Crippling heat reigns everywhere. Billions of people around the world are languishing under increasingly intense heat waves caused largely by the climate crisis fueled by human activity fueled by fossil fuels. More than 70 percent of the world's workforce - 2.4 billion people - are currently at high risk of extreme heat. The most vulnerable communities are affected the most.

In response to the rapid increase in the scale, intensity, frequency and duration of extreme heat, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called on 25 July 2024 for accelerated and concerted efforts to strengthen international cooperation to address extreme heat in four critical areas:

Caring for the vulnerable - Protecting workers - Strengthening the resilience of economies and societies with data and science - Limiting temperature rise to 1.5°C by phasing out fossil fuels and increasing investment in renewable energy.

The UN Secretary-General's Call to Action on Extreme Heat brings together the diverse expertise and perspectives of ten specialized UN entities (FAO, ILO, OCHA, UNDRR, UNEP, UNESCO, UN-Habitat, UNICEF, WHO, WMO) in a first-of-its-kind joint product that underlines the multi-sector impacts of extreme heat.

(More on www.un.org)

During the July plenary sessions in Strasbourg, Ursula von der Leyen was re-elected as President of the European Commission. During her speech in the Parliament, she talked about what her priorities will be during the next mandate based on the political guidelines developed by the Commission under the name European Choice.

A few topics seem particularly relevant to the forestry sector:

1. Climate goals until 2040 - the way to them
   The EU has committed to reducing carbon emissions by 90 % by 2040 compared to 1990 levels, and forests will play a big role in achieving this goal. The climate goals until 2040 will be reassessed again during the coming period.
   EUSTAFOR provided feedback to the Commission on how best to use our natural resources. As stated in our new manifesto, forests can contribute to the targets by storing, sequestering and replacing carbon. It will play a major role in the coming years.
2. Bio and circular economy
   Prosperity and competitiveness were explicitly mentioned in Von der Leyen's speech, as was the implementation of the Green Deal. In March, the Commission presented a new Biomanufactoring & Biotechnology initiative, and in 2025 the bioeconomy strategy will be updated. In order to stimulate the marketing of biotechnology, a new law on biotechnology will be proposed in 2025.
   The New European Bauhaus, an initiative launched four years ago, will expand during the new term to include the creation of energy-efficient and affordable housing in the EU.
   The focus on the bioeconomy and the Bauhaus offers opportunities for innovation and expansion in the forestry and timber sector. It will be a focal point for EUSTAFOR to promote active, multifunctional forestry and the responsible use of our forest resources.
3. Research and innovation
   In light of competitiveness, the Commission will increase their research spending to focus on more strategic priorities, basic research and disruptive innovation. For this purpose, the European Research Council and the European Innovation Council will be expanded.

(More on eustafor.eu)

A type of invisible, unpredictable air turbulence is expected to occur more frequently in the Northern Hemisphere as the climate warms, according to new research. The phenomenon, known as clear air turbulence, also increased in the Northern Hemisphere between 1980 and 2021, the study found. The research builds on recent work predicting an increase in moderate-to-strong clear-air turbulence by analyzing large-scale data sets and running complex model simulations. The study was published in Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres. (Madeline Reinsel, more at phys.org)

At the end of the 21st century, our planet witnessed unprecedented climatic conditions, with 40 to 50 % of the Earth's surface exposed to unprecedented scenarios. This app is amazing. This is the climate crisis we are facing, characterized by increasingly frequent and intense phenomena such as heat waves, droughts, fires and extreme events.

"The Future Urban Climates" is part of this context, an innovative initiative that aims to provide an advanced vision of possible climate developments in different areas of the world. (Matteo Fantozz, more at biopianeta.it)

Climate change, pollution and ever-increasing demand are putting enormous pressure on our water resources. But could nature help us? Did you know that nature has many solutions to the water-related problems we face today? This crash course explores how solutions based on nature they are increasingly used to solve floods, droughts and water shortages.

