuelling its next Climate Crisis

The Conversation

By Ioanna Stamataki, University of Greenwich (The Conversation) – In recent years, I have all too often found myself passing over an active wildfire when flying from London to my family home in Greece during the summer months. The sky glows an eerie, apocalyptic red, and the scent of smoke fills the cabin. Silence falls […]

Climate Crisis

In Syria, Women are Bearing the Brunt of Climate Breakdown

Middle East Monitor

by Zahra Zaman ( Middle East Monitor ) – Syria had been embroiled in a protracted conflict and plagued by authoritarianism for decades. While the brutal regime of Bashar al Asad has collapsed, the ordeal is far from over for Syrians as they are now confronted with the rapidly accelerating threat of climate change looming […]