Showing 1 - 10 of 25
It's getting too hot to vote in India
News, David Fickling, Published on 24/04/2024
» How do you run a democracy when the mercury rises above 40 degrees Celsius? That's the problem faced by voters in India. A swath of the country's east is sweltering under a heatwave. The city centre of Kolkata has emptied out, schools have cancelled classes, and one TV presenter collapsed on air with heat stroke.
Green tech bans not implausible
News, David Fickling, Published on 19/03/2024
» In a world riven by great-power conflict, economic decoupling, high inflation, and worries that the interests of capital are being put ahead of workers, an obvious enemy can emerge: technology. The best way to preserve the status quo is to destroy the machinery that promises a change to existing ways.
Time to calm down about plastics
News, David Fickling, Published on 29/02/2024
» How to deal with the waste generated by the half-billion metric tonnes of plastic manufactured each year? One approach is to consume fewer polymers, recycle them more, and stop the rest from getting into the natural environment. Another is to declare the whole process a scam and hope the problem will somehow go away of its own accord.
A tale of nickel and copper
News, David Fickling, Published on 23/02/2024
» The world's biggest miner, BHP Group Ltd, grew powerful by building dominant positions in producing the minerals of the future. That makes the challenges it's facing with two key clean-tech ingredients a sobering lesson for the energy transition.
Fashion's plastics problem isn't about packaging
News, David Fickling, Published on 03/01/2024
» Until the rise of online retail, you might have been forgiven for thinking that all apparel was shipped in burlap sacks. Those wanting their garment spending to be sustainable these days can take comfort in reusable wooden hangers, paper shopping bags, and recycled fibres. The only glimpse of plastic in many fashion stores is the electronic equipment at the checkout.
Your coffee cup will need a climate rating, too
News, David Fickling, Published on 12/09/2023
» Here's a quick game for the climate-conscious. Try ranking these disposable beverage containers from least to most environmentally friendly: aluminium; glass; paperboard; plastic bottle; plastic pouch.
Climate key for US, China ties
News, David Fickling, Published on 24/07/2023
» In a relationship that's strained, sometimes it's a sign of progress if the two parties are talking at all.
Food subsidies perpetuate hunger
News, David Fickling, Published on 17/08/2022
» If you want an image of subsidised food in the world, you might think of Egypt, where the price of flatbread is fixed and more than half the population lives on loaves costing just 0.05 Egyptian pounds (8 baht) thanks to heavy government support.
Chinese food will determine spread of pandemics
News, David Fickling, Published on 24/01/2020
» With the world's largest high-speed rail network, a payments system that's largely conducted via phone apps, and half the world's solar-power plants, China often looks like a country at the technological frontier. When you consider how it feeds itself, though, it's still just catching up.
The 2010s wrecked the planet
News, David Fickling, Published on 03/01/2020
» The past decade hasn't done much to inspire optimism about the future of the planet.