When homes are protected as assets but not as homes

On the World Sufficiency Lab website, Yamina Saheb raises some fundamental points about the European Commission's proposed Affordable Housing Act. The article is making a much larger argument than the Affordable Housing Act itself. Its central idea is that Europe’s legal architecture gives strong protection to markets, capital and property while social needs such as … Continue reading When homes are protected as assets but not as homes →

COP31: The EU says climate promises are no longer enough

Marta Pacheco writes on the Euronews website that the draft EU position for COP31 says that current implementation is insufficient and calls for concrete progress on renewables, energy efficiency, electrification and moving away from fossil fuels. EU heads to COP31 with a blunt message: climate pledges are no longer enough EU ambassadors want COP31 … Continue reading COP31: The EU says climate promises are no longer enough →

How a distant war reached the kitchens of Nairobi

In an article on The Conversation website, Matthew Shupler, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Environmental Public Health, Harvard University; University of Liverpool, discusses hidden connection between distant geopolitical conflict and everyday energy and food poverty. The striking finding is that families in Nairobi responded to higher prices not simply by switching fuels, but by cooking less, … Continue reading How a distant war reached the kitchens of Nairobi →

Preparing before the crisis: lessons from Finland

Writing on the Le Monde website, Anne-Françoise Hivert provides us with an important story about resilience and preparedness. Distributed across the country, Finland's reserves – along its 1,340 kilometres of border with Russia – cover nine months of grain consumption and five months of its oil and gas needs. The system has emerged as a … Continue reading Preparing before the crisis: lessons from Finland →

When the air gets cleaner in cities, children’s lungs recover

In an article on the BBC News website, Smitha Mundasad discusses how children’s lungs grew bigger and stronger after the most polluting vehicles were restricted from entering London, a study has found. Scientists stunned by children's lung recovery in ultra low emission zone Scientists say they have been "stunned" by how quickly young children's … Continue reading When the air gets cleaner in cities, children’s lungs recover →

The new energy security: less waste, more resilience

Deborah Gordon and Marko Solomon write on the RMI (formerly the Rocky Mountain Institute) website that that energy security, economic security and climate security can no longer be treated separately—and that efficiency, finance, policy and electrification need to work together. Bolstering Energy, Economic, and Environmental Security in a Warming World: Learnings from London Climate … Continue reading The new energy security: less waste, more resilience →

The demand-side blindness at the heart of UK energy policy

The debate over the UK's energy future is still overwhelmingly focused on how to generate more power, while far less attention is paid to the cheapest and fastest energy resource of all: using less. In this commentary, the environmentalist Sir Jonathon Porritt argues that this imbalance is not accidental but reflects decades of political choices … Continue reading The demand-side blindness at the heart of UK energy policy →

Buyers want lower bills, not green premiums

Marvin Onumonu writes on the Intermediary website that property buyers clearly value energy efficiency, but primarily because it reduces monthly costs—not because they are willing to pay a substantial premium for an energy-efficient label. Only 2% said they would pay significantly more for an efficient property, while 26% said they would pay a little more. … Continue reading Buyers want lower bills, not green premiums →

When loving Antarctica means leaving it

In an article on The Conversation website, Zdenka Sokolickova, Postdoctoral Researcher, Arctic Centre, University of Groningen; Christy Hehir, Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Events, University of Surrey; and Elizabeth Cooper, Postdoctoral Researcher, Arctic Centre, University of Groningen explore a moral conflict—what happens when people discover that the work they love is at odds with the … Continue reading When loving Antarctica means leaving it →

This year’s High-Level Political Forum reviews the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) is the central United Nations platform for the follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) . The HLPF was established at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in 2012 in its outcome "The Future We Want". The HLPF … Continue reading This year’s High-Level Political Forum reviews the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) →