The International Energy Agency this morning cut its estimate for the pace of global oil demand recovery from the depths of the pandemic-fueled collapse, and warned that "uncertainty created by COVID-19 shows little sign of abating."
Driving the news: The agency now projects that full-year 2020 global demand will be 8.4 million barrels per day less than in 2019, compared to 8.1 mbd in last month's estimate.
The devastating West Coast wildfires have, at least for now, put a hot glare on the role of climate change in the 2020 presidential election.
Catch up fast: Joe Biden called President Trump a "climate arsonist" Monday in a speech that argued his dismissal of consensus climate science is a threat to people nationwide.
Facebook is vowing new steps to provide users with accurate climate change information and cut emissions, but activists say it's doing too little to confront the spread of false claims on its platform.
Driving the news: The social media giant on Tuesday announced launch of the "Climate Science Information Center."
The nationwide halt on most evictions is a Band-Aid for millions of renters who are at risk of losing their homes, Matthew Desmond, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and professor who leads Princeton University's Eviction Lab, said in an interview with "Axios on HBO."
Why it matters: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's order halting evictions expires on Dec. 31 — throwing more uncertainty into the lives of renters who could still owe months' worth of rent without any improvement in their hopes of finding a job.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) pointedly told President Trump on Monday afternoon that climate change is "exacerbating" the wildfires currently ravaging the West Coast.
Why it matters: Trump has repeatedly insisted that the fires were "about forest management," while dismissing climate change. Newsom acknowledged to Trump that "we have not done justice on our forest management," but emphasized that climate change was making everything much worse. A number of politicians have criticized Trump and his administration for not properly addressing climate change.
Joe Biden on Monday called President Trump a "climate arsonist" and warned that another four years of Trump's policies would expose suburbs to more deadly wildfires.
Why it matters: Biden's speech addressing the record-setting wildfires in the West sought to cast Trump — who rejects consensus climate science — as a threat to the safety and livelihoods of people nationwide, rather than just an environmental issue.
Google said Monday that it's aiming to run all its worldwide data centers and corporate campuses on 100% carbon-free power by 2030.
Why it matters: It's the latest of Big Tech's mounting climate pledges and puts a specific timeframe on Google's existing plan for its power-thirsty data centers.
More than 170 of the world's most esteemed environmental activists signed on to an open letter on Monday urging their supporters to vote for Joe Biden rather than vote for the Green Party or sit out the election, The Daily Beast reports.
The big picture: The group says "progressives who vote for the Green Party candidate, or write in Henry David Thoreau, or refuse to vote at all" will help win the election for Trump, whom they excoriated for his "unprecedented malignancy, fear mongering, pathological lying, and atrocious policymaking."
Joe Biden is pushing by far the most aggressive plan to address climate change in U.S. presidential history. His path reflects the convergence ofscience, energy and activism trends.
Why it matters: The culmination shows the new permanence the problem has gained on the campaign trail despite President Trump’s dismissal of it. Although this election is more about other issues, its outcome will significantly shape future efforts on this front.
