A (non-comprehensive) list of interesting and relevant climate change, climate policy, and environmental justice stories.
Ten climate questions for 2024. The US election and negotiations on a new global finance target are the most important things for the climate in 2024. While 2023’s climate questions depended largely on governments and big bankers, 2024 is one of those years where the fate of the world rests in the hands of ordinary people. (read the full story here)
Six takeaways from 2023’s climate change news. Fossil fuel fights, finance struggles, a resurgent relationship, and much more. We recap the most impactful international climate developments in 2023. As another year of record emissions draws to an end, it’s worth looking back on what’s been achieved. (read the full story here)
Environmental Justice Advocates in Virginia Fear Recent Legal Gains Could Be Thwarted by Politics in Richmond. The state’s Council on Environmental Justice needs additional funding, they say, while the Republican Youngkin administration hasn’t made community environmental concerns a priority. (read the full story here)
Ireland Could Become the Next Nation to Recognize the Rights of Nature and a Human Right to a Clean Environment. The move to enshrine those rights is part of a flurry of developments advancing the rights of nature movement this year. (read the full story here)
Washington Law Attempts to Fill the Void in Federal Regulation of Hazardous Chemicals. With a years-long backlog in the U.S. government’s risk assessments of thousands of potentially hazardous chemicals, the new law requires companies to disclose what chemicals are used in their products. (read the full story here)
In Alabama, What Does It Take to Shut Down a Surface Mine Operating Without Permits? Nearby residents and environmental activists complained to state regulators without redress. Alabama officials initially fined the company, but now they’ve signaled a green light ahead. (read the full story here)
Azerbaijan’s ecology minister has been named to lead the United Nations’ annual climate talks later this year, prompting concern from some climate activists over his former ties to the state oil company in a major oil-producing nation. (read the full story here)