In August 2022, French climate activists filled in holes at golf courses near Toulouse with cement. In July 2023, Spanish activists followed suit, filling in holes at courses across Spain with soil and planting seedlings on the courses. The reason? Protesting golf’s very thirsty use of water in times of drought. At a time of unprecedented heatwaves and droughts fuelled by the…
As environmentally conscious curious earthlings, it can seem disheartening at times as we read countless news stories of insufficient action by governments, business and the rest of the world. THE WORLD IS ON FIRE! So why are we still flying to Marbella (or York!) rather than embracing slow travel, divesting from fossil fuels, and embracing nature-first recovery as we know we should?!…
What’s going on here? Indigenous leaders are putting pressure on clean energy mining projects to consult them before they extract minerals on their lands. At the 22nd session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, they are calling for binding policies. Mining projects should have to obtain their ‘free, prior, and informed consent’ (FPIC) before breaking ground. What does this mean? …
The idea that climate change constitutes a threat to national security is well established, with climate change first appearing as a debate in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) over 15 years ago, in 2007. The concept gained traction quickly, with a study undertaken 5 years after the inaugural UNSC discussion estimating that around 70% of countries who had released national security…
Many of us know that fast fashion is harming the planet – we have previously written about the environmental impact of clothing manufacturing and the amount of plastics in clothing. But fast fashion also has a huge social cost, impacting the garment workers who manufacture our clothing and the communities that get left to clean up our discarded items. However, dealing with…
When you think of the founders of the environmental movement as we know it, it’s likely you’re missing quite a few key players. You might think of John Muir (racist eugenicist), or even Greta Thunberg (no shade to Greta, obviously). But the truth is that the environmental movement, environmental justice in particular, has been whitewashed since before the term was even coined.…
What’s going on here? Oil and gas giant, Shell, is facing legal action on multiple fronts – including a landmark lawsuit which is the first notable one of its kind. The new lawsuit will target Shell’s senior leadership directly. What does this mean? Shell’s board of directors is being sued by Client Earth, an environmental law charity, on the grounds that they…
This weekend will see the start of COP27 in Egypt. The 27th UNFCCC Conference of Parties calls on governments around the world to “to rise to the occasion and tackle effectively the global challenge of climate”.
However, before it has even begun, COP27 has been heavily criticised and campaigners have little hope that it will bring about the action we desperately need to address the climate crisis.
What’s going on here? Last week young climate campaigners called on rich countries to pay ‘climate reparations’ to developing nations. The calls came from Fridays for Future on its latest day of action, 23 September, with strikes in about 450 places around the world. What does this mean? The concept at the heart of the activists’ call is for richer nations, the…
