Even before his call for a net zero ‘reset’ there had been criticism of ex-PM’s lucrative links with fossil fuel nations amid banks of bougainvillaea and trailing jasmine green lawns and air-conditioned courtyards the surrounding desert is kept at bay by hidden sprinklers and the chaotic poverty of the rest of Egypt by high walls and discreet security “a serious threat to sensible climate policy” voters feel they’re being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal,” he wrote “Political leaders by and large know that the debate has become irrational for fear of being accused of being ‘climate deniers’.” the policy director for the Grantham Research Institute at the London School of Economics was scathing: “This report provides weak analysis and the wrong solutions It fails to recognise that the longer it takes to reach net zero emissions in the UK and around the world the more that households and businesses will suffer from growing impacts of climate change.” Climate activists protest outside the Summit on the Future of Energy Security at Lancaster House in London last month Photograph: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Rex/ShutterstockShaun Spiers the executive director of the Green Alliance thinktank warned: “His report suggests that campaigners have played their part and now need to move aside: combatting climate change is a job for the elites Nothing could be more calculated to play into the hands of the populists and undermine popular support for the changes we need to see.” The questions raised about Blair’s position on this critical subject stem in part from the position he seems to be adopting on the climate crisis which is increasingly out of step with the progressive voices who are battling a growing tide of net zero scepticism So what has Blair’s role been in recent climate summits Has he found his position moving more into alignment with the partner countries with whom he has worked steadily for the last couple of decades in particular the Middle East and Gulf states As the years have passed some climate change insiders have wondered whether keeping such company has affected Blair’s outlook “He’s swanning around in a particular circle of people who he knew from his time in power And of course those still in power are authoritarian and often fossil fuel nations – the democratic ones have been voted out So that is going to distort your view,” said one former Cop adviser he mentioned projects TBI was working on in Africa TBI has told the Guardian that Blair was not paid to advise Al Jaber before Cop28 though a spokesperson confirmed the UAE government (and the Saudi government) continued to be clients Several people who worked on Cop28 have said the two talked at many stages of the summit’s preparations though the details of what they discussed are unknown As one person who worked in the Cop28 coordinating team said in the early stages of preparation in early 2023: “Nothing goes out from Dr Sultan [as Al Jaber is known to his staff] without being passed by Blair.” Another person who worked in the presidency team said of that period: “There were calls The Dubai Cop ended with the agreement to “transition away from fossil fuels” the first time in three decades of climate talks that fossil fuels had been addressed head-on Yet some have said that though Al Jaber led the effort to incorporate that language it was simultaneously contrary to his own instincts and country’s interests Within weeks Al Jaber had announced expansion plans for Adnoc and Saudi Arabia – which had agreed with the consensus so as not to embarrass its “brother” nation by holding out – began attempting to unpick the resolution Senior Saudi ministers argued that the commitment to transition away from fossil fuels was merely one option among many all listed as members of the host country delegation) mention of the “transition away from fossil fuels” was sidelined in the talks and the final outcome failed to reaffirm it Many countries and climate experts said Azerbaijan’s presidency was to blame for the failure “The way they chose to organise the agenda ensured it could not be passed,” said one high-ranking diplomat The eclipse of the hard-fought commitment to phase out fossil fuels appears to mirror Blair’s own thinking he wrote: “Any strategy based on either phasing out fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail.” TBI has offered its unpaid services to Brazil, the host of this year’s Cop30 summit in November which hopes to reaffirm the fossil fuel phase-out commitment as well as encouraging all countries to come forward with fresh plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions TBI rejects the idea that Blair’s links in the Middle East have any influence on his thinking “Why don’t those who disagree with the argument TBI has set out in the paper confront the argument rather than try to impugn the motives of those who wrote it TBI works with oil-producing countries though not in respect of the oil sector and non-oil-producing countries including some acutely at risk from climate change,” a spokesperson said “The issue is how we deal with climate change And a policy based on the short-term ending of fossil fuels is simply not credible And many developing countries need both the energy and the income that comes from fossil fuels.” Free weekly newsletterThe planet's most important stories Get all the week's environment news - the good The spokesperson continued: “So we need a different and more effective policy mix Some of which will come from nature like afforestation and some from technologies like direct carbon