In today’s newsletter: As visitors overwhelm Venice, Barcelona and other famous cities, a model rewarding travellers for being more responsible could inspire other municipalities
• Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First Edition
Good morning. Today we’re taking a little trip to Copenhagen to explore a new pilot initiative designed to reward tourists for “climate-friendly actions”. The CopenPay scheme has been designed to encourage visitors to act a bit more responsibly and think about their impact on the environment during trips to the Danish capital.
In return for small environmental actions – like cycling to attractions or fishing litter out of the canals – visitors have been rewarded with small gifts such as free ice-cream and museum tours.
Climate crisis | Hot weather inflamed by carbon pollution killed nearly 50,000 people in Europe last year, with the continent warming at a much faster rate than other parts of the world, research has found. Heat-related mortality was highest in Greece, with 393 deaths per million people.
Ukraine | Ukrainian forces have captured 1,000 sq km (386 square miles) of Russia’s bordering Kursk region, Kyiv’s top commander has claimed, as Vladimir Putin vowed a “worthy response” to the attack. 121,000 people have fled the region since the incursion began.
UK news | A shop security guard has described how he overpowered a knifeman as he stabbed an 11-year-old girl and her mother, 34, in a “horrific” and apparently random attack in London’s busy Leicester Square in front of shocked workers and tourists.
UK news | A “series of errors and misjudgments” in Valdo Calocane’s mental health care led to him being discharged, despite repeatedly not taking medication and showing signs of aggression, months before he killed three people in Nottingham, a report says. The Care Quality Commission warned of “systemic issues with community mental health care”.
Technology | Labour MPs have begun quitting X in alarm over the platform’s direction, with one saying Elon Musk had turned it into “a megaphone for foreign adversaries and far-right fringe groups”. Meanwhile, Donald Trump gave a rambling interview to Musk on the platform that was marred with technical issues initially preventing many users from watching the conversation.
Continue reading...
Breaking Waves: Ocean News
08/13/2024 - 00:00
If elected, the Democrat is likely to face a trade-off over manufacturing jobs and economic independence from China
Every US presidential election is consequential but American voters face an unusually weighty decision in 2024. The outcome will have implications for foreign policy, social policy, and the integrity of the political system. But none of its consequences will be more profound or far-reaching than on global efforts to combat the climate crisis.
As president, Donald Trump pulled the US out of the Paris climate agreement, while the US under Joe Biden rejoined it. Trump has promised to expand oil and gas production, and his campaign has said he will again withdraw the US from the Paris accord if he wins a second term.
Continue reading...
08/12/2024 - 19:37
Communities need better engagement from developers and planners to back clean energy transition, research finds
Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast
There is growing discontent on the plains of western Victoria as renewable energy companies chase the region’s abundance of sun and wind.
The Wimmera Southern Mallee region, home to prosperous cropping and cattle farms, is in a renewable energy zone, earmarked for wind and solar farms and transmission lines.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup
Continue reading...
08/12/2024 - 15:02
Forest restoration can benefit humans, boost biodiversity and help tackle climate change simultaneously, new research suggests.
08/12/2024 - 14:00
‘Integrated’ work to help biodiversity and tackle climate crisis can also benefit humanity, says Dr Trisha Gopalakrishna
Restoring and protecting the world’s forests is crucial if humanity is to stop the worst effects of climate breakdown and halt the extinction of rare species.
Researchers have been concerned, however, that actions to capture carbon, restore biodiversity and find ways to support the livelihoods of the people who live near and in the forests might be at odds.
Continue reading...
08/12/2024 - 11:25
Yellow heat health alert in place for much of England as temperatures soar
Temperatures in the UK have surged to their highest point of the year so far with 34.8C recorded in Cambridge on Monday, the Met Office said.
The previous highest UK temperature in 2024 was 32C, recorded at Heathrow and Kew Gardens, south-west London, on 29 July.
Continue reading...
08/12/2024 - 10:21
Thirty mothers take turns with their babies in front of Mujur, 19, to try to encourage her to bond with newborn
When staff at Dublin zoo discovered an orangutan named Mujur was pregnant they decided to stage maternal workshops.
The 19-year-old female had not sufficiently bonded with either of her previous infants, who died in 2019 and 2022, so when she became pregnant earlier this year the zoo enlisted breastfeeding human mothers to try to show her how it was done.
Continue reading...
08/12/2024 - 10:00
Continent is warming at much faster rate than other parts of world, leading to fires, drought and health problems
Hot weather inflamed by carbon pollution killed nearly 50,000 people in Europe last year, with the continent warming at a much faster rate than other parts of the world, research has found.
The findings come as wildfires tore through forests outside Athens, as France issued excessive heat warnings for large swathes of the country, and the UK baked through what the Met Office expects will be its hottest day of the year.
Continue reading...
08/12/2024 - 08:20
Number of people seeking emergency care for heat-related illnesses is up in cities including Rome, Florence and Venice
The number of people accessing emergency care for heat-related illnesses has risen sharply in some of Italy’s most popular tourist cities, as the country experiences an intense heatwave that is failing to deter visitors.
Italy has been engulfed in consecutive heatwaves since around the middle of June. Some central and southern areas are expected to record temperatures above 40C in the coming days.
Continue reading...
08/12/2024 - 06:29
EPA says Tucson’s drinking water is contaminated but air force claims agency lacks authority to order cleanup
The US air force is refusing to comply with an order to clean drinking water it polluted in Tucson, Arizona, claiming federal regulators lack authority after the conservative-dominated US supreme court overturned the “Chevron doctrine”. Air force bases contaminated the water with toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” and other dangerous compounds.
Though former US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials and legal experts who reviewed the air force’s claim say the Chevron doctrine ruling probably would not apply to the order, the military’s claim that it would represents an early indication of how polluters will wield the controversial court decision to evade responsibility.
Continue reading...
