Environment – Articles, Analysis, Comment – The Conversation

Boris Johnson, Ursula von der Leyen and Joe Biden led the pledge to cut methane emissions. UK government/Flickr

COP26: a global methane pledge is great – but only if it doesn’t distract us from CO₂ cuts

Michelle Cain, University of Oxford

Cutting methane emissions by 30% will help slow climate change in the short-term but could compromise longer-term goals.

A small increase in average temperature means a much bigger increase in the risk of severe droughts. Galyna Andrushko / shutterstock

COP26: what would the world be like at 3°C of warming and how would it be different from 1.5°C?

Nigel Arnell, University of Reading

Many scientists now think 3°C of warming is likely.

Brazil, home to the Amazon rainforest and a notable absence in previous deforestation agreements, has signed this time. Dylan Garcia Travel Images/Alamy Stock Photo

Deforestation: why COP26 agreement will struggle to reverse global forest loss by 2030

Julia P G Jones, Bangor University

World leaders are slowly learning from decades of failure on tropical forest conservation.

Oil companies are ploughing money into fossil-fuelled plastics production at a record rate – new research

Fredric Bauer, Lund University and Tobias Dan Nielsen, IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute

We discovered that the 12 largest petrochemical companies announced 88 new projects between 2012 and 2019: new and expanded facilities that will likely operate for decades, ramping up carbon emissions.

Tree rings can tell us about periods of drought, warmth and heavy rainfall in the past. Rbreidbrown/Wikimedia Commons

How using tree rings to look into the past can teach us about the climate changes we face in the future

Mary Gagen, Swansea University

Tree rings carry a wealth of information, which can be used to uncover climate data from hundreds of years ago.

The near future may be similar to the mid-Pliocene warm period a few million years ago. Daniel Eskridge / shutterstock

Humanity is compressing millions of years of natural change into just a few centuries

Dan Lunt, University of Bristol and Darrell Kaufman, Northern Arizona University

What climate changes in the distant past can tell us about the near future.

Why tackling deforestation is so important for slowing climate change

Tom Pugh, Lund University

Halting forest loss is a crucial milestone on the road to net zero.

Indigenous activists have long been protesting the Belo Monte complex. International Rivers/Flickr

This Amazon dam is supposed to provide clean energy, but it’s destroying livelihoods and unique species

Brian Garvey, University of Strathclyde and Sonia Magalhaes, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA)

Diverting water to a hydroelectric dam might seem eco-friendly, but the devastating consequences to local ecosystems cannot be ignored.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson at a COP26 launch conference in February 2020. Reuters/Alamy Stock Photo

COP26: here’s how much progress the UK has made on three key net zero pledges

Ashley Fly, Loughborough University; Grant Wilson, University of Birmingham, and Ljubomir Jankovic, University of Hertfordshire

Electric vehicle sales are booming and coal power is dwindling, but structural obstacles to net zero remain.

COP26: a four-minute guide by a climate scientist

Richard Hodgkins, Loughborough University

If you haven’t been paying attention to the UN climate summit in Glasgow, catch up here.

We mapped every large solar plant on the planet using satellites and machine learning

Lucas Kruitwagen, University of Oxford

Our data provides a common benchmark unbiased by reporting from companies or governments.

Ice stupas: the artificial mini glaciers bringing water to some of the driest, coldest places on Earth

Matteo Spagnolo, University of Aberdeen

Constructed ice domes release water during dry periods when rain is blocked by high mountain ranges, stifling essential crop cultivation for rural communities.

Sewage pollution: our research reveals the scale of England’s growing problem

Sarah Purnell, University of Brighton and James Edward Ebdon, University of Brighton

Water and sewerage companies should not be responsible for reporting pollution.

Twinpix/Cultura Creative RF/Alamy Stock Photo

Climate change: how economists underestimated benefits of action for decades

Dimtri Zenghelis, University of Cambridge

How economic thinking on climate change has evolved since the 2006 Stern Review.

Electric boilers can be a green alternative to heat pumps for warming homes. Master1305/Shutterstock

Electric boilers: a green alternative to heat pumps that no one is talking about

Jovana Radulovic, University of Portsmouth

Electric boilers can be a green heating alternative, an expert says.

Allotments were popular in the 1970s and are now busy again. Air Images/Shutterstock

Inspiration from the 1970s for today’s young environmentalists

Steven McCabe, Birmingham City University

Allotments and repairing old clothes are just aspects of 1970s life that are making a comeback.

Skills shortage could undo UK government’s net zero plans

John Weir, University of Hull

Wind turbines need building, heat pumps need installing – but Britain has a chronic skills shortage.

Climate change misinformation fools too many people – but there are ways to combat it

Mikey Biddlestone, University of Cambridge and Sander van der Linden, University of Cambridge

Academics are among the most trusted sources for news about climate change.

As heat levels increase, mental health conditions are likely to worsen. Pxfuel

Violence and mental health are likely to get worse in a warming world

Mary Zhang, University of Bristol; Dann Mitchell, University of Bristol, and Vikki Thompson, University of Bristol

Research shows how heat can have negative effects on emotional states, mental health conditions and aggressive behaviours.

Coastal erosion and dwindling resources driven by tourism are some of the challenges facing the Maldives.

The Maldives is threatened by rising seas – but coastal development is causing even more pressing environmental issues

Alex Arnall, University of Reading

The Maldives is facing coastal erosion, overdevelopment and a tide of plastic pollution.

Paris is an example of a densely built low-rise city. DaLiu/Shutterestock

Cities and climate change: why low-rise buildings are the future – not skyscrapers

Ruth Saint, Edinburgh Napier University and Francesco Pomponi, Edinburgh Napier University

New research has found that low-rise urban environments are more space and carbon efficient than high-rise buildings which have a drastically higher carbon impact.