capture smart grids and AI tools to enhance the deployment of renewables The Cop in Brazil exactly illustrates the point Brazil is a leader in the fight against climate change – with a lot of clean energy and the protection of the Amazon forest But it is also a major oil producer that over the next years will increase production Making sense of this is the practical policy challenge and if we don’t deal with it practically we just boost the case of those who say we should give up on the issue.” Nobody the Guardian spoke to suggested that Blair was seeking financial gain a repeated impression was that Blair was “out of touch” Taking in the view of the climate crisis from five-star hotels and air-conditioned towers in the Gulf petrostates rather than from the poor and vulnerable countries on the frontlines of the crisis Blair talking with the then UK PM on the sidelines of the Cop28 climate summit in Dubai in December 2023 Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PAHis influence and reach remains powerful could have been the real intended audience for his blistering remarks last week He is signalling to people who matter to him what a good place he is to go to for advice.” The emphasis of his work tends to be on new technologies such as nuclear fusion and carbon capture and storage and of technological solutions such as artificial intelligence and “disruptive invention laboratories” rather than renewables something highly criticised by campaigners “It might serve the interest of the Saudi groups that have given millions to the institute but not the rest of us,” said Ami McCarthy We need to do both – simultaneously and urgently.” failing to acknowledge that renewable energy and electric vehicles are much cheaper today “The report’s views on climate solutions are so out of date that if you found them in your fridge you’d want to dispose of them safely,” said McCarthy “And that’s exactly what the UK government should do with them.” said: “It reads like something from 15 or 20 years ago It does not reflect the reality of today.” arguing in the recent foreword: “Present policy solutions are inadequate and are distorting the debate into a quest for a climate platform that is unrealistic and therefore unworkable.” But this approach itself raises alarm bells. Todd Stern, a former US climate envoy, has spoken of his concerns at an increasing tendency among some senior businesspeople to advocate not against climate action but for a slowdown in the name of “pragmatism” He said: “We are slowed down by those who think of themselves as grownups and believe decarbonisation at the speed the climate community calls for is unrealistic It’s really hard [to push for more urgency] because those ‘grownups’ have a lot of influence.” Stern has said he was not taking aim at Blair but making a more general point So what will the impact of his argument be amid its clarifications of the “climate reset” report the thinktank has taken a keen interest in UK policy holding a series of meetings or seminar-type events with groups of new Labour MPs Blair has also held meetings with the prime minister and the arch Blairite Peter Mandelson is ambassador to the US Several Whitehall insiders have indicated that they see the influence of Blair in unfriendly briefings against Ed Miliband In front of political leaders and senior officials from 60 countries including the European Commission president the prime minister said that tackling the climate crisis was “in the DNA of my government to seize the opportunities [in low-carbon technology] to boost investment and an unmistakable vote of confidence in his energy secretary Starmer left the stage to applause and a beaming Miliband But just a few days later, Reform UK, whose leader, Nigel Farage, never fails to mention “net zero madness”, took a formerly safe seat from Labour once seen as the saviour of progressive politics is increasingly allied with some of its bitterest enemies By Aria JonesSouthern Dallas reporter Both candidates finished with around 40% of the vote Breaking NewsGet the latest breaking news from North Texas and beyond GoogleFacebookBy signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy Six candidates vied to represent District 8 with the departure of Mayor Pro Tem Tennell Atkins District 8 includes Red Bird, Highland Hills, and Kleberg-Rylie. The winner would have significant influence on the city’s future Atkins has represented the district for 16 of the past 18 years but has reached his term limit Atkins is among four council members who did not or could not seek reelection this year who has campaigned on continuing to focus on economic development Blair has pointed to her experience in zoning and land use promising to preserve neighborhood integrity attract jobs and fight environmental injustice She has cited her role while on the plan commission in pushing to stop incompatible industrial developments in areas like Floral Farms and updating the area’s land-use plans who represented the district from 2015 to 2017 said he wants to “keep the momentum going.” His campaign platform includes expanding affordable housing and supporting small businesses through grants and mentorship programs a new political action committee called Revitalize Dallas sent out mailers in support of Wilson The effort was funded by short-term homestay platform Airbnb which had contributed $500,000 toward the effort Airbnb has much at stake in an ongoing fight between the city and short-term rental operators The city reignited a legal fight it lost earlier this year against ordinances that all but banned short-term rentals