SixDegrees

Mainstreaming Development News

[sixdegreesnews]

Global Climate Litigation on the Rise: Courts as Catalysts for Climate Action and Justice

The total number of #climate #change #cases and #litigations has more than doubled since a first #report on the issue, from 884 in 2017 to 2,180 in 2022

Courts stand as a formidable force for climate justice, holding governments and corporations accountable, while empowering youth voices worldwide! The total number of climate change court cases has more than doubled since 2017 and is growing worldwide. These findings, published today by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University, show…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

Empowered Women at the forefront of Carbon Market

The #voluntary #carbon #offset #market, which was worth about $2 billion in 2021, will grow to $10-40 billion in value by 2030

Tasneem Balasinorwala and Diya Deb Are we missing a golden opportunity in carbon offset projects?  Enhancing the role of women towards social and political empowerment in the Voluntary Carbon Market. As PowerSouth, since mid-2022, we have been wanting to know how the carbon offset project in Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCM) made a difference in the lives of rural women where projects happen – how…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

Overfishing in The Gambia Devastates Local Communities and Violates Human Rights

#Fisherfolk are forced to compete with #foreign #industrial #vessels, which often, in the absence of #patrols by the #Gambian #Navy, venture into areas #reserved for #artisanal #fisherfolk

The study reveals a significant decline in fish populations, pushing them towards unsustainable levels posing a severe threat to the rich biodiversity of marine life in The Gambia, encompassing over 500 species of fish. In a new report, Amnesty International highlights the devastating impact of overfishing on local communities in The Gambia. The report calls on the government to take immediate…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

Chocolate Giants Rake in Profits as Promises to Improve Farmers' Incomes in Ghana Fall Short

Between 2020 and 2022, these #corporations paid out an average of more than their total net #profits (113 percent) to #shareholders

In a survey conducted by Oxfam, more than 400 cocoa farmers in Ghana revealed that their net incomes dropped by an average of 16 percent since 2020, with women experiencing a staggering income decline of nearly 22 percent. Amidst soaring profits, the world’s largest chocolate corporations are failing to provide fair prices to cocoa farmers in Ghana, undermining efforts to improve their…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

International NGOs Call for Release of Prominent Environmental Defender in Vietnam

Bach was not granted a fair #trial. He was not allowed to meet with his #lawyer until seven months after he was #arrested and his sentence was much #harsher than is usual for people #accused of #tax #evasion

Environmental lawyer Dang Dinh Bach is one of several silenced by the Vietnamese government after attempts to wean the country off of coal and protect communities from public health hazards International NGOs are rallying around prominent environmental lawyer Dang Dinh Bach on the one-year anniversary of his five-year prison sentence in Vietnam with the launch of the standwithbach.org website…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

Offshore wind will need major investments in transmission, supply chain, reports say

A #supply #chain #scenario includes 34 new major #wind #turbine component #manufacturing facilities, eight #East #Coast marshaling #ports, four to six dedicated turbine #installation vessels among a slew of required #infrastructure @KansasReflector

Robert Zullo The authors encourage the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which leases federal waters for offshore wind, to consistently open new lease areas to encourage a steady stream of development and they note that states and utilities setting new offshore wind procurement targets will help provide “predictability and stability” for the fledgling industry. Achieving the aggressive…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

EPA Finalizes Rule Protecting ‘Waters of the United States’

#EPA’s revised #definition comes after #Earthjustice filed two #lawsuits on behalf of #tribes and #environmental #organizations to challenge #Trump’s #Navigable #Waters #Protection #Rule

Supreme Court overreach may weaken EPA’s science-based rule The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a final rule identifying waters protected under the Clean Water Act. The rule defines the term “waters of the United States” — sometimes referred to as “WOTUS” — and tracks the agencies’ longstanding approach for protecting our nation’s waters.…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

UN Biodiversity Convention adopted the landmark the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework

By #2030: #Protect 30% of #Earth’s #lands, #oceans, #coastal areas, inland #waters; #Reduce by $500 billion annual #harmful #government #subsidies; Cut #food #waste in half

Nearing the conclusion of a sometimes fractious two-week meeting, nations of the world agreed on a historic package of measures deemed critical to addressing the dangerous loss of biodiversity and restoring natural ecosystems. Convened under UN auspices, chaired by China, and hosted by Canada, the 15th Conference of Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity adopted the…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

Secret files reveal how UN climate advisers ‘greenwashed’ for BP

These #documents #reveal that the the #PR #agency #advising #UN ran a #campaign to #publicly portray #BP as a #responsible #environmental #leader while the #company developed its #natural #gas #assets

