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To help fight rising militarism and advocate for strong public services and peace, use these resources as organizing tools to start conversations and spread the word: fund public services, not war!

The post RESOURCES: Fund public services, not war! first appeared on Spring.

By Benito Müller, Anju Sharma, Jen Allan, Matthias Roesti and Luis Gomez-Echeverri.

Every November, tens of thousands of people descend on the world’s annual UN climate conference. Presidents and prime ministers, negotiators, business executives, campaigners, journalists, celebrities and lobbyists converge on one city for two frenetic weeks, all convinced they need to be there.

Everyone with a stake in climate action feels they must be present. Any suggestion of a smaller, more focused conference is quickly met with concerns about exclusion. But it is time to ask an uncomfortable question: has the fear of missing out (FOMO) become one of the biggest obstacles to effective international climate cooperation?

The story in numbers

When governments first met under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in the 1990s, the annual Conferences of the Parties (COPs) attracted only a few thousand participants. Even the Kyoto conference, which produced the first legally binding emissions agreement, hosted fewer than 10,000 people.

Since then, analysis by ecbi reveals a striking trend: after each major treaty COP, the participation at the next COP approximately doubled (see chart below).

Why?

Part of the answer is success. As climate change has risen up the political and economic agenda, more actors quite rightly want to engage. But our analysis reveals that a less acknowledged force is also driving the spikes in participation: FOMO.

As more heads of state attended, ministers concluded they had to be there too. As ministers arrived in greater numbers, government delegations expanded. Businesses, investors, researchers, campaigners, journalists, city leaders and philanthropies reached the same conclusion: if everyone important is going to COP, we cannot afford to stay away.

The result is a self-reinforcing cycle. The larger COP becomes, the more indispensable attendance appears, because presence signals relevance.

Source: Müller, B., J. Allan, M. Roesti and L. Gomez-Echeverri, 2024 UPDATE Quo Vadis COP? Future Arrangements for Intergovernmental Meetings under the UNFCCC – Settled and Fit for Purpose, Oxford, OCP/ecbi, December 2024

The negotiating community has barely grown

The headline attendance figures tell only part of the story. At COP28, more than 42,000 Party badges were issued to official national delegations. However, only 1,581 delegates had also attended the technical negotiating session in Bonn just five months earlier. Fewer than 4% of Party delegates formed the core negotiating community.

This core negotiating community has remained remarkably stable: across the five COPs since Paris, between roughly 1,300 and 1,600 delegates consistently attended both the June negotiating session and the annual COP.

The negotiating community has not become twenty times larger, but the COP has.

One COP, three different events

Today’s COP has, in fact, evolved into three very different events rolled into one.

The first is the formal negotiating session, where governments agree rules, guidance and decisions under the Convention and the Paris Agreement.

The second is a global political summit, where leaders announce initiatives and demonstrate political commitment.

The third is a vast climate expo, where businesses, cities, researchers, financial institutions and civil society showcase solutions, build partnerships and engage the public.

Each of them serves a valuable purpose, but the problem is that they have become bundled together by historical accident rather than institutional design.

Comment: The UN climate process was built for negotiation – now it must support implementation

Bigger is not always better

The consequences of “mega-COPs” are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

The countries most vulnerable to climate change are increasingly less able to host COPs and thus lose the ability to have their voices properly heard. Hosting a modern COP now requires enormous financial resources, extensive security operations and accommodation capacity that many countries simply do not possess. Even wealthier nations have become more reluctant to take on the burden.

Inside the venue, size creates its own inefficiencies. Climate negotiations often advance through informal conversations: a chance meeting in a corridor, a discussion over coffee, an impromptu conversation between delegates who discover common ground. Those opportunities become rarer when participants spend hours navigating enormous venues and crowded security checkpoints.

Comment: COP presidencies should focus less on climate policy, more on global politics

Observer access is constrained by overcrowding. National delegations increasingly include large numbers of non-government participants, sometimes outnumbering officials from government ministries. Meanwhile, businesses, campaigners and journalists compete with negotiators for the same space and attention.

The very scale of the event also creates a reputational problem. A gathering of 60,000 or more people inevitably creates expectations of dramatic political breakthroughs every year. Yet much of today’s climate diplomacy involves steady, technical progress. When those quieter achievements are judged against the expectations generated by a mega-event, disappointment in the UN climate change process becomes almost inevitable.

Time to unbundle

Not everything must happen in the same place at the same time. Negotiations, political leadership and implementation partnerships each deserve their own space. They should become separate events.

Routine governing body sessions, involving the roughly 5,000 participants directly engaged in the formal process, could be held in Bonn, where the UN climate secretariat is based. Political summits could be convened separately when leaders’ intervention is genuinely needed. Climate expos could continue to rotate with the COP Presidency, providing dedicated opportunities for businesses, investors, cities, researchers and civil society to showcase solutions and forge partnerships.

Such an approach would strengthen, not weaken, participation. Negotiators would benefit from a more focused and effective working environment. Host countries would face a far more manageable logistical and financial challenge. Climate-vulnerable countries would once again have a realistic opportunity to host key meetings and shape the global agenda. Businesses, investors, cities and civil society would gain greater visibility by engaging in forums designed for partnership, innovation and implementation, rather than competing with formal negotiations for space and attention.

Comment: Not another COP-out: We must rewrite the rules of the UN climate talks

Today’s mega-COPs evolved incrementally, one seemingly sensible decision at a time, until their sheer scale began to undermine many of the objectives they were intended to serve. The fear of missing out now risks becoming one of the biggest barriers to the reforms needed to make the process more effective.

The greatest fear now is not missing out on the next COP, but missing the opportunity to redesign the process so it can deliver on its ultimate purpose: tackling the climate crisis.

Benito Müller is managing director of Oxford Climate Policy and director of the European Capacity Building Initiative (ecbi).

Anju Sharma is a climate policy specialist with Oxford Climate Policy.

Jen Allan is a senior Lecturer at Cardiff University and strategic advisor at the International Institute for Sustainable Development. 

Matthias Roesti is a postdoctoral researcher studying the political economy of climate change at the University of Pennsylvania’s Environmental Politics Lab.

Luis Gomez-Echeverri is a former senior staff member with UNDP and UNFCCC and currently an emeritus research scholar at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, working at the intersection of climate and development.

The post Is FOMO undermining climate diplomacy? appeared first on Climate Home News.

Organized by the Netzwerk für Kommunalismus

30 July, 2026
Eleanor Finley, Ph.D.

Twenty years ago today, the world said goodbye to one of its most important visionary thinkers, Murray Bookchin. I was asked here today to share about Murray’s contributions to today’s social movements and how his work resonates with young people. That theme raises some topics that are probably obvious to folks who would come to an event like this: the Rojava Revolution in Northern Syria or municipalismo in Southern Europe. However, rather than giving another overview of these well-known movements, I want to focus on the latter part of this question on the meaning of his work today and in the future.

It is true that the political philosophy of confederal direct democracy that Bookchin helped author is quietly spreading across the world. Where I live in the United States, people’s assemblies and similar formations like neighborhood or tenants’ unions inspired by Bookchin are coordinating support for families hunted by ICE, resisting the implementation of “FLOCK” street camera surveillance systems, and responding to climate emergencies. These formations are not easy to find online, in part because they focus on real, face-to-face relationships between neighbors. In this way, they are really taking Bookchin seriously.

Bookchin is also leaving his mark on more managerial and reform-minded movements, which are now increasingly acknowledging the value of local action. Progressive parties and campaigns in cities like New York City, Seattle, and Washington, DC are prioritizing public investment, regulation, and service provisioning at the city level. In this context, Bookchin reminds us that localism is more than just a means to an end. As he wrote in his piece The Forms of Freedom in 1968, “The assembly and community cannot be legislated or decreed into existence.” Freedom cannot be legislated from above.

Despite the great importance of communalist politics, I believe that perhaps the most salient contribution Bookchin’s work makes today for young people is providing a compelling defense of humanity. Young people today will endure climate-induced social, economic, and political dislocations that nearly everyone from previous generations has found unimaginable.

The same young people are experiencing an unprecedented collapse of critical thinking, attention spans, and logical coherence because of addictive algorithmic echnology. For twenty years, tech firms have forced their addictive products into schools, homes, restaurants, and everywhere in between. We are seeing the cumulative effect of this unregulated onslaught today, with universities inundated with young people who cannot compose a paragraph or analyze a simple text. Just a few days ago, we learned that AI companies are rapidly purchasing the world’s inventory of rare and out-of-print books in order to feed them to their databases and destroy them. The message is clear: the frontline of struggle has moved onto the terrain of the human mind and imagination.

