Page 5 - Climate Change

Food security inequities worsen due to conflicts, climate change: Lancet

About half of the world's population may not be able to access healthy food, clean environment or earn a living wage, indicating inequities in human health that have been made worse by geopolitical conflicts and climate change, according to a new Lancet report. Further, the world's food system -- contributing to 30 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions -- is the main driver of challenges the planet faces by impacting climate, biodiversity, land use change, among others, it said. The crisis of inequity in access to conditions required for good human health and environmental harm due to global food systems threatens human health and the resilience of planet Earth, authors said in the '2025 EAT-Lancet Commission on Healthy, Sustainable, and Just Food Systems'. Launched in January 2019, the 'EAT-Lancet Commission' outlines recommendations for a 'planetary health diet' -- favouring fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes and small portions of meat and dairy -- and targets for achieving a ...

Trading carbon: An efficient market can enable India's green transition

Other than meeting India's climate objectives, the domestic carbon market has profound implications for the country's export competitiveness

China, largest carbon polluting nation, announces new goal to cut emissions

China, the world's largest carbon polluting nation, has announced a new climate fighting goal to cut emissions by 7 per cent to 10 per cent by 2035. It came as more than 100 world leaders lined up Wednesday to talk of increased urgency and the need for stronger efforts to curb the spewing of heat-trapping gases. With major international climate negotiations in Brazil 6 weeks away, the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres convened a special leaders summit during the General Assembly to focus on climate change.

'Ended 7 wars, never got call from UN': Highlights from Trump's UNGA speech

From a broken escalator and teleprompter mishap to jabs at India, China, and the UN, here are the top takeaways from US President Donald Trump's speech at UNGA

Trump tells UN that climate change is 'greatest con job' globally

Scientists say climate change is real, mostly caused by humans, and getting worse. They point to rising temperatures, stronger storms, and melting ice as clear signs

CPCB must boost capacity to balance growth, green norms: Bhupender Yadav

Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Monday said the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) must focus on building capacity so that cities and industries can expand while ensuring compliance with environmental norms. Addressing an event to mark CPCB's 51st foundation day, Yadav said environmental protection "should not be treated like a panic button" but should become part of civic values and daily behaviour. He recalled that CPCB was set up in 1974 when environmental concerns were rising globally. "Today, we are in a period of major transformation. Our environmental regulation also needs to evolve. The challenge before CPCB is how to make its regulatory mechanisms relevant to society's needs, how to strengthen its capacity and how to ensure effective implementation," he said. Citing Delhi's growth, Yadav said the capital's population has increased from "about 30-40 lakhs (3-4 million) in the mid-1970s to nearly 4 crore (40 million) today, putting immense pressure on the ...

SDGs should take priority over climate targets, says CEA Nageswaran

India's Chief Economic Adviser Anantha Nageswaran has warned that India's climate goals must not undercut its economic aspirations

Climate-driven health risks could cost global economy $1.5 trn by 2050: WEF

Climate-related health risks can cost the global economy at least USD 1.5 trillion (over Rs 131 lakh crore) in lost productivity in the next 25 years due to rising illness and labour shortages across key sectors, a new study showed on Thursday. The World Economic Forum report, developed in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group, assessed climate-driven health impacts in four of the most affected economic sectors: food and agriculture; the built environment; health and healthcare; and insurance. The USD 1.5 trillion estimate reflects losses in only the first three sectors, under a mid-range scenario, suggesting the burden on the global economy could be far higher, it said. The study encourages companies to act now to protect workforce health, build operational resilience and safeguard productivity before the costs of climate adaptation become unmanageable. The findings highlighted that adapting to extreme heat, infectious diseases and other health risks accelerating due to clima

The Finance Commission is key to saving our cities from climate change

Its current horizontal devolution formula is insufficient to prepare cities to deal with floods and droughts caused by climate change

Govt plans ₹5,000 cr scheme to promote decarbonisation: Steel secy

The government is working on a Rs 5,000 crore scheme to promote adoption of clean steel-making technologies, thereby reducing carbon emissions, Steel Secretary Sandeep Poundrik said on Wednesday. The senior ministry official made the remarks while speaking to PTI on the sidelines of the 'FT Live Energy Transition Summit India' in the national capital. "The proposal is under consideration for a National Mission for Sustainable Steel. It is a Rs 5,000 crore scheme," he said. The scheme will cover all steel makers in the country, with 75-80 per cent of the fund earmarked for secondary players, Poundrik said. It aims to promote lower carbon emissions in steel production by encouraging the use of clean technologies and alternative materials, he added. His comments assume significance as India is a signatory to the Paris Agreement and aims to become a net-zero country. Poundrik said that in the next few months, the scheme is expected to become operational. Explaining the scheme, he fu

