37 h. ago Extinction Rebellion protester defaces Trump Tower presidential plaque with bright green paint

A climate protester has been filmed defacing Donald Trump’s presidential plaque inside Trump Tower in New York.

Politics

38 h. ago 'That day I lost a piece of myself': Families of 4 killed in paddleboarding tragedy tell of grief

Nerys Bethan Lloyd, a former police officer, led a stand-up paddleboarding tour on the River Cleddau despite 'extremely hazardous conditions' with weather warnings in place

Events

45 h. ago Nearly half of Americans breathing in unsafe levels of air pollutants – report

American Lung Association’s study says almost 156 million people live in areas with unhealthy levels of soot or smogAlmost half of Americans are breathing in dangerous levels of air pollutants, a new report shows, a rise compared with a year ago and likely to further increase in coming years thanks to the climate crisis and the Trump administration’s sweeping environmental rollbacks.Just over 156 million people live in neighborhoods with unhealthy levels of soot or smog – a 16% rise compared with last year and the highest number in a decade, according to the American Lung Association (ALA) annual state of the air report. Continue reading...

Politics

62 h. ago Earth Day marks the chance to help save the planet. The environment was already on the edge before Trump took office

Scientists are calling for rapid action to curb emissions as the Trump administration embraces the fossil fuel industry

Politics

64 h. ago Al Gore compares Trump team to Nazi Germany saying they are ‘trying to create their own preferred version of reality’

Former vice president and environmentalist slammed the Trump administration for walking back climate policies

Politics

65 h. ago Al Gore compares Trump second term with Nazi Germany in scathing speech

Former VP said the administration was creating its ‘own preferred reality’ and slammed it for green energy U-turnUS politics live – latest updatesFormer vice-president Al Gore compared the Trump administration with Nazi Germany, in scathing comments made Monday about the president’s use of power during remarks about climate change.During a speech at an event to mark the beginning of San Francisco’s Climate Week, Gore, an established climate advocate, said that the Trump administration was “trying to create their own preferred version of reality”, akin to the Nazi party during the 1930s in Germany, Politico reported. Continue reading...

Politics

65 h. ago Al Gore draws parallels between Trump 2.0 and early Nazi Germany in speech

Former VP said the administration was creating its ‘own preferred reality’ and slammed it for green energy U-turnUS politics live – latest updatesAl Gore said there were “important lessons” to be learned from similarities between the early rise of Nazi Germany and the recent actions of the the Trump administration, in scathing comments made Monday during remarks about climate change.During a speech at an event to mark the beginning of San Francisco’s Climate Week, the former vice-president and established climate advocate, said that the Trump administration was “trying to create their own preferred version of reality”, akin to the Nazi party during the 1930s in Germany, Politico reported. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago The Trump administration is sabotaging your scientific data | Jonathan Gilmour

Burying our heads in the sand won’t stop the climate crisis or pandemics. We’re taking action to preserve government toolsUnited States science has propelled the country into its current position as a powerhouse of biomedical advancements, technological innovation and scientific research. The data US government agencies produce is a crown jewel – it helps us track how the climate is changing, visualize air pollution in our communities, identify challenges to our health and provide a panoply of other essential uses. Climate change, pandemics and novel risks are coming for all of us – whether we bury our heads in the sand or not – and government data is critical to our understanding of the risks these challenges bring and how to address them.Many of thesedata remains out of sight to those who don’t use them, even though they benefit us all. Over the past few months, the Trump administration has brazenly attacked our scientific establishment through agency firings censorship and fundin...

Politics

4 d. ago ‘Cañahua chose me’: can an ancient relative of quinoa revive rural Bolivia’s economy?

The effects of the climate crisis and a lack of jobs are driving young people away from the Andean highlands but a long-shunned crop could stem the tideFew young people remain in Bolivia’s highland plateau, the Altiplano. The rising frequency and severity of extreme weather events, such as drought and frost, have reduced their economic prospects and migration has accelerated as the environment becomes more unpredictable.“The climate isn’t like it used to be,” says Nico Mamani Lima, a farmer and agronomist from Ayo Ayo. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago ‘Bordering on incredible’: Coalition under fire for planning to scrap Labor climate policies and offering none of its own

With Peter Dutton’s views on climate change in the spotlight, the focus has turned onto whether there will be any policies to reduce emissions in the next decadePolls tracker; election guide; full federal election coverageAnywhere but Canberra; interactive electorates guideListen to the latest episode of our new narrative podcast series: GinaGet our afternoon election email, free app or daily news podcastThe Coalition is refusing to say if it will introduce any policies to cut Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions in the next decade as it pledges to unwind most climate measures introduced under Labor.Peter Dutton’s position on the climate crisis came under scrutiny last week after he gave contradictory answers on whether he accepted mainstream climate science. Asked during a leaders’ debate on the ABC whether extreme weather events were worsening, the opposition leader said: “I don’t know because I’m not a scientist”.Dropping a Labor goal of 82% of electricity coming from renewable g...

