After working through the night and dramatic last minute hitches the UN talks on biodiversity have a new deal for nature, with the aim of halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030. Early on Monday morning the gavel came down …
Targeting waste
The public are demanding more action on waste, including targets for our consumption of key materials in the forthcoming Circular Economy Bill. The Bill was first promised in 2019 but put on hold because of the pandemic. It is now firmly …
Nuclear at Ineos – a gift to campaigners
The talks between Ineos and Rolls Royce about siting a nuclear reactor at the Grangemouth refinery are a huge early Christmas gift to campaigners opposed to a new generation of nuclear. The idea contains the perfect combination of elements needed to …
Vaping and the environment
If you walk down any urban street in Scotland it will probably not be long before you see a brightly-coloured, discarded single-use vaping tube lying in a gutter. A group of charities is calling for them to be banned, but what …
Nature-based solutions not as nice as they sound
As the seaside resort of Sharm el-Sheikh gets back to catering for tourists, it’s time to reflect that the outcomes of the UN COP27 climate talks were predictable, surprising and dangerous, all at the same time. The first success was …
Climate COP or fossil capture ?
As COP27 grinds slowly towards its conclusion, the battle over what any final agreement might say about fossil fuels is reaching its peak. Last year’s COP in Glasgow produced an agreement that finally actually admitted fossil fuels might be a …
Diplomacy and duplicity at the seaside
The baffling, frustrating and occasionally inspiring circus that is the UN climate talks is in full swing in the Red Sea tourist resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. Impenetrable as they are these talks are the only place countries can negotiate to act …
Too busy for climate change
We are only a few days away from the start of COP27 in Egypt – the most important high-level discussions happening on (and about) planet Earth this year. Things are going so badly that the UN says there is now no …
Creativity and climate change
A first-year report reveals great success for a project which matches up cultural and environmental organisations to creatively engage people on issues of climate change. Creativity is very important in communications. In campaigning, memorable stunts with snappy slogans are vital. Humorously subverting …
Climate change and grouse moors
Even if you think it is reasonable to rear grouse so they can be driven in front of the guns of rich people for the ‘sport’ of killing them, even if you are not bothered by the routine illegal killings …
Funding climate action
We are facing four crisis – climate and nature emergencies, the cost of living crisis and a global poverty crisis. A new report looks at how we can raise the money and drive the behaviour change needed to reduce emissions at …
The global energy crisis and the climate
When the deadline for revised climate pledges passed last month only 23 countries out of nearly 200 had submitted something new. This deadline was agreed at the Glasgow climate talks last November and counties where supposed to propose stronger action between …