Consumers throw out 17% of all food
An estimated 931 million tonnes of food, or 17% of total food available to consumers in 2019, went into the waste bins of households, retailers, restaurants and other food services, according to new UN...
successful GREEN
Sustainable practices in traditional and urban agriculture
Researchers from MIT have developed analytical tools to enable next-generation agriculture by using engineered plant nanosensors and portable Raman spectroscopy. According to United Nations estimates, the global population is expected to grow by 2 billion within...
Gulf Stream at its weakest in more than a millennium
A new study by scientists from Ireland, Britain and Germany finds that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), also known as the Gulf Stream System, has never been as weak in the last millennium...
Bacteria-based concrete offers climate benefits
Ten cubic kilometres of concrete, equivalent to the volume of Mount Everest, are used in construction projects every year, resulting in huge volumes of emissions. But a new eco-friendly cement may help to reduce...
Silicon for solar cells becoming more environmentally friendly
New discoveries are making silicon production cleaner, and solar cells of the future will become even more environmentally friendly. Steinar Brandslet reports from Norway. Solar cells are largely made of silicon. But the silicon...
Time to tackle more than just CO2
Climate change mitigation is about more than just CO2. So-called “short-lived climate-forcing pollutants” such as soot, methane, and tropospheric ozone all have harmful effects. It is common practice in climate policy to bundle the...
Stress factors interact to impact corals
Stress from rising water temperatures reduces ability of corals to adapt to ocean acidification, a new study in the journal Science Advances shows. About a quarter of the carbon emissions driving global warming are absorbed...
Street trees may reduce the risk of depression
Street tree planting in residential areas of cities can serve as a nature-based solution to reduce the risk of depression with added benefits of also addressing climate change and biodiversity loss. This should be...
Changing resilience of oceans to climate change
Oxygen levels in the ancient oceans were surprisingly resilient to climate change, new research suggests. Scientists from ETH Zurich, the University of Exeter and Royal Holloway, University of London, used geological samples to estimate ocean oxygen during...
The new face of the Antarctic
In the future, the Antarctic could become a greener place and be colonised by new species. At the same time, some species will likely disappear. 25 researchers recently presented these and many other findings...
Climate crisis is causing lakes to shrink
Climate change is impacting not only the oceans, but also large inland lakes, as scientists call for more attention to regions with falling water levels. Climate change is impacting not only the oceans, but also...
How grasslands changed our climate
Grasslands are managed worldwide to support livestock production, while remaining natural or semi-natural ones provide critical services that contribute to the wellbeing of both people and the planet. Human activities are however causing grasslands...
How notorious beetle pests can beat pesticides
The Colorado potato beetle is a notorious pest, but also a kind of unstoppable genius. It can overcome more than fifty different pesticides. The modern pesticide era began in the 1860s when Midwest farmers...
Just how risky are plastic additives that dilute in water?
It is well-known that discarded plastic can break down into microplastics and cause harm to humans and the environment. Now, scientists have improved the method to estimate just how risky hazardous micropollutants from plastic...
LivingRoom, first concept pop up store for circular design opens in Zurich Wollishofen
pelovedREVOLUTION, the online marketplace for buying and selling authenticated and quality-checked designer fashion and lifestyle items, initiates LivingRoom a unique store around the theme of circular economy. Here exquisite designer furniture from different eras...
Predicting the climate with the Himalayas’ natural aerosol factory
Particles that form in the valleys of the Himalayas and are injected into the upper atmosphere could help scientists better predict the future climate because there is little evidence of pollutants in their formation....
Walk-in Closet Switzerland – Swap clothes instead of buying them
The fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. The social consequences are also fatal: textile workers labor in an unsafe working environment for meager wages, and women are particularly...
How stable is the Antarctic ice sheet?
The East Antarctic Ice Sheet is assumed to be less sensitive to climate change than other ice sheets simply because of its size. But how accurate is this perception? A team of researchers has...
How wind energy emerged from contributing less than 1% of electricity demand
Twenty years ago, wind energy was a niche industry that contributed less than 1% to the total electricity demand in the United States. It has since emerged as a serious contender in the race...
Why solving one environmental problem could create another
Reducing aerosol pollution without cutting carbon dioxide could make the planet hotter. Unless reduced simultaneously, we cannot avoid weakening the ocean’s ability to keep the planet cool, new research shows. Aerosol pollution refers to...
How to fix the movement for fossil fuel divestment
Bankers and environmentalists alike are calling for capital markets to play a bigger role in the war on carbon. However, capital continues to be channeled into fossil-fuel-intensive industries. The most fundamental shortcoming lies in...