Bookchin’s philosophy drives away the mist. It reminds us that the human mind will never be inferior to some corporate product. When you look back on his writing from the 1980s, for all of its flaws, he is like a Sarah Connor about to face the proverbial Terminator; grim, but determined. His weapons were arguments and reasons why humanity matters – not simply on moral grounds, but ecological grounds – not simply for economic liberation but for liberation of all life on Earth.

Through Murray’s writing, young people are able to converse with a singular mind who had the intelligence and courage to assert the impossible and fight the unthinkable. And when they do this, they gain courage. That is what I see among my students at the Institute for Social Ecology, the readers of my book Practicing Social Ecology, and the courageous activists organizing assemblies in their hometowns.

They know that the unthinkable has already arrived. Many begin their lives from a place of hopelessness and resignation. But through social ecology, through Murray’s and our work, they come to better understand their own historical agency. His work shines a rare light on the fact that there is not only a capitalist world worth fighting against, but also a genuinely liberated world worth fighting toward. There is nothing more precious than that for the young people of our time.

The post Remarks delivered to the International tribute to Murray Bookchin on the 20th anniversary of his death appeared first on Institute for Social Ecology.

Today, in a partisan split, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance Todd Blanche’s nomination for Attorney General on Tuesday, setting the stage for a floor vote to confirm him to the post.

In response, Public Citizen co-president Lisa Gilbert issued the following statement:

“There is a single barrier left to the confirmation of Trump crony Todd Blanche: the Senate floor.

“Senators must urgently do the right thing and block Blanche. The consequences of inaction here are crystal clear. If we make Todd Blanche America’s lawyer at the head of the Justice Department, we are accepting a man who has been tasked with implementing Donald Trump’s revenge agenda.

“A man placed by Trump in this role only because the previous head of the DOJ wasn’t implementing his corrupt personal prosecutions fast enough.

“A man who rubberstamped the corrupt IRS deal that Trump made with himself to shield all the Trumps and their businesses, not only from enforcement of any taxes they may have dodged or any fines or payments they may owe to American taxpayers, but from ‘any and all’ related consequences for violating any federal criminal or civil law.

“A man who led the Epstein cover-up. Who was dismissive and negligent toward trafficking victims despite the nation’s intense outrage at Epstein’s crimes and in the face of these women’s ongoing advocacy to make clear how his horrific actions have impacted their lives.

“And it doesn’t stop there., A vote for Blanche is also literally a blank check to give money to January 6th insurrectionists or other cronies, whether through a revived slush fund or directly from the Judgement Fund. We have seen him act in this manner as recently as last week, when he facilitated a 7-figure settlement for a pardoned abortion clinic protester.

“We know exactly what type of Attorney General Mr. Blanche will be: Corrupt, toadying, and focused on one goal: defense of Donald J. Trump. It is a matter of morality, Senators of both parties must stand in his way and block his confirmation on the floor.”

¡Chino García, Presente!
By Dan Chodorkoff

A hero has passed. Carlos “Chino” García died Friday, July 24th. Chino was a teacher, a leader, and an
inspiration to generations of activists on New York’s Lower East Side. He and Bimbo Rivas coined the
name Loisaida for their neighborhood. He was a force to be reckoned with. At age 16 he became
warlord for the Cheyennes, a Lower East Side street gang, but by the time he was 18 he had moved out
of gang life to found The Real Great Society, a grassroots organization dedicated to helping his
community. He went on to co-found CHARAS, a community development organization that helped to
spark the sweat equity urban homesteading movement, in which collectives seized abandoned buildings,
initially as squatters, and using their own labor, rehabbed the buildings into low income tenants co-
operatives some of which demonstrated the first urban application of solar energy. They were taught to
build domes by Buckminster Fuller. CHARAS also built numerous community gardens, a cultural plaza
(La Plaza Cultural), a neighborhood recycling center, and in 1974 they took over a school that had been
abandoned by the city and created CHARAS/El Bohio, a community center that served the neighborhood
until it was auctioned off by Rudy Giuliani, leading to a twenty year battle to regain the space for
community use.

Chino was tireless in his work to create an effective counterforce to the city bureaucracy, organizing quarterly “town meetings” where activists marshaled their forces to oppose the city’s redevelopment plans for their neighborhood, counterposing alternatives that focused on open space, community controlled housing, and ecological approaches to energy and food production. He was amazing organizer who was able to rally people around him and, using a combination of protest, direct action, and political organizing achieved great things, His work had a transformational impact on Loisaida, in terms of both the physical and cultural environment. His community meant everything to Chino, who was known to many as the “Mayor” of Loisaida. His generosity was legendary. He would walk through Tompkins Square Park checking to see that unhoused folk were alright, often providing them with a place to stay if they needed one. He battled police brutality and corrupt politicians , He was always there for others when they needed help, and his positivity and energy sustained the movement through difficult times. From the mid-1980’s on much of the movement’s energy was devoted to anti-gentrification work where, once again, Chino took a leadership role

He was great friend of the ISE for over 50 years. We began to work together in 1974. The ISE was deeply involved in alternative technologies like solar and wind power as well as ecological agriculture and aquaculture. We were approached by Chino to help provide technical assistance for some of their projects. A strong relationship developed and over the years we sent brigades of students to assist with CHARAS projects in New York, and Chino and others came to Vermont to help us build domes and teach us about their approach to community organizing. It was a truly reciprocal relationship based in mutual respect and affection. We were lucky to have Chino agree to serve on our Board; unfortunately he became ill shortly after joining. He struggled for many years with congestive heart failure, spending the last several years of his life in and out of hospitals and rehab centers, but he never lost his optimism and his sense of hope, with which he continued to inspire others, even from his hospital bed. Chino will be sorely missed by his community, those of us at the ISE, and his many friends from around the world. La lucha continua. Chino, rest in peace and power.

The post Remembering our friend and comrade Carlos “Chino” Garcia appeared first on Institute for Social Ecology.

Another day, another threat to America’s public lands and Utah’s wild places. The Trump administration is now undertaking a sweeping review of existing policies on the management of designated wilderness, wilderness study areas, and wilderness-quality lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. These policies provide crucial protection and clear management direction for millions of acres of public land across the nation, including more than 7 million acres of BLM-managed land in Utah.

The Interior Department is accepting public comments through Friday, August 14. Tell the Department to uphold existing policies protecting wilderness and wilderness-quality lands.

You can probably guess why this is happening. True to the Trump administration’s pattern of anti-conservation initiatives and actions, the review is intended to reduce management requirements and weaken protections for designated wilderness and other wilderness-quality lands, clearing the way for increased extraction, development, and expanded off-road vehicle use on some of the nation’s remaining wild public lands. In Utah, this includes spectacular landscapes at the heart of redrock country—places like Fisher Towers, Grand Gulch, White Canyon, Robbers Roost, and the Vermillion Cliffs.

While the Trump administration is fixated on sacrificing our remaining wild places to corporate interests and destructive uses, they underestimate the importance and value of these places to the American public. The desire to see these wild public lands protected crosses political boundaries.

Wilderness and wilderness-quality lands are some of the most cherished places for families to camp, hike, sightsee, hunt, and fish. They provide clean air and water, critical habitat for wildlife, and endless opportunities for rejuvenation and human-powered recreation. For all of these reasons and more, it’s crucial that we manage our last wild landscapes in a way that preserves their wilderness character for future generations.

Click here to submit your comments by the August 14 deadline

The post Take Action to Protect Wilderness and Wilderness-Quality Lands appeared first on Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.

Socialists call for workers to have control over how society is run. Marx said it best: “Democracy is the road to socialism.” In that vein,...

The post Tobias Lütke’s hatred of democracy shows why we need more of it first appeared on Spring.

Today, Republicans on the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary voted to advance Todd Blanche’s nomination to be U.S. Attorney General to the full Senate.

Stand Up America’s Managing Director of Policy & Political Affairs, Brett Edkins, issued the following statement on Blanche’s confirmation:

“Every Senate Judiciary Republican just endorsed Todd Blanche’s extreme agenda for the Department of Justice: politically motivated prosecutions of the president’s perceived enemies, defending and giving taxpayer-funded settlements to January 6th insurrectionists, burying the Epstein files, and shielding Trump and his family from the IRS.

“Now it’s up to the full Senate. Are there still Republicans willing to stand up to the president—willing to say they’re against weaponizing the Justice Department, against shielding Trump and his family from accountability, and against protecting predators in the Epstein files? The Senate doesn’t need unanimous courage to block Blanche—it needs a few Republicans willing to put country over party.”

This article How creativity — and children — have kept Albania’s revolution alive was originally published by Waging Nonviolence.

