By the numbers: The benchmark cocoa contract, traded on the Intercontinental Exchange in New York set a new record on Friday, crossing $8,100 per metric ton. That's a 215 percent jump from last year, when prices were just $2,578.
John Podesta, President Biden's senior advisor for international climate policy, said during a visit to Japan that the U.S. is "on track" to unveil its new climate targets this year, and must do so by next February.
Why it matters: A key goal for the next U.N. Climate Summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, is for countries to come forward with new emissions reduction and climate finance goals, which run through 2035.
Spring is getting warmer on average nationwide, per a recent Climate Central analysis — a trend that reflects human-caused warming, the climate research group says.
Why it matters: Much of the seasonal climate change discussion is focused on summer and winter, when temperatures are typically at their annual high and low extremes. But the "between seasons" are affected, too.
A sprawling storm system triggered multiple reports of destructive tornadoes in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana on Thursday evening.
The big picture: Logan County, Ohio, officials declared a mass casualty event after a suspected tornado hit a trailer park some 70 miles from Columbus, as the storm system unleashed "large damaging hail, wind gusts and a few tornadoes" from far northeast Texas to the Ohio Valley overnight, per the National Weather Service.
The big picture: The highly contested and heavily lobbied rule adopted last week forces larger public companies to disclose certain emissions and climate-related risks to their business, which will provide a much closer look at their impact on climate change.
