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Lakshadweep, Its Corals and Indigenous People: Surviving a Changing Climate

Off the southwestern coast of India, the Lakshadweep archipelago faces an unprecedented crossroads. Home to India’s only coral atolls, which makes it a vital ecological hotspot, it treads the precarious balance between development and ecology, even as its Indigenous population faces threats to its way of life.
After nearly 18 months of temperature extremes, about 75% of the region’s hard coral species have suffered severe bleaching, much of it due to a prolonged marine heatwave since October 202...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect: Importance of the humble straw in the fight against pollution

The treaty, however, hangs in balance like most international agreements since the return of Donald Trump to the White House.On February 10, US President Donald Trump issued executive orders aimed at encouraging purchase of plastic drinking straws, pushing back efforts by his predecessor to phase out single-use plastics and tackle waste.“We’re going back to plastic straws,” Trump said as he signed the order, saying that paper straws “don’t work”. “I don’t think plastic is going to affect a shark...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and effect: Most nations under Paris Agmnt miss carbon emission targets

Just 10 of the nearly 200 countries delivered fresh climate plans, according to a UN database tracking the submissions. This number has since risen to 15 countries, the ClimateWatch database said.Ironically, these 15 countries account for just 20% of the global emissions, and include the US which is responsible for 11.13% of the global greenhouse gas emissions.A larger irony lies in the Republic of Marshall Islands leading the way for small island developing states (SIDS) by setting a target to...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and effect: AI's environmental costs should be counted now

So perhaps a look at how technology works?Quantifying human labour, especially of people employed in lower middle income countries, is a herculean task, with even governments failing to represent the numbers and the contribution of their people in blue collar jobs.Kate Crawford in the introduction to her book Atlas of AI argued, “…artificial intelligence is both embodied and material, made from natural resources, fuel, human labour, infrastructures, logistics, histories, and classifications.”And...
Hindustan Times •

How climate crisis fanned LA fire and why the world is its tinderbox

As the fires spread, many Hollywood landmarks came in harm’s way, including the Hollywood Sign, Universal Studios, the Getty Villa. While the government has not provided damage estimates yet, AccuWeather, a company that provides data on weather and its impact, has pegged the damage and economic losses at $250bn to $275bn.For anyone keeping records, COP29 in November 2024 saw developed countries pledge to “take the lead” in raising $300 billion annually for developing countries by 2035. This goal...
Hindustan Times •

Baku breakdown suggests a cop-out

“Is this a joke?” An offhanded response by representatives of G77 at a media briefing on the quantum of the finance required for climate mitigation initially being set at $200 billion summed up COP29 that concluded over the weekend in Baku, Azerbaijan. The deal, gavelled early Sunday despite objections from the developing nations, including India, regarding the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) text not meeting the Global South’s expectations, raises disturbing questions about the developed...
Hindustan Times •

Renewable surge in 2023 fails to curb worldwide emissions: Report

India ranked 10th, a drop from seventh last year, in the analysis — Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI 2025) co-authored by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute, and CAN International — which gave the country an overall score of 67.99 out of 100. CCPI compares the climate change mitigation efforts of 63 countries and the EU, which together account for 90% of the world’s GHG emissions. Like last year, Denmark remained on the top spot (4th) with a score of 78.37, and was also the only country to...
Hindustan Times •

Nitrous Oxide levels endangering Paris goals: UN report

The United Nations Global Nitrous Oxide Assessment signals that emissions of what it identifies as the third most important greenhouse gas are rising faster than expected and calls for immediate action to curb environmental, and, more significantly, health impacts.“This assessment sounds the alarm on a relatively forgotten super pollutant that contributes greatly to climate change and air pollution,” Martina Otto, head of secretariat of the UNEP-convened Climate and Clean Air Coalition, said in...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | COP29 opens with divisions over Europe’s carbon border tax and climate financing

The negotiations were marred by delays, usually witnessed on the summit's last day, as the agenda's plenary and adoption were pushed by over nine hours.The end of the first day did see the adoption of Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement which sets new UN standards for international carbon markets in a key step toward allowing countries to trade credits to meet their climate targets.While experts weigh in on the merits of this rushed approval, the focus of this year’s talks will be on finalising a...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | Climate commitments continue to miss key targets of the Paris Agreement: NDC synthesis report

NDCs are national climate action plans updated every five years by countries to align with the Paris Agreement, which seeks to limit global temperature rise to well below 2°C, ideally to 1.5°C.While the broad participation in the NDC process — with 168 latest NDCs representing 195 Parties and covering 95% of global emissions — suggests international consensus on the need for climate action, it masks a troubling gap between commitments and necessary action. The projected global emissions trajecto...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | 'No More Hot Air’: UNEP calls for urgent action to prevent climate catastrophe

In his closing speech, Al-Jaber said: “We are what we do, not what we say.”Strong words that now seem to haunt the world hurtling towards 3.1°C of warming by century's end, according to the latest Emissions Gap Report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).The report titled “No more hot air…please!”, issued a central message: "Ambition means nothing without action."This message cuts to the heart of the climate crisis, as despite decades of climate negotiations and commitments, glob...
Hindustan Times •

Calling for action to save the planet

Global wildlife populations have plunged by 73% in the last 50 years, a new report has found, painting a grim picture of the state of global biodiversity. This decline, the report warned, is pushing the planet to the point of no return, as the effects of nature loss combine with the climate crisis. But, instead of treating the findings as a source of doom, the report asked governments to view them as early indicators of increasing extinction risk and potential loss of healthy ecosystems, and cal...
Hindustan Times •

