Europe – Page 3 – Desdemona Despair

Change Over Time in (a) US Life Expectancy and (b) US Life Expectancy Gap and Rank Relative to Populous Countries (Population>500000), 1950-2021. Phase 1=1950–1954; phase 2=1955–1973; phase 3=1974–1982; phase 4=1983–2009; phase 5=2010–2019; phase 6=2020–2021. Bars plot the difference in life expectancy between the United States and the populous country (population >500000) with the highest life expectancy in the given year. The country with the highest life expectancy was Norway in 1950–1962 and 1976–1977, Sweden in 1963 and 1965–1975, the Netherlands in 1964, Japan in 1978–2007, Macao in 2008–2010, and Japan in 2011–2021. The line graph plots US rank relative to other populous countries, with higher rank denoting lower US life expectancy. Source: Author’s calculations based on UN data. Graphic: Steven H. Woolf MD, MPH, 2023 / AJPH

June 3, 2023

U.S. has been falling behind on life expectancy for decades – Between 1933 and 2021, 56 countries achieved higher life expectancy than U.S. – “Americans are sicker and die earlier than people in dozens of countries”

By Olivia Trani 1 June 2023 (VCU) – When it comes to public health, the United States is at a disadvantage compared with other developed countries. Americans experience more illness, have less access to health care and pay more for health services than citizens in other high-income countries. Americans also die earlier – and have been doing so […]

The Butachimie chemical plant sits in Chalempe, eastern France, Tuesday, 8 November 2022. Photo: Jean-Francois Badias / AP Photo

May 30, 2023

Cracks emerging in Europe’s united front to battle climate change – “You can’t say I support the Green Deal, but not the ambition to restore nature. It’s not ‘à la carte menu.’”

By Samuel Petrequin 27 May 2023 BRUSSELS (AP News) – The European Union has been at the forefront of the fight against climate change and the protection of nature for years. But it now finds itself under pressure from within to pause new environmental efforts amid fears they will hurt the economy. With the next European […]

Maps showing the global distribution of animals with decreasing (top), stable (middle) or increasing (bottom) populations combining data from all taxonomic groups. Numbers of species were counted within each 1° × 1° grid cell covering the globe, using a Behrmann’s equal area projection. Graphic: Finn, et al., 2023 / Biological Reviews

May 29, 2023

Global loss of biodiversity is significantly more alarming than previously suspected – “Almost half of animals on Earth for which assessments are available are currently declining. To make matters worse, many of the animal species that are thought to be non-threatened from extinction are in fact progressively declining”

23 May 2023 (Queen’s University Belfast) – A new study led by researchers from Queen’s University Belfast has shown that the global loss of biodiversity caused by human industrialisation is significantly more alarming than previously thought. The global-scale analysis has been published in the journal Biological Reviews. The study looked at changes in the population densities […]

Satellite view of the Iberian Peninsula on 11 May 2023 and 11 May 2023. These images, acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite, show where green vegetation in May 2022 turned brown by May 2023. The sparse rainfall further parched soils that were already unusually dry in 2022. According to a recent report by Copernicus Climate Change Services, soil moisture across all of Europe in 2022 was the second lowest in the past 50 years. Unseasonable heat exacerbated the prolonged drought. On 26 April 2023, hot air from North Africa swept over southern Spain and pushed the temperature at the Córdoba airport to 38.8°C (101.8°F), the highest April temperature recorded in continental Spain. Photo: Allison Nussbaum / NASA Earth Observatory

May 27, 2023

Drought in Spain spurs largest-ever claim for agricultural insurance – 2023 sees the highest number of fires and the most extensive burned area since 2006

By Akankshita Mukhopadhyay 26 May 2023 (Reinsurance News) – The drought in Spain would be the largest claim ever paid by the Spanish agricultural insurance, according to professional services firm Aon. Agroseguro, the leading agricultural insurance provider in Spain, is bracing for an unprecedented payout of over €300 million ($325 million) in compensations due to […]

