As China has cut back on domestic extraction of rare earth minerals, uncontrolled mining in Myanmar has boomed in areas ruled by powerful ethnic armies. New reporting reveals how this activity is damaging water supplies, forests, and the health of workers and communities.
Tech companies are turning to natural gas to help power the growing number of A. I. data centers in the U. S. Jigar Shah, a former Energy Department official, explains how installing batteries instead can help balance the grid, lower electricity bills, and support renewable energy.
As U. N. talks get underway, China is emerging as a key leader in international climate efforts. It is empowering the global energy transition, and along with India and Brazil, is becoming the driving force in climate diplomacy and filling a vacuum left by the world’s rich nations.
Russian bombardments have generated more than a billion tons of debris across Ukraine since 2022. Now, local and international efforts are meticulously sorting the bricks, concrete, metal, and wood, preparing these materials for a second life in new buildings and roads.
Brazil is set to unveil an ambitious international plan that would provide up to $4 billion a year to countries that protect their tropical forests. Proponents see it as a potential game-changer for forest conservation, but some ecologists and economists are raising concerns.
Offshore wind had been poised to take off along the East Coast, with about 30 utility-scale farms planned. But the Trump administration’s opposition to wind power has caused most of those projects to be abandoned, with only seven farms now moving ahead or in operation.
Decades of conservation efforts in Central and South America are starting to pay off, with increased protections for jaguars and the corridors that connect them. But the construction of the border wall is creating a roadblock to the big cat’s return to the U. S. Southwest.
Earlier this year, a European Union directive mandated advanced treatment of micropollutants in wastewater, with the cost to be borne by polluters. But the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries, which are responsible for most of those contaminants, are now pushing back.
Countries are falling short on reducing emissions, but British data scientist Hannah Ritchie looks at the numbers and sees the world making real gains on climate change. In an interview, she talks about the unheralded progress she sees in the global shift to clean energy.
This season’s intense monsoon rains caused flooding that killed hundreds and displaced millions of people in Pakistan — an increasingly frequent occurrence. Scientists who study extreme weather warn that Pakistan is more vulnerable to climate change than any other nation.
Cases of chronic kidney disease unrelated to pre-existing conditions are on the rise in India and other tropical nations. As climate change raises temperatures and humidity, the disease is increasingly prevalent among outdoor laborers without access to rest, shade, or hydration.
Under the Trump administration’s policies, new liquefied natural gas terminals are moving ahead, with exports of LNG expected to double by 2028. But as the U. S. pressures trade partners to buy more fossil fuels, analysts warn of the climate and economic risks of an LNG boom.
After years underestimating the risks posed by climate-fueled disasters, the U. S. home insurance industry is in turmoil. In vulnerable areas, rising insurance costs are upending housing markets and communities, as homeowners scramble to try to find insurance they can afford.
In an interview with e360, Saabira Chaudhuri, author of a new book on the history of the plastics industry, discusses how petrochemical companies worldwide have molded consumers to embrace convenience and disposability — no matter the environmental and public health costs.