<div>Global banking regulators agreed to focus more on understanding the financial risks posed by climate change on May 13, despite some opposition from the United States, Reuters reported.</div>
<div></div>
<div>The oversight body of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision convened to review its climate-related financial risk initiatives and decided to prioritise understanding the financial impact of extreme weather events, according to a statement by the Bank for International Settlements.</div>
<div></div>
<div>This decision comes as policymakers in Europe and the US debate the role of climate change in central bank policy. In Europe, policymakers have doubled down on efforts to address climate-related risks, with the European Central Bank (ECB) making management of climate risks a key priority, while the US efforts have been scaled back.&nbsp;</div>
<div></div>
<div>The group of central bank governors and heads of supervision, which make up the oversight body of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, also plans to release a voluntary framework for climate-related financial risks for jurisdictions to consider.</div>
<div></div>
<div>While the Basel Committee has no international authority or enforcement powers, its work on climate sets international standards which have a strong influence on national rule-making.</div>
<div></div>
<h2><span>US takes a step back</span></h2>
<div></div>
<div>While European and British regulators are moving forward with integrating climate risks into bank supervision, the US regulators like the Federal Reserve have taken a more cautious approach.&nbsp;</div>
<div></div>
<div>Recently, the US has seen significant pushback, with US President Trump and other Republican leaders criticising climate-focused policies. In a notable move, the Fed withdrew from the Network of Central Banks and Supervisors for Greening the Financial System in January, and the US Treasury Department has also backed away from climate principles for banks.</div>
<div></div>
<div>Analysts predict that the US regulatory bodies, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, may follow suit and pull out of these joint climate agreements in the near future.</div>
<div></div>
<div>(<em>With inputs from agencies</em>)</div>

Business & Economy: The Basel Committee has placed a significant focus on evaluating the financial repercussions of extreme weather events in its climate risk strategies.

Global banking regulators agreed to focus more on understanding the financial risks posed by climate change on May 13, despite some opposition from the United States, Reuters reported. The oversight body of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision convened to review its climate-related financial risk initiatives and decided to prioritise understanding the financial impact of extreme weather events, according to a statement by the Bank for International Settlements. This decision comes as policymakers in Europe and the US debate the role of climate change in central bank policy. In Europe, policymakers have doubled down on efforts to address climate-related risks, with the European Central Bank (ECB) making management of climate risks a key priority, while the US efforts have been scaled back. The group of central bank governors and heads of supervision, which make up the oversight body of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, also plans to release a voluntary framework for climate-related financial risks for jurisdictions to consider. While the Basel Committee has no international authority or enforcement powers, its work on climate sets international standards which have a strong influence on national rule-making. US takes a step back While European and British regulators are moving forward with integrating climate risks into bank supervision, the US regulators like the Federal Reserve have taken a more cautious approach. Recently, the US has seen significant pushback, with US President Trump and other Republican leaders criticising climate-focused policies. In a notable move, the Fed withdrew from the Network of Central Banks and Supervisors for Greening the Financial System in January, and the US Treasury Department has also backed away from climate principles for banks. Analysts predict that the US regulatory bodies, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, may follow suit and pull out of these joint climate agreements in the near future. (With inputs from agencies)

Global banking regulators commit to addressing climate risk work

<p>Burning, drifting, and being devoured by insects, Canada’s Boreal forest is shrinking and climate change is to blame.</p>

<p>Second&nbsp;only to the South American Amazon forest, the Boreal forest is vital to ensuring the future of planet Earth, reports AFP.&nbsp;The forest which encircles the arctic and stretches across Canada, Scandinavia, Russia and Alaska has in recent times been weakened by forest fires, the melting of permafrost, an insect infestation, warming temperatures and drifting trees.</p>

<p><strong>Watch |&nbsp;WION Climate Tracker: Next pandemic to come from melting glaciers? New virus threat as Arctic melts</strong></p>

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<p>As per AFP experts have categorically warned that “the forest is encroaching on the tundra, and the prairies are slowly taking the place of the trees.”</p>

<p>With the rising temperatures “drunken trees” have become a common phenomenon; trees are tilted sideways due to the melting permafrost. Eventually, the soil will completely erode and the fauna will tumble down.</p>

<p>Edmonton-based researcher for the natural resources ministry warns "You have the potential for large shifts," adding that some areas might be flooded and even lose forests, which can eventually turn into bogs or swamps, and lakes.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/climate-change-effect-snow-white-alps-turning-green-says-study-after-analysing-satellite-data-484609">Climate change effect: ‘Snow-white' Alps turning green, says study after analysing satellite data</a></strong></p>

<p>The degradation of permafrost is behind this “buckling and sinking”, ground which for the past two years has remained frozen is thawing.</p>

<p>With it, bacteria are eating away at the biomass collected over thousands of years, generating carbon, and methane emissions which are then contributing to the acceleration of global warming.</p>

<p>Data collected by Global Forest Watch, the World Resources Institute, and the University of Maryland also revealed that extreme heat waves are five times more likely today than 150 years ago.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/how-climate-change-will-impact-the-worlds-regions-differently-457772">How climate change will impact the world's regions differently</a></strong></p>

<p>The higher temperatures have also brought on another problem: insect infestations, which are quickly eating away at the trees.</p>

<p>Fauna, already weakened by the droughts brought on by heatwaves struggle to fend off bugs that exploit the longer summers and warmer winters.</p>

<p>Scientists as per AFP say that for now there’s still hope for the ecosystem's continued resilience, even as they ponder whether the forest’s “tipping point”, a threshold after which emissions will be inevitable and changes to the ecosystem irreversible is approaching.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>

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Burning, drifting, and being devoured by insects, Canada’s Boreal forest is shrinking and climate change is to blame. Second only to the South American Amazon forest, the Boreal forest is vital to ensuring the future of planet Earth, reports AFP.