It was on the third day of the revolution that the mood changed. Once again, many thousands of Albanians had descended on Tirana’s central square after work. Once again, the speeches and banners were focused on stopping a wild and legally protected coastline from being razed for a luxury resort. But this time the vibe was tense. Some people had entered the crowd who were angry, screaming abuses and trying to set fire to the placards. 

Ilir Kaso, an artist and lecturer at Tirana University of Arts, stood nearby with his two daughters, aged 11 and seven. “My daughters were very frightened. My youngest asked to leave the protest, and so we did,” recalled Kaso. But as they emerged from the crowd, they found themselves facing what Kaso describes as “the flamingo group,” a collection of a hundred or so protesters wielding pink flamingo banners and a few pink polystyrene flamingos on poles. “‘Papa look, flamingos, let’s go there,’ said my youngest, and immediately I understood what we had to do.”

The flamingo group was a loose coalition of artists and environmental activists based in Tirana. The partnership had first formed more than a decade earlier under the banner of “Friends of Vjosa,” a movement to stop one of Europe’s last wild rivers from being splintered by 45 hydroelectric dams. Kaso became a part of what proved to be a very successful campaign. It birthed Europe’s first Wild River National Park, and on a personal level, it transformed Kaso’s art, pulling him away from abstraction and towards nature. He and his wife named their first daughter after the river.

When trucks and bulldozers suddenly rolled into a protected part of the river’s delta in late April, and started fencing off a large section of the coastline, the coalition quickly remobilized, meeting in person and via WhatsApp groups to work out how to stop the destruction. Kaso attended the first small protests along the fence line, photographing the flattening of ancient sand dunes where turtles nested, and the laying of concrete over wetlands that host hundreds of migratory bird species, many of them endangered.

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Kaso had followed but not posted in the WhatsApp debate over which bird should be the symbol of their campaign. The environmental activists wanted one of the more threatened species to be made prominent — the Dalmatian pelican, the Northern lapwing — but the artists had decided on the flamingo, an easily recognizable bird with an iconic color and shape. After seeing how the bird had become a refuge for his frightened children, Kaso quickly started tapping out a message in the chat.

“I wrote about what happened and how we could create somewhere stationary, a shelter where we flamingos can stay all together and bring in the children, to protect them but also to expand the good vibes,” he said. “Because children have such good energy, they don’t have doubts or traumas like us. And we cannot wait for this protest to be damaged and become violent. This bad energy is going to destroy everything. We have to fight this with good energy, but by going out of the crowd.”

Kaso had experience setting up a shelter like this. During the pandemic he had helped to open and run a community school for his daughters and other young children in his area. The experience had a profound effect on how he taught his art students. After the pandemic, he rejected rigid lesson plans and formulas to be more curious and open to their ideas. “The children taught me a lot,” he said with a smile.

The artists and activists in the WhatsApp chat immediately embraced Kaso’s idea. Not only was there a shared fear of violence derailing this uprising, but the surging size of the crowds was clearly straining families. Every evening, between the speeches on the square, messages were going out over the microphone about lost children who needed to be found. On the chat, artists started offering to bring coloring pens and run drawing sessions. The next day, 20 feet of paper was laid out beside the Pyramid of Tirana, a tree-lined landmark between the square where protesters gathered and the prime minister’s office that they marched to. It was instantly flooded with grateful parents and curious children.

The Children’s Corner during an evening of protest, Tirana, July 2026. (Trivet)

The Children’s Corner, as it is now called, has become an established feature of the revolution, entertaining children for approximately three hours every evening. On busy days, more than a hundred children will sit on the ground drawing their favorite birds, singing into megaphones, or playing with flamingo placards, while a dozen adults strive to monitor activities. It has become a hub not just for families but the flamingo group itself, who use the space to synchronize their chants, strategize about their movements, and pass out their pink foam placards to fellow revolutionaries.

Kaso describes the Children’s Corner as the sun of the protest, always radiating with light, fun and good vibes. And the flamingo group has taken on the role of dispersing those vibes to the rest of the protest. When a speech has been particularly aggressive or divisive, a flamingo parade will take flight, weaving into the crowd, and then chanting, drumming and dancing to relieve the tension. Then they will return to the Children’s Corner to recharge.

“The Children’s Corner is very important for keeping this protest peaceful,” Kaso said. “I think it is our most important weapon, like a Trojan horse, against the people who want to end this protest and make it a mess. It means the police cannot throw their gas and create aggressive situations. Also for the people — we are telling them we are here with our children and our families, so we have to be careful.” 

The space has triggered an outpouring of generous donations, though much has had to be turned away. Food from strangers was considered too risky, while taking money might give the impression this was a commercial childcare service. But offers of more coloring pens and art materials have always been readily accepted.

Not everyone has welcomed the corner though. Some have accused it of diluting the revolution, of reducing it to a kind of theater, while nationalist groups have taken exception to anything connected to the flamingos, screaming “we are eagles!” (Albania is literally called “land of the eagles” in Albanian, and its flag features a double-headed black eagle.) On particularly busy days, Kaso and other volunteers have had to form human chains to stop the surging crowds from accidentally trampling the children. But each time there has been a confrontation or danger, the corner community of flamingos and parents have collectively stepped in to diffuse it.

After some 60 days of continuous protest, featuring many hundreds of thousands of Albanians packed within a few square blocks, there has been remarkably little violence. Some eggs were thrown at the cars of politicians as they entered the nearby parliament building, and some windows were broken at a local police station after six egg-throwers were pepper-sprayed, arrested and held there before being released. 

With the help of art materials and studio space from NGOs and private donors, many hundreds of pink foam flamingo banners have been produced and handed out. In the city, they’ve started to function like a pride flag, a marker stuck outside bars and cafés to show solidarity with the revolution. “Most of the time we connect revolution to war and destruction and going back,” Kaso said, “but this is a big lesson for us about how we can think about a revolution. And the children are the most important part to teach us this.”

Corporate aggression backfires

Besjana Guri is tired. She started our interview by getting a date wrong by a decade and then laughing. The environmental activist has attended every day of the revolution so far, using a projector to screen rousing flamingo-themed videos on the wall of the prime minister’s office. “If you ever think of not going once, you feel you are betraying the protest. You have to go,” she said.

Guri co-led the award-winning campaign that turned the river Vjosa into a national park, and a year ago she founded Lumi (which means river in Albanian), a small organization focused on empowering women and children to protect their local environment. Two days before the Vjosa’s delta was turned into a construction site, Guri had been meeting with women in the nearby village of Zvërnec to discuss the threat to the region and organize a response.

The real flamingos, enjoying the shallow lagoons of Vjosa-Narta. (PPNEA)

The delta region where the Vjosa River meets the Adriatic Sea is mesmerizingly beautiful — a delicate tapestry of salt marshes, lagoons and forests. Known as Vjosa-Narta, the government awarded the coastal area full protection status in 2017. But over the last decade, as Prime Minister Edi Rama has cemented his grip over Albania’s politics, that protection has been stripped back and caveated to the point of being meaningless. 

In 2018, Vjosa-Narta’s protected status was downgraded to allow an old military base within it to become a (still unfinished) airport. “The airport was the tip of the iceberg,” said Xhemal Xherri, a project manager at Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania, or PPNEA. “We always knew that somehow this airport would bring resorts to the area.”

Then in 2024, the law enforcing the protection was amended to allow the government to essentially overrule it if an opportunity was lucrative enough. A month later, Jared Kushner, son-in-law of the U.S. president, shared designs on Instagram for a huge luxury development along the coastline. Then in January of this year, the villagers in Zvërnec found themselves under virtual house arrest while Ivanka Trump, Kushner’s wife, toured the area with a troupe of architects, business associates and security guards.

But when the trucks rolled into Vjosa-Narta in late April, it was still a shock. Albanian law required public consultations, an environmental assessment and various government permits to be awarded before construction could begin. The law no longer appeared to matter. Within a week, a coalition of environmental organizations had sent representatives to document the damage as access roads were crudely carved into the pristine coastline. A week after that came the first protest. 

By the time Guri and a hundred other activists and villagers had converged on the vast construction site, it had been enclosed by a fence which ran right into the sea. Watching them from the other side of the fence was one elderly security guard, and a few bored police officers. The men eventually agreed to open a gate and let the protesters inspect some of the damage. “They thought we were just ecoactivists, we were harmless,” Guri remembered.

Before the protest finished, some villagers insisted on toppling over a small section of the fence — a symbol of their disgust. For them, this was not just about land destruction but land ownership. Their community had lived on this coast for generations, yet the land had been sold to Kushner by a Florida-based real estate mogul with links to cocaine-trafficking and document forgery. Some families had spent 20 years in court battling over the ownership of the land, and despite there being no legal resolution, they were suddenly being denied access to it. For now though, the fence was flimsy. It could be pushed over using body weight alone. 