A water meter stands in dry wetland in Donana natural park, southwest Spain as unprecedented drought hits the nation in 2023. Photo: Bernat Armangue / Africanews / AP Photo

May 27, 2023

“Murderers” and “criminals”: Meteorologists face unprecedented harassment from conspiracy theorists – “It was one of the hardest experiences in social media in my life”

By Laura Paddison 27 May 2023 (CNN) – “Murderers.” “Criminals.” “We are watching you.” These are just a handful of the threats and abuse sent to meteorologists at AEMET, Spain’s national weather agency, in recent months. They come via social media, its website, letters, phone calls – even in the form of graffiti sprayed across […]

During the last week of April 2023, temperatures in parts of Spain, Portugal, Morocco and Algeria were up to 20°C higher than normal for the time of year. Graphic: Met Office

May 21, 2023

Western Mediterranean heatwave rare even for today’s warmed world – Extreme April 2023 heat in Spain, Portugal, Morocco, and Algeria almost impossible without climate change

7 May 2023 (Climate Centre) – A rapid study of last month’s extraordinary heatwave in the western Mediterranean by World Weather Attribution scientists says that while Europe and North Africa have experienced more extreme heat in recent years, the April heatwave was “so extreme that it is also a rare event in today’s warmer climate”. During the […]

These two images show shrinking water reservoirs in the Catalonia region of Spain on 21 Mar 2021 and 12 Apr 2023. Photo: Allison Nussbaum / NASA

May 9, 2023

Spain records hottest and driest April on record – “This is the worst period that we have had for the last 100 years”

MADRID, 8 May 2023 (AP) – Drought-stricken Spain says last month was the hottest and driest April since records began in 1961. The State Meteorological Agency, known by the Spanish acronym AEMET, said Monday the average daily temperature in April was 14.9 degrees Celsius (58.8 Fahrenheit), that is 3 degrees Celsius above the average. AEMET […]

State of press freedom worldwide 2013-2023. Changes in 180 countries and territories evaluated by RSF since 2013. In 2023, the situation was “very serious” in 31 countries, “difficult” in 42, “problematic” in 55, and “good” or “satisfactory” in 52 countries. In other words, the environment for journalism was “bad” in seven out of ten countries, and satisfactory in only three out of ten. Graphic: RSF

May 9, 2023

2023 World Press Freedom Index – Journalism threatened by fake content industry – The environment for journalism is “bad” in seven out of ten countries, satisfactory in only three out of ten

3 May 2023 (RSF) – According to the 2023 World Press Freedom Index – which evaluates the environment for journalism in 180 countries and territories and is published on World Press Freedom Day (3 May) – the situation is “very serious” in 31 countries, “difficult” in 42, “problematic” in 55, and “good” or “satisfactory” in 52 countries. In […]

Global annual mean temperature anomalies with respect to pre-industrial conditions (1850-1900) for six global temperature data sets (1850-2022). Graphic: WMO

April 30, 2023

WMO annual report highlights continuous advance of climate change – “While greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise and the climate continues to change, populations worldwide continue to be gravely impacted by extreme weather and climate events”

Geneva, 21 April 2023 (WMO) – From mountain peaks to ocean depths, climate change continued its advance in 2022, according to the annual report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Droughts, floods, and heatwaves affected communities on every continent and cost many billions of dollars. Antarctic sea ice fell to its lowest extent on record […]

Quantities of cocaine seized in selected markets, in comparison with global cocaine manufacture, 2005-2021. Graphic: UNODC

March 30, 2023

Cocaine production is at its highest level on record, UN says – Coca cultivation soared 35 per cent from 2020 to 2021, a record high and the sharpest year-to-year increase since 2016

By Natasha Turak 16 March 2023 (CNBC) – Cocaine production is at its highest level on record, with demand rebounding post-pandemic and new trafficking hubs emerging, a report from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime found. The U.N.’s Global Report on Cocaine 2023 says new hubs for trafficking in the multibillion-dollar industry have […]