Global wildlife population fell 73% in 50 years: Report

The report called habitat loss and degradation, driven primarily by food systems, the biggest threat. It said overexploitation, invasive species, and diseases, combined with the effects of the climate crisis were pushing wildlife and ecosystems beyond their limits.“Nature is issuing a distress call,” Kirsten Schuijt, director general of WWF International, said in a statement released with the report. “The linked crises of nature loss and climate change are pushing wildlife and ecosystems beyond...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | The Hague bans fossil fuel ads

The municipal council of the third largest city in the Netherlands voted to approve the new rules for outdoor advertising. These will apply from January 1 to billboards and freestanding advertising screens.The legislation came months after UN general-secretary Antonio Guterres called out the oil and gas industry for “shamelessly greenwashing” while actively trying to delay climate action, aided and abetted by advertising and public relations companies.While billions around the world see their li...
Hindustan Times •

Trade-off in Lakshadweep

The country’s smallest territory, Lakshadweep, stands at a crossroads: Should it prioritise development or preserve its unique ecology. A push by the Union Territory (UT) administration to boost tourism infrastructure has started to further strain the limited resources in an already climate crisis-ridden environment. A prolonged marine heatwave that started in October 2023 has damaged nearly 75% of the corals in the archipelago. While a majority are now on their way to recovery, a warming of 1.5...
Hindustan Times •

Iran village hits dangerous 82.2°C heat index

If confirmed, the heat index and a corresponding dew point of 36.1°C could be among the highest such readings ever recorded on the planet.According to records maintained by the US’s National Weather Service, which collates data from the METAR (the aerodrome routine meteorological report used by aviation pilots and meteorologists) Global readings, the Dayrestan Airport weather station recorded a temperature of 38.8°C at 10.30am on August 28.Viewed alone, the temperature isn’t as alarming. But, wi...
Hindustan Times •

Learning to live with shifts in monsoon

The monsoon this year has been deceptive — after arriving two days early on May 30 in Kerala, it progressed slowly to reach Maharashtra on June 11, about nine days late. Since then, it has picked up momentum, but remains seven days behind schedule. So far, it’s performance is in keeping with the trend of below-normal rainfall in June, proper onset only in July, and prolonged, heavy rainfall in September. While the exact causes remain unclear, one explanation for the shift in monsoon patterns is...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | How Cape Town averted ‘Day Zero’: A lesson for Delhi

After three years of severe drought, dams in the city were left with only a fifth of their capacity, and the city began a 90-day countdown, after which they announced that residents would only be allowed to collect a limited amount of water from designated spots across the South African metropolis.Six years later, the city has recovered from the drought, and there are no limits on consumption. But the episode has left a lasting impact with overall consumption standing today below the pre-drought...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | Delhi's scorching heatwaves call for urgent heat action plans

The heat this year has been unrelenting, enveloping every corner of the city, much like every region of the country, in its scorching embrace.The temperatures have neared 50°C in parts, and even crossed the threshold in some (even though IMD later withdrew the Mungeshpur record of 52.9° on May 29).In the plains, a heatwave is characterised by maximum temperatures reaching up to 40°C or more, while in coastal areas, it is when maximum temperatures reach 37°C or higher and the deviation from norma...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | How extreme weather events are leading to severe consequences for agriculture and food security

But the persistent heatwaves are just one fallout of the severe weather.Extreme weather events, including heatwaves such as the one that has gripped the northern Indian plains, have had lasting impacts on food security across the world.Since last year, when weather extremes in eight consecutive months broke all records making the year the hottest ever, sudden-onset disasters like hurricanes and floods, and slow-onset ones like drought, have rendered swathes of land uncultivable and destroyed mil...
Hindustan Times •

Plane rides are getting bumpier due to climate change

Recent research has suggested that the skies that aircraft fly through are “bumpier today than four decades ago”, with a 55% increase in annual duration of turbulence over the North Atlantic — one of the world’s busiest routes — between 1979 and 2020.Researchers have called for an urgent need for better investments in radar systems and forecasting for air travel, highlighting that emissions cuts are the way forward to keep the rise in global temperatures below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | Interview: Science suggests multiple eco organs of Earth may be failing, says top scientist

In September 2023, a team of scientists quantified the nine processes that regulate the stability of the Earth system. Called planetary boundaries — thresholds within which humanity can continue to develop and thrive — these processes were first proposed by Johan Rockstrom, former director of Sweden’s Stockholm Resilience Centre, and a group of 28 scientists in 2009.Kenya is grappling with one of its worst floods in recent history, the latest in a string of weather catastrophes, following weeks...
Hindustan Times •

Cause and Effect | Deluge in Dubai highlights climate vulnerability and a lack of preparedness

The impact clogged roads, flooded homes, and social media ran rife with videos of a Dubai Air plane attempting a landing at the Dubai International Airport. The monthly average for April for the city is only about 8mm.The airport, the world’s busiest for international travel and a hub for the long-haul carrier Emirates, received closed to 127mm of rain — about 76mm is its normal for an entire year.According to authorities Oman received around 230mm (9 inches) of rain between Sunday and Wednesday...
Hindustan Times •

Missing in the campaign heat

Asia earned the title of the second warmest region in 2023, with its mean temperature 0.91°C above the 1991-2020 reference period, according to the State of the Climate in Asia report released by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO). While the report did not rank countries within the region, India was singled out for extreme weather events it faced last year, including heatwaves, floods, and a glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF). The world is at a critical juncture, WMO secretary-general C...
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