Welcome to this weekโs edition of The Weekly Climate ๐
References: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5] and [6].
โฆ Iโm back. Finally.
Thank you so much for sticking with me โค๏ธ โ in fact surprisingly it looks like Iโve gained about 10% free subscribers since abruptly stopping in September. ๐ค If this is your first newsletter โ welcome! And if this is your umpteenth well, then welcome back! ๐ฅณ
Suffice to say it has been a pretty rough 1.5 quarter for my family with serious illness hitting close by ๐ฐ, not out of the woods yet, but things are stabilising (and no itโs not me). Finally, once things stabilised in early December I was knee-deep in fundraising for Elby (which I will bring some news about in a later newsletter).
Finally, I decided here in Feb to relaunch the newsletter so hope you still like it. Why? This newsletter, IMO, just became more important than ever. In a time where Meta, Twitter is a nightmare of fake news and other crap. In a time where an orange haired convict can take the reigns of the US. And much other bullshit. I think the world needs at least one place to get a curated list of the most important climate news.
I actually got a few ideas for some add-ons, that I plan to work on implementing here in the next month or so. Iโve already made a few optimisations in this one:
URL Integration (paid only): Embedded article URLs directly into #topic tags to make them more accessible.
Visual Enhancement (paid only) : Added dots at the beginning of references which seems to me to improve readability.
Title Optimization: Moved away from schematic title/subtitles to more engaging, "catchy" titles (I hope ๐ ).
โThe Briefโ Format Evolution (free only) : Experimenting with new structure for better information presentation.
So kicking off February 2025 with the first newsletter since Sep 2 2024. Naturally, thereโs a quite a bit about the orange haired climate killer in this one ๐ฐ
Oh .. and in case you know somebody who should read this newsletter donโt forget to share it with them.
๐ธ IโM BACK-special discount ๐ธ
Oh.. one more thing: Iโm running an โIโm backโ-special discount of 30% on all subscription types. Offer runs until March 1 2025.
So if youโre considering to get the full Weekly Climate experience check that out.
โผ๏ธNews you canโt miss
Hereโs one important scary/bad (๐), good (๐ป), interesting (๐ผ) and fossil (๐ฉ) news item.
๐ #ClimateLeadership: Trump's victory threatens to derail US climate progress with plans to withdraw from Paris Agreement and roll back clean energy initiatives.
๐ป #AfricanRenewables: African nations commit to massive $35 billion renewable energy rollout to provide electricity to millions while driving economic growth.
๐ผ #JapanVeganism: Japan's traditionally meat-heavy culture sees unexpected rise in veganism driven by environmental concerns and tourism influence.
๐ฉ #FrackingControversy: Texas city approves new fracking site near schools and daycare centers despite serious health and safety concerns from the community.
๐ฉโโ๏ธ Status: Climate & Science
โข #OceanWarming โ Earth's oceans are experiencing unprecedented warming due to a combination of greenhouse gas emissions, changes in reflectivity from pollution regulations, and the El Niรฑo pattern, leading to severe coral bleaching and intensified weather events like hurricanes. The rate of ocean warming has quadrupled in the last 40 years, with significant consequences for marine life and global climate patterns.
๐ฐ The 7 Grand Challenges
โก๏ธDecarbonize Electricity
โข #AfricanRenewables โAfrican leaders are committing to a $35 billion renewable energy rollout to provide electricity to millions, emphasizing the urgent need for energy access over climate change discussions, as they seek investment and development to support economic growth.
โข #VirtualPowerPlant โ Niko Energy is launching Mexico's first virtual power plant to address rising power demand and grid issues, while continuing to finance solar installations and targeting both small businesses and larger corporations. The startup has raised $8 million in equity to support its initiatives.
๐ Reduce impact of urban and rural areas
โข #Electrification โ Australia plans suburb-wide electrification trials to reduce gas reliance, offering subsidies for electric appliances. The initiative aims to lower household costs and emissions, with funding directed towards expanding successful pilot programs nationwide. Advocates believe this could significantly impact climate change efforts and provide financial relief during the cost-of-living crisis.
โข #EVMarket โ Volkswagen has canceled plans to bring the ID.7 EV to North America, citing the new administration's intent to cut EV incentives. This decision reflects broader uncertainties in the US EV market, which is heavily influenced by political factors and consumer preferences. The ID.7 is performing well in Europe, but its absence in the US may impact jobs at Volkswagen's German factories. Overall, the shift in administration is seen as detrimental to the electric vehicle market.
๐ณ Protect and grow nature
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