LOS ANGELES, US – The booming use of electric vehicles in parts of California is reducing CO2 emissions in those areas, a study showed on Thursday, bolstering a key pillar of the state's drive towards net zero. Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, say a network of sensors set up...

While previous research has found climate change is causing heat waves to become longer, more frequent and more intense, the new paper differed by treating heat waves as distinct weather patterns that move along air currents, just as storms do. For every decade between 1979 to 2020,  researchers found heat...

The region is spearheading sustainability initiatives to address climate challenges, with Saudi Arabia making significant strides towards renewable energy and clean technology.

After four years of drought, Iraqi farmer Mohammed Sami was about to abandon his father's parched land, but then a water-saving irrigation system revived his crops and his hopes. He is among hundreds of farmers in the country battered by heatwaves, scarce rain and depleted rivers to benefit from new...

“Water is the fundamental element of life, enabling human societies to stabilize, develop civilizations, and achieve prosperity. Water is the most valuable resource on our planet; it serves as a vital link between humans, food, nature, and climate. However, today, we face significant challenges due to the scarcity of water,"...

Copenhagen, Denmark - Developing countries should not have to set stricter targets for cutting their carbon emissions before funds are available to help them transition to cleaner energies, the chairman of this year's UN climate negotiations said Thursday. Addressing a ministerial climate meeting in Copenhagen, Azerbaijan's Mukhtar Babayev said "there is...

Methane emissions from the fossil fuel industry have risen for three consecutive years, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), hitting near record highs in 2023.

The Middle East is emerging as an important region in the battle against methane emissions, crucial for curbing global warming. say a latest IEA report.

PARIS, FRANCE – Heatwaves and floods inflict greater economic pain on rural women than men because climate change intensifies existing inequalities, the United Nations' food and farming agency said on Tuesday. Scientists say the effects of rising temperatures are already being felt most acutely by the poorest and most vulnerable people...

El Nino, the large-scale warming of surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, typically has the greatest impact on the global climate in the year after it develops, in this instance 2024. The weather phenomenon occurs on average every two to seven years, and episodes typically last...

Paris, France - Extraction of Earth's natural resources could surge 60 percent by 2060, imperiling climate goals and economic prosperity, the UN said on Friday, calling for dramatic changes in energy, food, transport and housing. Enormous expansion of infrastructure, energy demand and consumer consumption over the last half century, particularly in...

“Japan and the UAE will deepen their cooperation beyond traditional areas such as energy and the economy to include a wide range of fields like climate change, education, science and technology, outer space, and defense, under the ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Initiative’. Such cooperation could expand in the field of international...

Addressing infrastructure and climate change is crucial for Africa's development, British Robinson, the Coordinator of the Prosper Africa Initiative, tell TRENDS in an interview.

Rotterdam, Netherlands - The world's first chemical tanker ship fitted with massive rigid aluminium "sails" has left Rotterdam, its owner hoping to plot a route to bringing down the shipping industry's huge carbon footprint. The MT Chemical Challenger, a 16,000-ton chemicals transporter set sail from Antwerp for Istanbul on Friday, and...

ABU DHABI, UAE - The Abu Dhabi Roadmap, a high-level plan outlining global recommendations to bolster Environmental Education (EE) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), was revealed on Day Four of the 12th World Environmental Education Congress (WEEC2024) here. A culmination of four days of vibrant discussions, workshops and events...

Launched in 2017, Climate Action 100+ aims to work with companies to halve their greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, through governance reforms, the elimination of emission through the value chain and enhanced disclosure. Its website boasts $68 trillion in assets under management.

The UAE hosted last year's COP28 conference in Dubai, while Azerbaijan will host this year's summit followed by Brazil in 2025. The three countries were mandated by 198 signatories to the Dubai agreement to work together on a roadmap to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a key climate...

He highlights the UAE's strategic priorities, including the future of fiscal policy, the application of sustainable fiscal policies to foster financial empowerment, trust, and transparency, shaping the future, sustainable development, innovation, boosting economic growth, and fostering competitive business environments.

Berrechid, Morocco -- Around this time every year, Moroccan wheat farmer Abderrahim Mohafid is usually preparing for his spring harvest, but this year his fields lay unusually bare. On the road leading up to his hamlet in Berrechid province, Morocco's historical breadbasket situated some 40 kilometers (about 25 miles) southeast of...

PARIS, FRANCE -  Earth has endured 12 consecutive months of temperatures 1.5C hotter than the pre-industrial era for the first time on record, Europe's climate monitor said Thursday, in what scientists called a "warning to humanity". Storms, drought and fire have lashed the planet as climate change -- supercharged by the...

The region is on a growth track due to modernization, education, and broad integration with global economies, Joshua Friedman of Canyon Partners tells TRENDS.

Strasbourg, France - The EU on Tuesday urged a 90-percent cut to its greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, even as the bloc's transition to a greener future was clouded by a widespread farmers' revolt. "Based on the best available science, and a detailed impact assessment, we are recommending that the 2040 target...

A new study presenting "climate simulations to anticipate worst-case heatwaves during the Paris 2024 Olympics" has focused minds after it warned that the French capital faced a not insignificant risk of record-breaking high temperatures. The research, published in December in the Npj Climate and Atmospheric Science journal, looked at the risk...

"COP28 saw all parties reach an agreement on the historic ‘UAE Consensus.’ This consensus includes achieving a well-organized, responsible, fair, and realistic transition to a zero-carbon energy system. It also set, for the first time, specific time-bound goals to triple the capacity of renewable energy sources by 2030," he adds.