in single-family neighborhoods longtime Highland Hills resident Subrina Lynn Brenham ran on a platform of economic diversification She has emphasized her decades of community service and experience as a business owner and previously ran for City Council in 2013 along with Ruth Steward and first-time candidate Eugene Ralph Peters has previously run for City Council. He also led an effort to recall Mayor Eric Johnson Peters has called for more community engagement and youth initiatives in his campaign materials transparency in city governance and protecting neighborhood residents from displacement The new City Council will craft the next city budget and deal with new charter-mandated rules that require more funding for police-related initiatives It will also have to address issues with rising property values and increasing park space affordable housing and failing city infrastructure are also issues the City Council will need to address The district is home to Paul Quinn College along with agricultural and undeveloped land the council member selected will oversee the sprawling area This reporting is part of the Future of North Texas a community-funded journalism initiative supported by the Commit Partnership the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and the University of Texas at Dallas The News retains full editorial control of this coverage Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information, people and ideas, Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information, news and insight around the world ColumnistUK Election Losses Pave the Way for a Tony Blair MasterclassThe former Labour leader has lessons for both his successor and the Tory Party chief Former Prime Minister Tony Blair has lessons that both Keir Starmer and Kemi Badenoch would be wise to pay attention to David Cameron chirpily dismissed Tony Blair with the quip "he was the future once." Yet in private the future Tory PM referred to the UK’s most charismatic postwar politician in awed tones as “the master.” Today Blair is once again signposting the future — and teaching a political masterclass that both Labour’s Keir Starmer and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch would be wise to heed Labour’s elder statesman placed his finger on one of the government’s sorest spots: Its accelerated net zero timetable the climate change secretary and a former party leader who failed the 2015 election test In his foreword to an eponymous Tony Blair Institute (TBI) report Blair called current climate policies “unrealistic and therefore unworkable.” The report condemns rapid phasing out of fossil fuels — a sacred cow of the environmentalist movement refusing new licenses for North Sea oil and gas exploration — as “doomed to failure.” This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page The TimesArnold Schwarzenegger vowed to “terminate pollution” as he promoted an international climate conference with the help of Sir Tony Blair and Danny DeVito The Hollywood action hero posted a picture of himself next to an outdoor swimming pool with the former prime minister and DeVito “I love bringing old friends together!” Schwarzenegger wrote “It was fantastic to see my dear friend Tony Blair and introduce him to my brother I can’t wait to talk about terminating pollution together in Vienna at the @schwarzeneggerclimate summit!” • Arnold Schwarzenegger adds muscle to climate change fight with Cop26 visit the former Republican governor of California set up his climate initiative after leaving office in 2011 and launched Please select what you would like included for printing: Copy the text below and then paste that into your favorite email application where her father was stationed before shipping off to Europe during World War II and graduated from Arthur Hill High School in 1961 Nancy went on to earn her degree from Albion College where she was an active member of Pi Beta Phi and met her future husband After Jerry worked up the courage to ask her to a fraternity party they began a relationship that blossomed into a lifelong partnership where they embraced the red rock landscapes Banking was both a legacy and a calling for Nancy Her father led the trust department at Michigan National Bank and Nancy grew up working in bank branches After taking time to focus on raising her children she resumed her career and rose to become Chief Operations Officer at both Capital City Bank and Guardian State Bank (later Community First Bank) So well respected was she in the banking industry that when one of her banks underwent a merger and she was laid off Nancy’s second great love was the P.E.O an international philanthropic organization supporting women’s education Nancy joined early in life and remained an active and devoted member throughout her years She served as President of four chapters—one in Michigan and three in Utah—and treasured the lifelong friendships and shared mission of the organization Nancy was an avid hiker who found joy and peace exploring Utah’s stunning landscapes She was also a lifelong reader with a deep love of books always eager to share recommendations or curl up with a novel Music held a special place in her heart—she began playing the piano as a child and continued throughout her life passed down through generations of her family Nancy will be remembered for her intelligence and the deep kindness she extended to all who knew her Nancy is survived by her loving husband of nearly 60 years Gerald “Jerry” Blair; her sons Steven Michael Blair (Rebecca) of Oregon and Thomas Martin Blair (Kim) of Utah; her sister Martha Mitola of Colorado; and