Methods such as wetland restoration, reforestation and permeable pavements are just some of the innovative techniques that are increasingly being used in the EU. In addition to increasing water resistance, natural solutions can also support biodiversity. Countries such as Germany, Spain and Belgium are investing heavily in nature-based solutions, while the EU has committed more than €600 million to 76 projects in 71 countries. (More on environment.ec.europa.eu)

While trees have long been known to benefit the climate by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, this new research reveals a surprising additional climate benefit. Microbes hidden in the bark of trees can absorb methane – a powerful greenhouse gas – from the atmosphere.

An international team of researchers led by the University of Birmingham has shown for the first time that microbes living in the bark or in the wood itself remove atmospheric methane at a rate equal to or greater than in the soil. They calculated that this newly discovered process makes trees a total of 10 % more beneficial to the climate than previously thought. (According to a study published July 24 in Nature, more at phys.org)

According to data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service, on Sunday, July 21, the Earth recorded the warmest day in the world since 1940. Program Director (more…)

The EU has taken a major step forward in its climate action efforts by publishing its first ever regulation aimed at reducing methane emissions. This regulation, which is now officially part of EU law, represents a significant step forward in the fight against climate change.

Stricter emission standards throughout the EU and beyond
This regulation is labeled EU 2024/1787 and imposes strict limits on methane emissions from the operation of fossil fuels within EU member states. It also enforces these standards when importing from oil, coal and natural gas exporters that supply the EU. (More on envirotech-online.com)

Some regions are warming faster than others, and countries in the Eastern Mediterranean region have experienced some of the fastest warming. We observe this through temperature anomalies. Anomalies compare current temperatures with historical averages and show us shifts over time. In the graph, each column represents a temperature anomaly for a given year.

In 2023, the average global temperature anomaly was 0.6°C higher than the 1991–2020 average. However, these anomalies vary by region. In countries such as Syria and Turkey, the average annual surface air temperature in 2023 was about 1.2°C above the 1991–2020 average, compared to about 0.3°C in Australia. (More on ourworldindata.org)

Many tend to think about climate change mainly in terms of the effects of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide emissions, which arise from the use of fossil fuels. However, there are other critical factors contributing to climate change that often do not receive the same attention from the general public. These lesser-known elements, although not often the focus of mainstream media discussion, play a significant role in shaping our planet's climate and ecosystems. (ACHILLO MANCINI, more on meteogiornale.it)

1. MYTH: There is so much wind and rain. Global warming is completely exaggerated.

It's easy to assume that "global warming" should lead to hotter and longer summers, but it's more complicated than that. As the planet's surface temperature rises, it affects our climate systems, leading to more extreme and unpredictable weather in all its forms - from drought to floods, hurricanes, fires and snowstorms.

It is important to focus on the bigger picture. We may think we have cold weather in the winter, but when you compare the average temperature now to previous decades, there is a significant increase. For example, the Met Office examined two 30-year periods (1961–1990 vs. 1991–2020) and found that the UK average temperature rose by 0.8°C, rainfall by 7.3 % and sunshine by 5, 6 %. (Rebecca Thair, more at happy.com)

The extreme heat that has recently engulfed the United States is a clear sign of climate change. But rising temperatures are driven by more than just hot summers. Climate change is contributing to the spread of drug-resistant infections. And worryingly, the drugs we use to fight these pathogens are losing their effectiveness.

Antimicrobial resistance, or AMR, occurs when bacteria, viruses and other pathogens evolve to resist the effects of drugs, making common infections more difficult to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, serious illness and death. Recent data have linked AMR to nearly 5 million deaths per year, far more than AIDS and malaria combined. By 2050, more people will die from drug-resistant infections than from cancer today.

Climate change accelerates the spread of these superbugs and provides favorable conditions for the growth and spread of pathogens. Higher temperatures can increase the rate at which bacteria and viruses reproduce, expand the range of habitats suitable for pathogens, and even increase the chances of gene transfer between bacteria, leading to more robust strains of drug-resistant microbes. (Howard Dean, more at thenationalherald.com)

A new $2.5 million advertising campaign in six swing states will focus on the impact of climate change on children. Science Mums, an independent group founded in 2021 by climate scientists, is launching a campaign to link global warming to "unnatural disasters" - floods, fires and other extreme weather - and highlight their effects on families.

