In The News

The China Syndrome

Nayan Chanda November 24, 2014
China and the United States reached agreement on reducing carbon emissions. Nayan Chanda, YaleGlobal’s editor, points to India’s silence over the loss of a fellow emerging economy that might battle advanced economies on reduction of coal and other fossil fuels. In terms of absolute carbon emissions and world share, China ranks first with 26 percent, the United States ranks second with 17 percent...

Life in Indonesia's Sinking Capital

Jack Hewson November 18, 2014
Cities have long flourished along coastlines due to maritime trade, transportation and physical beauty as well as access to fish and other resources. But rising seas and climate change threaten cities with shrinking boundaries, uncertain property values and reduced freshwater supplies. “North Jakarta suffers subsidence rates of up to 17cm a year in some areas – caused by the excessive extraction...

The Biggest Loser in US Election Is the Climate

Brad Plumer November 17, 2014
The earth can anticipate food shortages, more severe weather and irreversible damage to the planet unless immediate action is taken to reduce carbon emissions, suggests a UN report. Days later, US voters placed Republicans in charge of both branches of the US Congress. “Global warming remains a low-priority issue in American politics — in a Pew poll, it ranked a lowly 8th (out of 11) on the list...

5 Key Takeaways From the Latest Climate Change Report

Elizabeth Shogren November 3, 2014
Researchers on climate change are adamant: Global leaders should act immediately to end reliance on fossil fuels and carbon emissions –otherwise, expect irreversible damage by the year 2100. The United Nations has released the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which “pulls together the conclusions of three IPCC working groups, which issued reports over the past...

Population Controls Will Not Solve Environment Issues

Matt McGrath October 31, 2014
Tight population controls alone won’t make the world a sustainable place in the short term, suggests research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The damage has been done with the population climbing from 1 billion in 1800 to 7 billion now. Projections suggest the world’s population will jump to 12 billion by the end of this century; even with a global one-child...

Glasgow Becomes First University in Europe to Divest From Fossil Fuels

Libby Brooks October 13, 2014
Glasgow University in Scotland has voted to divest from the fossil fuel industry and is selling its holdings in the sector, worth £18 million, or US $12 million. The decision follows a year of pressure and campaigning from a student organization, the Glasgow University Climate Action Society, part of a broader international university movement. The “Fossil Free” university movement began in the...

Melting of Arctic Ice Opening Up New Routes to Asia

Christoph Seidler, Gerald Traufetter October 4, 2014
Melting polar ice steadily opens the once-frozen Arctic to commercial traffic. One route along the Russian coast reduces travel time between Europe and Asia by nearly half; in the Northwest Passage of the Canadian Arctic, 24 ships passed through last year compared to 69 during the previous century. Impatient about claiming and accessing vast stores of mineral wealth, nations and industries...