five grandchildren: Alexander Blair and Kathryn Blair of Oregon Brandon Blair and his wife Audrey of Kansas and step-granddaughter Jacqueline Coleman of Washington She also leaves behind many dear friends and extended family members who will miss her deeply A celebration of Nancy’s life will be held in the summer Details will be shared with friends and family in the coming months In lieu of flowers, the family invites donations in Nancy’s memory to the Utah State Chapter P.E.O. Sisterhood, in honor of her generous and community-centered life. https://www.peoutah.org This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors Portland-based singer-songwriter Blair Borax is preparing the release of her upcoming album and recently shared its single “Gasoline Daydream” The track is a confident blend of indie folk rock with some awesome guitar work and energy that they describe as “Your new favorite road trip song Best listened to in the car with the windows down!.” There’s a bit of an early Big Thief quality to it a stomping rolling and confident indie rocker with a heartfelt delivery that hits all the right notes Enjoy a listen to “Gasoline Daydream” now below © 2008 – 2025 We All Want Someone To Shout For Columbia — Blair Oaks graduate Wil Libbert put up a strong outing for Missouri Baseball in Sunday's 4-2 loss to No The former Falcon got the start on the mound for the Tigers and pitched five innings with seven strikeouts Libbert allowed just one earned run against the top-ten-ranked Bulldogs Missouri was able to tie the game up in the eighth inning off of a sacrifice fly from Pierre Seals Georgia got two runs back in the top of the ninth inning off of a homerun from Slate Alford which ended up being the deciding play of the game Up next is rival Kansas at home on Tuesday Check out Sunday's highlights in the video above ‘The Long Walk’ – First Images from This September’s Stephen King Movie Religious Horror ‘Thorns’ Doesn’t Live Up to Its Inspirations [Review] ‘The Orphanage’ Star Belén Rueda Explores Maternal Fear in ‘Evil Dress’ Erotic Survival Thriller ‘Bone Lake’ Sets October Theatrical Release Date Five Horror Movies Inspired by Fairy Tales to Stream This Week The Final Games Begin in ‘Squid Game’ Season 3 Teaser ‘The Last of Us Part II’ Character Makes Violent Entrance in ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 Netflix Renews Apocalyptic Sci-Fi Series ‘The Eternaut’ for Season 2 ‘Revival’ Trailer Brings the Dead Back to Life in SYFY Comic Book Adaptation Series Check Into Shudder’s ‘Hell Motel’ from the Creators of ‘Slasher’ [Trailer] Director Haylie Duff’s ‘I Am Your Biggest Fan’ Is a Predictable But Watchable Kidnapping Thriller [Review] ‘Rosario’ Review – Family Curse Horror Story Gets Caught in Familiar Possession Trappings ‘The Horror at Highrook’ Nails the Cosmic Horror Blendo Games’ Immersive Sim ‘Skin Deep’ Is Hilarious and Exhilarating [Review] Let’s Cast a ‘White Lotus’ Season With Stephen King Characters Salem Horror Fest 2025 Opening Night Raises Hell with Ashley Laurence [Event Report] 6 Recent Free-to-Play Horror Games That’ll Give You Nightmares Supernatural Tactical Extraction Shooter ‘Nightmare Frontier’ Comes to Steam This Summer [Trailer] ‘Together’ Trailer – Alison Brie & Dave Franco’s Love and Flesh Get Corrupted a ‘FAITH’-Inspired Farming Sim Coming This October [Trailer] ‘Clock Tower’-Inspired Survival Horror Title ‘Midnight Special’ Launches May 8 on Steam [Trailer] Body Horror Sim ‘Zoochosis’ Announced for PlayStation Consoles [Trailer] The found footage immersion of The Blair Witch Project meets the scope and emotion of Stephen King in The October Film Haunt The 336-page debut novel from Shirley Jackson Award nominee Michael Wehunt will be published in hardcover, e-book, and audio book on September 30 via St a woman is pulled into a cult horror film that is determined to have a sequel Jorie Stroud was the rising star of the October Film Haunt – a trio of horror enthusiasts who camped out at the filming locations of their favorite scary movies sharing their love through their popular blog But after a night in the graveyard from Proof of Demons – perhaps the most chilling cult film ever made directed by the enigmatic Hélène Enriquez – everything unraveled Jorie has built an isolated life with her young son in Vermont truth-stretching Proof of Demons blog entry ― hysteria and the death of a young woman ― Jorie has put it all along with her intense love for the horror genre And the “Rickies” – Enriquez obsessives who would do anything for the reclusive director – begin to cross lines in shocking ways It seems Hélène Enriquez is making a new kind of sequel…and Jorie is her final girl As the dangers grow even more unexpected and strange Jorie must search for answers before the Proof of the movie’s title finds her and takes everything she loves This riveting and layered horror novel unleashes supernatural terror in a world where truth can be manipulated The October Film Haunt will shock and delight readers all the way to its breathless final page One of the best books I’ve read in years,” said Clown in a Cornfield author Adam Cesare and then ends with you and the book curled alone Wehunt’s prose is beautiful and his observations about horror film fandom and horror filmmaking… hit a little too close to home.” “Michael Wehunt’s rabbit punch of a novel is as beautifully written as it is affecting,” said A Head Full of Ghosts author Paul Tremblay “Cleverly deconstructs horror stories while at the same time constructing one that is so unique and steeped in 21st century paranoia and dread you won’t be