VEN Blog

Scientists call for ‘major initiative’ to study whether geoengineering should be used on glaciers Report finds many questions remain around technology to address glacier melting and sea-level rise Date: July 11, 2024 Source: University of Chicago in Science Daily Summary: Scientists have released a landmark report on glacial geoengineering — an emerging field studying whether […]

After a slow start, Australians are about to be spoilt for EV choice. We look at the lay of the land – on batteries, charging, price and the secondhand market by Royce Kurmelovs Sat 6 Jul 2024  in The Guardian Whether it’s the space-age sound some models make when they accelerate, or the smug sense […]

Experts warn that Tesla batteries sold in Australia have a key function which could allow users to sell power back to the grid disabled.  The Guardian Exclusive: Experts say Tesla should be excluded from rebates for disabling function on its batteries in Australia that would let users alter power usage remotely Peter Hannam Sun 7 […]

in Pearls and Irritations By Ken Russell Jul 6, 2024 If tidal waves of science and activism along with increasing extreme weather events aren’t enough to turn things around, where can we turn to? From the late 1970’s ExxonMobil, the world’s biggest oil company was aware of the connection between fossil fuels, climate change, and […]

A loophole in how car emissions will be counted could let manufacturers rush high-polluting vehicles into Australia without penalty. The New Vehicle Efficiency Standard loophole could see emissions targets for the first three years undermined. Posted Tue 2 Jul 2024 in abc news What’s next? The government says it wants to address the loophole, but conceded […]

Californians will likely see $10B climate bond on November ballot BY SHARON UDASIN – 07/01/24 1:59 PM IN The Hill The California Legislature came to an agreement Sunday on the terms of a $10 billion climate resilience bond that it expects to appear on the November 2024 ballot. The anticipated inclusion of such a bond […]

in The Conversation July 1 Bhavna Middha ARC DECRA and Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University Ralph Horne Associate Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research & Innovation, College of Design & Social Context, RMIT University Every year, the Plastic Free July campaign asks us to refuse single-use plastic. The idea is that making a […]

By Mike Foley in The AGE July 4, 2024 Bob Hawke said in 1988 that Australia should become “the clever country”. Judging by the current state of the gas market, the nation is a long way from that goal and about to reap the results of some truly dumb decisions. Australia looks set to import […]

The Danish government says it hopes it will inspire other countries to follow suit. SBS news from Reuters Denmark, a major pork and dairy exporter, will introduce a tax on livestock carbon dioxide emissions from 2030, making it the first country to do so. The tax was first proposed in February by government-commissioned experts, to […]

Figure 2. climate litigation filings and decisions against US and European corporations. from Report Impacts of climate litigation on firm value. London School of Economics & Political Science, Houghton St, London, WC2A 2AE. Misato Sato Glen Gostlow Catherine Higham Joana Setzer Frank Venmans† About 230 cases filed against corporations and trade associations around world since […]

Image: Heat Pumps get their name from how they work, not what they do. So they heat OR cool based on the desired temperature you want to achieve on your thermostat. Sierra Club Erica Smithwick: A practical, financially helpful way to fight climate change ERICA SMITHWICK Special to the Post-Gazette AUG 2, 2023 This summer, […]

First sod turned in plan to build networks of dozens of small batteries on regional grids Sophie Vorrath Jun 28, 2024 Renew Economy Developers have broken ground on plans to build, own, and operate dozens of 5MW, two-hour batteries on distribution networks in regional Australia, in a bid to fill a “crucial gap” between home […]

The thin, three-layer material not only reflects heat from the sun, but also heat radiating from buildings and pavements By Anthropocene Team June 20, 2024 As record-high temperatures rack the globe, rethinking how we stay cool is increasingly important. Energy-hungry air-conditioning is already contributing to global warming, and its use will only go up as […]

In National Indigenous Times by David Prestipino – June 26, 2024 A new report released Tuesday has found the transition to clean energy will require the development of a skilled workforce – creating new career opportunities for Indigenous people. The First Nations Clean Energy Network report ‘Powering First Nations Jobs in Clean Energy’ launched with […]

from Climate Council DOWNLOAD THE ‘TOO CLOSE TO HOME’ REPORT HERE Key Findings 1. Communities and first responders are struggling to cope with increasingly frequent climate-fuelled disasters, with assistance from the Australian Government sought by states and territories 226 times since 2019/20. Financial assistance has been called for and provided by the Australian Government in […]

A majority of survey respondents said they support a quick transition away from fossil fuels. Published 20 June 2024 5:27pm Source: AFP sbs news Four in every five people want their country to strengthen its commitments to addressing climate change, according to a global poll of 75,000 participants. The background: The survey by the United […]

Climate victims file criminal case against bosses of oil firm Total Case alleges French company’s exploitation of fossil fuel contributed to deaths of victims in extreme weather disasters Damian CarringtonEnvironment editor The Guardian Tues 21 May A criminal case has been filed against the CEO and directors of the French oil company TotalEnergies, alleging its […]

In the Washington Post Democracy Dies in Darkness Several federal agencies are working to safeguard research, including climate science, from future political meddling. By Maxine Joselow and  Scott Dance Updated June 12, 2024 When the union representing nearly half of Environmental Protection Agency employees approved a new contract with the federal government this month, it […]

Fig. 1: Schematic illustration of the polymer-based micro-photonic multi-function metamaterials (PMMM) for integrated light, thermal and wettability management. From: Radiative cooling and indoor light management enabled by a transparent and self-cleaning polymer-based metamaterial Scientists have devised a window coating that looks like frosted glass but is brighter, provides cooling to reduce reliance on air-conditioning, and […]

in Pearls and Irritations By Mark Beeson Jun 14, 2024 As the climate crisis accelerates and intensifies, it’s easy to despair about the possibility of any country taking the lead in ‘saving the planet’. And yet Xi Jinping at least says encouraging things. Should we take China seriously? A decade or so ago I wrote […]