Burning, drifting, and being devoured by insects, Canada’s Boreal forest is shrinking and climate change is to blame. Second only to the South American Amazon forest, the Boreal forest is vital to ensuring the future of planet Earth, reports AFP. The forest which encircles the arctic and stretches across Canada, Scandinavia, Russia and Alaska has in recent times been weakened by forest fires, the melting of permafrost, an insect infestation, warming temperatures and drifting trees. Watch | WION Climate Tracker: Next pandemic to come from melting glaciers? New virus threat as Arctic melts As per AFP experts have categorically warned that “the forest is encroaching on the tundra, and the prairies are slowly taking the place of the trees.” With the rising temperatures “drunken trees” have become a common phenomenon; trees are tilted sideways due to the melting permafrost. Eventually, the soil will completely erode and the fauna will tumble down. Edmonton-based researcher for the natural resources ministry warns "You have the potential for large shifts," adding that some areas might be flooded and even lose forests, which can eventually turn into bogs or swamps, and lakes. Also read | Climate change effect: ‘Snow-white' Alps turning green, says study after analysing satellite data The degradation of permafrost is behind this “buckling and sinking”, ground which for the past two years has remained frozen is thawing. With it, bacteria are eating away at the biomass collected over thousands of years, generating carbon, and methane emissions which are then contributing to the acceleration of global warming. Data collected by Global Forest Watch, the World Resources Institute, and the University of Maryland also revealed that extreme heat waves are five times more likely today than 150 years ago. Also read | How climate change will impact the world's regions differently The higher temperatures have also brought on another problem: insect infestations, which are quickly eating away at the trees. Fauna, already weakened by the droughts brought on by heatwaves struggle to fend off bugs that exploit the longer summers and warmer winters. Scientists as per AFP say that for now there’s still hope for the ecosystem's continued resilience, even as they ponder whether the forest’s “tipping point”, a threshold after which emissions will be inevitable and changes to the ecosystem irreversible is approaching. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Global warming slowly devastating Boreal forest a.k.a. Earth's second lung

<p>Limiting the rise of global temperatures up to 1.5°C was an aspirational goal in the 2015 Paris agreement. But of the many 'what if' scenarios anticipated ever since, the most crucial 'what if' scenario concerns global food security amid rising temperatures. Israeli scientists have attempted to answer this big question to address the concerns about global food security.</p>

<p>Scientists in Israel are creating a gene bank from the seeds of local wild crops, some of which have survived for thousands of years since the start&nbsp;of agriculture by human civilisation&nbsp;and that may help farmers deal with a harsher climate in the coming decades.</p>

<p>In a eucalyptus grove nestled between an industrial zone and a new railroad under construction, botanist Alon Singer collected seeds from a number of plants recently spotted, including a variety of water mint, that will be frozen and stored at the Israel Plant Gene Bank at the Volcani Institute, the national agricultural Research and Development centre.</p>

<p><strong>WATCH |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/wion-climate-tracker-people-in-kenya-struggle-to-feed-their-families-due-to-drought-526203">WION Climate Tracker: People in Kenya struggle to feed their families due to drought</a></strong></p>

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<p>Singer is combing the country along with other scouts and foragers in search of varieties of wheat, barley and countless other wild crops so their genetic makeup can be saved and studied before they are lost to expanding deserts and urbanization as the climate warms.</p>

<p>“The plants here are very unique. They are the ancestors of many of the cultivated plants used today,” he said.</p>

<p><strong>Such crops can withstand drought or pest outbreak</strong></p>

<p>Resilient characteristics can be harnessed to genetically modify farmed crops so they better withstand drought or disease.</p>

<p>Tens of thousands of types of seeds are stored in the gene bank. It may be smaller than some collections elsewhere in the world but the gene pool here is unique, coming from an area that was part of the Fertile Crescent region known as the birthplace of crop cultivation.</p>

<p><strong>ALSO READ |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/global-food-import-costs-may-near-record-2-trillion-hurting-worlds-poorest-533362">Global food import costs may near record $2 trillion, hurting world's poorest</a></strong></p>

<p>“This is where agriculture started about 10,000 years ago,” said Einav Mayzlish-Gati, director of the gene bank. “Species that were domesticated here are still in the wild adapting over the years to the changes in the environment.”</p>

<p>The World Bank warns that global agriculture is extremely vulnerable to climate change. Negative effects, it said, are already being felt with hotter temperatures, more frequent extreme weather events, and invasive crops and pests.</p>

<p>Global food import bills are forecasted to near $2 trillion this year, a United Nations report said on Friday.</p>

<p>Agriculture and global warming will be discussed by global leaders in Egypt on Saturday at COP27, the latest edition of the United Nations' annual climate change summit.<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Limiting the rise of global temperatures up to 1.5°C was an aspirational goal in the 2015 Paris agreement. But of the many 'what if' scenarios anticipated ever since, the most crucial 'what if' scenario concerns global food security amid rising temperatures.

