Tuesday, July 1News That Matters

Tag: climate change

Forests Flip from Climate Heroes to Carbon Villains as Wildfires Rise

Forests Flip from Climate Heroes to Carbon Villains as Wildfires Rise

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Fact Check
Forests long hailed as nature’s best defense against climate change are fast becoming major climate threats. A new policy brief released by the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH) warns that wildfires are transforming boreal, Amazonian, and Australian forests into powerful carbon emitters undermining global climate targets and exposing critical flaws in current forest-based carbon offset policies. Titled Beyond Planting Trees Taking Advantage of Satellite Observations to Improve Forest Carbon Management and Wildfire Prevention, the report urges a radical rethink of global carbon sequestration strategies. It reveals how climate change, rising temperatures, and droughts are altering forests so profoundly that planting trees alone may actually ...
Australia Reels from Deadly Floods: 5 Dead, Thousands Displaced in Southeast

Australia Reels from Deadly Floods: 5 Dead, Thousands Displaced in Southeast

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Disasters
Australia southeast is facing a grim aftermath after torrential rains triggered devastating floods, killing five people and damaging over 10,000 properties. The New South Wales mid-north coast has been hardest hit with entire towns isolated, homes destroyed and livestock lost to surging floodwaters. Emergency services remain on high alert, conducting rescues and damage assessments as floodwaters slowly recede. Over 50 rescues were carried out overnight with many residents still sheltering in evacuation centers. The latest confirmed fatality was an elderly man discovered at a flooded property near Taree. Government Mobilizes National Response Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed condolences to the families of those lost and pledged full federal support. In a post on X (for...
WMO Predicts Stronger 2025 Monsoon Across Asia as ENSO Influence Weakens

WMO Predicts Stronger 2025 Monsoon Across Asia as ENSO Influence Weakens

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has forecasted an above-normal summer monsoon across East and South Asia in 2025, signaling a potentially wetter season for a region that is home to more than 60% of the world’s population. The prediction, issued through the Forum on Regional Climate Monitoring, Assessment and Prediction for Asia (FOCRA II), comes amid a global transition from La Niña to ENSO-neutral conditions. According to seasonal projections consolidated from WMO’s Global Producing Centres for Long-Range Forecasts, the 2025 boreal summer will bring above-average rainfall to large parts of East and South Asia. This monsoon uptick is expected to benefit agriculture-dependent economies but also raises the risk of flooding and landslides, particularly in low-lying and urba...
Europe Faces €28.3 Billion in Annual Agricultural Losses Due to Climate Change 70% Uninsured: Study

Europe Faces €28.3 Billion in Annual Agricultural Losses Due to Climate Change 70% Uninsured: Study

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Fact Check
A new report reveals that climate change is causing direct and escalating damage to Europe’s agriculture, with annual losses averaging €28.3 billion roughly six per cent of the continent’s total agricultural and livestock output. Startlingly, nearly 70 per cent of these climate-related losses are uninsured or uncompensated, leaving farmers financially exposed to disasters like droughts, floods, and hailstorms. Published jointly by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Commission the report marks the first comprehensive review of agricultural insurance systems across all 27 EU member states. It paints a grim picture: unless rapid reforms are enacted, uninsured losses in European agriculture could rise from 42 per cent to as high as 66 per cent by 2050. Insurance and risk...
Record Heat Fuels Deadly Floods in Southern China Alerts Issued Across Multiple Provinces

Record Heat Fuels Deadly Floods in Southern China Alerts Issued Across Multiple Provinces

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Disasters
  Southern China is reeling from deadly floods caused by torrential rainfall over the weekend, with at least five confirmed dead and several more missing in Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. The National Meteorological Centre has issued multiple severe weather alerts, warning of continued heavy rains, flash floods, and potential landslides across regions including Jiangxi, Fujian, Zhejiang, and parts of Xinjiang. The disaster comes as China records its warmest year on record in 2024, intensifying storm systems and sharply increasing national power demands. Authorities have raised a yellow alert for mountain flooding indicating high risk as rainfall is forecast to continue through Tuesday along the Tianshan Mountains and other areas. The worsening weather patterns highlight...
Oxford Scientists Unveil World’s Most Complete River Map, Boosting Global Flood Prediction and Climate Planning

