Axios

A tornado in Matador, Texas, killed at least four people and wounded 10 others Wednesday night as storms spawned multiple tornadoes across the Rolling Plains amid a record-setting extreme heat wave, authorities said.

The latest: Matador has "experienced an unprecedented tornado bringing damaging winds to the town," the Lubbock Fire Rescue agency said Thursday morning.

World leaders and top figures in finance are gathering in Paris Thursday to take steps toward shaking up the world's major development banks, such as the World Bank and IMF, and get more money flowing to developing nations prone to climate disasters.

Why it matters: While firm commitments may prove elusive, the summit could nonetheless serve as a launching pad for reform in the run-up to the COP28 climate summit in Dubai later this year.

Minnesota regulators are beginning to review a key nickel mining proposal that promises to help the U.S. develop domestic supplies of raw materials for climate tech.

Driving the news: Talon Metals yesterday formally filed paperwork that will launch state environmental analysis of its proposal to build an underground mine in northern Minnesota.

The number of "mosquito days" — that is, those with the hot and humid weather the flying insects crave — has increased in many U.S. cities over the past several decades, per a new analysis.

• The report, from nonprofit climate science research organization Climate Central, defines a "mosquito day" as one with average relative humidity of 42% or higher, plus daily temperatures of 50°–95° F.

An "oppressive" record-breaking heat wave that's helped fuel deadly storms in Texas and surrounding states could continue through the Fourth of July holiday weekend, the National Weather Service warned Wednesday.

Why it matters: Extreme heat poses a threat to people's health, can lead to hospitals dealing with an influx of patients with heat-related illnesses, and it's the top weather-related killer in the U.S. in a typical year. It also puts a heavy strain on power grids.

Lab-grown chicken got U.S. Department of Agriculture approval Wednesday — a major breakthrough for "cell-cultivated" meats.

Why it matters: Lab-grown foods could be inching closer to restaurants and eventually to markets with the first U.S. regulator approval.

Crux, a new startup aiming to remove friction from the use of hundreds of billions of dollars worth of climate law tax incentives, just landed another $4.25 million in seed financing.

The big picture: It's initially focused on a key piece of the law called "transferability."

AmeriCorps is allocating more than $7 million to tribal nations and Indigenous-led nonprofits working to address needs related to climate change, food security and conservation.

Why it matters: From Alaska to New Mexico, Indigenous communities are confronting severe climate-fueled challenges as increasing volatility in food systems spurs escalating food insecurity.

Texans are used to hot weather, but the combination of tropical-level humidity with triple-digit high temperatures is making for a dangerous, precedent-busting extreme heat event.

Why it matters: On average, extreme heat is the biggest annual weather-related killer in the U.S., per the National Weather Service (NWS).

In Arizona's perpetual quest to alleviate its water shortage, the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA) is expected to start considering innovative proposals next year to keep the desert state hydrated.

Catch up quick: Lawmakers and former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey last year established a plan to provide WIFA with $1 billion over three years for a long-term water augmentation fund that  would finance a desalination plant or other major project.

Tropical Storm Bret formed Monday afternoon in the Central Atlantic, after emerging off the west coast of Africa and tracking over record warm ocean waters for this time of year.

Why it matters: This storm shows what can happen when the tropical North Atlantic Ocean features temperatures more typical of September than June, defying seasonal norms.