Serendip is an independent site partnering with faculty at multiple colleges and universities around the world. Happy exploring!
You are here
Feed aggregator
From Silicon Valley to Silicon Savannah: climate expert Patrick Verkooijen on why this is Africa’s century
The University of Nairobi’s new chancellor says the continent has vast potential – but to realise the promise of AI and green jobs, rich countries must honour their commitments
Africa has all the potential to meet pressing climate challenges with innovative solutions, according to one of the world’s renowned environmentalists. With its vast natural capital and youthful population, “this is Africa’s century,” according to Prof Patrick Verkooijen, chief executive of the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), and the new chancellor of the University of Nairobi.
But Verkooijen emphasises that support and investment from the global north is essential, highlighting that 65% of the world’s uncultivated land is in Africa, a continent with immense promise in its population, set to make up one in four people globally by 2050.
Continue reading...What are the main UK parties promising on climate and is it enough? – podcast
Last week more than 400 scientists signed an open letter to political parties urging ambitious action on the environment to prevent making Britain and the world ‘more dangerous and insecure’.
Now that the main parties’ manifestos have all been released, Ian Sample is joined by the global environment editor, Jon Watts, and the biodiversity reporter, Phoebe Weston, to find out what the manifestos have to say about nature and climate, and whether anyone is promising the level of action scientists are asking for
Find more analysis of how the UK parties rate on their environmental manifesto pledges
Continue reading...Exxon Suit Over Activist Investor’s Climate Proposal Is Dismissed
Andrew Forrest says Coalition’s abandonment of 2030 emissions target would ‘decimate’ economy
Mining magnate says investors need certainty as opposition’s climate policy comes under increasing scrutiny
- Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
- Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast
The mining magnate Andrew Forrest has warned that the federal Coalition’s proposed abandonment of the 2030 emissions reduction target would hit Australian exports with penalty carbon taxes.
On Tuesday the Fortescue boss warned that relying on the introduction of nuclear power in at least 15 years’ time while opposing large-scale renewables and abandoning interim targets would cripple investment certainty.
Continue reading...Dozens of Groups Push FEMA to Recognize Extreme Heat as a ‘Major Disaster’
Athletes warn ‘hottest Games on record’ could threaten lives at Paris Olympics
- Annual Paris temperatures warmed by 1.8°C since 1924
- New report cites risks posed by extreme heat
The Paris Olympics could be the hottest Games on record, with leading athletes warning that the intense heat forecast for competition could lead to athletes collapsing or – in a worst-case scenario – dying in competition.
A new report, Rings of Fire: Heat Risks at the 2024 Paris Olympics, argues the 2021 games held in Tokyo “offered a window into an alarming, escalating norm for Summer Olympics”.
Continue reading...5 cifras para entender la próxima ola de calor
Guardian Essential poll: Labor vulnerable to Dutton’s climate campaign as voters split on 2030 target
Almost half of those surveyed said target was ‘unachievable and hurting the economy’ and Australia should instead focus on 2050
- Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
- Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast
Voters are split on Peter Dutton’s controversial proposal to abandon Australia’s 2030 emissions reduction target, despite rejecting his plan to wait at least 15 years for nuclear power to help achieve net zero by 2050.
The latest Guardian Essential poll of 1,181 respondents suggests Labor’s efforts to boost renewable energy are popular, but the Albanese government is vulnerable to a Coalition campaign focusing on the scale of Australia’s ambition to fight global heating.
Continue reading...Recycling Is Broken. Should I Even Bother?
From LED bulbs to living plants: German theatre tackles climate crisis on and off stage
With tickets doubling as public transport passes and recycled props, Hans Otto Theater is embracing a €3m federal project to make culture climate neutral
A handful of Spanish conquistadors fight through thick undergrowth to emerge in the ivy-clad ruins of a fallen civilisation during a rehearsal of Austrian playwright Thomas Köck’s Your Palaces Are Empty.
Premiered last month at the Hans Otto Theater in Potsdam, south-west of Berlin, the bleak and unforgiving drama probes the wounds of a shattered capitalist world that has exploited its people and the planet’s resources.
