California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) declared an emergency executive order for two counties Wednesday, in order to accelerate the response to drought conditions affecting the northern part of the state.
Why it matters: California is in the second year of drought conditions, and the state is bracing for another potentially devastating fire season.
The Biden administration offered new details this morning about the big, virtual climate summit Thursday and Friday and signaled they expect new emissions reduction and climate finance commitments from multiple countries.
Driving the news: The administration said 40 heads of state would attend, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil.
There is broadand deep support in both developing and industrialized countries for governments to take further actions to address climate change, per new polling data from Facebook Data for Good and the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication.
Why it matters: Without public support pushing policymakers to take potentially costly steps to curtail greenhouse gas emissions, efforts to rein in climate change will be doomed to fail.
Cisco is the latest tech giant to announce a big environmental push. The networking company said today that its foundation will invest $100 million over the next decade to fund projects that reduce carbon emissions as well as community awareness efforts.
A big, UN-backed umbrella group of banks, asset managers, investors and insurers launched Wednesday to boost private clean tech finance and press polluting industries that use their services to cut emissions.
Why it matters: The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) is the broadest financial industry effort yet on climate change.
Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend President Biden's virtual climate summit this week, according to China's foreign ministry.
Why it matters: It'll mark the first time the two leaders have met face to face — albeit virtually — since Biden took office. China and the U.S. are the world's two largest carbon emitters.
A new coalition has formed aimed at helping ensure federal efforts to expand solar power don't leave the poor and communities of color behind.
Driving the news: The dozen-plus members of the Solar Access for All Coalition include Earthjustice, Coalition for Community Solar Access, GreenLatinos, Solar United Neighbors and the NAACP.
Climate activist Greta Thunberg will testify before the House Oversight Subcommittee on the Environment on Thursday, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), chairman of the panel, announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: The Earth Day hearing — titled “The Role of Fossil Fuel Subsidies in Preventing Action on the Climate Crisis" — will coincide with the White House's climate summit, which is expected to showcase a new 2030 U.S. emissions-cutting target.
Global energy-related carbon emissions will surge this year as coal, oil and natural gas consumption return from the pandemic that caused an unprecedented emissions decline, the International Energy Agency estimated Tuesday.
Why it matters: The projected rise of nearly 5% would be the largest since the "carbon intensive" recovery from the financial crisis over a decade ago, IEA said, putting emissions just below their 2019 peak.
A growing alliance of policy makers, activists, and conservationists are looking to the ocean for climate solutions, from setting aside vast stretches of open water to protecting coastal marshes and mangrove forests.
Driving the news: President Biden's top climate aides will use a virtual event Tuesday to showcase the benefits of so-called blue climate solutions.
China's President Xi Jinping on Tuesday warned against "bossing others around or meddling in others' internal affairs" and called for "more fair and equitable" global governance.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted on Monday that "data logs recovered so far" show the car's Autopilot feature was not enabled — and it did not have access to "full self-driving mode" — in the deadly crash in Texas involving the company's electric vehicle.
Background: Local investigators said they believed the car was operating without anyone in the driver's seat. At the time of death, one man was in the passenger seat, while another was in the rear seat, KPRC 2 reports.
The Biden administration has removed Trump-appointed atmospheric scientist Betsy Weatherhead from her role overseeing a comprehensive report on how climate change is affecting the U.S., the Washington Post first reported Monday.
Why it matters: Weatherhead has not been fired — merely reassigned to the U.S. Geological Survey — the move represents an effort by the Biden administration to remove Trump-era appointees from scientific roles, per CNN.