Oxford Scientists Unveil World’s Most Complete River Map, Boosting Global Flood Prediction and Climate Planning

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Learning & Developments
In a landmark advancement for hydrology and climate risk management researchers from the University of Oxford have developed the most detailed and accurate global map of river systems ever created. Led by Professor Louise Slater from the School of Geography and the Environment, the new mapping framework called Global RIver Topology (GRIT) offers an unprecedented view of how rivers truly flow, split, and shape the landscapes around them. Rethinking Rivers in a Changing Climate As climate change intensifies rainfall patterns and raises sea levels, the risk of devastating floods continues to grow worldwide. Yet traditional global river maps remain outdated and overly simplistic, assuming that rivers flow in a single, uninterrupted direction. They fail to capture more complex features su...
India Proposes Five-Point Global Plan to Protect Mountains at Sagarmatha Sambaad

India Proposes Five-Point Global Plan to Protect Mountains at Sagarmatha Sambaad

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
India reaffirmed its climate leadership at the international stage on Friday, as Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav, addressed the inaugural Sagarmatha Sambaad in Kathmandu, Nepal. Representing India at the high-level global dialogue on “Climate Change, Mountains, and the Future of Humanity,” Yadav unveiled a five-point global action plan to protect fragile mountain ecosystems and foster climate resilience across borders. The summit brought together environment ministers, climate leaders, and policymakers from around the world to discuss the rapidly escalating impacts of climate change on mountain regions, especially the Himalayas. Honouring Sagarmatha: A Shared Heritage Opening his address, Yadav praised Nepal’s initiative in convening the ...
Global Unity on Climate Change: Sagarmatha Sambaad Underscores Urgent Call for Action

Global Unity on Climate Change: Sagarmatha Sambaad Underscores Urgent Call for Action

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment
World leaders, climate experts, and international delegates gathered in Nepal for the Sagarmatha Sambaad, where they reaffirmed their collective commitment to combat climate change with special focus on its mounting impact on mountainous regions. The summit emphasized collaboration, environmental justice, and urgent global action to secure the planet’s future. Summit Opens with Global Backing for Nepal’s Climate Vision The three-day Sagarmatha Sambaad began with a strong show of international support for Nepal’s climate leadership. Nepali Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba highlighted the growing global consensus in support of safeguarding fragile mountain ecosystems, acknowledging endorsements even from non-mountainous nations that recognize the interconnectedness of climate impac...
Born in the Heat: How Climate Change Is Putting Pregnant Women and Babies at Risk

Born in the Heat: How Climate Change Is Putting Pregnant Women and Babies at Risk

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Fact Check
As climate change continues to drive extreme weather events around the globe, pregnant women are emerging as one of the most vulnerable populations. A groundbreaking new report from US-based research group Climate Central paints a disturbing picture: global warming is drastically increasing the number of “pregnancy heat-risk days” days when dangerously high temperatures threaten maternal and fetal health. The consequences are already being felt in hundreds of countries, especially in the Global South, where access to healthcare is limited. Heatwaves and Pregnancy: A Global Health Crisis Between 2020 and 2024, the number of high-heat exposure days for pregnant women more than doubled in 222 of the 247 countries and territories analyzed by Climate Central. These pregnancy heat-risk days ...
Heat Rising, Risks Rising: Climate Change Threatens Global Maternal Health

Heat Rising, Risks Rising: Climate Change Threatens Global Maternal Health

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment, Fact Check
A new global analysis reveals that extreme heat, intensified by climate change, is endangering maternal health and birth outcomes around the world especially in vulnerable regions with limited access to healthcare. According to data from Climate Central, rising temperatures over the past five years have dramatically increased the number of high-risk heat days for pregnant women across the globe. The report assessed daily maximum temperatures between 2020 and 2024 in 247 countries, territories, and dependencies, as well as 940 major cities. It focused on what researchers call “pregnancy heat-risk days” those with maximum temperatures warmer than 95% of all historical temperatures at a given location. These conditions are closely associated with heightened risks of preterm birth and pregn...