Is fighting poverty compatible with fighting climate change?
The latest research team to tackle the question thinks it is. Their key insight: a lot of current energy use isn’t really contributing to human well-being
Sep 2021 14
Sarah DeWeerdt
Sarah DeWeerdt is a Seattle-based freelance science journalist specializing in biology, medicine, and the environment. In addition to Anthropocene, her work has appeared in Nature, Newsweek, Nautilus, Spectrum, and many other publications. Find her on Twitter at @DeWeerdt_Sarah.
Sep 2021 7
People don’t know what climate experts are talking about
Simpler language and more context could aid public understanding of climate change
Aug 2021 31
Researchers calculated how many lives energy-efficient buildings could save
The findings partly dovetail with efforts to improve air circulation and ventilation to fight COVID-19.
Aug 2021 24
Scientifically accurate coverage of climate change is steadily improving
But, there’s one place it still continues to fail: conservative media
Aug 2021 17
We can’t depend on extreme weather to increase support for climate action
German researchers document another case in which even novel experiences won’t budge people from entrenched attitudes
Aug 2021 10
Fairer access to credit could speed net zero in Africa by a decade
Previous studies have ignored regional differences in capital costs and painted a too-rosy picture of green energy development in Africa and elsewhere
Aug 2021 3
A new study provides a nuanced—and ultimately hopeful—view of the climate generation gap
Older cohorts started out less concerned (circa 2009), but worry has increased across all age groups at a similar rate over the last decade
Jul 2021 27
Employment in the energy sector will dramatically expand as economies decarbonize
A team calculated that a decarbonized world could lose 9.5 million fossil fuel jobs—and gain a whopping 17.4 million renewable jobs.
Jul 2021 20
Collective battery storage could be the secret ingredient to a climate-friendly grid
A New Zealand team found that batteries could be dramatically smaller and more efficient if they are deployed collectively in neighborhoods—rather than for individual households
Jul 2021 13
Researchers devise a scheme to treat carbon debt like financial debt
If you want to take out a carbon “loan” (that is, emit more carbon than the 1.5 °C budget allows) you’ll have to pay interest on it
