Environment

The Sticking Point: U.N. Climate Delegates To Debate Financial Measures

9:37pm December 08, 2015

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks to Rachel Kyte, special envoy for climate change for the World Bank, who explains the push-pull between rich and poor countries over financing measures to stop climate change.

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Secretary Moniz Emphasizes 'Innovation Agenda' To Stop Climate Change

4:09pm December 08, 2015

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz about the U.N. climate summit in Paris.

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Young boys in Beijing check a smartphone in front of their home near a coal-fired power plant. As China's economy slowed in 2015, its industrial use of coal likely dropped, too, researchers say. That may be behind the slight drop in global CO2 emissions.

Small, Surprising Dip In World's Carbon Emissions Traced To China

3:46pm December 08, 2015

by Christopher Joyce

Climate scientists say global emissions of carbon dioxide seem to have dipped a bit in 2015, though the world economy is still growing. China's reduced use of coal may be the main reason.

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At a brick kiln in India's rural state of Uttar Pradesh, workers use solar lanterns to illuminate their paths.

To Know the True Meaning Of Solar Energy, Ask A Powerless Rice Farmer

3:26pm December 08, 2015

by Michael Edison Hayden

Renewable energy is critical when it comes to climate change. But there's a life-altering benefit for the 1.1 billion who live without electricity.

Is This Congressman's 'Oversight' An Effort To Hobble Climate Science?

5:43pm December 07, 2015

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas is formally investigating a recent study on global warming. Smith calls the timing of the study's publication "suspicious," but many scientists call his tactics "bullying."

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Las Cañadas is an ecological cooperative in Veracruz, Mexico that's working to sequester carbon and mitigate climate change while producing food, materials, chemicals and energy.

Carbon Farming Gets A Nod At Paris Climate Conference

1:33pm December 07, 2015

by Alastair Bland

Using farmland to capture carbon rather than release it into the atmosphere is called carbon farming. The idea is taking off and countries and institutions have endorsed a new agenda promoting it.

A Pakistani boy peers out from behind a mosquito net after his family fled their home due to catastrophic flooding in Sindh province.

Climate Change Is Killing Us, Literally — And Here's How

12:46pm December 07, 2015

by Susan Brink

The World Health Organization projects an additional 250,000 deaths a year, starting in 2030, due to diseases like malaria and diarrhea.

Talks In Paris To Reach A Treaty On Global Warming Enter Final Week

5:23am December 07, 2015

by Christopher Joyce

Negotiators from nearly 200 countries have spent a week in Paris trying to come up with a new treaty to curb global warming. They've got the rest of this week to finish.

Climate Talks Grow More Complex Over Greenhouse Emissions

7:54am December 06, 2015

NPR's Rachel Martin talks with Chris Joyce about the obstacles in reaching a climate deal. We hear from various countries and get a sense of the competing views and interests on reducing emissions.

The Local Goes Global, As Mayors Talk Climate Change In Paris

5:28pm December 05, 2015

by Eleanor Beardsley

With nations struggling to agree on how to reduce greenhouse emissions, many cities have stepped in to fill the gap. Some 1,000 mayors from around the world pledged new measures in Paris this week.