agriculture – Desdemona Despair

Prevalence of undernourishment (left axis) Number of undernourished (right axis), 2005-2023. After rising sharply from 2019 to 2021, the proportion of the world population facing hunger persisted at virtually the same level for three consecutive years, with the latest estimates indicating a global PoU of 9.1 percent in 2023. In terms of population, between about 713 and 757 million people (8.9 and 9.4 percent of the global population, respectively) were estimated to be undernourished in 2023. Considering the mid-range estimate (733 million), about 152 million more people may have faced hunger in 2023 compared to 2019. Graphic: FAO

October 19, 2024

Hunger numbers stubbornly high for three consecutive years as global crises deepen: UN report – The world has been set back 15 years, with levels of undernourishment comparable to those in 2008-2009 – 1 in 11 people worldwide faced hunger in 2023, 1 in 5 in Africa

30 September 2024 (World Bank) – Domestic food price inflation remains high in many low- and middle-income countries. Inflation higher than 5 percent is experienced in 77.3 percent of low-income countries (18.2 percentage points higher since the last Update on June 27, 2024), 54.3 percent of lower-middle-income countries (8.7 percentage points lower), 44% of upper-middle-income […]

The global Living Planet Index, 1970-2020. The LPI is based on 34,836 monitored populations of 5,495 vertebrate species. The white line represents the index value, and the shaded areas represent the statistical uncertainty surrounding the value. Graphic: WWF / ZSL

October 19, 2024

Global biodiversity report shows “catastrophic decline” in wildlife populations – “In just my lifetime, 50 years, we’ve seen a decline of 73 percent in the average size of these wildlife populations”

By Molly McCrea 18 October 2024 (CBS News) – A shocking new report on global biodiversity is detailing what it calls “a catastrophic decline” in wildlife populations ahead of a major international conference on biodiversity. On Monday, 21 October 2024, the United Nations will convene a two-week conference in Cali, Colombia called COP16. On the agenda […]

Houses are submerged in flood after typhoon Yagi hit Yen Bai province, northwestern Vietnam on Sunday, 8 September 2024. Photo: Do Tuan Anh / VNA / AP

September 8, 2024

Typhoon Yagi kills at least 14 in Vietnam as officials warn of heavy rain and flooding risk – more than 3 million people without electricity in northern Vietnam – One of the most powerful typhoons to hit the region over the last decade

By Aniruddha Ghosal 8 September 2024 HANOI, Vietnam (AP) – At least 14 people have died and 176 others injured in Vietnam after Typhoon Yagi slammed the country’s north, state media said Sunday, as officials warned of heavy downpours despite its waning power. Described by Vietnamese officials as one of the most powerful typhoons to […]

Production of selected salts in Mt/year for (a) the world and (b) the United States. Graphic: Graphic: Kaushal, et al., 2023 / Nature Reviews Earth and Environment

July 28, 2024

Humans are disrupting natural “salt cycle” on a global scale

31 October 2023 (University of Maryland) – The influx of salt in streams and rivers is an ‘existential threat,’ according to a research team led by a UMD geologist. The planet’s demand for salt comes at a cost to the environment and human health, according to a new scientific review led by University of Maryland Geology Professor Sujay Kaushal. Published […]

The Little Sioux River floods homes in Smithland, Iowa, on 25 June 2024. Photo: Zach Boyden-Holmes / The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK

July 7, 2024

Flooding across the U.S. Midwest may have wiped out up to 1 million acres of crops, new estimates show – 7 million acres accumulated more than 6 inches of rain, which caused standing water in fields

By Tyne Morgan 3 July 2024 (Farm Journal) – Portions of Iowa, South Dakota, and Nebraska are grappling with the aftermath of flooding, while continuing to fight a swollen river. The Mississippi River is facing flood threats, too. The high waters and flooding are suffocating fields, causing crop damage to key growing areas across the […]

Map showing reduction of stored groundwater in the U.S. Southwest, April 2002 - September 2023. Gravity measurements from the GRACE series of satellites show that the decline in water levels in the Great Basin region from April 2002 to September 2023 has most severely affected portions of southern California (indicated in red). Record snowfall in recent years has not been enough to offset long-term drying conditions and increasing groundwater demands in the U.S. Southwest. Graphic: Hall, et al., 2024 / Geophysical Research Letters

July 5, 2024

NASA satellites find record snow didn’t offset Southwest U.S. groundwater loss – “In years like the 2022-23 winter, I expected that the record amount of snowfall would really help to replenish the groundwater supply. But overall, the decline continued.”

By James R. Riordon 17 June 2024 (NASA GSFC) – Record snowfall in recent years has not been enough to offset long-term drying conditions and increasing groundwater demands in the U.S. Southwest, according to a new analysis of NASA satellite data [Snowfall Replenishes Groundwater Loss in the Great Basin of the Western United States, but […]

Satellite view of severe flooding on the Rufiji River in Tanzania on 2 May 2024. Photo: NASA

May 28, 2024

Climate change and rapid urbanization worsened the impact of East African rains, scientists say – “We’re likely to see this kind of intensive rainfall happening this season going into the future”

By Carlos Mureithi 23 May 2024 NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) – The impact of the calamitous rains that struck East Africa from March to May was intensified by a mix of climate change and rapid growth of urban areas, an international team of climate scientists said in a study published Friday. The findings come from World Weather Attribution, […]

Map showing April 2024 mean temperature in South Asia. The blue outline shows the region with the most extreme heat. Graphic: World Weather Attribution

May 27, 2024

Sweltering heat across Asia in 2024 was 45 times more likely because of climate change, study finds – “Heat is now among the foremost risks in terms of personal health for millions across the world as well as nations’ economic development”

By Sibi Arasu 14 May 2024 BENGALURU, India (AP) – Sizzling heat across Asia and the Middle East in late April that echoed last year’s destructive swelter was made 45 times more likely in some parts of the continent because of human-caused climate change, a study Tuesday found. Scorching temperatures were felt across large swaths of Asia, […]

Responses of 380 climate experts to the question, “How high above pre-industrial levels do you think average global temperature will rise between now and 2100? Almost 80 percent of the respondents, all from the authoritative Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), foresee at least 2.5°C of global heating, while almost half anticipate at least 3°C (5.4°F). Only 6 percent thought the internationally agreed 1.5°C (2.7°F) limit would be met. Graphic: The Guardian

May 27, 2024

World’s top climate scientists expect global heating to blast past 1.5C target – “I could not feel greater despair over the future”

By Damian Carrington 8 May 2024 (The Guardian) – Hundreds of the world’s leading climate scientists expect global temperatures to rise to at least 2.5C (4.5F) above preindustrial levels this century, blasting past internationally agreed targets and causing catastrophic consequences for humanity and the planet, an exclusive Guardian survey has revealed. Almost 80% of the […]

Hectares of primary forest lost each year in Indonesia, 2001-2023. For a second year, Indonesia saw an uptick in forest losses. Between 2002 and 2023, the country lost 11 percent of its primary forest — that is, mature natural forests that have not been touched in recent years. Data: Global Forest Watch. Graphic: M.K. Wildeman / AP

May 1, 2024

Deforestation in Indonesia spiked in 2023, but resources analyst sees better overall trend

By Victoria Milko 28 April 2024 JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) – From trees felled in protected national parks to massive swaths of jungle razed for palm oil and paper plantations, Indonesia had a 27% uptick in primary forest loss in 2023 from the previous year, according to a World Resources Institute analysis of deforestation data. But […]