Climate Change

USAID cuts health services in Malawi dependent on aid The threat to progress on maternal health, which includes fistula, is real Donors, including UNFPA, support lone fistula clinic By Charles Pensulo She could have suffered permanent damage, been incontinent, and even been expelled from her community if she had developed an obstetric fistula after giving birth to her second child. The 31-year old mother, however, is in front of the hot stove, in Kukawundu, a village near Lilongwe in Malawi, excited to serve the scones that she will be cooking in the tearoom she runs with Damston. Lloyd, who lost...

These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch their accuracy. U.S. president Donald Trump and European leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, agreed on red lines for the upcoming talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He said he hopes to follow quickly with a tripartite summit between the two warring leader. Tesla has taken the first steps to bring their robotaxis into New York City, just weeks after rival Waymo revealed its plans to test its autonomous vehicles in New York City. Walmart announced that, as of...

On Tuesday, two major environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration. They claim that the Trump administration secretly convened a group made up of climate skeptics who prepared a document which was used to reverse the U.S. regulations on greenhouse gas emission without prior public notification. The Environmental Defense Fund, along with the Union of Concerned Scientists, filed the lawsuit at a federal district in Massachusetts. They argued that the so-called Climate Working Group, which Energy Secretary Chris Wright assembled, avoided public view, produced erroneous findings, and was illegally used by the Environmental Protection Agency to inform its...

According to the president of the union, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has ended its contract with unionized workers, which is the latest move in President Donald Trump’s efforts to weaken collective negotiations across the federal governments. Justin Chen, the president of the American Federation of Government Employees' chapter at the EPA, announced in a Friday statement that the union, which represents 8,000 EPA workers, plans to file a lawsuit against the decision. Trump is now closer to his goal of stripping hundreds of thousands federal workers of their ability to bargain collectively with US agencies. Attorneys representing federal employees...

Members of Congress stated on Tuesday that the Trump administration has allowed the U.S. National Weather Service (USNWS) to restore the majority of the hundreds of positions eliminated by the Department of Government Efficiency, which was once headed by Elon Musk. U.S. officials have announced that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), parent agency of NWS, will hire 450 meteorologists, radar technicians and hydrologists to work for its weather service. In a statement released on Thursday, Representatives Mike Flood (a Nebraska Republican) and Eric Sorensen (an Illinois Democrat) said that they plan to hire 450 weather service meteorologists, hydrologists,...

Baldio is a vine-covered restaurant in Mexico City’s trendy Condesa district. In English, it means barren. The zero-waste concept has made it a popular restaurant. This means that all leftovers and scraps of food are reused. Since it received a Michelin Green Star in June for its innovative sustainability concept, the restaurant that opened in 2024, seats 52, is regularly packed. Baldio owners claim it's the first zero waste restaurant in Mexico City. Baldio serves gourmet Mexican cuisine, including yellow corn tamal, Mexican sweet corn salad, cured buffalo meat and smoked butter sauce, as well as grilled sweet onions, grasshoppers,...

His office announced on Wednesday that the Dominican Republic’s Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez, along with top Mexican officials, have proposed a bi-lateral roundtable to discuss the environmental impact of sargassum on both countries' Caribbean coasts. Why it's important As mountains of pungent decomposing sargassum pile up on Caribbean coastlines, hotel workers struggle to keep the beaches clean. This releases irritant gasses, which smother marine ecosystems, and lowers occupancy rates in seaside resorts. CONTEXT Atlantic sargassum, a type algae, has increased dramatically over the last decade. This is due to nutrient pollution, which was exacerbated by the deforestation of the oceans...

Hawaii increases tax on cruise ships and hotels Green fees raise $100 million per year Priorities to be decided by the public By Carey L Biron Two years ago, these grasses fueled devastating wildfires on the island of Maui. More than 100 people were killed and $5.5 billion worth of damage was caused. Riley, a leader of the environmental group Care for 'Aina Now and a coalition member, said: "You're literally increasing your vulnerability when you see these grasses growing." But controlling the growth of invasive grasses, for example, can be expensive. Hawaii's conservation funding gap is more than $560m...