able to read this alone at night.” “The written equivalent to the feeling you get when you’ve entered a space you hadn’t realized was occult truly occult,” said Bird Box author Josh Malerman not dissimilar to the whir of a VCR that should never have been plugged in to begin with.” The October Film Haunt is based on Wehunt’s short story October Film Haunt: Under the House from his 2016 collection Greener Pastures Indie filmmaker Onur Tukel (Summer of Blood, Catfight) turned an unproduced script into his first novel. Run Werewolf Run will be published on June 24 via Pitchstone Press Inspired by lycanthropic classics like An American Werewolf in London and The Howling as well as the literary works of Richard Yates the 488-page paperback features over 100 black-and-white illustrations by the author a father working his way through a midlife crisis When a charming stranger named Channing enters his life things will never be the same for poor Clifford blood-splattered adventure that jeopardizes everything Clifford holds dear “I’ve always loved this script,” said Tukel “It’s one of my favorite projects Covid complicated production for so many films in 2020 and I really wanted to bring this project to fruition Tukel hopes to eventually make the movie version as well By capitalising on new technological innovations her work provides radical-yet-practical solutions to reducing emissions and improving countries’ resilience to climate change Lindy worked alongside the minister for climate change in New Zealand For five years she was the chief advisor for climate change in the New Zealand Ministry for the Environment and she spent seven years advising on climate change and economic policy including in the New Zealand Treasury and as economic counsellor to the OECD People know that the current state of debate over climate change is riven with irrationality though most people will accept that climate change is a reality caused by human activity they’re turning away from the politics of the issue because they believe the proposed solutions are not founded on good policy voters feel they’re being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal Whatever the historical responsibility of the developed world for climate change those with even a cursory knowledge of the facts understand that in the future the major sources of pollution will come principally from the developing world there is an equal resentment when they’re told the investment is not available for the energy necessary for their development because it is not “green” that they have a right to develop and that those who have already developed using fossil fuels do not have the right to inhibit them from whatever is the most effective way of developing there has been a period where climate-change action and global agreements seemed to herald a new era; but that momentum has been followed – exacerbated by external shocks like Covid and the Ukraine war – by a backlash against such action which threatens to derail the whole agenda Activists shifted the political centre of gravity on climate change energy efficiency and commitment by countries to climate action because of the levels of growth and development present policy solutions are inadequate and are distorting the debate into a quest for a climate platform that is unrealistic and therefore unworkable attainable only through a shift from protest to pragmatic policy political leaders fear saying what many know to be true: the current approach isn’t working But they mustn’t be silent – there’s a new coalition to build; one that unites disillusioned activists with technologists and policymakers ready to act The following are facts that stand out in contradiction of the present policy approach Despite the past 15 years seeing an explosion in renewable energy and despite electric vehicles becoming the fastest-growing sector of the vehicle market production of fossil fuels and demand for them has risen in 2024 China initiated construction on 95 gigawatts of new coal-fired energy which is almost as much as the total current energy output from coal of all of Europe put together India recently announced they had reached the milestone of 1 billion tonnes of coal production in a single year Airline travel is set to double over the next 20 years urbanisation is expected to drive a 40 per cent increase in demand for steel and a 50 per cent increase in demand for cement – core inputs to development but materials with a significant emissions footprint Africa – at present responsible for just 4 per cent of global emissions – will see its population double in the next thirty years And though action by the developed world is still vital by 2030 almost two-thirds of global emissions will come from China Yet the global financial flows for renewable energy in the developing world have fallen and not risen in the past few years which mean that any strategy based on either “phasing out” fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail It is important to be clear where this argument leads None of this invalidates the inconvenient truth that the climate is changing and to our detriment – or that this is one of the fundamental challenges of our time Nor does it mean we shouldn’t continue to deploy renewable energy which is both necessary and cost effective But it does mean we need to alter where we put our focus and resources We need to recognise that without turning some of the emerging technologies into financially viable options This applies to everything from nuclear fusion to sustainable aviation fuel We should put carbon capture – directly removing