One of academia’s latest buzz phrases is “the planetary.” While it may seem on the surface to lack a clear connection with climate security, a closer inspection suggests that this term does have significant relevance to discussions about this key concept.

Use of “the planetary” is an attempt to compel people to think much more carefully about the current human condition. The climate crisis—as well as the extinction event we are living through—are challenging contemporary notions that humans are somehow separate from nature. In short, a relatively stable world in which our infrastructure, economies, and modes of thinking remain rooted is no longer a useful construct.

A new United Nations report calls upon countries to deliver drastically stronger action on climate change. “Emissions Gap Report 2024: No more hot air…please!” is intended to raise the alarm at a significant moment: less than a month before nations head to Azerbaijan for COP29, and just a few months before the preparation and submission of new nationally determined contributions (NDCs) next February ahead of COP30 in Brazil.

COP16 Sees Action Against Biomass Subsidies (Mongabay) 

In recent years, biofuel has gained tremendous popularity as an alternative to fossil fuels. Yet scientists have now demonstrated how burning forest biomass to produce energy emits more carbon emissions than coal when measured per unit of electricity generated. They also have evidence that forest-based products like wood pellets degrade carbon stores and biodiversity. It is a debate that has gained momentum in the ongoing COP16. 

Bharal (Himalayan blue sheep) near Donggecuona Lake near Madoi are well camouflaged – look closely to find the nine in the photo. 

As I hiked over the crest of a small hill near Donggecuona Lake in Madoi County, Qinghai Province, I startled a herd of over fifty bharal (Himalayan blue sheep) on the slope ahead of me. Some that were lying down suddenly scrambled to their feet. Others took a brief pause in their grazing to look up at me. I whispered to my guide Sonam Gyurme, “Look!” 

This article is adapted from “Pioneering Solutions: Climate Finance, Gender Equity, and Sexual and Reproductive Health Services”

A warming world is leading to new challenges for communities and countries around the globe. The significant impacts of climate change on global health, and on women and girls, are well-documented. Yet despite the evidence, funding for climate responses that focus on health or gender remains relatively low. In the rare instances where climate finance provides funds to improve health services, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services—which are critical to women’s full participation in society and decisionmaking—are largely neglected.

COP16 Begins in Colombia (Al Jazeera) 

Almost 200 countries are gathering in Colombia for a two-week span (October 21 to November 1) for the UN Convention on Biodiversity to further global conservation goals. At COP15, the meeting culminated with an ambitious global treaty—the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (2022)—that required member states to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. The agreement had four goals that set a “30×30“ agenda to protect 30% of global land, earth, and water ecosystems by 2030. 

Norway recently announced that electric vehicles (EV) now outnumber gas-powered ones on its highways for the first time—and that these vehicles comprise 80 percent of its current new car sales. While internal combustion engines (ICE) will not disappear for several years, Norway’s sales of ICE-powered vehicles will end abruptly in 2025.