Stories of Outrage + Optimism: News Roundup 8 July 2024

Dear Stubborn Optimist

A slightly different 'dose of Outrage + Optimism' for you today - our weekly roundup of news stories both negative and positive - because we really need both to move foward.

There is no shortage of stories of outrage in our news feeds but in this regular mini round-up we’ll be highlighting three you should know about, as well as three stories of optimism you might have missed.

Do let us know what you think of this new format (which won't be replacing our regular newsletter by the way, just running alongside it).

So, here we go, this week we're starting with outrage:

🔥 OUTRAGE 1: 2024 set to be hottest year

2024 is on track to be the hottest year on record, despite the naturally occurring La Niña cooling effect. Carlo Buontempo, director ofCopernicus Climate Change Service (CCCS) said,  ‘We have never seen such an anomaly’. Another warning sign that while it is still possible to change our trajectory, the planet is warming more rapidly than previously predicted and time is running short. Story in the FT

🌱 OPTIMISM 1: UK goes Green(er)

The UK finds itself in a more hopeful position on climate change with the new Labour government promising big investments in green initiatives and no new fossil fuel investment. Significantly also, the Green party made great gains, winning 4 seats and 7% of the vote share. Story in the Guardian

🔥 OUTRAGE 2: Hurricane x climate change

Hurricane Beryl which has wreaked havoc in parts of the Caribbean was made worse by climate change. A category 5 hurricane is highly unusual for this time of year as strong storms usually only develop after the seas have heated up through the summer, with the heat energy then enabling higher wind speeds. Story by the BBC

🌱 OPTIMISM 2: Small countries take the lead

As Christiana Figueres said in last week's episode, small countries very often take the lead when it comes to climate policy and that's exactly what trade ministers from Costa Rica, Iceland, New Zealand and Switzerland have done here: an innovative and groundbreaking trade agreement focused on climate change, trade and sustainability. Tariffs will be eliminated on over 300 environmental goods, including solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles, wool fibre and recycled paper. Story by Reuters. Hear more on this from Christiana here.

🔥 OUTRAGE 3: True cost of AI

Google's greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 were 48% higher than in 2019, because of the increasing amounts of energy needed by its data centres to accommodate the explosive growth of AI services, which involve much more electricity than standard online activity, This puts Google’s net zero by 2030 target in serious jeopardy.  Story by the BBC

🌱 OPTIMISM 3: South Africa coalition goverment

A new coalition government in South Africa is likely to speed up the energy transition there - with pro-coal ANC minister Gwede Mantashe removed and new ministers from the opposition the Democratic Alliance (DA) brought in. Story by Climate Change News

That's it for this week... as ever, we are standing in very murky waters but we continue to look up to the stars, of which there are many when we start looking for them.

Any news stories would you add? 🤔

Thank you for reading our newsletter - comment to let us know what you think of this format, 👍 or 👎?

With stubborn optimism,

The Outrage + Optimism team.

Note: Each news item we’ve included is a complex story in its own right, reduced here to a couple of sentences as a potential signpost for further reading.

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