Analysis of the science, politics and economics of the climate
Climate change affects everything from geopolitics to economies to migration. It shapes cities, life expectancies and wine lists. And because it touches everything The Economist reports on, we examine it from every angle imaginable. Register to receive The Climate Issue, our fortnightly newsletter
Latest stories
Australia’s election sets a heartening precedent on climate change
Maybe in America, too, greening politics seems impossible…until it isn’t
Plant-based proteins are no longer a side dish in diets
Their makers’ place as the main course is another matter
Carbon markets are going global
But will they make a difference?
Australian voters have had enough of climate inaction
The country’s election hinged on promises to reduce emissions
The wonder material graphene may have found its killer app
It will help industry, produce greener concrete and make hydrogen
The Brazilian Amazon has been a net carbon emitter since 2016
Rapid deforestation outweighs carbon capture by remaining trees
Why America’s clean-energy industry is stuck
Dust is a growing threat to lives in the Middle East
Politics
Heat and humidity are putting millions of Indians in peril
Wet-bulb temperatures in Chennai
Indian power plants are running out of coal
The dysfunctional power sector is struggling to handle surging demand
By Osinbajo on the hypocrisy of rich countries’ climate policies
Nigeria’s vice-president says they cannot demand more stringent actions than they will commit to themselves
Hawaii’s oil-dependent economy is being battered by Russia’s war
But rules protecting the Aloha State’s natural wealth hinder green projects
Can Brazil help with food shortages around the world?
In the first two months of exported more wheat than in the whole of 2021
Explainer: How can India cope with heatwaves?
A billion people are suffering under extreme heat. That will only get worse
Lawsuits aimed at greenhouse-gas emissions are a growing trend
Business and finance
Offset markets struggle in the face of surging commodity prices
Prices of carbon offsets are too low
Big tech wants to bootstrap carbon removal into a big business
A consortium of technology firms is nearly $1bn into a clever market mechanism
The carbon market drives land sales in Scotland
Environmentalists are buying up estates in the Highlands
Why global warming threatens east African coffee
Other cash crops including tea will also be affected
Science
Explainer: The increasing frequency of fatal wet-bulb temperatures
Unbearable levels of heat and humidity pose an ever greater problem
The promise and pitfalls of desalination
California needs to diversify its water supply as the West dries up. How much can desalination help?
Green power needs more than just solar panels and wind turbines
Electricity grids themselves must be tweaked to cope
Florida faces a triple threat to its environment
The environment is Florida’s biggest attraction, but also its biggest vulnerability
Parts of Antarctica have been warmer than their March average
But a lesser heatwave in the Arctic may be of more concern
Developers of small modular reactors hope their time has come
War, climate worries and oil prices make nuclear power attractive
Climate videos
How chemical pollution is suffocating the sea
Many parts of the ocean are being starved of oxygen. This threatens marine life and adds to climate change
Was COP26 a success?
Our correspondent runs through the most important takeaways from the UN climate conference
Can carbon markets reduce carbon emissions?
So far, progress has been slow
Eating our way to a more sustainable future
Insects, lab-grown meat and vertically-farmed produce could all be on our plates
Who should fix climate change?
Governments, companies or individuals?
We answer your questions on how the sector can become more sustainable
Understanding climate change
Climate adaptation policies are needed more than ever
People are already suffering from catastrophic losses as a result of extreme weather events
The world’s energy system must be transformed completely
It has been changed before, but never as fast or fully as must happen now
Damage from climate change will be widespread and sometimes surprising
It will go far beyond drought, melting ice sheets and crop failures
Humanity’s immense impact on Earth’s climate and carbon cycle
Much needs to be done for the damage to be reversed
How modelling articulates the science of climate change
From paper and pencil to the world’s fastest computers
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