Two sources informed on the subject said that the Trump administration is weighing whether or not to end a $7 billion grant designed to power low- and moderate-income homes with solar energy. Sources claim that the Environmental Protection Agency may terminate grants to 60 tribes, nonprofit groups and states in this week. The grants were given out during the administration of Joe Biden. The sources claimed that they had been briefed on the situation by a representative of the EPA. They spoke under condition of anonymity. New York Times was the first to report on EPA's decisions. EPA stated that...

A senior EU official stated on Tuesday that although the EU's methane regulations has been discussed in U.S. negotiations, the EU "firmly" stands behind its legislation. Officials said that energy questions still need to be clarified in a statement about EU-U.S. Trade that will be finalised shortly. The EU will require importers of gas and oil to report and monitor the methane associated with their imports starting this year. The second biggest cause of climate changes is methane emissions from leaky gas pipelines. The official stated, "We are firmly behind this regulation. It is the first one of its kind."...

The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM), imposed on Monday a fine of 1 million euros ($1.16million) on fast fashion online retailer Shein, founded in China for misleading its customers about the environmental impact on their products. Shein has now been hit with a second financial sanction from a European Competition Authority in less than a week. On July 3, France fined Shein 40 million Euros for false discounts and misleading claims about the environment. AGCM, the Italian regulatory agency, launched an investigation into "greenwashing", which led to Infinite Styles Services Co. Limited of Dublin, operating Shein's European website. Shein didn't immediately...

A U.S. Judge on Friday rejected in large part a request from top asset managers, including BlackRock, to dismiss a suit filed by Texas and twelve other Republican-led States that claimed the companies had violated antitrust laws through climate activism which reduced coal production and increased energy prices. U.S. district judge Jeremy Kernodle, in Tyler, Texas, agreed to dismiss only three of the 21 count in the states' suit, which also names institutional investors State Street, Vanguard, and others. This is one of the most high-profile lawsuits aimed at promoting environmental, social, and governance goals. Requests for comment from the...

Over the years, Pingtou's residents, who live in a sub-tropical village of China, have experienced many typhoons, rainstorms, and other natural disasters. Nothing prepared them for the flooding that hit Pingtou this week, which was the worst in decades. On Friday, Guangdong residents were still dragging furniture and appliances from their homes that had been damaged by the recent downpour. At least four of these items collapsed. One villager in his fifties, who requested to be identified only by his surname Zhong, said that the older people here have never seen such flooding in their 100 years of living here....

Rescue crews in south China prepared for the final downpour of heavy rain on Wednesday. They raced between torrential downpours, clearing mudslides and draining waterlogged roads that submerged cars. The East Asian monsoon is at its peak. Forecasters warn of more thunderstorms a day after the skies over Hong Kong and high-tech cities in China's Pearl River Delta went black, unleashing the heaviest rainfall of August since 1884 to the Asian financial center. Videos show that Guangdong province in southern China has transformed its shopping streets into flooded waterways, which is worsening the outbreak of Chikungunya. The mosquitoes are flourishing...

Henan Province, known as China’s Granary for its wheat production, announced that it had received funding of 131.5 million Yuan ($18.3million) from the central government to support its drought-stricken agriculture sector. This was more than double the amount that the province of central China had raised on its own between mid-July to early August in order to protect the fall grain harvest. The autumn harvest accounts for approximately three quarters of the annual grain production of the country. The Henan Finance Department said on its website that the total amount of funds allocated since then to repair wells, maintain irrigation...

Beijing warned its residents to prepare for more heavy rains in the mountains of the city, one week after the deadly floods that killed dozens. Weather forecasters have warned that parts of Beijing could receive up to 200mm (7.9 in) of rain over a period of six hours starting at midday. Weather forecasters warn that Beijing, a city with 22 million residents, receives an average of 600mm of rain each year. Authorities are rushing to update evacuation plans, improve weather forecasts, and reinforce aging flood defences. They have also reported that bodies were pulled from floodwaters across the country. At...

