Environment – UN News Centre

Women from around the world are being given a more prominent role in the fight against climate change, thanks to the efforts of the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Farmers in Malawi who are struggling with the dual threats of climate change and an economic crisis worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic, are learning how to more accurately predict the weather and prepare for the eventuality of natural disasters, thanks to a project supported by the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Extreme weather and climate events have increased in frequency, intensity and severity as a result of climate change, hitting vulnerable communities disproportionately hard, a new UN report has revealed, calling for greater investment in effective early warning systems. 

With nations striving to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and its devastating impacts, efforts must focus on decarbonizing the global economy and building a more inclusive and resilient future, the UN Secretary-General said on Monday.

The first 20 years of this century have seen a “staggering” rise in climate disasters, UN researchers said on Monday, while also maintaining that “almost all nations” have failed to prevent a “wave of death and illness” caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

An ambitious plan to make one of the world’s largest and most complex railway networks a net zero carbon emitter by 2030 is moving full steam ahead, although without the steam, thanks, in part, to support from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).

Catastrophic flooding and rising food and health costs in Sudan, have driven up the number of people in need, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Friday. 

Here's our special LIVE coverage of the UN Summit on Biodiversity, where activists and senior UN officials are calling for urgent action on biodiversity, to help ensure sustainable development for all.  

Torrential rains and flooding across South Sudan have created the threat of “catastrophic” levels of hunger and left hundreds of thousands homeless, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday. 

Live coverage of the High-Level UN Climate Change Roundtable, featuring UN chief António Guterres, designed to rally momentum for more ambitious action to limit global warming and ensure sustainable post-pandemic recovery plans.    Highlights UN chief warns that 'the world has a fever and is burning up'  Watch the roundtable live on UN Web TV UK and UN to co-host December climate event.  UN climate envoy: 'the entire financial sector needs to adapt'  

With the COVID-19 pandemic having disrupted plans to hold the annual international UN climate meeting - known as the COP - this year, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom have announced that they will instead co-host a “landmark global event” on 12 December, the fifth anniversary of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.

An emphasis on sustainable development and fighting climate change will benefit countries around the world as they recover from the unprecedented economic and social impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, says the UN Development Programme, (UNDP).

To help prevent conflicts and at the same time protect the planet, “we all must tackle environmental degradation”, a top UN official told the Security Council on Thursday.

The United Nations commemorated the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, on Wednesday, recognizing the success of landmark global agreements in helping restore the protective layer around Earth. 

The northern hemisphere experienced its warmest August ever, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Tuesday, amid searing conditions that have contributed to devastating wildfires on the west coast of the United States.

The continued degradation of the environment is increasing the likelihood of diseases spreading from animals to humans, warns a UN report on biodiversity, released on Tuesday.

75 years on from the founding of the UN, young people are being enlisted to share their visions of a better planet, and help decide the next chapter of the Organization. 

Concentrations of greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere are at record levels, and emissions that saw a temporary decline due to the pandemic are heading towards pre-COVID levels, while global temperatures continue to hit new highs, according to a major new UN report.

Young women are fighting interconnected battles for “environmental, economic and racial justice”, the deputy UN chief said in a discussion on Thursday.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called on governments to incorporate “meaningful” climate action in all aspects of recovery from the global pandemic. 

Taking specific steps to transform national food supply systems can help countries achieve climate goals and limit global warming to 1.5 degree Celsius, a new joint UN report on climate action has found. 

Hurricane Laura is by far the most intense and dangerous hurricane to hit the United States this season, the UN weather agency said on Friday, the day after it made landfall on the US Gulf Coast.  

India has a crucial role to play in promoting clean energy and climate action as the world looks to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Friday. 

“All indications” suggest that the extreme temperature reading of 54.4 degrees Celsius recorded in California’s Death Valley on Sunday, is legitimate, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Tuesday.

The rehabilitation and replanting of mangrove forests in Cuba’s coastal regions is helping to protect the lives of people living on the Caribbean island, and reduce the effects of climate change, thanks to a UN Development Programme project. 

Commemorating International Youth Day, top UN officials have called on leaders around the world to “do everything possible” to enable young people to reach their fullest potential.

In Uruguay, thousands of families earn a precarious livelihood making bricks, using traditional methods that are often inefficient and harmful to the environment. A UN project, in collaboration with the Uruguayan government, aims to make the industry less polluting, whilst preserving jobs for the many artisans who depend on it. 

An 18-year-old environmental campaigner from the United States has told UN News how she wants to “turn apathetic people into climate activists”. Sophia Kianni, whose family originally comes from Iran, is one of seven young people from across the world who have been selected to participate in the UN Secretary-General’s Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change. The group which was launched at the end of the July aims to engage young people in “an open and transparent dialogue” about climate issues.

The fight against plastic pollution is being hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, as the use of disposable masks, gloves and other protective equipment soars, but UN agencies and partners insist that, if effective measures are put into place, the amount of plastics discarded every year can be significantly cut, or even eliminated.

Thousands of refugees and migrants in eastern and western Africa, are dying while others face harrowing abuse in their attempts to reach the continent’s Mediterranean coast in search of a better life, a joint UN/Danish Refugee Council report said on Wednesday.