Limiting the rise of global temperatures up to 1.5°C was an aspirational goal in the 2015 Paris agreement. But of the many 'what if' scenarios anticipated ever since, the most crucial 'what if' scenario concerns global food security amid rising temperatures. Israeli scientists have attempted to answer this big question to address the concerns about global food security. Scientists in Israel are creating a gene bank from the seeds of local wild crops, some of which have survived for thousands of years since the start of agriculture by human civilisation and that may help farmers deal with a harsher climate in the coming decades. In a eucalyptus grove nestled between an industrial zone and a new railroad under construction, botanist Alon Singer collected seeds from a number of plants recently spotted, including a variety of water mint, that will be frozen and stored at the Israel Plant Gene Bank at the Volcani Institute, the national agricultural Research and Development centre. WATCH | WION Climate Tracker: People in Kenya struggle to feed their families due to drought × Singer is combing the country along with other scouts and foragers in search of varieties of wheat, barley and countless other wild crops so their genetic makeup can be saved and studied before they are lost to expanding deserts and urbanization as the climate warms. “The plants here are very unique. They are the ancestors of many of the cultivated plants used today,” he said. Such crops can withstand drought or pest outbreak Resilient characteristics can be harnessed to genetically modify farmed crops so they better withstand drought or disease. Tens of thousands of types of seeds are stored in the gene bank. It may be smaller than some collections elsewhere in the world but the gene pool here is unique, coming from an area that was part of the Fertile Crescent region known as the birthplace of crop cultivation. ALSO READ | Global food import costs may near record $2 trillion, hurting world's poorest “This is where agriculture started about 10,000 years ago,” said Einav Mayzlish-Gati, director of the gene bank. “Species that were domesticated here are still in the wild adapting over the years to the changes in the environment.” The World Bank warns that global agriculture is extremely vulnerable to climate change. Negative effects, it said, are already being felt with hotter temperatures, more frequent extreme weather events, and invasive crops and pests. Global food import bills are forecasted to near $2 trillion this year, a United Nations report said on Friday. Agriculture and global warming will be discussed by global leaders in Egypt on Saturday at COP27, the latest edition of the United Nations' annual climate change summit.

Israeli scientists step up efforts to grow climate change-resistant crops

<p>The Netherlands on Wednesday announced its withdrawal from a recently- negotiated 52-nation deal on fossil fuels over climate change concerns.</p>

<p>The deal was initially signed in 1994 and included 52 nations from Central Asia and Europe. Its aim was to protect energy investments in volatile ex-Soviet countries.&nbsp;A compromise deal was struck in June to update the decades-old Energy Charter Treaty, which governed cross-border energy trading and investment.&nbsp;The European Union recently pressed for changes to the agreement to prohibit legal action from investors and businesses which could jeopardise bold climate targets.</p>

<p><strong>Watch |&nbsp;WION Climate Tracker: Climate change creates new crisis for Bangladesh</strong></p>

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<p>The compromise agreement, reached in June after two years of negotiations, establishes a 10-year phase-out period for protections on current investments and permits the exclusion of future fossil fuel investments from protections. It was set to come into force in November, pending any objections from the signatories.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Climate groups have criticised the update's flaws and warned that they would jeopardise efforts to slow global warming.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/wwii-shipwreck-still-polluting-north-sea-ocean-floor-80-years-after-going-down-526704" hreflang="en">WWII shipwreck still polluting North Sea ocean floor 80 years after going down</a></strong></p>

<p>On Tuesday, Rob Jetten, the dutch environment and energy minister told the nation's parliament about the nation's withdrawal.</p>

<p>Talking to AFP, a spokesperson for his ministry said that "the minister indicated that the negotiated result cannot be reconciled with the Paris accord" on climate change.&nbsp;They further revealed that the official withdrawal date hasn't been set.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>

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The Netherlands on Wednesday announced its withdrawal from a recently- negotiated 52-nation deal on fossil fuels over climate change concerns. The deal was initially signed in 1994 and included 52 nations from Central Asia and Europe.

The Netherlands on Wednesday announced its withdrawal from a recently- negotiated 52-nation deal on fossil fuels over climate change concerns. The deal was initially signed in 1994 and included 52 nations from Central Asia and Europe. Its aim was to protect energy investments in volatile ex-Soviet countries. A compromise deal was struck in June to update the decades-old Energy Charter Treaty, which governed cross-border energy trading and investment. The European Union recently pressed for changes to the agreement to prohibit legal action from investors and businesses which could jeopardise bold climate targets. Watch | WION Climate Tracker: Climate change creates new crisis for Bangladesh The compromise agreement, reached in June after two years of negotiations, establishes a 10-year phase-out period for protections on current investments and permits the exclusion of future fossil fuel investments from protections. It was set to come into force in November, pending any objections from the signatories. Climate groups have criticised the update's flaws and warned that they would jeopardise efforts to slow global warming. Also read | WWII shipwreck still polluting North Sea ocean floor 80 years after going down On Tuesday, Rob Jetten, the dutch environment and energy minister told the nation's parliament about the nation's withdrawal. Talking to AFP, a spokesperson for his ministry said that "the minister indicated that the negotiated result cannot be reconciled with the Paris accord" on climate change. They further revealed that the official withdrawal date hasn't been set. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Netherlands to quit multi-nation fossil deal over climate change concerns