Lucas Amin and Ben Webster Exclusive: US inquiry unearths pro-gas PR strategy produced by firm ‘at core of global climate effort’ The PR firm advising the UN on climate change campaigns has been accused by US lawmakers of helping BP “greenwash” its fossil fuel investments, openDemocracy can reveal. Internal BP documents released to the US House of Representatives Oversight and Reform Committee…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

10 pioneering initiatives that are restoring the natural world

Progress of all 10 World #Restoration #Flagships will be #transparently #monitored through the #Framework for #Ecosystem #Restoration Monitoring, the #UN #Decade’s platform for keeping track of #global restoration efforts

The initiatives were declared World Restoration Flagships and are eligible to receive UN-backed promotion, advice or funding. They were selected under the banner of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration The United Nations has recognized 10 ground-breaking efforts from around the globe for their role in restoring the natural world. The winning initiatives were unveiled at the UN…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

German Environmental Association proposes introducing nature's own rights as a legal right

The #movement to #grant #rights to #nature or its components is not new. For example, the #constitution of #Ecuador has included rights of nature since 2008 - the first in the world to do so

The movement to grant rights to nature or its components is not new. For example, the constitution of Ecuador has included rights of nature since 2008 – the first in the world to do so. Despite a multitude of laws and projects, it has not yet been possible to stop the extinction of species and the destruction of habitats. There is no lack of knowledge about what needs to be done. Political goals…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

First report on freshwater’s role in climate mitigation published

#Water is at the basis of all #life, and therefore an intact water #cycle is required to achieve full #mitigation potential and to ensure long-term #carbon #storage

Tobias Schmitz The role of water in climate mitigation is much greater than commonly understood, according to the first-ever summary of current research on the topic. A new report presented at COP27’s water pavilion on the 9th of November sheds light on the fundamental role of water in climate mitigation.  The report  titled “The essential drop to reach Net-Zero: Unpacking Freshwater’s Role in…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

World records biggest increase in methane concentrations since start of measurements

#CO2 #concentrations #increased by 149%, #methane by 262 % and #nitrous #oxide by 124% of pre-#industrial levels by 2021 before #human #activities started #disrupting #natural #equilibrium

In yet another ominous climate change warning, atmospheric levels of the three main greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide all reached new record highs in 2021, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). WMO’s Greenhouse Gas Bulletin reported the biggest year-on-year jump in methane concentrations in 2021 since systematic measurements began…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

Rise in Greenhouse Gas Concentrations Jeopardizes Paris Agreement Temperature Targets

#Concentration of #carbon #dioxide is 149% of the pre-#industrial level. #Methane is 262% and #nitrous #oxide is 123% of the levels in 1750 when #human activities started #disrupting #Earth’s #natural #equilibrium

The abundance of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere once again reached a new record last year, with the annual rate of increase above the 2011-2020 average. That trend has continued in 2021, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Greenhouse Gas Bulletin. Concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2), the most important greenhouse gas, reached 413.2 parts per million in…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

Textile-producing nations unite to reduce chemical waste

#Hazardous #chemicals used in #textile #production pose significant #risks to #human #health and the #environment

The $43-million initiative will support businesses to manage risks to workers and eliminate the most toxic chemicals from their production processes The Governments of Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan and Viet Nam have joined forces to fight chemical pollution today, launching a joint $43-million programme to manage and reduce hazardous chemicals in their textile industries. Employing over 10…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

69% average decline in wildlife populations since 1970: WWF

#Populations in #Latin #America and the #Caribbean have fared worst, with an average #decline of 94%.

The report identifies several key drivers of biodiversity decline including habitat loss, species overexploitation, invasive species, pollution, climate change and diseases. Monitored populations of vertebrates (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish) have seen a devastating 69% drop on average since 1970, according to World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Living Planet Report 2022. Populations in…

View On WordPress

[sixdegreesnews]

A deadly decade for land and environmental activists - with a killing every two days

The #data found within the #report shows that over half of the #attacks over the 10-year period have taken place in #Brazil, #Colombia, and the #Philippines.

The report highlights that the control and use of land and territory is a central issue in countries where defenders are threatened. A Decade of Defiance: Ten years of reporting land and environmental activism worldwide’ – report from Global Witness highlights the increasing urgency to protect land and environmental defenders as climate and biodiversity crisis worsens  Research shows that in…

View On WordPress