When the protesters returned the next Saturday, the fence and the whole mood was different. Now the barrier was concrete-based, and topped with thick curls of barbed wire. Looking through it were dozens of muscular private security guards, dressed all in black, faces obscured by sunglasses, baseball caps and masks. As the protesters marched along the fence they were shadowed by a column of police officers. “The feeling was not good,” Guri said. “It felt like there were terrorists here, people who wanted to scare and intimidate us.”

The first protest by the fenced-off construction site at Vjosa-Narta in May. (PPNEA)

It was during the protest on the third Saturday that the intimidation turned to violence. The protesters had marched along the barrier to the beach, and with the tide low, an area of sand had been exposed that was blocked only by barbed wire. A lone villager ignored the warnings of the guards and carefully stepped over it. He was instantly pounced upon by the men in black, who wrestled him to the ground, punched him in the face and dragged him away by his arms across the beach. Another masked guard then fired pepper spray into the angry crowd, blinding both the protesters and the strangely passive line of police officers between them.

Guri was not able to attend the protest that day, but like hundreds of thousands of others, she watched a video of the assault on social media a few hours later. “Everyone that saw that moment, it was really a feeling that they were the ones being dragged,” she said, her eyes closed. Online, the video was being paired with rallying songs and nationalist poetry, and it was spreading like wildfire, well beyond the networks of activists, artists and villagers who were attending the protests. By the next day, a poster was circulating alongside it, headlined “Albania is not for sale!” It called for a protest in Tirana’s central square at 6 p.m. that evening.

Kaso arrived at the protest early so he could take photographs as people arrived. “I was physically trembling when I saw this huge group of people approaching,” he recalled. “It was amazing. A mix of responsibility and euphoria. A feeling that another chapter is coming. I never imagined all these years of fighting for nature and the river could be so helpful.” Guri was late, after spending her Sunday in a village outside Tirana, then hitting heavy traffic. “When I got there, I saw — I cannot count how many people. But for sure 600 people and more. I haven’t seen a bigger protest in the last 10 years for an environmental issue,” she said.

Guri was so inspired she later spoke to the crowd: “I said it took us 10 years to protect the Vjosa river and finalize the national park, but if we continue like this, we will only need 10 days to cancel this project and save the Narta.” With the speeches wrapped up, and the protest coming to an end, a chant built up among the crowd: “See you tomorrow, tomorrow more.” The template for a revolution had been set. 

The flamingo group brings the prime minister a concrete birthday cake in Tirana in July. The sign on the top: “Long Prison Sentence For You!” (Trivet)

“The protest kept growing every day. For the first few weeks it was only growing. Not only ecoactivists but all types of people. And the majority was young people,” Guri said. “They came with banners and funny memes and interesting quotes. Then we added the element of the flamingos. That’s when the creativity began, and the creativity has really kept this protest alive.”

Building an anti-corruption revolution

Xhemal Xherri of PPNEA, along with all the activists I’ve spoken to, is adamant that the Flamingo Revolution has no leaders, that it is a spontaneous and amorphous movement featuring a patchwork of groups unified by a love of nature. The closest it comes to forming an agenda is when the crowd cheers or jeers after a speech. But PPNEA has been quietly instrumental in preparing the soil from which this revolution has bloomed, and building the relationships that could lead to its eventual success.

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PPNEA was the country’s first environmental organization, established as it was transitioning away from communist dictatorship in 1991. The group took the government to court over irregularities in the airport construction contracts (the case is ongoing), and has been organizing protests against the exploitation of Vjosa-Narta for years. As Albania’s politicians were voting in the law change that meant Kushner’s luxury resorts could turn from CGI dream to reality, a hundred PPNEA activists were protesting outside parliament to condemn them.

The day before the first protest outside the construction site, for which PPNEA brought in bus-loads of Tirana-based activists, the organization invited a delegation of EU diplomats to witness the destruction firsthand. A month later, a PPNEA representative was in Strasbourg, France as the European Parliament voted in a resolution condemning the change to Albania’s law on protected areas, and making its repeal a non-negotiable condition of Albania’s accession to the EU. 

Six Green members of the European Parliament then attended the protests in Tirana at the end of June, making stridently pro-revolution speeches that were adored by the crowds. Just days earlier, Prime Minister Rama had explained to a Euronews journalist how officials in his government were “fanatics of the EU faith” who would do “whatever it takes” to gain membership. The country has been seeking candidature and tirelessly negotiating its way into the bloc since 2009. 

Despite this powerful endorsement from the EU, the fanatical Rama has not softened his stance on the protesters. From the beginning he has dismissed their concerns as delusional, the product of a coordinated online disinformation campaign by Iran, which he claims has simultaneously targeted both Albania and Israel as the two countries deepen their diplomatic ties.

But for Xherri, the reason social media algorithms have been promoting the Flamingo Revolution is not because of foreign interference, but simply because everybody in the capital is going to the square and posting about it. This includes many Albanian social media influencers, who have been privately requesting briefings from PPNEA on Vjosa-Narta, and amplifying the organization’s posts to new audiences.

A flamingo parade moves through the crowd dispensing positive vibes in Tirana in July. (Trivet)

Construction of the resort has been quietly paused, and the barbed wire fence has been removed, but so far the government has conceded nothing. Even if Rama were to repeal the law change that triggered this revolt, and consign Kushner’s project to the dustbin of history, it is unlikely to be enough to placate the people now surging through the city every evening. As the crowds have grown, so too have their demands. Today the protesters are just as likely to chant for both Rama and the leader of the opposition to be put in jail for corruption, as they are to call for nature to be protected. 

Over the last few weeks, the numbers out protesting have stabilized, with a few thousand marching each week night, and the crowds ballooning again at the weekends, especially now that Albania’s sizable diaspora is returning to be a part of the revolution. The activists I talk to are all confident that the government will eventually yield, and the law will be repealed. 

But when it comes to winning wider political changes, Kaso references a so far isolated incident, early in the revolution, where a group of protesters spontaneously marched out of the city and blocked a highway leading to the country’s main airport for several hours. 

“The people have shown the prime minister how this protest can be escalated. Maybe one or two hundred people, which is nothing for this protest, could block the entrance of the highway which connects the city to the airport, and stay there for 24 hours, which is going to be a big loss for travel companies,” he said. “​​I don’t want to see everything escalate in a dangerous way, but if necessary we don’t only have to be creative in aesthetic ways — with posters and colors and children. We can do it in other ways.”

For now though, the flamingo group are continuing to power this protest with pink placards, good vibes and children drawing their favorite birds. And no matter what happens next, Kaso is happy. “For me the revolution has already been successful,” he said. “It’s already changed a lot. If tomorrow we are not going in the road anymore, I know very well that life in Albania is not going to be the same.”

This article How creativity — and children — have kept Albania’s revolution alive was originally published by Waging Nonviolence.

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Heatwaves are becoming more likely and more intense due to climate change, impacting sources of power generation around the world as they work to meet increased demand.

When temperatures soared past 40C in parts of Europe in June and July 2026, nuclear reactors shuttered, gas plants’ efficiency fell, wind speeds dropped and electricity networks sagged.

Yet, while all types of electricity generation are affected variously by extreme heat, some commentators are quick to point the finger at “intermittent” wind and solar, while downplaying the impact on sources such as gas or nuclear power.

Extreme heat also drives up electricity demand, as people turn on air conditioning and fridges work harder. 

For example, in France, daily electricity demand rose by almost 20% during a two-week heatwave in June 2026. 

This often leads to an increase in power prices, as generation strains and demand rises, putting a premium on electricity. 

Below, Carbon Brief – amid a slew of misleading claims – explains how key power sources cope with extreme heat. 

• Nuclear
• Gas
• Wind
• Solar
• Storage

Nuclear

The impact of heatwaves on nuclear power generation is well documented, with a plethora of headlines often accompanying record temperatures in nations that rely on the technology. 

For example, around 70% of electricity is generated by nuclear power in France, leaving it vulnerable to the impacts of heatwaves. 

During the July 2026 heatwave, three of France’s 57 nuclear reactors had to shut down. Generation was reduced at another seven, causing an almost 9% dip in power production. 

(This is a well-known phenomenon – France has seen reductions in nuclear generation due to heatwaves in 2003, 2006, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2022 and 2025.)

A similar story is true across various countries in Europe. Low river levels on the Danube have hit nuclear reactors in Romania and Hungary this summer, while a Swiss nuclear reactor shuttered due to high river temperatures.

It is nuclear plants using river water to cool their reactors that are most significantly affected by heatwaves and droughts. These make up 14% of the global fleet. Around 60 of the world’s 440 reactors use once-through river cooling, of which eight are in France.