<p>The European Investment Bank published a survey on Wednesday showing that a majority of European Union citizens believe their governments will fail to tackle climate change, which Europeans see as the biggest challenge humanity faces in the 21st century.</p>

<p>In the EIB's climate survey of 27,700 respondents in 27 EU countries, 58 per cent of respondents believed that their countries would fail to drastically cut CO2 emissions by 2050.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/australian-indigenous-islanders-file-lawsuit-against-government-demand-climate-action-424150" hreflang="en">Australian indigenous islanders file lawsuit against government, demand climate action</a></strong></p>

<p>However, EU citizens' lack of confidence in their governments' climate credentials contrasts with their own support for tougher policies.</p>

<p>70 per cent of EU respondents said they supported measures to reduce emissions by imposing changes on people's behaviour.</p>

<p>87 per cent of respondents said they would either completely or somewhat support the replacement of short-haul flights with trains, while 69 per cent said they would support a tax on polluting products.</p>

<p>Furthermore, 81 per cent of European Union citizens believe climate change is the biggest challenge humanity faces this century, and 75 per cent say they are more concerned about the climate crisis than their governments.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/in-pics-youths-take-to-streets-in-fridays-for-future-climate-protests-423195" hreflang="en">In pics: Youths take to streets in Fridays for Future climate protests</a></strong></p>

<p>This poll was conducted after the devastating wildfires and fatal floods in August and September highlighted the reality of climate change for many Europeans.</p>

<p>With COP26,&nbsp;the UN climate summit in Scotland&nbsp;beginning on Sunday, Ambroise Fayolle, Vice-President of EIB, said that these demands from the public are a clear mandate for them to strengthen their efforts and give momentum to the green transition.</p>

<p>Among the world's largest economies, the European Union has set some of the most ambitious climate goals. The bloc has legally committed to reduce its net emissions to zero by 2050 and rapidly reduce them this decade.</p>

<p>Even though these goals apply to the EU's overall emissions, EU countries, including Denmark, France, Germany and Ireland, have also set their own national net-zero emissions goals.</p>

<p><strong>Watch |&nbsp;UN sounds alarm on climate crisis ahead of high stakes COP26 summit</strong></p>

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<p>EU policymakers are negotiating new measures to deliver its climate goals, including higher taxes on polluting fuels and a new carbon market - proposals facing resistance from some countries that fear a public backlash to measures that would increase costs for households.</p>

<p>Policymakers in the EU are negotiating new measures to achieve these climate goals. The new measures will include higher taxes on polluting fuels and a new carbon market. However, the proposals are facing resistance from some countries which fear a negative reaction from the public on measures that could increase household costs.</p>


The European Investment Bank published a survey on Wednesday showing that a majority of European Union citizens believe their governments will fail to tackle climate change, which Europeans see as the biggest challenge humanity faces in the 21st century.

The European Investment Bank published a survey on Wednesday showing that a majority of European Union citizens believe their governments will fail to tackle climate change, which Europeans see as the biggest challenge humanity faces in the 21st century. In the EIB's climate survey of 27,700 respondents in 27 EU countries, 58 per cent of respondents believed that their countries would fail to drastically cut CO2 emissions by 2050. Also read | Australian indigenous islanders file lawsuit against government, demand climate action However, EU citizens' lack of confidence in their governments' climate credentials contrasts with their own support for tougher policies. 70 per cent of EU respondents said they supported measures to reduce emissions by imposing changes on people's behaviour. 87 per cent of respondents said they would either completely or somewhat support the replacement of short-haul flights with trains, while 69 per cent said they would support a tax on polluting products. Furthermore, 81 per cent of European Union citizens believe climate change is the biggest challenge humanity faces this century, and 75 per cent say they are more concerned about the climate crisis than their governments. Also read | In pics: Youths take to streets in Fridays for Future climate protests This poll was conducted after the devastating wildfires and fatal floods in August and September highlighted the reality of climate change for many Europeans. With COP26, the UN climate summit in Scotland beginning on Sunday, Ambroise Fayolle, Vice-President of EIB, said that these demands from the public are a clear mandate for them to strengthen their efforts and give momentum to the green transition. Among the world's largest economies, the European Union has set some of the most ambitious climate goals. The bloc has legally committed to reduce its net emissions to zero by 2050 and rapidly reduce them this decade. Even though these goals apply to the EU's overall emissions, EU countries, including Denmark, France, Germany and Ireland, have also set their own national net-zero emissions goals. Watch | UN sounds alarm on climate crisis ahead of high stakes COP26 summit EU policymakers are negotiating new measures to deliver its climate goals, including higher taxes on polluting fuels and a new carbon market - proposals facing resistance from some countries that fear a public backlash to measures that would increase costs for households. Policymakers in the EU are negotiating new measures to achieve these climate goals. The new measures will include higher taxes on polluting fuels and a new carbon market. However, the proposals are facing resistance from some countries which fear a negative reaction from the public on measures that could increase household costs.

