Posts tagged with 'climate change'
Post-Pandemic, Public Transport Needs to Get Back on Track to Meet Global Climate Goals
Post-Pandemic, Public Transport Needs to Get Back on Track to Meet Global Climate Goals
Public transport is one of the best, most cost-effective solutions available to address today’s climate and development challenges. Buses and trains can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by up to two-thirds per passenger, per kilometer compared to private vehicles. The UN’s latest ...
Lessons From China, India, Vietnam on National Transport Ambitions and Accelerating Decarbonization
Lessons From China, India, Vietnam on National Transport Ambitions and Accelerating Decarbonization
In Asia, 14 countries — accounting for 26% of global transport emissions in 2019 — have made economy-wide net zero commitments. Momentum towards zero-emission transport is growing with countries enhancing ambition and including transport-related targets in their nationally determined contributions (NDCs). However, ...
What Exactly Are 'Nature-based Solutions'?
What Exactly Are ‘Nature-based Solutions’?
In the Seychelles archipelago in east Africa, flooding and erosion caused by rising sea levels pose an imminent threat to the country’s many low-lying islands. At the same time its mangrove forests, which serve as a vital buffer against these ...
Learnings from the G7 Roundtable on Subnational Climate Actions
Learnings from the G7 Roundtable on Subnational Climate Actions
With recognition of the vital role of both subnational and national governments in the climate agenda, the G7 Roundtable on Subnational Climate Actions was established by the G7 Climate, Energy and Environment Ministers Meeting in 2023 under the presidency of Japan. The ...
Southeast Asian Cities Have Some of the Most Polluted Air in the World. El Niño Is Making it Worse
Southeast Asian Cities Have Some of the Most Polluted Air in the World. El Niño Is Making it Worse
Residents of Jakarta, Indonesia woke up on August 31, 2023, to a thick blanket of haze and news that their city was again ranked the most polluted in the world — one of many times during the last several months when air quality became ...
The Future of Extreme Heat in Cities: What We Know — and What We Don’t
The Future of Extreme Heat in Cities: What We Know — and What We Don’t
The past year registered record-shattering global temperatures. People around the world are already witnessing epic heat waves, wildfires and drought at 1.1 degrees C (2 degrees F) of global warming, compared to pre-industrial averages. With current policies putting the world on ...
Tracking Climate Action: How the World Can Still Limit Warming to 1.5 Degrees C
Tracking Climate Action: How the World Can Still Limit Warming to 1.5 Degrees C
Today’s climate change headlines often seem at odds with each other. One day, it’s catastrophic wildfires wreaking havoc around the world; the next, it’s an optimistic piece on the rapid scale-up of solar and wind power. Taken together, such stories ...
From Minibuses to 'Boda Bodas,' Informal Transport Systems Could Be an Untapped Climate Change Solution
From Minibuses to ‘Boda Bodas,’ Informal Transport Systems Could Be an Untapped Climate Change Solution
Over 50% of all transport-related emissions come from high-income countries, where people are more likely to own and depend on personal vehicles. Meanwhile, less than 1% is generated by low-income countries in regions like sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. In these ...
Crisis Resilient Urban Futures: What’s Next for Asia-Pacific Cities?
Crisis Resilient Urban Futures: What’s Next for Asia-Pacific Cities?
Cities have always been dynamic hubs of culture, education, economic growth and opportunity, and most importantly, centers of social interaction attracting residents and visitors alike. It is no surprise then, that Asia and the Pacific have become increasingly more urban ...
Nairobi Highlights Air Quality During Africa Climate Week
Nairobi Highlights Air Quality During Africa Climate Week
Against the backdrop of the Africa Climate Summit and Africa Climate Week, Nairobi hosted the UN Environment Programme’s fourth annual International Clean Air Day for blue skies event with Nairobi City County Governor, Sakaja Johnson, on September 7th, 2023. This ...
Big and Small Steps to Beat the Heat
Big and Small Steps to Beat the Heat
It’s an island no one in their right mind wants to be on, but sadly many of us increasingly find ourselves due to global warming. “Heat islands” are a concept British climatologist Gordon Manley came up with way back in ...
Developing City Action Plans for Building Decarbonization
Developing City Action Plans for Building Decarbonization
City officials tasked with reducing and eliminating greenhouse gas emissions from their communities face a tricky task in estimating building emissions as they work to prevent the most harmful impacts of climate change. The biggest challenge is that there isn’t consensus ...
These Countries Are Adopting Electric Vehicles the Fastest
These Countries Are Adopting Electric Vehicles the Fastest
Electric vehicle sales have been growing exponentially due to falling costs, improving technology and government support. Globally, 10% of passenger vehicles sold in 2022 were all-electric, according to analysis of data from the International Energy Agency. That’s 10 times more than ...
India’s First Water Body Census: Connecting the Missing Links
India’s First Water Body Census: Connecting the Missing Links
A systematic, consistent, national-level dataset on India’s water bodies that could inform efforts to improve water management and increase resilience has been long awaited. The National Water Body Census 2023 is a crucial milestone in creating such a database. Undertaken ...
How Africa’s First Chief Heat Officer is Helping to Create a More Resilient Freetown
How Africa’s First Chief Heat Officer is Helping to Create a More Resilient Freetown
“Climate change is affecting cities all around the world, and Freetown is no exception.” That’s what Eugenia Kargbo, Freetown’s Chief Heat Officer, told UrbanShift during the City Academy hosted in Kigali last year. Through her role—the first of its kind in ...
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