The race towards renewable energy is accelerating, and for all the looming challenges of the climate crisis, signs of progress are there: Solar panels are beginning to blanket deserts, wind turbines dot coastlines, and hydropower dams are harnessing powerful rivers to churn out clean electricity. Yet, even as the push...
La Niña, a natural climate phenomenon, results in cooler Pacific Ocean temperatures and influences weather conditions worldwide. The latest forecasts from WMO indicate sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific are expected to return to normal. The agency says that there is a 60 per cent chance conditions will...
“The WHO regrets the announcement that the United States of America intends to withdraw from the Organization…We hope the United States will reconsider,” said WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic, hours after the new President signed an executive order at the White House, bringing US involvement in the UN agency to an...
Initiated by a UN General Assembly resolution, the proceedings involved 96 countries and 11 regional organizations presenting their views on the “obligations of States with regard to climate change” under international law. While ICJ advisory opinion will be non-binding, it is expected to shape the future of international climate...
This waterway, a silent witness to the turmoil of the municipality of Mapiripán, has seen it all – the wildlife trafficking, the coca harvests that fuelled conflict, the human bodies left behind amid a heinous massacre and the relentless erosion of the rainforest it once nourished. Now, Sandra hopes it...
These pressing issues necessitate urgent action and World Cities Day, celebrated on October 31, offers a platform to reflect on the unprecedented challenges that they face. Designated by the United Nations General Assembly through resolution 68/239, it aims to elevate the international community’s focus to promote sustainable development and tackle the...
The protests, which highlighted demands for human rights, accountability and social justice, must be met with meaningful reforms, High Commissioner Volker Türk urged. “This unique, unprecedented moment in the history of Bangladesh is the result of young men and women having taken to the streets – at great personal risk...
The State of Global Water Resources report released on Monday also highlights that over the last five years below-normal conditions for river flows have been recorded with less water reaching reservoirs.The reduction in supplies has reduced the amount of water available for communities, agriculture and ecosystems. Currently, 3.6 billion people...
The two organizations are joining forces to call attention to the extensive impacts of increasing global temperatures on snow and ice while producing measures to strengthen scientific and sports-related conversations. The partnership is set to begin ahead of the 2024/2025 winter season and will initially last for five years. ‘The tip...
“Conversations have become difficult, agreements even more so,” he said. “This is surely not what the founders of the UN would have wanted for us. Reforming multilateralism is, therefore, an imperative.” The General Assembly must ask itself “how has this come to pass?” he said. “Every change must begin somewhere,...
Coinciding with the powerful and symbolic monument to the ravages of unchecked climate change, the ceremony on 17 August also saw the publication of The Global Glacier Casualty list of 15 extinct and endangered glaciers by Rice University in Texas – a driving force behind the whole project. According to scientists, global...
This year’s International Day for Clean air and Blue Skies, celebrated annually on 7 September, is focused on the theme ‘Invest in #CleanAirNow’ and highlights the economic, environmental and health benefits of investing in clean air. The Day was established in 2019 after the UN General Assembly noted how detrimental...