75% of Europeans are more concerned about the climate crisis than their governments: Survey

<p>On Tuesday, indigenous residents of the low-lying Australian island of Torres Strait filed a landmark lawsuit against the Australian government.</p>

<p>The lawsuit is aimed at forcing the government to take steps to protect the islanders from climate change, by imposing deeper cuts on carbon emissions so as to combat the climate crisis. &nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/australia-adopts-target-of-net-zero-emissions-by-2050-but-wont-legislate-goal-424095">Australia adopts target of net zero emissions by 2050 but won't legislate goal</a></strong></p>

<p>They say that rising sea levels pose an existential threat to their homelands and culture, thereby putting them at the frontline of the climate crisis.</p>

<p>Lawmakers representing traditional land owners of Boigu and Saibai, two of the hardest hit islands, want the Federal Court to order the government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to a level that would prevent Torres Strait Islanders from ending up as climate refugees.</p>

<p>In terms of climate change class actions, this is believed to be the first to be launched by Indigenous Australians.</p>

<p>Australian officials unveiled a 2050 net-zero goal on the same day the lawsuit was filed; the plan, however, is light-on-detail and criticised for relying heavily on undeveloped technologies and carbon offsets.</p>

<p><strong>Watch |&nbsp;Climate holdout Australia sets 2050 net zero emissions target</strong></p>

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<p>The Torres Strait, also called Zenadth Kes, is a collection of 274 islands between Australia's mainland and Papua New Guinea. Fewer than 5,000 people live there.</p>

<p>In its lawsuit, the islanders claim that some islands are expected to become uninhabitable if global temperatures rise more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has predicted that we could pass that threshold by 2030.</p>

<p>United Nations reports project the world will warm by 2.7 degrees Celsius by 2100, based on current global commitments.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/g20-split-over-coal-15-degree-climate-limit-ahead-of-rome-summit-report-422972" hreflang="en">G20 split over coal, 1.5 degree climate limit ahead of Rome summit: Report</a></strong></p>

<p>The plaintiff, Paul Kabai, who lives on the island of Saibai, said that salt-ruined soils and worsening flooding were putting the health of his people at risk, leaving them facing a dire future.</p>

<p>"If you take away our homelands, we don't know who we are. We have a cultural responsibility to make sure that doesn't happen."</p>

<p>He said becoming a climate refugee means losing everything: their homes, their culture, their stories, and identity.<br />
In May, a federal judge ruled that expanding a coal mine near Sydney would cause climate-related harm to eight Australian teenagers. That judgement paved the way for this lawsuit.</p>

<p>People in Australia and around the world are increasingly turning to the courts in an effort to prod governments into taking action on climate change.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/planned-fossil-fuel-production-dangerously-out-of-sync-with-needed-emissions-cuts-un-422407" hreflang="en">Planned fossil fuel production 'dangerously out of sync' with needed emissions cuts: UN</a></strong></p>

<p>Earlier in 2019, a group of Torres Strait Islanders had filed a separate complaint with the United Nations, alleging that the authorities are failing to address climate change, which is a violation of their human rights.</p>

<p>The Australian government has asked for the complaint to be dismissed; however, the UN Human Rights Committee in Geneva has not yet formally responded.</p>


On Tuesday, indigenous residents of the low-lying Australian island of Torres Strait filed a landmark lawsuit against the Australian government. The lawsuit is aimed at forcing the government to take steps to protect the islanders from climate change, by imposing deeper cuts on carbon emissions so as to combat the climate crisis.

On Tuesday, indigenous residents of the low-lying Australian island of Torres Strait filed a landmark lawsuit against the Australian government. The lawsuit is aimed at forcing the government to take steps to protect the islanders from climate change, by imposing deeper cuts on carbon emissions so as to combat the climate crisis. Also read | Australia adopts target of net zero emissions by 2050 but won't legislate goal They say that rising sea levels pose an existential threat to their homelands and culture, thereby putting them at the frontline of the climate crisis. Lawmakers representing traditional land owners of Boigu and Saibai, two of the hardest hit islands, want the Federal Court to order the government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to a level that would prevent Torres Strait Islanders from ending up as climate refugees. In terms of climate change class actions, this is believed to be the first to be launched by Indigenous Australians. Australian officials unveiled a 2050 net-zero goal on the same day the lawsuit was filed; the plan, however, is light-on-detail and criticised for relying heavily on undeveloped technologies and carbon offsets. Watch | Climate holdout Australia sets 2050 net zero emissions target The Torres Strait, also called Zenadth Kes, is a collection of 274 islands between Australia's mainland and Papua New Guinea. Fewer than 5,000 people live there. In its lawsuit, the islanders claim that some islands are expected to become uninhabitable if global temperatures rise more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has predicted that we could pass that threshold by 2030. United Nations reports project the world will warm by 2.7 degrees Celsius by 2100, based on current global commitments. Also read | G20 split over coal, 1.5 degree climate limit ahead of Rome summit: Report The plaintiff, Paul Kabai, who lives on the island of Saibai, said that salt-ruined soils and worsening flooding were putting the health of his people at risk, leaving them facing a dire future. "If you take away our homelands, we don't know who we are. We have a cultural responsibility to make sure that doesn't happen." He said becoming a climate refugee means losing everything: their homes, their culture, their stories, and identity. In May, a federal judge ruled that expanding a coal mine near Sydney would cause climate-related harm to eight Australian teenagers. That judgement paved the way for this lawsuit. People in Australia and around the world are increasingly turning to the courts in an effort to prod governments into taking action on climate change. Also read | Planned fossil fuel production 'dangerously out of sync' with needed emissions cuts: UN Earlier in 2019, a group of Torres Strait Islanders had filed a separate complaint with the United Nations, alleging that the authorities are failing to address climate change, which is a violation of their human rights. The Australian government has asked for the complaint to be dismissed; however, the UN Human Rights Committee in Geneva has not yet formally responded.