Nuclear power plants use fission to generate heat, which is used to create steam. This steam spins the blades of a turbine that is connected to a generator to create electricity. 

Following this process, the water is cooled to allow it to be recycled back through the system as steam again. Nuclear power plants generally use water from rivers or the sea to help cool and condense this steam. 

As such, when water temperatures rise due to a heatwave, their cooling capacity is reduced and the overall efficiency of the nuclear power station is affected. Similarly, if there is less water available due to drought, they cannot be cooled as effectively. 

Michael Tadrous, a researcher at McMaster University’s DeGroote School of Business in Canada, tells Carbon Brief that the “impact [of heatwaves] is real, but it is far smaller than many headlines suggest” and that the “effect [of heat] is gradual”. He adds: 

“Warmer intake water makes a reactor slightly less efficient. [But] even an extreme 15C rise in cooling-water temperature would cost a large reactor only about 6% of its output. 

“The real pressure point during a heatwave is usually legal rather than technical. Plants return their cooling water to the river a few degrees warmer than they drew it and the law limits how warm that water may be in order to protect aquatic life.” 

Henry Preston, a spokesperson for the industry body the World Nuclear Association, adds that reactor shutdowns due to high river temperatures are “typically an automatic response to comply with regulations to protect local ecosystems, rather than a technological fault”.

He notes that in some extreme heatwaves, these regulations are waived given the “essential need for electricity and taking a proportional approach to climate risks”. 

While nuclear power plants can generally return to standard operation quickly if they have been affected by high water temperatures, drought can cause a more significant impact. 

Preston tells Carbon Brief: 

“In contrast to high river temperatures, which can quickly return to acceptable levels once a heatwave passes, low river levels can persist for much longer, if drought conditions continue. As a result, low water levels may have a more prolonged impact on plant operations than elevated water temperatures.”

This is set to be the case in the current European drought, where multiple reactors in Hungary and Romania have shut down or reduced their output due to low water levels.

The Danube is not expected to return to normal water levels for “days or even weeks as no significant rainfall is forecast”, reported the Associated Press on 3 August 2026. It said this was “push[ing] some countries in eastern Europe to the brink of energy emergency”.

According to data company Montel, on Monday 3 August, around 2.44GW or 40% of south-east Europe’s nuclear capacity was offline due to drought in the Danube.

Similarly, on Monday, as much as 12% of the French nuclear fleet was offline due to heat-related reasons, although that had been expected to drop to 7% by Tuesday. 

While heatwaves and drought can produce significant short-term effects, their impact on the availability of nuclear power across a full year is generally minimal. 

On average, heatwaves cut annual nuclear generation by 0.6% between 2003 and 2022, according to a recent study that Tadrous co-authored.

He adds that, across the whole period studied, the only time a national nuclear fleet lost more than 1% of its nuclear power over a year to heat- and drought-related curtailments was France in 2003, which lost 1.3%. 

According to an article in Forbes, for every additional degree Celsius in temperature, a nuclear power plant loses around 0.6-1% in cycle efficiency. 

However, nuclear power’s exposure to heatwaves can prove particularly challenging given the large capacity of individual plants and the central role it plays in certain nations’ energy systems. 

For example, Romania’s only nuclear power plant, at Cernavodă, is responsible for 20% of the nation’s electricity generation. Therefore, the impact of low river levels in the Danube is having a particularly acute impact on Romania’s energy security.

To minimise the impact on both energy security and costs, governments and nuclear companies are looking at a range of solutions to adapt to heatwaves.

For example, French nuclear-plant operator EDF is looking at additional cooling towers for its sites that are the most exposed to the impacts of a warming climate, reported Bloomberg recently.

Tadrous says the nuclear power industry is already adapting to heatwaves that are “more frequent and more intense”, adding:  

“France’s river-cooled fleet lost 5.5 terawatt hours (TWh) of output to the 2003 heatwave. By 2022, one of the most severe heat-and-drought summers on record, losses had fallen to 0.5TWh, a reduction of roughly 90%, as utilities upgraded cooling systems, refined operating practices and scheduled maintenance around periods of extreme heat.” 

There remain challenges for adapting nuclear power – and the wider electricity systems in which it sits – to heatwaves. However, Tadrous notes that this is less about “technical feasibility than of economic prioritisation and timely implementation”. 

Gas

Gas power plants have a reputation for being reliable and able to switch on at any moment, sometimes referred to as “firm, dispatchable” capacity.

Yet, as a type of thermal generation, they are subject to many of the same stresses during heatwaves as nuclear power. 

An article by the science advocacy organisation Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) notes that the “purported ability of gas plants to be available at all times to generate electricity, particularly when the grid needs it most, is increasingly under scrutiny” due to heatwaves.

As a matter of physics, the efficiency of gas power plants drops as temperatures rise. At 40C, a gas-fired power station can expect its capacity to be reduced by 13% and its efficiency by 7% compared to when running at 20C, according to Electric Insights. 

Dr Iain Staffell, associate professor in sustainable energy at Imperial College London, tells Carbon Brief: 

“Simple gas turbines (the kind which turn on rapidly to meet peak demand) are hit harder [than solar, for example], with their power output falling by about 10% per 10C.”

(He adds that the transmission system struggles more than electricity generation during high temperature. Power line capacity can fall by up to 16% for a 10C rise in temperature, according to a report for the UK government.)

Several types of gas power plants require cooling as part of their process, including gas steam and combined cycle turbines (CCGTs). They usually rely on nearby bodies of water for this. 

Additionally, as the UCS article notes, hot air has a lower density than cool air. As gas CCGTs rely on burning a mix of gas and air, this lower density means air takes up more space, leaving less room for gas. 

Ultimately, this means that when the air is hot, gas power plants cannot generate as much electricity as normal. 

These effects are not just theoretical. For example, across two nights in August 2020, there were rolling blackouts in California, US, as demand exceeded supply amid a heatwave.

While a number of factors contributed to the blackouts, gas plants made up around 79% of the capacity that dropped off the system on 14 August and a similar share the following day.

Amid record-breaking heat in summer 2026, gas power plants have also seen their capacity cut in the UK, France and other countries.

Dr Staffell adds that gas power stations are thought of as “reliable, because of the way we use them” in the UK. 

Whereas  wind and solar are usually used to the maximum extent possible, he says that on average, only around 40% of the gas fleet is in use at any one time. As such, even if the efficiency of one gas power plant is affected by high temperatures, “we have a lot of slack to call on more of them to run”. He adds: 

“The issue is less that they can’t deliver, but we have to pay through the nose to persuade more to turn on at critical times, adding to sky-high energy bills.”

Wind

The impact of heatwaves on wind generation is less direct than for other technologies. 

However, wind speeds often drop during heatwaves, which tend to build during periods of sustained high pressure into extreme events such as “heat domes”. 

Dr Staffell, explains to Carbon Brief: 

“The very hottest days tend to create heat domes with very low wind speeds, which directly reduces the output that windfarms can produce. Air is also less dense the hotter it is, so it carries less energy within it, so there is a double impact on wind turbines.”

High temperatures are linked to low wind speeds across three-quarters of the globe, according to one recent study, looking at data from 1980 to 2023. 

The study found that, as a result, across Australia, northern Asia and Europe, wind power decreased by an average of 30-50% during heatwaves. 

This is inconsistent globally, however, with the Amazon, the Great Plains in North America and central Africa actually seeing a slight increase in wind during high temperatures.

As such, while the effect of heatwaves on wind generation is less direct than other generation technologies, it can have a significant impact. 

In the UK in June 2026, wind generation fell to around 15% of the electricity mix due to low wind speeds, from an average for the month of about 30%, according to Octopus. 

Low wind generation during this period was a key feature of the strain on the grid experienced during this time – in particular, as demand rose amid record-high temperatures. 

On Wednesday 24 June, for example, the National Electricity System Operator (Neso) had to pay high prices to balance supply and demand. This included paying as much as £1,400 a megawatt-hour to secure around 1.7 gigawatts (GW) of imported power, nearly 20 times the average price for electricity in June 2025. 

A Neso spokesperson said in a statement: “This is due to the impact of extremely high temperatures affecting Great Britain and the continent, and low wind.”

While reduced wind generation is common during a heatwave, it is not generally viewed as a concern for energy system operators. This is due to wind following well-established seasonal patterns – it generates less power in summer than in winter – as well as being complementary to other renewable technologies, such as solar. 

Dr Chris Rosslowe, senior energy analyst for Europe at Ember, tells Carbon Brief: 

“Power systems are less reliant on wind power in the summer months and its lower-than-average output is already expected and planned for. Heatwaves often bring still, but clear conditions, highlighting the benefit of wind and solar as a duo – poor conditions for one often mean good conditions for the other.”

