Axios

Green investments account for roughly 1% of the overall $12 trillion currently pledged by major economies recovering from pandemic-induced recessions, a BloombergNEF report finds.

Why it matters: The International Energy Agency projected in May that global investment in all forms of energy would fall by one-fifth this year due to the pandemic, with a 10% decrease for renewable power.

Climate scientists are increasingly able to use computer models to determine how climate change makes some extreme weather more likely.

Why it matters: Climate change's effects are arguably felt most directly through extreme events. Being able to directly attribute the role climate plays in natural catastrophes can help us better prepare for disasters to come, while driving home the need to tackle greenhouse gas emissions.

The tech industry is playing a growing role in fighting climate change, from zero-carbon commitments to investments in startups and pushing for the use of data to encourage energy efficiency.

Why it matters: Big Tech is already dominating our economy, politics and culture. Its leadership in helping to address climate change — and reckon with its role in contributing to it — could have similarly transformative impacts.

A 4.5 magnitude earthquake struck the greater Los Angeles area Friday night, per the the U.S. Geological Survey.

The state of play: The quake came as California is already grappling with wildfires suffocating the West Coast. CNN reports that tremors were felt in San Diego, Valencia and the San Fernando Valley area. The Los Angeles Fire Department is warning people to ready themselves for potential aftershocks.

The Trump administration has renewed its push for opening direct talks between Israel and Lebanon on the demarcation of their maritime borders in order to find a solution for the dispute between both countries over natural gas explorations in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, Israeli and U.S. officials told me.

Why it matters: Israeli officials say the Trump administration hopes to launch Israeli-Lebanese diplomatic talks before November's election. There have been no such talks between the countries in 30 years, and renewing Israeli-Lebanese negotiations would be a big achievement for the White House.

This week General Motors found itself having to defend a deal in which it can't lose — illustrating how distorted the markets have become over newly public electric vehicle companies.

Catch up quick: On Sept. 8, GM announced a strategic partnership with Nikola Motor Co., a high-flying startup with ambitions to build electric and hydrogen fuel-cell trucks, but no revenue. Nikola shares soared 40% on the news, and GM climbed too.

Matt Peterson, a senior Amazon exec, joined the "Axios Re:Cap" podcast to explain the thinking behind the tech and commerce giant's climate venture capital fund, which rolled out its first investments on Thursday.

Why it matters: The fund, $2 billion to start, is beginning to invest on the heels of Amazon's late 2019 pledge to be net-zero emissions by 2040.

The Trump administration's scuttling or weakening of key Obama-era climate policies could together add 1.8 gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent to the atmosphere by 2035, a Rhodium Group analysis concludes.

Why it matters: The 1.8 gigatons is "more than the combined energy emissions of Germany, Britain and Canada in one year," per the New York Times, which first reported on the study.