Australian indigenous islanders file lawsuit against government, demand climate action

<p>President Joe Biden has framed this moment as the country’s best chance to save the planet.</p>

<p>“The nation and the world are in peril,” he said weeks ago in the New York City borough of Queens, where 11 people drowned in their basement apartments after floodwaters from Hurricane Ida devastated communities from Louisiana to New York. “And that’s not hyperbole. That is a fact. They’ve been warning us the extreme weather would get more extreme over the decade, and we’re living in it real time now.”</p>

<p>Biden’s plan to try to fortify the United States against extreme weather — and cut the carbon dioxide emissions that are heating the Earth and fueling disasters — is embedded in two pieces of legislation pending on Capitol Hill. The future of both bills remains in question, with tension between moderate and progressive Democrats over the size and scope of many details.</p>

<p>Together, they contain what would be the most significant climate action ever taken by the United States. Because Democrats could lose control of Congress after 2022 and Republicans have shown little interest in climate legislation, it could be years before another opportunity arises — a delay that scientists say the planet cannot afford.</p>

<p>The climate provisions are designed to quickly transform energy and transportation, the country’s two largest sources of greenhouse gases, from systems that now mostly burn gas, oil and coal to sectors that run increasingly on clean energy from the sun, wind and nuclear power.</p>

<p>The impact will touch a broad cross section of American life, from the kinds of cars that Americans drive, to the types of crops grown by farmers, to the way homes are heated and buildings are constructed. One measure could shutter virtually all of the nation’s remaining coal plants, forcing sweeping change in communities dependent on mining but also, one study estimated, preventing as many as 50,000 premature deaths from pollution by 2030. And other measures would provide billions to replant in national forests, repair trails for hikers and clear brush to reduce the risk of wildfire.</p>

<p>“Each time you let these opportunities slip through your fingers, you’re passing a much harder problem on to the next generation,” said Kim Cobb, a climate scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology and mother of four. “It’s a very hard thing to swallow that we are relegating children born today and not yet born to a future of dangerous climate impacts.”</p>

<p>The United States has contributed more to global warming than any other nation, and the action it takes will be felt well beyond its borders. Falling short would hamstring Biden next month, when he is expected to attend a major United Nations climate summit in Scotland to try to persuade other world leaders to take stronger climate action.</p>

<p>“The whole world is watching,” said Rachel Kyte, dean of the Fletcher School at Tufts University and a climate adviser for the U.N. secretary-general. “If these bills don’t come to pass,” she said, “then the U.S. will be coming to Glasgow with some fine words” but “not much else. It won’t be enough.”</p>

<p>As part of the 2015 Paris climate agreement, nearly 200 nations agreed to try to limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius, compared with temperatures before industrialization. That’s the threshold beyond which scientists say the dangers of global warming — such as deadly heat waves, water shortages, crop failures and ecosystem collapse — grow immensely.</p>

<p>But the world is way off track to meet that goal. As countries continue to pump carbon emissions into the atmosphere, the Earth has already warmed about 1.1 degrees Celsius. Nations must cut in half emissions by the end of the decade to avoid the most catastrophic effects of warming and start that change immediately, scientists say.</p>

<p>Biden has pledged to reduce U.S. emissions at least 50% below 2005 levels by 2030, but his ambitions are constrained by razor-thin Democratic majorities in the House and Senate and the fate of the twin bills.</p>

<p>The first piece of legislation, a $3.5 trillion budget package proposed by House Democrats, with no Republican backing, has been a focal point of debate because it is filled with social programs including free community college, paid family and medical leave and expanded Medicare.</p>

<p>But it also contains hundreds of billions in tax credits for companies that build wind and solar power or retrofit polluting facilities to capture and bury their carbon dioxide emissions before they enter the atmosphere. And it expands tax incentives for Americans to buy electric vehicles, giving consumers as much as $12,500. It would also penalize oil and gas companies if they leak methane, a potent greenhouse gas.</p>

<p>The most potent climate measure in that legislation is a $150 billion Clean Electricity Performance Program, which would reward utilities that generate an increasing amount of electricity from wind, solar, nuclear or other clean energy sources and penalize those that do not. The policy aims for the United States to get 80% of its electricity from sources that don’t generate carbon dioxide by 2030, up from 40% today.</p>

<p>“If that came to pass, it would easily be the biggest thing Congress has ever done on climate,” said John Larsen, a director at the Rhodium Group, an energy research and consulting firm. In a recent study, Larsen found that the biggest climate provisions would only get the United States halfway to Biden’s emission pledge. But, he said, “getting halfway there in just one bill would be huge.”</p>

<p>It could transform states like Florida, Mississippi and Alabama that are still dominated by fossil fuel power plants.</p>

<p>“A policy like this would really have an outsized impact in the Southeast,” said Maggie Shober of the nonprofit Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. “We’re generally lagging behind on clean energy.”</p>

<p>The second big bill in Congress, a $1 trillion infrastructure plan, has bipartisan support. It would provide the largest single infusion of money to prepare communities for extreme weather fueled by climate change that is already underway. It includes $47 billion over five years in resilience funding to improve the nation’s flood defenses, limit damage from wildfires, develop new sources of drinking water in areas plagued by drought and relocate some communities away from high-risk areas.</p>

