It’s not clear that Heathrow Airport expansion can fit within the UK’s legal and arguably moral requirement to cut emissions and remain within its carbon budget

Richard Sulley, Senior Research Fellow, Sustainability Policy, University of Sheffield writes on The Conversation website about the impact of expanding the UK’s largest airport on government commitments to reduce carbon emissions. Since this was published, the UK government has given the green light to the construction of the third runway at Heathrow with considerable mixed … Continue reading It’s not clear that Heathrow Airport expansion can fit within the UK’s legal and arguably moral requirement to cut emissions and remain within its carbon budget

Energy consumption is only one part of AI’s broader environmental impact

In an article on The Conversation website, Hamish van der Ven, Assistant Professor of Sustainable Business Management of Natural Resources, University of British Columbia, argues that social and political mediums through which AI affects the planet are far more insidious and, arguably, more consequential for the future of humanity.   AI is bad for the … Continue reading Energy consumption is only one part of AI’s broader environmental impact

Energy in Demand News, January 26, 2025

Apart from watching what is going on in Washington DC , our attention has understandably focused again this week on the devastation in the Los Angeles area from the continuing wildfires. The total area affected was recently estimated at more than 16,000 hectares and it is going to take years and a lot of money … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, January 26, 2025

Climate crisis is making it harder for insurance companies to operate, with many pausing or withdrawing policies

Oliver Milman writes on the Guardian website about the struggles that homeowners are facing in many parts of the United States to find insurance. This is not just an American problem but it is probably most acute there. This post follows many that EiD has provided recently. When looked at together, they make one wonder … Continue reading Climate crisis is making it harder for insurance companies to operate, with many pausing or withdrawing policies

Worries that change in fact checking on social media could open the floodgates to more climate misinformation

In an article on The Conversation website, Jill Hopke, Associate Professor of Journalism, DePaul University discusses the concerns following companies such as Meta ending their fact-checking programmes on social media.   Climate misinformation is rife on social media – and poised to get worse The decision by Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, … Continue reading Worries that change in fact checking on social media could open the floodgates to more climate misinformation

A third of the Arctic’s tundra, forests and wetlands have become a source of carbon emissions

Patrick Greenfield writes on the Guardian website that critical CO2 stores held in permafrost are being released as the landscape changes with global heating according to a recent report. Readers are also encouraged to read the latest blog by Irene Quaile, “2025: Chilling prospects for a warming Arctic,” for more about the impact of climate … Continue reading A third of the Arctic’s tundra, forests and wetlands have become a source of carbon emissions

The rise in extreme weather is not generating political support for climate action

Fridays for Future organiser Luisa Neubauer warns conspiracy theories are increasingly taking hold despite effects of global heating. In an article on the Guardian website, Ajit Niranjan discusses how the climate struggle in rich democracies has drastically changed.   Extreme weather failing to encourage political climate action, says activist Luisa Neubauer The rise in extreme … Continue reading The rise in extreme weather is not generating political support for climate action

“While Donald Trump is singing from the Republican Party songbook when it comes to climate change, the music was written long before he came along”

In an article on The Conversation website, Joe Árvai, Director of the Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability | Professor of Psychology, Biological Sciences, and Environmental Studies, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, discusses how the oil industry over many decades has used a combination of large donations to politicians and misinformation to … Continue reading “While Donald Trump is singing from the Republican Party songbook when it comes to climate change, the music was written long before he came along”

Energy in Demand News, January 19, 2025

It was welcome news this week from the Coalition for Energy Savings that, according to latest Eurostat data, there was a sharp drop of the EU's primary and final energy consumption in 2023.  Compared to 2022, primary energy consumption dropped by 3.9% and final energy consumption lowered by 3%. This is the largest decline since … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, January 19, 2025

Scientists should stop trying to be neutral and instead embrace their values, says a group of top climate scientists

Canadian climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe was among the group behind a paper recently published in the Nature journal Climate Action, which argued that scientists are living, feeling, caring humans, and not just "brains in a jar." In an article on the CBC news website, Amanda Buckiewicz reports on a recent interview Katharine Hayhoe had on … Continue reading Scientists should stop trying to be neutral and instead embrace their values, says a group of top climate scientists