Beijing warned residents to stay indoors if it rains heavily on Monday, following the recent floods that killed dozens in the Chinese capital. Weather forecasters have warned that parts of Beijing could receive up to 200mm (7.9 in) of rain over a period of six hours starting at midday. Weather forecasters warn that Beijing, a city with 22 million residents, receives an average of 600mm of rain each year. At least 44 people were killed in Beijing last month after heavy rains. The majority of those who died were trapped by quickly rising water at a nursing facility in Miyun...

Chongqing in southwest China, known for its cyberpunk cityscape and fiery hotpot restaurants, has been sweltering in temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius. Locals have responded to the heat by inventing new ways of coping with it. Liu Fengying (60), a local resident, said, "It is getting hotter and more hot." Liu Fengying, 60, a local resident, said that the temperatures were soaring on Thursday afternoon. He avoided the heat playing cards and sharing snacks among friends in an air-conditioned subway entrance. There's no way to escape the heat other than coming here. Even with the AC set at 17 degrees...

Eight people have died in extreme weather conditions near Beijing. Another 18 are still missing. Heavy rains flooded the hills of the region last week. State-run Xinhua late Wednesday reported citing local officials that the deaths took place in villages in the Xinglong region of Chengde, Hebei Province, without specifying how or when the people died. Xinhua reported that the search for missing persons is ongoing. Chengde, a mountainous town in China's Qing Dynasty, was a popular summer resort for Qing Emperors. Beijing and its surrounding areas have been ravaged by extreme rains since last Wednesday. In some places, a...

China Central Television (CCTV), reported Wednesday that Shanghai had relocated over 280,000 people as a precaution in preparation for heavy rains due to the arrival of tropical cyclones in eastern China. Co-May, a tropical cyclone, made landfall in Zhoushan (Zhejiang Province) in the early morning hours of Wednesday. The maximum sustained wind speed near the centre was 23 metres per second 83 kph. Co-May's winds are less powerful than those of a typhoon, but the Chinese financial center and other cities along the Yangtze Delta have not taken any chances. They cancelled flights and trains, suspended schools and moved people...

Authorities said that heavy rains intensified in Beijing and other provinces of northern China, increasing the risk of disasters such as landslides, flooding and mudslides. They also relocated over 4,000 people. CCTV reported that flash floods, landslides and massive rains continued to hit the northwest suburb of Miyun, Beijing, causing flash flooding and other problems. Many villages were also affected. In recent years, the north of China has experienced record rainfall, which puts densely-populated cities like Beijing at risk of flooding. Scientists attribute the increase in rainfall in China's normally arid north region to global warming. These storms are part...

Authorities have warned that further rain could bring disasters such as landslides, flooding and landslides. CCTV, the state broadcaster, reported that two people were missing and two others dead in Hebei Province on Sunday morning. Fuping, a city in Baoding's industrial district, received 145 mm (5.8 inches) of rain per hour overnight. China's Water Resources Ministry issued flood warnings for 11 provinces, including Beijing and the neighbouring Hebei region, due to small and midsize river flooding and mountain torrents. CCTV reported that floods and landslides have affected many villages within the Miyun district in the capital. The rural town of...

The local government in China's eastern Shandong province reported that heavy rains in the Laiwu District in Jinan had soaked the area in just five hours. This was equivalent to half a year of rain. From midnight on Tuesday until 5am local time the area received maximum rainfall of 364 millimeters (14.3 in), which is half of Jinan’s average annual precipitation, 733 millimeters (28.1 in). Near the mountain villages of Shiwuzi & Zhujiayu in Jinan, flash floods washed away or damaged 19 houses. Authorities said that rescue efforts are in full swing and they were deploying all resources to find...

The finance chiefs of G20 nations were close to agreeing on Friday a position on trade, and other global issues. This would be the first time since Donald Trump won the election and waged a tariff war. To the disappointment of the South African hosts, the G20, which was created as a forum to promote cooperation in the fight against the global financial crisis of 2008, failed to come to a consensus when the finance ministers and central banks met in February. Even though G20 communiqués are not binding and their exact wording is unclear, an agreement in Durban's coastal...