<p>The bill comes after a record hot summer in the United States in which cascading disasters affected nearly every corner of the country: Overflowing rivers in Tennessee, a hurricane that dumped record amounts of rainfall and left a swath of destruction from Louisiana to New York; a heat wave that killed hundreds in the Pacific Northwest; and wildfires that blazed across the Sierra Nevada range, pumping so much smoke into the air that it was hazy in Boston.</p>

<p>The infrastructure bill would shift America’s approach to dealing with climate threats that can no longer be avoided. Instead of frantically reacting after disaster strikes, the country would better prepared to reduce damage.</p>

<p>“We’ve been telling lawmakers for a long time that climate change could further strain fresh water supplies in the West, and that we need to plan ahead before it’s a crisis,” said Dan Keppen, executive director of Family Farm Alliance, which represents farmers, ranchers and irrigation districts across 17 Western states.</p>

<p>This summer, as the worst drought in memory baked the American West, Keppen saw those dire warnings unfold. An irrigation district in Oregon had to shut off water in the summer before crops were ready for harvest at local vineyards and orchards. Ranchers in California had to ship their cattle away because there was no forage left.</p>

<p>Keppen said the infrastructure bill, which contains $8.3 billion in funding for water projects, could make a big difference by upgrading water storage and funding conservation measures. “If we had done this 20 years ago, I think we would be much better prepared for this year’s drought,” he said. “The one silver lining of this year’s drought is it really drew attention to the problem.”</p>

<p>The infrastructure bill also includes billions to make buildings more energy efficient. About 30% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions comes from energy to heat, cool and power buildings.</p>

<p>“Too often, for so many of us, climate change feels like there’s not a damn thing we can do about it to stop it,” said Donnel Baird, who runs BlocPower, which aims to convert gas and oil heating systems to green electricity, particularly in low-income communities. “But no, we can actually green all of America’s buildings.”</p>

<p>Still, there is no guarantee that even the infrastructure bill will pass. Many House Democrats have said they will not vote for the legislation unless it passes in parallel with the reconciliation bill that aims to address the root causes of global warming.</p>

<p>Environmentalists fear that if Democrats in Congress can’t reach an agreement on the legislation this year, it could be the last chance for major climate action in a long time as the party could lose control of Congress in the midterms next fall. While many Republicans approve of funding for climate resilience, they have shown far less support for federal action to slash emissions.</p>

<p>How hot the world ultimately gets will depend on many factors — including how other big polluting countries like China and India handle their emissions. Even so, scientists say, the chance to constrain global warming to about 1.5 degrees or at least below 2 degrees is growing dim.</p>

<p>“Even if the window for 1.5 degrees slams shut, it’s still going to be worth doing everything we can to limit as much additional warming as possible,” said Michael Oppenheimer, a professor of geosciences at Princeton. “Every fraction of degree of warming leads to additional damages and risks.”</p>

<p>Delay is not an option, Oppenheimer said. “We’ve been doing that for 40 years, and now we’re finding out firsthand what that means,” he said.</p>


President Joe Biden has framed this moment as the country’s best chance to save the planet. “The nation and the world are in peril,” he said weeks ago in the New York City borough of Queens, where 11 people drowned in their basement apartments after floodwaters from Hurricane Ida devastated communities from Louisiana to New York.