Continue reading...Why are Australian houses so cold, and how can we build 1.2m new ones without trashing the environment? | Philip Oldfield
Here’s how Australia can build new homes that not only keep us warm but cut emissions and avoid climate catastrophe
The federal government has set a target of building 1.2m new homes in Australia by 2029.
If we construct these homes the same way as we do today, their materials will contribute to millions of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, while our poorly performing existing homes will remain freezing in the winter. We need to change the way we design, build and retrofit housing to avoid a climate catastrophe.
Continue reading...Australia news live: Chinese premier greeted in Canberra by 19-gun salute – and chants and shouts of protesters
Ceremonial welcome for China’s premier, Li Qiang, takes place at Parliament House in Canberra. Follow today’s news headlines live
Ex-Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann arrives at a Toowoomba court
Bruce Lehrmann arrives at a Toowoomba court for a committal hearing into allegations he raped a woman in 2021.
Continue reading...The Guardian view on the climate crisis and heatwaves: a killer we need to combat | Editorial
Britain may be chilly, but from Greece to India, people are dying due to record temperatures. The death toll will grow without urgent action
While Britons don jumpers and complain about the unseasonable cold, much of the world has been reeling due to excessive temperatures. India has been in the grip of its longest heatwave in recorded history, with thermometers hitting 50C in some places. Greece closed the Acropolis in the afternoon last week as temperatures hit 43C; never has it seen a heatwave so early in the year. Soaring temperatures in the Sahel and western Africa saw mortuaries in Mali reportedly running short of space this spring, while swathes of Asia suffered in May.
Mexico and the south-west of the US have also endured blistering conditions; it was particularly shocking to hear Donald Trump pledge again to “drill, baby, drill” at a rally that saw supporters taken to hospital with heat exhaustion. These bouts of extreme weather are increasing as the climate crisis worsens. Although the El Niño weather pattern contributed to heatwaves over the last 12 months, they are becoming more frequent, extreme and prolonged thanks to global heating. By 2040, almost half the world’s inhabitants are likely to experience major heatwaves, 12 times more than the historic average.
Continue reading...Climate 200 names nine new Coalition seats where it hopes to replicate teal wave at next election
Exclusive: After months of speculation the fundraising giant has identified more electorates where independent campaigns meet its criteria for support
- Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
- Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast
Climate 200, the fundraising giant that bankrolled the teal independent wave at the last election, has thrown its support behind independent campaigns in nine more Coalition-held seats.
After months of speculation, the group said it would support independent campaigns in the Queensland electorates of McPherson, Moncrief, Fisher and Fairfax as well as the New South Wales electorates Cowper and Bradfield, and Casey, Monash and Wannon in Victoria.
Continue reading...Drone footage shows mudslides after heavy rain in southern China – video
China's state broadcaster reported on mudlsides in the Fujian province, disrupting traffic and forcing rescuers to evacuate residents after heavy rainfall in the region. Across other parts of China, the government issued an alert for high temperatures while the south faced severe flood warnings. China has been experiencing extreme weather in recent months. In one instance, severe flooding caused four deaths in Guangdong in April
Continue reading...5 Numbers to Know About the Coming Heat Wave
5 Numbers to Know About the Coming Heat Wave
The Greens Are Dead. Long Live the Greens!
The Greens Are Dead. Long Live the Greens!
Disastrous, dark shadow, destroys our economy: five climate elders on Peter Dutton’s emissions stance
From Peter Garrett to Prof Lesley Hughes there is frustration, despair and ‘a towering sense of anger’ over the opposition leader’s shift on the 2030 target
Any sense of a ceasefire in Australia’s fractious climate wars was blown away this week after the Coalition said it would not back the country’s 2030 emissions reduction target at the next election.
Peter Dutton’s declaration would mean that, if elected, a Coalition government will seek to breach a central tenet of the global Paris climate accord that countries should not “backslide” on their climate ambition.
Continue reading...