As such, wind power remains one of very few technologies considered “resilient” to heatwaves by the UK government.

However, this did not stop the anti-renewables Daily Mail from attempting to blame the technology for strain on the UK grid on 24 June 2026, despite its own article acknowledging that gas plants had also been forced to cut their output by 2.5GW on the day.

Solar

Another common claim seen in the media is that solar “struggles” during heatwaves, with high temperatures pushing down the technology’s efficiency. 

Yet heatwaves tend to coincide with long, cloudless days, when solar generation is reliably above average – despite the impact of high temperatures.

While hot weather does reduce the efficiency of solar cells, the effect is relatively modest – and widely understood. Each 1C of temperature rise reduces output by around 0.4-0.5%, according to a recent study. 

This is in line with an evidence review for the UK government, which suggests the performance of solar panels falls by 0.2-0.5% for every degree of heat above 25C.

Generally, however, this effect is easily outweighed by high sunlight hours during hot spells. For example, across a four-day heatwave in the UK in June 2026, solar generated 484 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity – a 46% increase over the same period a week earlier.  

Similar generation highs were seen across Europe, amid record temperatures and dangerous heat that was pushing people towards the use of air conditioning. 

Solar generated a record 52TWh across the EU in June 2026, beating the high set just the month before of 47TWh. 

In fact, solar – especially when combined with battery storage – is a complementary technology to air conditioning, given their similar seasonal patterns. Over the course of the day, demand from air conditioning and generation from solar also marry up well. 

Dr Rosslowe says: 

“Solar, battery storage and air conditioning are a highly complementary trio of technologies during heatwaves. There’s a high overlap between solar output and demand from AC.”

For example, on the hottest day of the year so far in Great Britain (the island grid serving England, Wales and Scotland), on 26 June 2026, solar surged to 13.9GW in the middle of the afternoon, as demand also hit its highest point, as shown in the chart below. 

Generation on the 26 June in Great Britain, highlighting the match between solar power (yellow) and the demand profile for electricity (blue line). Source: Neso.

Across June 2026, homes with solar panels generated the equivalent of five hours of “free” self-supplied air conditioning, according to recent analysis.  

Despite the impact of heat on solar efficiency, the technology is, therefore, well placed to bolster energy systems during heatwaves. 

Indeed, as Dr Rosslowe tells Carbon Brief, solar suppresses power prices during daylight hours. But, even though it is predictable, there are still challenges around managing the dip in solar generation as the evening sets in. This is often compounded because it coincides with the usual evening increase in demand. 

Dr Rosslowe explains: 

“Problems arise when the sun goes down, but demand for cooling remains high. In the early evening hours, when gas power typically ramps up to replace solar, we have seen prices spike to extreme levels, made worse by high international gas prices.”

Storage

Energy storage systems are increasingly key to managing the impact of heatwaves on electricity systems. 

The category of technologies is dominated by batteries, with more than 108GW of battery storage added in 2025 alone, according to the International Energy Agency. 

Already, batteries have been used to take advantage of surges in solar generation during the daytime, amid high summer temperatures. 

This is particularly useful to meet evening peaks in electricity demand, as well as the need for air conditioning overnight when temperatures do not fall. 

In a statement, Pawel Czyzak , Europe programme director at Ember, said: 

“Heatwaves will not go away – they will only get more severe in the future. Solutions that can help mitigate their impacts, such as battery storage, interconnection, demand flexibility and dynamic tariffs, should become a key part of grid planning and power market design.”

However, batteries are not without their challenges during heatwaves. Battery performance also decreases as temperatures exceed their optimal level. 

Additionally, high temperatures can accelerate the degradation of components in lithium-ion batteries, which dominate the sector. 

Analysis for the UK government found that prolonged operation at very high temperatures could – at least in theory – “overwhelm” the cooling systems built into batteries, “posing risks such as thermal runaway and explosions”. However, it noted that in practice, these cooling systems are “routinely” designed to handle temperatures of up to 45C.

(The analysis added that “developers and manufacturers have a strong understanding of risk to [battery storage systems] from high temperature and mitigate risks through regular maintenance, design improvements, and passive cooling strategies”.)

Other storage technologies also face challenges during heatwaves. For example, pumped hydro storage can be significantly impacted by drought.

Australia – which now has 4.3GW of large-scale battery storage capacity – saw its fleet of batteries and pumped hydro storage tested at the beginning of 2026, amid the most severe heatwave in years. 

Temperatures above 40C posed “challenges” to storage technologies, reported Energy Storage News, which explained that their output and operating times were reduced by the increased need for their cooling systems to operate. 

Despite these challenges, the use of battery storage is helping to spread the ability of renewables to meet electricity demand during heatwaves. For example, a combination of solar and battery energy storage “kept the lights on” in California amid a heatwave in 2024. 

By storing abundant power during the day, it can be discharged during evening peaks, helping to minimise generation constraints and thereby keep power prices down. 

Dr Rosslowe says: 

“The extreme price spikes that we witness during heatwaves are a blaring signal for more power system flexibility. That could come from battery storage, demand response, or increased interconnection between countries or regions.”

Related Chart: The rise, fall and rise of UK nuclear power over eight decades 13.06.2025 Energy UK spending review 2025: Key climate and energy announcements 11.06.2025 Nuclear Q&A: How China is using nuclear power to reduce its carbon emissions 14.08.2023 China policy The Carbon Brief Profile: Russia 22.09.2022 Coal

The post Factcheck: How nuclear, gas, wind and solar power are affected during heatwaves appeared first on Carbon Brief.

In Pakistan’s Punjab province, the Chief Minister and Prime Minister recently inaugurated the Punjab Agriculture, Food and Drug Authority (PAFDA). The new agency is designed to bring food, agriculture, and drug testing under a single regulatory framework to strengthen food safety and export compliance.

One in five people in Pakistan suffer from foodborne illnesses every year, according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). This is twice the global average and leads to an estimated productivity loss of US$1.7 billion annually. A paper published in Legal Research & Analysis points to fragmented regulatory authority as one major barrier to an effective food safety system in Pakistan. In Punjab, officials hope coordinated action under the new agency will make the food supply safer.

PAFDA is currently working to merge 23 laboratories, including food, agriculture, and health departments. They plan to collaborate closely with farmers, industry, and regulators to ensure services are practical and responsive. This includes expanding food and drug testing in areas where capabilities have been limited.

“Our focus will continue to remain on investing in our people,” Talat Naseer Pasha, Director General of PAFDA, tells Food Tank. “Our aim is to support compliance, not simply enforce standards.”

PAFDA aims to separate testing from enforcement, and to bring scientific analysis and conformance functions under one independent institution equipped with modern technology, says Pasha. They hope this transition will help them build regulatory credibility, improve compliance with international accreditation standards, and create shared infrastructure that supports exports and public health.

Pasha says that most exporters currently rely on advanced food, agriculture, and pharmaceutical testing outside of Pakistan. By making accredited testing available domestically, the agency aims to help businesses verify compliance with international standards more quickly and affordably. Local testing may also contribute to more effective policy. He believes the agency’s move towards an integrated regulatory framework can serve as a model for other regions in Pakistan.

For food safety and agricultural regulation, “PAFDA represents an important step towards an evidence-based system that can strengthen public health protection, improve regulatory enforcement, and promote confidence in trade,” Aleena Kokab, Senior Microbiology Scientist at at the agency, tells Food Tank.

The Food Testing Lab will analyze food products for safety, quality, and nutritional content to support accurate labeling and regulatory compliance. The Agriculture Testing Lab will assess agricultural inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides, and water quality. It will also conduct pesticide residue testing in food and water to strengthen food safety and support compliance with export standards.

A study in the journal Water finds that pesticide residues were detected in nearly all water samples collected from 15 of Punjab’s districts. The labs will examine pesticides and other contamination risks at various points in the food system, from farm inputs to end products.

As PAFDA builds its scientific workforce in Lahore, the agency is investing in a hostel for women scientists who are relocating or commuting from outside the city. “This is an important step in improving diversity and inclusion and in building the next generation of scientific leadership,” Pasha says.

Women make up around 70 percent of the agency’s scientists, and the hostel is intended to reduce barriers related to travel and housing.

“In localities like mine, talented women often step back from science due to safety concerns, long commutes, and lack of supportive living facilities,” PAFDA Food Scientist Manahil Zafar, who lives in a small district 350 kilometers outside of Lahore, tells Food Tank. “PAFDA’s women scientists’ hostel breaks these barriers by providing a secure environment where women can focus on their careers without compromise.”