Droughts across India's rivers occurring in sync amid climate change: Study

Climate change could be driving a co-occurrence of droughts across multiple river basins in India, causing severe water shortage and affecting food and water security, a study from the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar has found. Researchers Vimal Mishra and Dipesh Singh Chuphal said droughts and a widespread drying of rivers are becoming more common, together driving an increase in sync between droughts across several rivers. The findings, published in the journal American Geophysical Union (AGU) Advances, have "profound implications associated with water scarcity" for the country, the team said. The authors modelled water flow at 45 gauge stations on major rivers across India, including Ganga and Brahmaputra, from 1200 to 2012. Historical data and observations on water flow were used for the analysis. "Drought synchronicity has increased across the Indian rivers in the present period (1850-2012) than in the (pre-industrial era) (1200-1849)," the authors wrote. They adde

India's renewable story needs better forecasting, stronger infrastructure

The devastating floods across northern India turned the spotlight on the fact that a surfeit of water is as disastrous as a scarcity of rain

Justice in climate cooperation: Restoring common but differentiated duties

The group of Non-Annex I countries can no longer be fully identified with the developing states, as 20 Non-Annex I countries are now included in the World Bank's list of high-income countries

World isn't transitioning away from fossil fuel; decades of robust use left

The IEA will publish its "Current Policy Scenario" this year, showing oil and gas demand won't peak this decade, overturning past assumptions, sources familiar with the draft report said

Climate finance crucial, India needs $10 trn for net zero: Bhupender Yadav

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Thursday said climate finance is the "make-or-break issue for climate action" and stressed that developed countries have a "moral responsibility to support the Global South" in its transition to a low-carbon economy. Addressing an event organised by industry chamber FICCI, Yadav said India will require more than USD 10 trillion by 2070 to meet its net-zero target and called for global financial systems to unlock private capital while ensuring transparency, accountability and affordability. "Public money cannot and would not be sufficient to address the scale of the problem at hand. The fiscal space is tight. The role of public budgets and concessional finance is to de-risk, crowd in and set rules that unlock private capital," he said. Yadav said climate finance is development finance. "Clean power, efficient cities, climate-smart agriculture and resilient infrastructure are not add-ons -- they are the foundation of energy security, food

India needs $10 trillion by 2070 to reach net zero: Bhupender Yadav

Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said India requires $10 trillion in investments by 2070 to achieve Net Zero and stressed the need for blended finance and global support

Climate finance 'make-or-break issue', India needs $10 tn by 2070: Yadav

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Thursday said climate finance is the "make-or-break issue for climate action" and stressed that developed countries have a "moral responsibility to support the global south" in its transition to a low-carbon economy. Addressing an event organised by industry chamber FICCI, Yadav said India will require more than USD 10 trillion by 2070 to meet its net-zero target and called for global financial systems to unlock private capital while ensuring transparency, accountability and affordability. "Public money cannot and would not be sufficient to address the scale of the problem at hand. Fiscal space is tight. The role of public budgets and concessional finance is to de-risk, crowd in and set rules that unlock private capital," he said. He said climate finance is development finance. "Clean power, efficient cities, climate-smart agriculture and resilient infrastructure are not add-ons; they are the foundation of energy security, food security

It's raining crises: Cities need urgent plans for climate change impacts

At first glance, the easy culprit to pinpoint is growing indiscriminate urbanisation

US appeals court allows Donald Trump's EPA to nix climate grants

Trump's predecessor Joe Biden's signature 2022 Inflation Reduction Act had awarded the grants aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions

World running out of time to act on climate change, warns COP30 president

The world risks "running out of time" to act on climate change without cooperation, COP30 President Andre Correa do Lago warned on Monday and stressed on the need to bridge the political and financial divide between developed and developing nations. He also criticised US President Donald Trump's reluctance to engage in climate negotiations. "We understand that President Trump is not going to listen to me. And the problem is that he does not want to talk about the emissions of specific countries," Correa do Lago told reporters. Trump has withdrawn the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change. This is the second time he has directed the US to exit the agreement. He had done so during his first administration and the US rejoined under the Biden administration. Correa do Lago acknowledged that climate negotiations have long been marked by a sharp divide between developed and developing nations. He said poorer countries consistently emphasise the need for wealthy nations