Climate

A new version of the popular board game Catan, which hits shelves this summer, introduces energy production and pollution into the gameplay.

How do you build without over polluting? That's the challenge of new Catan board game

5:30am April 22, 2024

by Nathan Rott

A new version of the popular board game Catan aims to make players wrestle with a 21st-century problem: How do you develop and expand without overly polluting the planet?

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Why Europe is the fastest-warming continent on Earth

5:14am April 22, 2024

by Rebecca Hersher

Heat-related deaths in Europe have increased at least 30% in the last 20 years, according to a new report by the European Union's climate and weather service.

Andrew Song and Luke Iseman of Make Sunsets ready for a launch. Iseman says they hope to someday cool the earth on a larger scale.

Startups want to geoengineer a cooler planet. With few rules, experts see big risks

2:05pm April 21, 2024

by Julia Simon

In a parking lot and on San Francisco Bay, NPR witnesses two different tests for solar geoengineering to tackle climate change. With much science unsettled, experts say regulations aren't keeping up.

Pod Corner: 'The Anti-Dread Climate Podcast'

5:36pm April 20, 2024

The climate crisis is undeniable and overwhelming. People have lots of questions about how they can help the planet in their daily lives. The Anti-Dread Climate Podcast, from KCRW, has the answers.

An empty room is pictured in a concrete house in Matam, Senegal. Many families don't have electricity nor the means to own a fan or air conditioning to help quell the intense heat at night, temperatures can stay around 35 degree Celsius throughout the night.

Lethal heat in West Africa is driven by human-caused climate change

11:57am April 18, 2024

by Emmanuel Akinwotu

The recent deadly heat in West Africa is driven by human activities, including the burning of fossil fuels, particularly in the wealthy Northern Hemisphere, according to an international report.

The grass pea — Lathyrus sativus — is hardy and drought resistant. It tastes like a sugar snap pea, although if that's all you were to eat its natural toxin could make you sick. But breeders might be able to address that issue.

Health & Safety

What are 'orphan crops'? And why is there a new campaign to get them adopted?

11:33am April 18, 2024

by Dan Charles

The grass pea is one: a hardy crop that can thrive in a drought. An agriculturist is spearheading an effort to diversity what farmers grow as climate change threatens staples like corn and wheat.

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Atypically heavy rains in the United Arab Emirates on Monday and Tuesday caused flooding, flight cancellations and school closures. Vehicles were abandoned on highways like this one in Dubai.

World News

Photos: UAE sees its heaviest rains in 75 years

10:51am April 18, 2024

by Aya Batrawy

Schools and businesses were closed across the United Arab Emirates after about a year's worth of rain fell in a single day. Flooding has also disrupted travel at Dubai International Airport.

Wildfire smoke covered huge swaths of the U.S. in 2023, including places like New York City, where it has historically been uncommon. New research shows the health costs of breathing in wildfire smoke can be high.

Wildfire smoke contributes to thousands of deaths each year in the U.S.

5:30am April 18, 2024

by Alejandra Borunda

Two new studies show the unseen toll smoke is taking on people across the country. Climate change is likely to make the problem even bigger.

A set of four tubes known as the "river outlet works," pictured on Nov. 2, 2022, could soon be the only way for water to make it through Glen Canyon Dam. Recently-discovered damage to those tubes has raised questions about their role going forward.

Damage at Glen Canyon Dam has Colorado River users concerned

4:33pm April 17, 2024

by Alex Hager

Newly discovered damage to part of the dam holding back America's second-largest reservoir has people who rely on the Colorado River worried about their ability to get the water they need.

Coral reefs undergo what may become the most extensive bleaching event on record

5:06am April 17, 2024

Ocean temperatures have been unusually hot, which turns the corals a ghostly white. Coral bleaching is expected to get worse as the climate keeps getting hotter. Scientists aim to help corals survive.