Alongside the establishment of PAFDA comes the launch of Punjab’s Agriculture Lab on Wheels initiative, which will deploy mobile labs across 15 districts to provide real-time soil and water analyses. The Agriculture Department of the Government of Punjab hopes that bringing testing closer to farmers will allow them to quickly assess soil fertility and water quality, receive more timely guidance to inform crop-planning, and improve agricultural productivity.

The program will be supported by a central monitoring control room and 100 container-based facilitation centers staffed with advisers and equipped with digital tools for farmers. Mobile units will provide initial screening in rural areas, while PAFDA conducts confirmatory testing.

“PAFDA is still a young institution, but it represents a long-term investment in strengthening Punjab’s food and agriculture systems,” Pasha says. “Our hope is that it will contribute to safer food, stronger farmer livelihoods, and greater confidence in the quality of what Punjab produces.”

Articles like the one you just read are made possible through the generosity of Food Tank members. Can we please count on you to be part of our growing movement? Become a member today by clicking here.

Photo courtesy of PAFDA

The post Pakistan’s Punjab Province Advances Food, Agriculture, and Drug Testing Under New Regulatory Authority appeared first on Food Tank.

We’re excited to announce that applications are now open for our November 16-21, 2026 National Native Community Organizing Training.

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Our national trainings are for Native organizers and Tribal leaders committed to engaging our communities with organizing strategies guided by Inter-Tribal Indigenous values. The week-long gathering focuses on sharpening community organizing skills to build effective grassroots campaigns and movements to build power in our Native Nations and Native Communities. We will also focus on the changing political landscape and how we meet the challenges and opportunities before us.

The training will be held in Federal Way, Washington State. The cost of housing, transportation, and most meals will be covered by Native Organizers Alliance.

We are now accepting applications.

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Participants spend time together envisioning how to mobilize community action to make change possible and strengthen sovereignty and self-determination.

• We explore how we have traditionally and historically used our traditional values to organize in our communities and how we continue to do so today.
• We discuss building political power for change and how Tribal and urban communities can challenge the power that denies our peoples’ inherent and sovereign rights.
• We share organizing tools and share knowledge gained from our teachings and life experiences.
• We learn from our rich history of Inter-Tribal cultural values of building community by using interactive sessions that are grounded in collective learning. And folks go home energized with a shared theory of change rooted in traditional Inter-Tribal Indigenous community building.

Our week-long, in-person Native Organizing Trainings are a part of our year-round efforts of growing a powerful ecosystem of Native leaders who will continue to build our collective community power.

We encourage Tribal and Native community leaders in rural, reservation, or urban communities — and the staff of Native nonprofits, service agencies, and Tribal entities — to apply.

Native Organizers Alliance is pleased to cover the cost of housing, transportation, and most meals. Participants are responsible for additional costs. Organizations, Tribal governments, groups, or individuals who can contribute to defraying the costs of this training will provide the opportunity to go beyond 30 participants.

The post Apply Now: National Organizing Training appeared first on Native Organizers Alliance.

Western Watersheds Project, represented by the Western Environmental Law Center, on Wednesday filed a complaint in Montana Federal District Court against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for revoking American Prairie’s permits to graze bison on public lands in Montana. Revoking the permits conflicts with the plain language of controlling laws, and contradicts BLM’s own prior decisions.

In 2022, after completing a multi-year review finding that bison grazing is permissible on public lands and in fact would likely be better for prairie grasslands than cattle, BLM authorized American Prairie to graze bison on allotments. However, in a politically motivated reversal, over the course of just five months in 2026, BLM rescinded the bison permits under a brand new theory that a livestock owner must be a “production-oriented” entity, and did so without defining what that means.

“BLM’s new interpretation has no basis in law and contradicts its own findings,” said Pete Frost, attorney at the Western Environmental Law Center. “BLM reversed itself due to politics, not the law, nor the need to restore prairie grasslands.”

In fact, BLM’s 2026 decision directly contradicts its position in 2022, that reading a “production” requirement into federal law “would read words and requirements” into the law that don’t exist. Instead, at that time, BLM stated it can “issue permits to any stock owner.”

The BLM’s 2022 decision found that privately-owned bison are domestic livestock under the Taylor Grazing Act, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, and the Multiple-Use Sustained Yield Act—a conclusion consistent with Montana state law, which treats American Prairie’s bison herd as “livestock,” by levying taxes and imposing disease testing requirements. Indeed, the U.S. Forest Service defines livestock under the Taylor Grazing Act as “…animals of any kind kept or raised for [any] use or pleasure.”

American Prairie has provided thousands of pounds of bison meat to area food banks and supplies bison to other entities for food, commercial, and cultural purposes.

“The Trump administration is kicking our national mammal off of public lands, and trying to replace bison—an ecological keystone of prairie ecosystems—with cattle which causes a huge amount of ecological damage,” said Erik Molvar, executive director of Western Watersheds Project. “We’re heading to court to support the replacement of unnatural herds of cattle with the natural large herbivore of the Plains, the American bison. While we prefer bison to be managed as wild, free-ranging conservation herds, like American Prairie’s bison, if you’re going to raise an animal as livestock, bison are so much more ecologically appropriate than cattle that it would be a beneficial idea to convert all cattle grazing permits West-wide to bison.”

The political origins of the agency’s reversal are clear. As reported by Public Domain, the 2022 bison grazing decision was appealed by ranching groups represented by Karen Budd-Falen—now one of the highest ranking officials at the Department of Interior. Further, Sec. Burgum personally intervened to direct BLM to reconsider, ultimately producing the outcome Budd-Falen’s former clients sought.

Western Environmental Law Center and Western Watersheds Project pursued all available administrative remedies, and filed suit as a last resort to prevent the unlawful eviction of bison from these public lands.

Contacts:
Pete Frost, Western Environmental Law Center, 541-543-0018, frost@westernlaw.org
Erik Molvar, Western Watersheds Project, 307-399-7910, emolvar@westernwatersheds.org

The post Conservation groups to challenge Trump administration’s move to banish bison from public lands appeared first on Western Environmental Law Center.

Across the American West, working lands sit at the center of some of conservation’s greatest challenges. Grasslands face drought, floods, fragmented habitat, invasive species, wildfire, and...

Climate change is an extremely politically polarized topic in the United States, with Democrats generally concerned about human-caused climate change and Republicans more skeptical. But these familiar broad strokes hide both differences within parties and bipartisan agreement—as well as a broad, messy middle, according to a new analysis based on two decades of polling data.

“Americans are deeply divided on climate change, but the real story is much deeper than a simple Democrat-Republican split,” says Mayank Kejriwal of the Information Science Institute at the University of Southern California.

Past studies have provided hints that other socio-demographic factors such as income, age, and education may also shape climate attitudes. But the new study employs a methodology that enabled researchers to assess a comprehensive set of factors at the same time to see where the fault lines truly lie.

Kejriwal and USC engineering graduate student Yidan Sun analyzed responses to an annual Gallup Poll survey that queried U.S. adults on various environmental topics from 2000 to 2020. They assessed climate attitudes and looked at how support for 14 different climate-related policy proposals varies both within and across parties.

As expected, party identification is the strongest factor influencing climate beliefs, the researchers found. The partisan divide on climate has long existed, but it deepened after Donald Trump was first elected to the presidency in 2016.  In the 2017 poll, climate concern jumped among Democrats and Independents like a collective eyebrow raise, while remaining at a flat, relatively low level among Republicans.

But people aren’t just blue or red, they’re individuals. And their opinions are shaped by more than just their political party, the researchers discovered when they dug into the influence of age, income, ethnicity, and education.

 

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“Climate opinion is polarized, but it is not uniform, and understanding those internal differences matters if we want to understand where public support for climate policy may grow,” says Kejriwal.

The biggest divide within the Republican party is by age. Republicans under age 35 are more likely than older Republicans to support renewable energy and oppose fossil fuel development.

Yet the devil is still in the details: Young Republicans might support renewable energy development, but they tend to oppose a carbon tax right along with their elder partisans. Meanwhile, young Democrats show high support for both policies.

In general, Republicans tend to be more open to technology- and market-oriented climate policies, suggesting that future climate communication efforts could frame policies in these terms rather than emphasizing regulations that are unpopular among conservatives.

Among Democrats, education is the most important factor shaping climate attitudes, with higher levels of education linked to greater support for various climate policies. Education moves Republican beliefs to a much lesser degree.

“One striking result was how consistently policy support depended on the design of the policy, not just on general concern about climate change,” says Kejriwal.

For example, policies to limit household energy use are unpopular across the political spectrum, in line with people’s general preference for climate carrots over sticks. And some policies like government investment in solar energy and development of alternative fuels enjoy broad support regardless of political party.

