climate solutions

This soil is slowly burning, releasing CO2. The solution? Let water reclaim it

8:13am November 17, 2024

by Dan Charles

Peatlands, formed by ancient wetlands, store more carbon than the world's forests. But when they're drained for farming, they vent heat-trapping carbon dioxide into the air.

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Regenerative agriculture is sold as a climate solution. Can it do all it says?

12:00pm September 10, 2024

Governments and industries are pouring billions of dollars into so-called “regenerative agriculture.” But while scientists say some of these farming practices do reduce planet heating pollution, for others the science is less clear.

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Underserved Communities In California Receive No-Cost Solar Energy Installation

Why the U.S. government is spending $7 billion on solar for low-income homes

5:30am August 01, 2024

by Julia Simon

Solar energy can reduce climate pollution and electric bills. The U.S. government will soon start giving out $7 billion in grants for solar programs for low-income homes.

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A new report from the Environmental Working Group finds some of the USDA's "climate-smart" farming practices getting taxpayer dollars likely don't reduce emissions.

Environment

Farms fuel global warming. Billions in tax dollars likely aren't helping - report

2:55pm February 29, 2024

by Julia Simon

A new report finds some of the "climate-smart" agricultural practices that the USDA are subsidizing may not reduce emissions. It adds up to billions of taxpayer dollars.

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In western Arizona, Ivan Bender, a Hualapai tribal member, points to an area, bordering Hualapai land, where an Australian mining company is exploring for lithium - a key metal in electric vehicle batteries.

Demand for minerals sparks fear of mining abuses on Indigenous peoples' lands

5:00am January 29, 2024

by Julia Simon

There's a growing demand for minerals as the world ramps up manufacturing of climate solutions. Experts say more than half of these mining projects are on or near lands of Indigenous peoples.

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Carlos Moreno, a Franco-Colombian urbanist, has been helping spread the idea of 15-minute cities — where people can access key things in their life within a short walk, bike ride or transit ride of their home. But the climate solution is seeing huge challenges, including conspiracy theories.

It's a global climate solution — if it can get past conspiracy theories and NIMBYs

4:33pm October 08, 2023

by Julia Simon

The "15-minute city" is an urban planning concept that aims to increase quality of life and reduce planet-heating pollution. But it faces obstacles, including conspiracy theories.

Conservation professionals learn how to respond to cultural heritage emergencies following disasters at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston on Sept. 20.

Have an heirloom ruined by climate disaster? There's a hotline to call for help

12:52pm October 07, 2023

by Chloe Veltman

The National Heritage Responders help figure out how to save important objects and buildings after disasters. With climate change, they're busier than ever.

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In a classroom by a river, a teacher collects water samples with her class.

How kids are making sense of climate change and extreme weather

12:00pm October 07, 2023

by Janet W. Lee

NPR's Student Podcast Challenge yielded stories about how students around the U.S. are thinking about and responding to climate change. Here are some of their ideas.

Jacob Murungi collects water near his home in central Kenya — harvesting it from fog that forms overnight and clings to trees.

Harvesting water from fog and air in Kenya with jerrycans and newfangled machines

4:22pm October 06, 2023

Fog harvesting has long been a method of collecting water around the world. As climate change makes water harder and harder to find, technology is making it easier to pull water from the air.

The giant white marble boulders that line the Agos River just north of the Philippine village of Daraitan are sacred to the Indigenous Dumagat people. They use the boulders to perform rituals to ward off sickness and keep their village safe. If the Kaliwa Dam is built upriver, the Dumagat say these rocks will be destroyed to make way for the increased water flow.

The Philippines' capital is running out of water. Is building a dam the solution?

10:15am October 06, 2023

by Ashley Westerman

Officials say the Kaliwa Dam will help alleviate an impending water shortage in the capital that's being exacerbated by climate change. But the project is plagued with controversies and questions.