Climate Action

Writing From A Sinking Vessel

Viewpoint by Federico Mayor Zaragoza*

BARCELONA (IDN) – “Suddenly,” said Leonardo Da Vinci, “there are no poor and rich, no young and old, no white and black on board … only a bunch of passengers toiling, working together to survive, to avoid a shipwreck.”

This is the advice we should convey today through all media so that the “peoples” become aware of the situation humanity is facing for the first time in history. In recent years a series of global threats have been recognised as potentially irreversible processes that need to be confronted and dealt with on time before it is too late.

: Phil Harris; OPINION; 08 February 2019

Photo: The IAEA has assisted Sudan in using nuclear technologies to combat the effects of climate change. Credit: N. Jawerth/IAEA

UN Nuclear Watchdog Helps Countries Combat Climate Change

By Noah Mayhew, IAEA

VIENNA (IDN) – Climate change is one of the biggest environmental challenges affecting humanity today, causing a dangerous rise in sea levels and disturbances to the water cycle and leading to more frequent extreme weather events. The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) helps Member States combat climate change on a variety of fronts: mitigating the production and release of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and monitoring and adapting to their negative effects.

To further support these efforts, the Agency will host an International Conference on Climate Change and the Role of Nuclear Power from October 7-11 in Vienna.

: IDN-INPS UN Bureau; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 19 January 2019

Photo: Mediterranean forest area is on the rise but increasingly in jeopardy. Credit: CC Klodio70 @Flickr.com.

Expanding Mediterranean Forest Area Increasingly In Peril

By Jaya Ramachandran

ROME (IDN) – The Mediterranean forest area has expanded by two percent resulting in a rise of 1.8 million hectares – about the size of Slovenia, says a joint report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Plan Bleu, Regional Activity Center of UN Environment/Mediterranean Action Plan.

But the report titled The State of Mediterranean Forests 2018 warns that in the period 2010-2015 forests in the Mediterranean have also been considerably affected by degradation and are increasingly in jeopardy from climate change, population rise, wildfires and water scarcity.

: Jaya Ramachandran; UN INSIDER; 18 January 2019

Photo: As the climate change melts sea ice, the U.S. Geological Survey projects that two-thirds of polar bears will disappear by 2050. CC BY-SA 4.0

Global Heating Poses A Serious Systemic Challenge

Viewpoint by Franz Baumann

The following are excerpts from an article first published in the October 2018 issue of 'International Politics Review'. Dr. Franz Baumann is a visiting professor at New York University and a former UN assistant secretary-general, special adviser on environment and peace operations. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

NEW YORK (IDN-INPS) – Climate change, used here synonymously and interchangeably with global heating and global warming, is happening. To wit: 17 of the 18 warmest years on record have occurred in the twenty-first century. The past three years were the hottest since records began (World Meteorological Organization, 2018a). Distress signals are coming from all corners of the earth (Achenbach and Fritz, 2018; Samenow, 2018; Sengupta, 2018b).

: Franz Baumann; OPINION; 18 January 2019

Antarctica: The Tale Of A Beauty Condemned

By Dr Palitha Kohona

The author is former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, and former Foreign Secretary. Dr Kohona visited Antarctica on board the expedition vessel Silver Cloud recently. This is the second of a two-part report. Read Part 1 'End of The Antarctic Ice Cap In Sight If We Do Nothing' here.

COLOMBO (IDN) – The outlines of the frozen continent, seen from the approaching expedition ship Silver Cloud, are so hauntingly beautiful, serene and inviting. The snow covered surfaces, the glaciers glistening in the Antarctic sun are stunning. But without much warning the weather changes, the gloom sets in and the scowling glaciers threaten menacingly. The environment of the Antarctic has remained pristine largely due to its inhospitable nature. It is the only continent with no native human population.

: Dr. Palitha Kohona; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 16 January 2019

Photo: Antarctica Iceberg. Credit: IAATO.

End of The Antarctic Ice Cap In Sight If We Do Nothing

By Dr Palitha Kohona

COLOMBO (IDN) – The thick ice cap above the Antarctic continent will not disappear in our lifetime. It will continue to glisten disarmingly in the summer sun, its soft outlines concealing its unforgiving ferocity. But if we do nothing, it will disappear, over time. Sooner than later. This could spell catastrophe for life on Earth. Already there is convincing evidence of something unusual happening. Large chunks of the glaciers are breaking and floating away and the mammoth Antarctic glaciers are in observable retreat.

: Dr. Palitha Kohona; SUSTAINABILITY; Climate Action; 13 January 2019

Trump, Big Oil Double Down On Automobile Inefficiency

By William Mebane

The writer is former Director of Energy Efficiency Department at the Energy and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA).

ROME (IDN) – A group of U.S. oil companies, including Chevron, Exxon Mobile, Marathon and Phillips – 66, together with the Trump Administration – are seeking to cancel the previously approved 2022-2025 requirements of energy efficiency in new cars, SUVs and pickup trucks.

As recently as January of 2017 the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) affirmed that the 2022–2025 standards were technologically feasible and that benefits far exceeded costs. This is the single most important federal instrument for combating climate warming.

: IDN-INPS UN Bureau; THE WORLD; USA and Canada; 04 January 2019

Photo: Obtaining a quality education is the foundation to creating sustainable development. Credit: UNIC Tunis.

UN Keen To Progress Towards 17 Global Development Goals

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – A series of events, including two High-level Political Forums (HLPFs) and the UN Secretary-General's Climate Summit on the margins of the 74th General Assembly underline the vital importance of 2019 that marks the fourth year of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit on September 25, 2015.

The first HLPF in July will be held under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), completing its first cycle, and the other in September at the summit level during the General Assembly.

: J Nastranis; UN INSIDER; 04 January 2019

Photo: In a desert area located on the west coast of Australia. The lake looks pink because of Dunaliella. Credit: Midori Kurahashi.

The Biomass Shore Project – A Leading Model For Next-Generation Innovation

Viewpoint by Midori Kurahashi

The author is Project Associate Professor, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, the University of Tokyo, Japan.

TOKYO (IDN) – Worldwide forest fires and the abnormal heat experienced last summer are still fresh in our memory. Many people throughout the world had a sense that some kind of unsettling change is happening. Even so, response is slow and measures are not being taken. One reason for this is that the world is driven by people who believe that the cost of stopping global warming is too great for the achieved effect.

: IDN-INPS Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 02 January 2019

Of Cockroaches and Humans

Viewpoint by Roberto Savio

The writer is publisher of Other News, a vehicle for "voices against the tide", and founder of IPS-Inter Press Service News Agency. This article is being reproduced courtesy of Other News with the writer's permission. He can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and his articles and comments can be read on Facebook @robertosavioutopia

ROME (IDN) – Rita Levi-Montalcini, the Italian Nobel laureate honoured for her work in neurobiology, once gave a splendid conference with the title "The imperfect brain". There she explained that man has a brain that is not used completely, while the reverse is true for the cockroach.