Another pattern seen across the political spectrum is inconsistency: a substantial proportion of Democrats (26.8%), Independents (42.6%), and Republicans (36.3%) alike fall into what the researchers call the “mixed middle”—people with complicated, sometimes contradictory views on climate, rather than pure skepticism or concern. Messages that link climate policies to economic or public health benefits could help sway this group, the researchers suggest.

Source: Sun Y. and M. Kejriwal. “Modeling complex associations between socio-demographic factors and climate policies using Conditional Inference Trees.” Humanities and Social Sciences Communications 2026.

Image: © Anthropocene Magazine (based on Adobe Stock/Julia)

The Cobbs Creek Park Ambassadors are a grassroots and volunteer-run West Philadelphia organization dedicated to transforming our local green spaces. Founded in 2018 by neighbors Rich Guffanti and Andrew Wheeler, the initiative grew from weekly cleanups into a dedicated network of volunteers who adopt and maintain specific sections of Cobbs Creek Park.

We’re proud to say that in 2026 alone, we’ve hosted 50+ cleanups, removed over 6,000 pounds of trash, and engaged hundreds of volunteers. Beyond picking up litter, we work to cultivate community pride and environmental stewardship. Through events like our annual Summer Festival, we bring hundreds of neighbors together to celebrate the park.

We invite you to join us in keeping Cobbs Creek Park beautiful because our park thrives when our community steps up to care for it. Ambassadors host cleanups every Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday, and volunteers are welcome to attend whenever they can.

Upcoming cleanups:

*please use the registration form found on our website and monitor your inbox in case of a cancellation

• Wednesday, August 5, 8-9 a.m. at S 61st and Baltimore Ave.
• Sunday, August 9, 2-4 p.m. at Little Whitby Meadow
• Wednesday, August 12, 8-9 a.m. at S. 61st and Baltimore
• Sunday, August 16, 2-4 p.m. at Woodland Ave. and Cobbs Creek Parkway
• Wednesday, August 19, 8-9 a.m. at S. 61st & Baltimore
• Saturday, August 22, 9-11 a.m. at Mt. Moriah Cemetery and Cobbs Creek Parkway
• Sunday, August 23, 2-4 p.m. at Catharine St. and S. 63rd St.
• Wednesday, August 26, 8-9 a.m. at S. 61st and Baltimore

Please use the registration form found on our website and monitor your inbox in case of a cancellation

Additionally, our 4th annual Summer Festival is coming up on September 12 at Whitby Park from 11a.m. – 3 p.m. Join us for a bounce house, horseback riding, fishing lessons, a birding walk, free watermelon, and more! Thank you to Clean Air Council and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation for financial support of this work. 

Email cobbscreekparkambassadors@gmail.com with questions or to join our listserv. Find us at cobbscreekparkambassadors.org and @cobbscreekambassadors.

The transition away from diesel in remote communities is widely supported and becoming increasingly more urgent in the face of growing energy needs, climate change, and volatile and rising costs. In recognition of these challenges, considerable...

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As governments at the UN seek ways to prevent the US from unilaterally mining the deep ocean floor for critical minerals, the latest UN seabed talks launched “long” processes that would seek to challenge Washington’s approach.

The International Seabed Authority (ISA), the UN body regulating the deep ocean floor, held annual three-week talks ending on Friday. The discussions come as the US – which is not a member country – moved forward in its unilateral deep-sea mining push, and as mining companies applying for American permits fought back a UN inquiry into their behaviour.

The Trump administration and mining frontrunners, among them Canadian firm The Metals Company (TMC), want to mine a huge area of the Pacific Ocean known as the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. Although it holds deposits of mangenese, nickel and rare earths – key for military use and clean energy components – it is also an unexplored ecosystem with thousands of unnamed species.

The meeting, held at ISA headquarters in Jamaica’s capital Kingston, ended with no immediate breakthroughs. Instead, it started long processes that seeks to hold mining firms and the US accountable, according to ocean governance expert Pradeep Singh, from the Oceano Azul Foundation.

“It shows some level of maturity as well as understanding from member states that this is a long process that requires policy discussions that might not be resolved by acting right away without considerate thought” he said.

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Countries have begun consultations on whether to request an advisory opinion from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), which would seek to clarify the legality of the US-issued permits in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone and whether other states should recognise them.

The ISA will also move forward with an inquiry into its contractors, including The Metals Company (TMC). The company tried to prevent this inquiry by suing the ISA at the ITLOS for allegedly acting in bad faith, an argument that the world’s top maritime court rejected.

ISA secretary-general Letícia Carvalho said in her closing remarks that the past year “presented both significant challenges and noteworthy achievements”. Earlier in the talks, she said the agency’s role is “more important than ever” and that resources in the deep seabed are “the common heritage of humankind”.

Advisory opinion on legality of US mining push

Towards the end of the ISA assembly, Carvalho submitted a draft text to countries proposing they request an advisory opinion from the ITLOS, clarifying the legality of the US deep-sea mining push.

Brazilian oceanographer Letícia Carvalho is secretary-general of the ISA (Photo: IISD ENB/Andrés Felipe Carvajal Gómez)

The initiative proposed questions to the court, including whether international law backs the principle that the deep seafloor cannot be appropriated by any single country, and whether other governments should avoid recognising any similar effort.

Several nations including the African group, New Zealand, Norway, France, Singapore, Jamaica and Canada argued that while they could back such a proposal, it required careful legal consideration. Some regretted that the note was not sent earlier in the talks.

Russia and China backed the request for an advisory opinion. The Chinese delegation suggested asking whether unilateral actions by non-member states – such as the US – would break international law, and what the consequences of such actions would be.

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By the end of the talks there was no consensus on this proposal. The assembly decided instead to hold consultations led by Malta, and decide on whether to request an advisory opinion by next year’s meeting.

“They are not rushing into this,” Singh explained. “It also seems that they are not feeling immediately threatened at this stage, and that there are still some things that could be done to find a way forward and perhaps persuading the US from acting unilaterally.”

Growing call for deep-sea mining moratorium

Activists were also critical of the ISA deciding to renew one of TMC’s exploration licenses in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, which expired last month. Haldis Helle, ocean campaigner at Greenpeace, said this was a “reward” for TMC despite “their clear disregard for international law”.

But Singh argued that the renewal was “not an endorsement to act unilaterally” but an effort from countries to make the “whole decision-making including the inquiry process robust”, without showing signs of any bias.

Instead, campaigners highlighted a growing call for a moratorium on deep-sea mining, which seeks to halt all activity until enough scientific evidence can show that it is not harmful for marine wildlife. The initiative is now backed by 46 governments, with Mauritius, Mozamboque and the Republic of Congo becoming the latest supporters.

“The lesson from the past three weeks is clear: only a pause on exploitation, now backed by over a quarter of ISA member states, can deliver the legal certainty this moment demands and rein in a situation being driven out of control by a handful of reckless companies“, said Sofia Tsenikli, global campaign director at the Deep-Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC).

The post Governments weigh response to US going alone on deep-sea mining appeared first on Climate Home News.

Headline News:

• “Tiger Shark Caught Off Massachusetts Could Be Sign Of Warming Waters” • Two brothers from Massachusetts caught a juvenile tiger shark from a beach on Cape Cod. The five-foot shark is far more common in such waters as the Caribbean. Scientists said its appearance off Cape Cod is an indicator that climate change is warming the sea. [ABC News]

Tiger shark (Albert kok, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped)

• “Extreme Heat Grips Southern Europe As France Shuts Nuclear Reactors” • Emergency services in Southern Europe are operating at peak capacity as severe heat and environmental hazards continue to trigger crises in Spain, France, and Greece. Extreme high temperatures in France forced nuclear operator EDF to take major reactors offline. [Euronews]
• “RWE Signs Google Oklahoma Solar PPA” • RWE and Google have signed a 15-year power purchase agreement covering the full output from the 155-MW Crooked Creek Solar project in McCurtain County, Oklahoma. RWE said that construction is scheduled to begin later this year, with commercial operation expected in 2028. [reNews]
• “England And Wales Record Driest July On Record, Met Office Says” • England and Wales recorded their driest July on record this year, according to the UK’s national weather agency. England had 10% of its usual rainfall. Southern England experienced its “driest month ever recorded” in July, the Met Office said, noting that records date back to 1836. [Euronews]
• “China Sets Green Power Usage Benchmarks” • China took a landmark step in its green transition with its first mandatory minimum usage target for renewable energy. Experts say the move represents a paradigm shift from supply-driven expansion to demand-led integration in the country’s pursuit of its carbon peak and neutrality goals. [China Daily Global Edition]

For more news, please visit geoharvey – Daily News about Energy and Climate Change.