Grist

The fossil fuel industry is launching legal battles against sustainable investing. Meanwhile, financial institutions are backing away from ESG goals. (Via The Examination) https://lnkd.in/gm6stcjn

In the lead-up to Inauguration Day, all six of the US’ largest banks backed away from a UN-sponsored climate initiative amid attacks from conservative lawmakers and regulators. https://lnkd.in/gUMicCQV

ICYMI: Without the climate agency NOAA, your local weather forecasts wouldn’t be as reliable, and the impacts of extreme weather on a less prepared public could be devastating. https://lnkd.in/eZ4Mc2cB

A study published recently makes the case that extreme heat is aging millions of Americans more quickly than their counterparts in cooler climates. The impact of chronic exposure to high temperatures, researchers found, is equivalent to the effect of habitual smoking on cellular aging. Exposure to above-average heat has serious short-and long-term health repercussions. People may experience heat-related illness, such as dehydration and fainting, or sustain heat stroke — the most serious form of heat-related illness that can lead to death. Over time, heat exposure can also exacerbate existing chronic conditions like kidney and cardiovascular disease, and raise a person’s risk of mental health issues and dementia. People living in places where temperatures are at or above 90 degrees F for half of the year have experienced up to 14 months more biological aging compared to people living in areas with fewer than 10 days of temperatures at or above 90 degrees. https://lnkd.in/gWfYW97W

Approximately 3,400 U.S. Forest Service employees were laid off as part of the Trump administration’s cost-cutting efforts. They were dismissed on February 14, a day known as the 'Valentine’s Day Massacre' for its mass layoffs. The Forest Service, responsible for maintaining 193 million acres of land, was struggling even before these layoffs. A long-standing understaffing issue, exacerbated by a Biden-era hiring freeze, had already left the agency stretched thin. With increasing responsibilities in wildfire prevention, hurricane recovery, and environmental management, fewer workers meant growing challenges in maintaining national forests and grasslands. Experts warn that the loss of experienced professionals could mark a turning point for public lands, weakening conservation efforts and reducing the agency’s ability to respond to climate-related disasters. https://lnkd.in/dPKxuFEh

A game-changing climate rule is on the chopping block—could this be the beginning of the end for U.S. climate regulations? Here's what you need to know. https://lnkd.in/gXNBJVan

Droughts are getting worse. Fog-farming could be a cheap solution. So why hasn't it taken off?

HBO’s “White Lotus” is putting Thailand’s beauty on your screen — but what happens when TV turns paradise into a tourist trap? Thailand has experienced this before, and it didn’t go so well. Back in 2000, when the movie “The Beach" hit theaters, tourists flooded Thailand’s Maya Bay. Trash piled up, coral reefs died, and wildlife vanished. The damage got so bad the government shut the beach down in 2018. This year’s “White Lotus” resort is on Koh Samui, an island with 630 hotels and a long tourism history — it’s better equipped. But both spots are facing climate pressures, like record sea temperatures that bleached coral and killed marine life last year. Still, Thailand is betting big on tourism. The government offered generous tax breaks to bring “White Lotus” to the island, hoping it will pay off. But as Maya Bay showed, more tourists can mean more problems. Will Thailand get it right this time? Read more: https://lnkd.in/g7sZQvU6

President Donald Trump signed an executive order recently to end the federal procurement of paper straws. The order, which claims that paper straws are “nonfunctional” and says it wants to end the “forced use” of them, immediately undoes part of a Biden-era initiative to eliminate single-use plastics, including straws, in all government operations by 2035. In terms of actually curbing or exacerbating plastic pollution, any policy that only targets straws is mostly symbolic: Of the 8 million tons of plastic waste that reaches the world’s oceans annually, straws make up just 0.025 percent, according to National Geographic. While it’s unclear whether Trump will try to roll back restrictions on other types of single-use plastic, his administration has so far been extremely supportive of fossil fuel interests, which donated more than $75 million to his 2024 presidential campaign and stand to benefit from uninhibited plastic production. https://lnkd.in/gwcC34AM

Edit: the Trump administration reversed course on this this week so no longer looking for folks who were fired from EIS. Still always open to speaking with anyone with knowledge of changes happening within EIS or CDC more broadly! If you were hired to work for the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Unit and were fired today I am eager to speak with you for a story. Can be on background. Signal: zoya.teirstein58