President Joe Biden has framed this moment as the country’s best chance to save the planet. “The nation and the world are in peril,” he said weeks ago in the New York City borough of Queens, where 11 people drowned in their basement apartments after floodwaters from Hurricane Ida devastated communities from Louisiana to New York. “And that’s not hyperbole. That is a fact. They’ve been warning us the extreme weather would get more extreme over the decade, and we’re living in it real time now.” Biden’s plan to try to fortify the United States against extreme weather — and cut the carbon dioxide emissions that are heating the Earth and fueling disasters — is embedded in two pieces of legislation pending on Capitol Hill. The future of both bills remains in question, with tension between moderate and progressive Democrats over the size and scope of many details. Together, they contain what would be the most significant climate action ever taken by the United States. Because Democrats could lose control of Congress after 2022 and Republicans have shown little interest in climate legislation, it could be years before another opportunity arises — a delay that scientists say the planet cannot afford. The climate provisions are designed to quickly transform energy and transportation, the country’s two largest sources of greenhouse gases, from systems that now mostly burn gas, oil and coal to sectors that run increasingly on clean energy from the sun, wind and nuclear power. The impact will touch a broad cross section of American life, from the kinds of cars that Americans drive, to the types of crops grown by farmers, to the way homes are heated and buildings are constructed. One measure could shutter virtually all of the nation’s remaining coal plants, forcing sweeping change in communities dependent on mining but also, one study estimated, preventing as many as 50,000 premature deaths from pollution by 2030. And other measures would provide billions to replant in national forests, repair trails for hikers and clear brush to reduce the risk of wildfire. “Each time you let these opportunities slip through your fingers, you’re passing a much harder problem on to the next generation,” said Kim Cobb, a climate scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology and mother of four. “It’s a very hard thing to swallow that we are relegating children born today and not yet born to a future of dangerous climate impacts.” The United States has contributed more to global warming than any other nation, and the action it takes will be felt well beyond its borders. Falling short would hamstring Biden next month, when he is expected to attend a major United Nations climate summit in Scotland to try to persuade other world leaders to take stronger climate action. “The whole world is watching,” said Rachel Kyte, dean of the Fletcher School at Tufts University and a climate adviser for the U.N. secretary-general. “If these bills don’t come to pass,” she said, “then the U.S. will be coming to Glasgow with some fine words” but “not much else. It won’t be enough.” As part of the 2015 Paris climate agreement, nearly 200 nations agreed to try to limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius, compared with temperatures before industrialization. That’s the threshold beyond which scientists say the dangers of global warming — such as deadly heat waves, water shortages, crop failures and ecosystem collapse — grow immensely. But the world is way off track to meet that goal. As countries continue to pump carbon emissions into the atmosphere, the Earth has already warmed about 1.1 degrees Celsius. Nations must cut in half emissions by the end of the decade to avoid the most catastrophic effects of warming and start that change immediately, scientists say. Biden has pledged to reduce U.S. emissions at least 50% below 2005 levels by 2030, but his ambitions are constrained by razor-thin Democratic majorities in the House and Senate and the fate of the twin bills. The first piece of legislation, a $3.5 trillion budget package proposed by House Democrats, with no Republican backing, has been a focal point of debate because it is filled with social programs including free community college, paid family and medical leave and expanded Medicare. But it also contains hundreds of billions in tax credits for companies that build wind and solar power or retrofit polluting facilities to capture and bury their carbon dioxide emissions before they enter the atmosphere. And it expands tax incentives for Americans to buy electric vehicles, giving consumers as much as $12,500. It would also penalize oil and gas companies if they leak methane, a potent greenhouse gas. The most potent climate measure in that legislation is a $150 billion Clean Electricity Performance Program, which would reward utilities that generate an increasing amount of electricity from wind, solar, nuclear or other clean energy sources and penalize those that do not. The policy aims for the United States to get 80% of its electricity from sources that don’t generate carbon dioxide by 2030, up from 40% today. “If that came to pass, it would easily be the biggest thing Congress has ever done on climate,” said John Larsen, a director at the Rhodium Group, an energy research and consulting firm. In a recent study, Larsen found that the biggest climate provisions would only get the United States halfway to Biden’s emission pledge. But, he said, “getting halfway there in just one bill would be huge.” It could transform states like Florida, Mississippi and Alabama that are still dominated by fossil fuel power plants. “A policy like this would really have an outsized impact in the Southeast,” said Maggie Shober of the nonprofit Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. “We’re generally lagging behind on clean energy.” The second big bill in Congress, a $1 trillion infrastructure plan, has bipartisan support. It would provide the largest single infusion of money to prepare communities for extreme weather fueled by climate change that is already underway. It includes $47 billion over five years in resilience funding to improve the nation’s flood defenses, limit damage from wildfires, develop new sources of drinking water in areas plagued by drought and relocate some communities away from high-risk areas. The bill comes after a record hot summer in the United States in which cascading disasters affected nearly every corner of the country: Overflowing rivers in Tennessee, a hurricane that dumped record amounts of rainfall and left a swath of destruction from Louisiana to New York; a heat wave that killed hundreds in the Pacific Northwest; and wildfires that blazed across the Sierra Nevada range, pumping so much smoke into the air that it was hazy in Boston. The infrastructure bill would shift America’s approach to dealing with climate threats that can no longer be avoided. Instead of frantically reacting after disaster strikes, the country would better prepared to reduce damage. “We’ve been telling lawmakers for a long time that climate change could further strain fresh water supplies in the West, and that we need to plan ahead before it’s a crisis,” said Dan Keppen, executive director of Family Farm Alliance, which represents farmers, ranchers and irrigation districts across 17 Western states. This summer, as the worst drought in memory baked the American West, Keppen saw those dire warnings unfold. An irrigation district in Oregon had to shut off water in the summer before crops were ready for harvest at local vineyards and orchards. Ranchers in California had to ship their cattle away because there was no forage left. Keppen said the infrastructure bill, which contains $8.3 billion in funding for water projects, could make a big difference by upgrading water storage and funding conservation measures. “If we had done this 20 years ago, I think we would be much better prepared for this year’s drought,” he said. “The one silver lining of this year’s drought is it really drew attention to the problem.” The infrastructure bill also includes billions to make buildings more energy efficient. About 30% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions comes from energy to heat, cool and power buildings. “Too often, for so many of us, climate change feels like there’s not a damn thing we can do about it to stop it,” said Donnel Baird, who runs BlocPower, which aims to convert gas and oil heating systems to green electricity, particularly in low-income communities. “But no, we can actually green all of America’s buildings.” Still, there is no guarantee that even the infrastructure bill will pass. Many House Democrats have said they will not vote for the legislation unless it passes in parallel with the reconciliation bill that aims to address the root causes of global warming. Environmentalists fear that if Democrats in Congress can’t reach an agreement on the legislation this year, it could be the last chance for major climate action in a long time as the party could lose control of Congress in the midterms next fall. While many Republicans approve of funding for climate resilience, they have shown far less support for federal action to slash emissions. How hot the world ultimately gets will depend on many factors — including how other big polluting countries like China and India handle their emissions. Even so, scientists say, the chance to constrain global warming to about 1.5 degrees or at least below 2 degrees is growing dim. “Even if the window for 1.5 degrees slams shut, it’s still going to be worth doing everything we can to limit as much additional warming as possible,” said Michael Oppenheimer, a professor of geosciences at Princeton. “Every fraction of degree of warming leads to additional damages and risks.” Delay is not an option, Oppenheimer said. “We’ve been doing that for 40 years, and now we’re finding out firsthand what that means,” he said.

Major climate action at stake in fight over twin bills pending in Congress