Carbon Brief
Q&A: How climate change and war threaten Iran’s water supplies
Iran is facing a compounding water crisis driven by climate change, regional conflict, and decades of mismanagement, according to experts. Shrinking precipitation, rising temperatures, and the disruption of transboundary water flows from neighboring conflict zones are straining supplies for millions. The stakes are high: water scarcity on this scale threatens agricultural collapse, mass displacement, and broader regional instability.
Read article →Inside Climate News
China’s Clean Energy Push Has Made It Less Vulnerable to Energy Shocks, Including the Iran War
China's aggressive bet on clean energy over the past two decades has transformed it into one of the world's most energy-resilient major economies. By building out massive domestic renewable capacity, Beijing has significantly reduced its exposure to the oil price volatility and supply disruptions that geopolitical conflicts like the Iran war typically trigger. For energy-importing rivals, the contrast underscores just how much strategic advantage clean energy independence can confer.
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Mongabay
At least 50 people killed and 125 others reported missing after landslides sweep Ethiopia
Devastating landslides have killed at least 50 people and left 125 missing across three districts in southern Ethiopia's Gamo Zone after a week of sustained heavy rainfall. The disaster struck the Gacho Baba, Kamba, and Bonke districts, compounding the region's vulnerability to seasonal weather extremes. Rescue and recovery efforts are underway as authorities work to account for those still missing.
Read article →Guardian Environment
Mining’s toxic timebomb: dams full of poisonous waste are dotted around the world. What happens when they burst?
Tailings dams — earthen barriers holding back toxic mining waste — are failing with increasing frequency as extreme weather events expose their structural vulnerabilities, with a 2025 breach in Zambia releasing over 50 million cubic litres of acid and heavy metals into a major river system. These failures carry catastrophic consequences for freshwater ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. With hundreds of such structures aging and under-regulated across the globe, the industry faces growing pressure to confront what critics call a slow-motion environmental crisis.
Read article →Carbon Brief
Q&A: Why does gas set the price of electricity – and is there an alternative?
Rising gas prices driven by the Iran conflict are sending electricity bills soaring, exposing a structural flaw in how power markets are priced. Under the current "marginal pricing" system, the most expensive fuel used to generate electricity — typically gas — sets the rate for all power, including cheap renewables. Reforming this model has become an urgent policy question, with alternatives gaining traction as volatile fossil fuel markets continue to punish consumers.
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