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Fighting spirit helped us achieve the Paris accords in 2015 – and we need it now the world is on course to overshoot 1.5C

• ‘Hopeless and broken’: why the world’s top climate scientists are in despair

• Christiana Figueres was the head of the UN climate change convention from 2010 to 2016

“Hopeless and broken”: that is how a top scientist interviewed by the Guardian described feeling as she and hundreds of other climate experts shared harrowing predictions of the future of the planet this week.

I resonate with her feelings of despair. Even as the former head of the UN climate change convention that achieved the Paris agreement in 2015, I, like many, can succumb to believing in the worst possible outcome. Just after I assumed the role of UN climate chief in 2010, I said to a room full of reporters that I didn’t believe a global agreement on climate would be possible in my lifetime.

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A high-level expert group on sustainable finance (HLEG) has advised the EU Commission to scale up the biodiversity credit market as a means to boost investments towards low and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Top climate figures respond to Guardian survey of scientists who expect temperatures to soar, saying leaders must act radically

• Climate scientists expect global heating to blast past 1.5C target

The world is on the verge of a climate abyss, the UN has warned, in response to a Guardian survey that found that hundreds of the world’s foremost climate experts expect global heating to soar past the international target of 1.5C.

A series of leading climate figures have reacted to the findings, saying the deep despair voiced by the scientists must be a renewed wake-up call for urgent and radical action to stop burning fossil fuels and save millions of lives and livelihoods. Some said the 1.5C target was hanging by a thread, but it was not yet inevitable that it would be passed, if an extraordinary change in the pace of climate action could be achieved.

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UK-based company Queequeg Renewables is collaborating with Biodiverse Consulting on ensuring five solar projects meet their biodiversity net gain (BNG) requirements, they said on Thursday. 

Limits to the scope, supply, and participation in Turkiye's imminent cap-and-trade scheme could curb state revenue for the green transition, inhibit liquidity, and discourage investment by multilateral development banks (MDBs), according to panellists speaking on Thursday at Carbon Forward Turkiye.

European carbon prices rose strongly on Thursday morning, with bullish traders seemingly able to push prices higher in a very illiquid market as many European participants enjoyed a public holiday, while energy markets also surged higher, shrugging off a welter of analyst predictions that prices may fall over the summer as supplies remain comfortable.

Gravity storage pioneer Energy Vault chosen to build two big batteries next to Australia's biggest solar farm.

The post Gravity storage pioneer to build two batteries next to Australia’s biggest solar farm appeared first on RenewEconomy.

The 44ft-long whale corpse was an endangered sei whale, which will now be examined to determine how it died

A cruise ship has journeyed into New York City’s harbor bearing a gruesome cargo in the form of a huge, dead whale sprawled across its bow.

The incident happened on Saturday, according to local US media reports, and the event is being held by some as further evidence of the unfortunate impact on sea life that large vessels can have.

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An initiative for spurring investment in biotechnology innovation in the North West of England led by the University of Manchester launched on Thursday, announcing three funding programmes with £5 million ($6.2 mln).

A large cement maker is trialling new technology developed by a UK-based carbon capture company to capture CO2 from the flue gas at one of its manufacturing plants.

The agricultural research arm of a Germany-headquartered chemical company is considering a pilot scheme at small-scale soybean farms in Brazil to create credits corporates can use to offset their nature impact.

A British climate tech startup has raised $15.7 million in Series B funding as it seeks to further develop its AI-based platform for ecosystem restoration and expand into new markets, the company announced Wednesday.

Laos has announced plans for a major nature-based solution carbon project spanning 5% of its land mass that could cut CO2 emissions by 1.4 million tonnes per year.

Australia, one of the world’s top three LNG exporters, on Thursday released a long-term strategy for natural gas, with plans to rely on the fuel well beyond its mid-century net zero target date. 

A global sustainability consultancy has launched a new division focused on helping companies invest in high-quality carbon credits, building on its existing carbon markets strategy, it announced on Thursday.

Why is Australia talking about opening new gas fields as a way to reach net zero? Samantha Hepburn, Professor, Deakin Law School, Deakin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A Japanese offset provider that promotes regional decarbonisation initiatives has secured 480 million yen ($3.08 mln) in a recent funding round, it announced Thursday.

W.A. allocates $324 million to transmission infrastructure for the state's main electricity grid to connect more renewable energy.

The post W.A. to spend big on new transmission to connect more wind and solar appeared first on RenewEconomy.

Researchers say reducing emissions and biodiversity loss and preventing invasive species could control disease

Biodiversity loss is the biggest environmental driver of infectious disease outbreaks, making them more dangerous and widespread, a study has found.

New infectious diseases are on the rise and they often originate in wildlife. In meta-analysis published in the journal Nature, researchers found that of all the “global change drivers” that are destroying ecosystems, loss of species was the greatest in increasing the risk of outbreaks. Biodiversity loss was followed by climate change and introduction of non-native species.

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The island nation is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world, as changing weather patterns bring more dry spells and unpredictable rainy seasons. Sean Smith travelled to the south to meet those affected and to report on the ways they are trying to prepare for an altered future

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