"Climate sounds like a big, intractable problem. But really, protecting our children is much more personal and much more important right now and the decisions we're making," said Joellen Russell, a climate scientist at the University of Arizona.

"Unnatural disasters caused by climate change are destroying the places we love and robbing our children of the safe and beautiful world they deserve," she said. "They are constantly reshaping our children's memories—of the things we had as children that we cannot, because it is not available, give to our own children." (ADAM ATON, E&E NEWS, more at scientificamerican.com)

The 2015 Paris Climate Agreement was a historic agreement that united almost every country in the world around a common goal: to limit global warming to "well below" 2°C above pre-industrial levels and, if possible, aim for 1.5°C. Since then, 1.5°C has become a rallying cry for governments and activists, the focus of countless scientific models and predictions. Just six years later, at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, many described the target as being in intensive care; Now some scientists say it's time to unplug.

The problem is not that limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C is now impossible, as many climate optimists would be quick to point out, but that the pace at which emissions have been falling so far makes it increasingly unlikely it will happen. (Alexandre Rossi, more at agbrescia.it)

For decades, scientists have warned that the continued burning of oil, gas and coal will have devastating effects on the climate. These impacts are felt all over the world. By all accounts, the last few years have been brutal for the climate—and for the people and other living things in it. Temperature records were broken all over the world. The floods engulfed Pakistan, Libya and many other countries in torrents that destroyed property and claimed lives. Strong hurricanes hit the usual land targets such as the east coasts of India and the United States. And there have been strange once-in-a-generation events like the tropical storm that hit California.

The science of what is happening is clear. Scientists have known for more than 100 years that large amounts of greenhouse gases, released when fossil fuels are burned, rise into the atmosphere and warm the planet. This warming leads to frequent and more extreme changes in weather. In this sense, climate change can be considered a major accelerator. (The Associated Press, more at phys.org)

Climate models are essential tools for scientists to provide insight into how our climate may change due to human-caused global warming. As global temperatures continue to rise, these models help us predict and prepare for the consequences of the looming climate crisis.

However, recent findings suggest that our trust in these models may be misplaced, as not all predictions are as accurate as we assume. (Rodielon Putol, more at earth.com)

The limits of 1.5°C and 2°C above the pre-industrial average global temperature have been temporarily exceeded several times in recent months. For the first time in the ERA5 dataset, global surface temperature reached or exceeded 1.5°C above the 1850–1900 average for 12 consecutive months.

These facts, reported by the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) based on data from its flagship ERA5 reanalysis dataset, very naturally raise questions about why this is important and the methodology used to calculate these exceedances. Read an overview of basic information about these thresholds. (More on climate.copernicus.eu)

Climate change continues to pose a serious threat to the health of children worldwide. A recent study entitled "Climate, weather and children's health: quantifying health co-benefits", published in Environmental Research Letters , offers a detailed look at how climate change is affecting children's health in 130 countries.

Impacts of climate change on children's health: a study

The study's findings show that gradually increasing temperatures and climate shocks, such as droughts and heat waves, are affecting children's health.

Extreme heat : The study highlights that an increase in temperature of 1 °C in low-income countries can increase child mortality by 16.6 per thousand. In addition, extreme heat is associated with an increase in premature births and deaths. (More on meteo.it)

France changed its story this summer. What was supposed to be a season of Olympic highs and lows, of "higher, faster, stronger", looks likely to be overshadowed by the fallout of the snap election announced by President Macron. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal has agreed to a temporary stay during the Paris Olympics, and this steadying of the ship will offer Games organizers hope that at least the delivery of their program will go smoothly.

But this year's Olympics and Paralympics face another obstacle: the climate crisis. As summer temperatures reach record highs, concerns about the health and safety of athletes can no longer be taken for granted. (MÁRIA MENDILUCEOVÁ, more at wemeanbusinesscoalition.org)