Events

5 d. ago Climatologist Friederike Otto: ‘The more unequal the society is, the more severe the climate disaster’

The German scientist on her new book arguing that inequality, wealth and sexism are making the climate crisis worse – and what we need to do about itFriederike Otto is a senior lecturer in climate science at Imperial College London. She is also the co-founder of the World Weather Attribution initiative, which seeks to determine the influence of global warming on intensity and likelihood of an extreme weather event. The project also examines how factors such as ill-suited architecture and poverty exacerbate heatwaves, hurricanes, floods and wildfires. This is the theme of her second book, Climate Injustice: Why We Need to Fight Global Inequality to Combat Climate Change.The thesis of your book is that the climate crisis is a symptom of global inequality and injustice. That will be quite topsy-turvy to some people, who think global heating is caused by the amount of carbon that we are putting into the atmosphere.Yes, of course, if you just stick to the physics, then the warming is cau...

Events

5 d. ago Fears that UK military bases may be leaking toxic ‘forever chemicals’ into drinking water

Bases in Norfolk, Devon and Hampshire face MoD investigation over possible leaching of dangerous PFAS into environmentThree UK military bases have been marked for investigation over fears they may be leaking toxic “forever chemicals” into drinking water sources and important environmental sites.The Ministry of Defence (MoD) will investigate RAF Marham in Norfolk, RM Chivenor in Devon and AAC Middle Wallop in Hampshire after concerns they may be leaching toxic PFAS chemicals into their surroundings. The sites were identified using a new PFAS risk screening tool developed by the Environment Agency (EA) designed to locate and prioritise pollution threats. Continue reading...

Events

6 d. ago UK national parks warn of ‘catastrophic’ risk from wildfires this Easter

Weeks of fires amid warm and dry spell have decimated ecosystems and threatened endangered species, say expertsWildfires expose ‘postcode lottery’ of firefighting resourcesBritain’s national parks have warned of a “catastrophic” risk from wildfires this Easter after one of the driest early spring seasons on record.Park rangers from the South Downs to the Highlands said the prolonged warm weather and breezy conditions had left large areas extremely dry despite recent rain. Continue reading...

Events

6 d. ago Climate change is not just a problem of physics but a crisis of justice

In an exclusive extract from Friederike Otto’s new book, she says climate disasters result from inequality as well as fossil fuelMy research as a climate scientist is in attribution science. Together with my team, I analyse extreme weather events and answer the questions of whether, and to what extent, human-induced climate change has altered their frequency, intensity and duration.When I first began my research, most scientists claimed that these questions couldn’t be answered. There were technical reasons for this: for a long time, researchers had no weather models capable of mapping all climate-related processes in sufficient detail. But there were other reasons that had less to do with the research itself. Continue reading...

Society

8 d. ago The great Mississippi tops list of most endangered rivers amid fears over Trump rollbacks

Cuts to disaster agency and deregulation of fossil fuels, plus rise of water-guzzling datacentres, highlighted in new reportThe Trump administration’s sweeping cuts to the federal climate disaster agency – and the full-throttle deregulation of fossil fuels and water-guzzling datacentres – could prove catastrophic for America’s endangered rivers, threatening the food, water and livelihoods of millions of people, according to a new report.American Rivers’ annual most-endangered rivers list lays bare a myriad of human-made threats including floods, drought and other extreme weather events driven by the climate crisis, as well as industrial pollution and poor river management – all of which Trump’s regulatory rollbacks will almost inevitably make worse. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Judge orders federal agencies to release billions of dollars from two Biden

A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to release billions of dollars meant to finance climate and infrastructure projects across the country

Politics

9 d. ago Green groups sue Trump administration over climate webpage removals

The White House has pulled federal webpages tracking climate and environmental justice dataUS politics live – latest updatesGreen groups have sued the Trump administration over the removal of government webpages containing federal climate and environmental justice data that they described as “tantamount to theft”.In the first weeks of its second term, the Trump administration pulled federal websites tracking shifts in the climate, pollution and extreme weather impacts on low-income communities, and identifying pieces of infrastructure that are extremely vulnerable to climate disasters. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago ‘Shock to the system’: farmers hit by Trump’s tariffs and cuts say they need another bailout

With extreme weather and Trump’s looming trade war, US farmers are reeling and resigned to needing another bailoutFarmers across the United States say they could face financial ruin – unless there is a huge taxpayer funded bail out to compensate for losses generated by Donald Trump’s sweeping cuts and chaotic tariffs.Small- and medium-sized farms were already struggling amid worsening climate shocks and volatile commodities markets, on top of being squeezed by large corporations that dominate the supply chain. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Faintings, blackouts and violence: Iraq’s scorching emergency – in pictures

The country’s average temperature has risen by 0.48C a decade from 2000. Last August, photographer Susan Schulman visited Baghdad and Amarah, to capture the impact of extreme weather on everyday lives Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Documents reveal Trump’s plan to gut funding for Nasa and climate science

Critics say Nasa faces ‘extinction-level event’ with budget plan, with climate research funding also to be slashedDonald Trump shows no signs of easing his assault on climate science as plans of more sweeping cuts to key US research centers surfaced on Friday.The administration is planning to slash budgets at both the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (Noaa) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa), according to internal budget documents, taking aim specifically at programs used to study impacts from the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Politics