Global warming

As reported by Lusa, the environmental association released the results of the new report prepared within the scope of the European project “LIFE Together 1.5” in partnership with Zero. The study showed that adopting a new trajectory compatible with the Paris Agreement, which includes not allowing global warming to exceed 1.5ºC, could save the European Union approximately €1 billion by 2030, the equivalent of around four times the Portuguese GDP (Gross Domestic Product). The same study referred to “a dangerous gap between this initiative and the trajectory in which public policies are placing the EU”, stressing this should be at the center of the political debate in this year’s European elections. Zero and its partner organisations consider protecting “citizens and the planet from the devastating impacts of climate change is not just a moral duty, but a pragmatic choice”. The report quantified th...

Every December, some 320–390mn people hit the ski slopes globally. As these outdoor enthusiasts know all too well, trail conditions can make or break the experience. Poor skiing conditions don’t just detract from the consumer experience, for the companies operating these resorts these could spell losses—or even threaten survival. Last season, several resorts were forced to temporarily close due to conditions. Sixty-eight countries around the world offer snow-covered ski resorts, but Alpine countries (Switzerland, France, Austria, Germany, and Italy) and the United States take the lion’s share, welcoming two-thirds of skiers in the 2021–2022 season. About 80% of the world’s ski resorts that exceed 1mn skiers per year are in Europe, mostly in the Alps region. Over the past 50 years, the Alps has experienced an 8.3% decline per decade in seasonal snow cover (November to May), according to a paper published in the journal Natur...

Leer en español. Southeast Michigan seemed like the perfect “climate haven.” “My family has owned my home since the ‘60s. … Even when my dad was a kid and lived there, no floods, no floods, no floods, no floods. Until [2021],” one southeast Michigan resident told us. That June, a storm dumped more than 6 inches of rain on the region, overloading stormwater systems and flooding homes. That sense of living through unexpected and unprecedented disasters resonates with more Americans each year, we have found in our research into the past, present and future of risk and resilience. An analysis of federal disaster declarations for weather-related events puts more data behind the fears – the average number of disaster declarations has skyrocketed since 2000 to nearly twice that of the preceding 20-year period. A powerful storm system in 2023 flooded communities across Vermont and left large par...

Wildfires, pushed by powerful winds, raced through Lahaina, Hawaii, on Aug. 8 and 9, 2023, leaving a charred and smoldering landscape across the tourist town of about 13,000 residents that was once the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Nearly 100 people are believed to have died in the fires, Maui County officials said. Others were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after going into the ocean to escape the flames. Dry grasses and strong winds, influenced by Hurricane Dora passing far to the south, heightened the risk as wildfires burned both in Maui’s tourist-filled west coast and farther inland and on the Big Island of Hawaii. Most fires in the U.S. are suppressed before they have a chance to threaten communities, but the winds were too strong to send helicopters into the sky to help contain Maui’s fires on the first day, leaving firefighters to battle the blazes from the ground. Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke issued an emergency declaration, activating the National Guard to he...

Scorching temperatures have put millions of Americans in danger during recent heat waves, with heat extremes hitting states from coast to coast. Phoenix hit 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 Celsius) or higher every day for over three weeks in July 2023. Other major cities, from Las Vegas to Miami, experienced relentless high temperatures, which residents described as “hell on earth.” While the evening news runs footage of miserable sunbathers and joggers dousing themselves with water, these images conceal a growing hidden crisis: the millions of older adults who are suffering behind closed doors. As researchers who study older adults’ health and climate change, we have found that two societal trends point to a potentially dire future: The population is getting older, and temperatures are rising. During the July 2023 heat wave, people gathered at the Justa Center, a day cooling center in downtown Phoenix for people age 55...