carbon as well as capturing it at source – at the centre of the battle carbon capture is not commercially viable despite being technologically feasible – but policy The disdain for this technology in favour of the purist solution of stopping fossil-fuel production is totally misguided Nature-based solutions – principally afforestation – are the easiest way to capture carbon but there is no comprehensive plan as to how to encourage them or invest in them (Though these do not offer a permanent solution can turn forests from carbon sinks into carbon sources.) Nuclear power is going to be an essential part of the answer The confusion of this with nuclear weapons and consequently the irrational fear of it has led the world to an egregious policy error with many countries turning their back on it from the 1980s onwards when embracing it would have significantly changed the trajectory of global emissions The new generation of small modular reactors offers hope for the renaissance of nuclear power but it needs integrating into nations’ energy policy applied to energy efficiency and the better use of the energy grid is itself potentially revolutionary in reducing energy use Yet there is little time devoted at climate conferences to it Planning restrictions are a colossal inhibitor of clean energy growth Yet measures to change them and make the whole planning process simpler faster and more efficient are much less highlighted than the polarising and largely fruitless attempts to shame people for their consumption habits but much of it appears to be centred around placating campaigners through “green” initiatives that don’t move the needle rather than directed towards the technological innovations that really could We need a much greater emphasis on how we finance climate-change action including engaging politically to create the markets into which finance for proven renewable solutions can flow The carbon market will help here but has yet to fulfil its promise But it cannot be beyond the vast array of financial talent the world has at its disposal to devise that system so that it can deliver its full potential And adaptation to climate change must also move up the agenda because the impacts that are already locked in cannot all be mitigated in the time available But adaptation has always been the poor relation of climate action because it seems to accept that some climate change is inevitable Which brings us to the way the politics of the climate-change issue has played out over the years Political leaders by and large know that the debate has become irrational for fear of being accused of being “climate deniers” when sensible people don’t speak up about the way a campaign is being conducted the campaign stays in the hands of those who end up alienating the very opinion on which consent for action depends This reaches its apogee in the COP summits Political leaders argue for days in public about wording like “ending” proclaiming that we can still meet the 1.5 degrees target on limiting global warming about who bears “responsibility” for climate change in a forum that frankly doesn’t have the heft to drive action and impact Because – agree with it or not – most political leaders are decent people who do want to do the right thing in recent times the COPs have become uncomfortable for many leaders They would like to start taking some of the hysteria out of the climate debate but are reluctant to be the first to do so The COP process will not deliver change at the speed required The great gathering of all the nations has its place though probably not every year But the reality is that it is the decisions of the large countries and the policy direction they give towards the technology and the financial flows which can in truth solve the climate issue This is what will decide whether we begin to match our noble ambitions to protect the planet with the necessary actions to achieve them Yet there is no proper process in place that allows the detailed and complex policy work to be done mandated by the few nations that can make a real difference to climate change If COP scaled global ambition on climate action we now need a new process that scales global solutions A new cooperative approach to technological solutions could be a galvanising next chapter – focusing political and real capital on alternative fuels and carbon-capture technology This paper is a chance to reset the debate not by denying the urgency of climate action We need solutions that match the scale of the challenge and a new politics to get them done political will and public engagement would drive decarbonisation we are experiencing the greatest loss of climate momentum in recent history Last year was the warmest on record,[_] bringing with it devastating wildfires hurricanes and widespread flooding around the world record-breaking temperatures and worsening climate impacts demand urgent action once seen as the pathway to economic transformation the promise of green jobs has not materialised at the scale expected industries in many developed economies face rising costs and are losing competitive ground to countries like China And despite net-zero pledges and a global deal to phase out fossil fuels Public confidence in policies to reduce emissions and spark green growth is waning exacerbated by the fact that many of the promised benefits of past climate policies have failed to materialise Proposed green policies that suggest limiting meat consumption or reducing air travel have alienated many people rather than bringing them along This failure to deliver has created an opening for populists who