Global Development
In an increasingly globalized world, international development efforts aim to improve living conditions, equity, and human rights around the world. Our global development section tracks this globalization and reports on specific equitable and sustainable development initiatives.
US launches first-of-its-kind environmental justice investigation
Public health departments have a responsibility to operate waste management in a safe, uniform, and equitable manner, but for years, sewage overflows have plagued Alabama’s Lowndes County, predominantly affecting Black residents. To address this injustice, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Read More...
NASA's multi-pronged approach to the next 10 years of space exploration
The Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey is carried out every decade to discuss and prioritize upcoming projects of federal agencies and policymakers for the next 10 years. A panel of global experts is carefully curated by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, Medicine to come Read More...
Over 40 countries pledge to shift away from coal during COP26
During the COP26 climate summit, more than 40 countries have pledged to move away from coal, one of the biggest contributors to climate change. This is a major win for the environment, even though some of the world’s biggest coal-dependent countries, such as the US, India, and China, opted out Read More...
This elite group of countries is already carbon negative
As the COP26 climate conference continues this week, all eyes are on countries’ plans to achieve their net-zero emissions goals. For most nations, this accomplishment is slated for 2045 or 2050, but for a select few, carbon neutrality is not on their mindsーbecause they’re already carbon Read More...
COP26 announces $1.7 billion funding for Indigenous forest protection
Indigenous communities play a vital role in environmental preservation, and to bolster the power of Indigenous wisdom in conservation, the governments of the UK, US, Germany, Norway, and the Netherlands have announced a $1.7 billion funding pledge to support Indigenous peoples in reversing forest Read More...
COP26: Over 100 countries pledge to stop deforestation
The COP26 climate conference is in full swing and is celebrating its first big achievement: A pledge from more than 100 countries to end deforestation. The participating countries, which represent more than 85 percent of the world’s forests, have committed to ending and reversing deforestation Read More...
5 Optimistic predictions about the COP26 climate conference
The stakes (and tensions) are high this week as the COP26 climate summit kicks off in Glasgow. Big issues, like renewable energy and biodiversity, are being discussed on a global scale, and while there are huge issues to tackle, there are also reasons to be optimistic. Just the fact that world Read More...
Alphabet makes its low-cost water harvester open-source
According to WHO/UNICEF, about a third of the global population doesn’t have access to safe drinking water. More than half of these people, however, live in areas with just the right climate conditions to enable special water harvesting technologies to provide clean drinking water. This is Read More...
Study: Start of season metrics provide strong insights into future famine risks
Researchers from UC Santa Barbara’s Climate Hazards Center have released a new study that identifies how the start of season indicators could predict potential famines. Two key metrics are used to determine famine risk: availability and accessibility. Availability refers to yields, while Read More...
Barbados elects Dame Sandra Mason as new republic’s first president
Barbados is preparing to become a republic and has recently elected its first female, and first-ever, president. Dame Sandra Mason was the first woman to serve on the Barbados Court of Appeals and has served as the governor-general since 2018. In a bid to finally leave its colonial past behind, Read More...