Finding a path to a sustainable, net zero future
So, the bad news: The planet is burning.
How climate change can lead to more lightning strikes, wildfires
As climate change intensifies, more lightning strikes in the western U.S. should lead to even more wildfires. UC Berkeley ...
Google Maps tracks global warming with new “Fire” layer, tree canopy tool
"Fire" will be a top-level layer just like traffic, satellite, and transit maps.
Wildfires threaten drinking water in California and the West
'Burn scars' of wildfires threaten drinking water in much of ... a way of life in the West, including California, as climate change and...
President calls year-round fires an emergency country can no longer ignore as he advocates for rebuilding plan
And flooding.
Flooding From [Huricane] Ida Kills Dozens of People in Four States
At least 43 people were killed, many of them in basement apartments, in a storm caused by the remnants of a hurricane ...
[Huricane] Henri Dumped Record Amount of Rain on New York’s Central Park
Manhattan has never had a wetter hour, at least since Ulysses S. Grant was president.
Hurricane Ida: At least 46 dead in the US after drowning in their homes and cars
The governors of New York and New Jersey declared a State of Emergency as flash-flooding batters the north-east in 'historic weather event'.
Rice feeds half the world. Climate change’s droughts and floods put it at risk
Under a midday summer sun in California's Sacramento Valley, rice farmer Peter Rystrom walks across a dusty, barren plot of land, ...
Overall, it's just not looking great. But do not despair! There is a lot we can do — and that people are already doing!
Continue scrolling to explore the data.
Car sales are down, globally
According to the International Energy Agency, the global car sales have been flattening in key markets even before COVID-19.
If this trend holds, this is a big deal, particularly as the sales of electric vehicles is going up.
People are moving away from meat
According to a 2017 report from Global Data, veganism in the US rose from 1% of the US population in 2014 to 6% by 2017. That's a 600% increase, and the trend is growing.
Is this enough?
Consider this:
The report found that more than half of global industrial emissions since 1988 – the year the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was established – can be traced to just 25 corporate and state-owned entities.
"Joe Manchin, I talk to his office every week," McCoy bragged to the interviewer. He called the Democratic senator from West Virginia a "kingmaker" and discussed how "on the Democrat side we look for the moderates on these issues" in their efforts to stop policies that could hurt the company's business.
War and preparation for it are fossil fuel intensive activities [...] 70% of all energy gets consumed by moving and utilizing troops and equipment around the world, involving the burning of vast quantities of jet fuel and diesel [...] it is estimated that the country's remaining fleet of 60,000 humvees only gets four to eight miles per gallon of diesel [...] in FY2017, the Department of Defense spent $3.5 billion heating, cooling and providing electricity to 560,000 buildings at 500 installations.
We all need to make individual lifestyle changes, absolutely, but this will not be enough. We need systemic changes.
Achieving systemic changes
Here's what we can all do to create a sustainable future for our communities and the world.
- Demand that your elected officials step up. If you're in the United States, whoaremyrepresentatives.org is a great resource to find out who to call.
- Donate to and volunteer with organizations whose mission is to protect our environment, and be sure to tell your friends and family to do the same.
- Consider supporting advocacy groups, such as Sunrise Movement and 350.org.
It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.
Martin Luther King Jr, Christmas Sermon of 1967