China is the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases driving climate change, but it is also the top producer of wind and solar energy. Faced with soaring energy consumption, the country has turbocharged its use of renewables -- but also in 2022 approved its largest expansion of coal-fired power plants...

Unified global solutions are crucial to tackle issues like climate change, AI norms, and economic fragmentation, Khalfan Belhoul of Dubai Future Foundation tells TRENDS.

DUBAI, UAE - Nasdaq Dubai has welcomed the listing of a US$600 million green bond by China Construction Bank (DIFC Branch). The green bond issuance targets combating climate change, represents China Construction Bank's significant commitment to sustainable financing and highlights the growing synergy in green financing between China and UAE....

A shift to green tech and renewable energy is fostering the Gulf economy's resilience and diversification for a sustainable future, says Phil Malem of Serco Middle East.

The upcoming Davos summit is set to become a melting pot of discussions on critical global issues, including the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, and the rapid rise of AI.

PARIS, FRANCE - The year of 2023 was the hottest on record, with the increase in Earth's surface temperature nearly crossing the critical threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius, EU climate monitors said on Tuesday. Climate change intensified heatwaves, droughts and wildfires across the planet, and pushed the global thermometer 1.48 C...

PARIS, FRANCE  - A consortium of Brazilian, British, French and Chinese energy firms will test new technology aimed at capturing CO2 in an undersea oilfield off Brazil in an effort to reduce emissions, TotalEnergies said on Monday. The pilot unit will separate oil from CO2-rich natural gas at the bottom of...

AMMAN, JORDAN - Agriculture Minister Khaled Al-Hneifat said the ministry has been working hard over the past year to create an action plan to raise the country's ranking in the Global Food Security Index (GFSI). According to the Jordan News Agency (Petra), two of the initiatives taken to achieve this...

DUBAI, UAE -  Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, has issued Executive Council Resolution No. 124 of 2023 on single-use products. The aim of the resolution is to protect the environment, encourage people to adopt an eco-friendly lifestyle,...

Geneva, Switzerland - The head of the WHO said on Tuesday the world needs to properly prepare for future pandemics after finally ending three years of Covid "crisis, pain and loss." In his end-of-year message, World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said 2023 had marked a turning point in fighting...

MENA countries, adopting ambitious clean energy and transportation strategies, aim for significant hydrogen production by 2050, led by UAE's National Hydrogen Strategy.

ABU DHABI, UAE - Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), represented by Industrial Development Bureau (IDB), and Siemens Energy have joined hands to further decarbonize the Emirate’s booming industrial sector. The collaboration supports Abu Dhabi Industrial Strategy's vision to establish the Emirate as the most competitive industrial hub in...

The GCC faces a critical challenge as climate risks like extreme heat and water stress rise, potentially impacting the region's economic stability and financial health.

Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan - On the Caspian Sea coast in Turkmenistan, Batyr Yusupov can no longer ferry his passengers between two ports. There is not enough water. "I used to go between Turkmenbashi and Hazar," the 36-year-old ferry worker said of the ports separated by a small gulf on Turkmenistan's coast. "But...

Antoine Samaha of BCG applauds the launch of a Loss and Damage Fund for developing countries, emphasizing the need for efficient, equitable climate funding.

Dubai, UAE - An agreement to "transition away" from fossil fuels may be a landmark moment but don't expect quick changes among the major producers of the Gulf, where the deal was hammered out. After the UN's COP28 climate talks in Dubai, Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman immediately played...

“In the context of energy transition, flexibility is gaining more traction in the energy markets. This is exactly what small modular reactor technologies offer. They enable us to bring nuclear power to places where conventional nuclear plants are too large,” Komarov adds.

Ouled Omar, Tunisia - Tunisian villager Ounissa Mazhoud ties two empty jerry cans to a donkey and cautiously descends a stony hill towards the last local source of water. The North African country, in its fourth year of drought, is grappling with its worst water scarcity in years. Mazhoud -- like...

Brhane said the World Bank integrated climate into all its work across the MENA region and is on track to align 100 percent of new operations with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

DUBAI, UAE - With global attention on the COP28 climate summit, UNCTAD’s eWeek 2023 highlighted digitalization’s potential to accelerate climate action and its environmental costs. Data-driven technologies like the Internet of Things, robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) can enhance climate change monitoring, optimize energy use and production processes, and promote...

COP28 has debated a historic first-ever global "phase-out" from oil, gas and coal, the main culprits in a planetary crisis of warming. A draft put forward on Monday by COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber fell well short, instead presenting reductions in fossil fuels as one of several options.

UAE's launch of Food Innovation Hub emphasizes the government's eagerness to innovate and collaborate for sustainable food systems, WEF's Tania Strauss tells TRENDS.

“We will work to create about 135,000 jobs in the field of green transition worldwide, and therefore ensuring that there are sufficient skills and a sustainable supply of skills among youth to fill those jobs will be very vital. We are doing a lot of training on environmental and social...

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – Russia and Saudi Arabia expressed concern on the present situation in Gaza and said that a two-state solution is the only way to ensure peace in the region. The two countries issued a joint statement at the conclusion of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Saudi...

The draft no longer mentioned a "phase-out". The text prepared under COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber, the head of the UAE's national oil company, was released on the eve of the final day of the annual climate conference in Dubai.

Global coalition and trillions of dollars are required to prevent escalating human deaths due to climate change, Dr. Shyam Bishen of the World Economic Forum tells TRENDS.