exploit public scepticism and frame climate action as an elite-driven agenda Political will is receding just as the crisis accelerates businesses are dropping climate targets and voters are electing leaders who deprioritise the planet’s future We are living in the climate paradox: awareness of the climate crisis has never been higher We need to rebuild public trust in climate policy politicians need to start with showing the public they are listening – and delivering The debate needs to be taken out of the hands of campaigners and put in the hands of policymakers A realistic voice in the climate debate is required neither ideological nor alarmist but pragmatic We need to move away from the continued sounding of the alarm and shift to the pragmatic delivery of solutions – pushing back on unrealistic demands that don’t deliver impact while rejecting fossil-fuel driven status quo arguments The global reality is that no country can afford to pay the price of decarbonisation as well as the cost of climate disasters caused by others’ inaction The worst of all worlds for any country is to invest heavily in domestic decarbonisation but also be faced with the high costs of adapting to climate impacts due to the failure of others to similarly decarbonise climate change is not an issue that can be solved by action from any country in isolation We need international cooperation far beyond the current frameworks and a collective commitment to fast decisive action especially from the leaders of major emitting economies Continuing on the same path and relying on outdated ineffective policies will not cut emissions fast enough Doing so is a recipe for global disorder driven by the catastrophic impacts of climate change the world must embrace new disruptive solutions and act collectively and decisively It’s time to redefine climate leadership and move into an age of delivery – an era of bold action technological breakthroughs and transformative shifts in policy The choice is clear: innovate and cooperate or face a future of escalating climate chaos Accelerating and scaling technologies that capture carbon Cutting emissions incrementally is not enough We need to invest in solutions that capture emissions at source before they reach the atmosphere together with breakthrough technologies that permanently remove carbon from the atmosphere pulling it straight out of the air and storing it permanently Both technologies need to be deployed at scale and at speed We must use artificial intelligence and other innovations to decarbonise smarter and faster From AI-enhanced energy grids to new materials that support energy efficiency technology must turbocharge our path to net zero These technologies help cut emissions faster more cheaply and more intelligently than ever before This is about making the green choice the easier choice Investing in breakthrough and frontier energy solutions We need to power everything with clean energy and ensure all new generation is zero emissions including a new generation of nuclear and fusion technologies have the potential to transform our ability to do this Clean energy is cheaper and healthier – and scaling it faster means less pollution more jobs and new abundant energy sources that don’t fuel the climate crisis From planting forests to developing carbon-sequestering crops we must harness the power of nature and science together Nature is one of our best allies in this fight and we need to back it with smart science and innovation wetlands and smart farms can absorb carbon and protect food systems as well as buy the planet time to develop and deploy new engineered solutions we must prioritise adaptation efforts and invest in resilience to prepare communities for the climate impacts they are already experiencing Climate action must include domestic and global resilience and security – keeping people safe Simplifying global efforts to deliver collective action characterised by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s Conference of Parties (COP) has been an integral part of achieving global consensus on the problem of climate change this process is moving too slowly to deliver the outcomes needed The world now needs a laser focus on the key issues driving rising emissions high-impact agreements that drive real change where it matters most This includes an imperative for China and India – two of the countries that hold the keys to the world’s climate future the creation of new plurilateral solutions co-designed by these countries are needed to sit alongside any wider multilateral process we have a generational opportunity to realign trade and climate objectives as countries focus on retaining key markets for exports money must flow to where it can make the most difference we need to make the money work towards solutions which could push frontier solutions over the finish line reducing their costs and allowing for faster deployment We need to create momentum for innovative solutions We need to depoliticise the climate debate shift from climate rhetoric to climate results and focus on the future of humanity By embracing disruption and prioritising impact over rhetoric we can still halt global warming and secure a liveable future Global emissions of carbon dioxide are currently higher than they have ever been policies have not been able to stem the rise in total global emissions global temperatures continue to rapidly climb Despite significant investment in renewable-energy technologies oil and gas demand is currently at record levels and forecasted to increase as countries prioritise energy security and economic activities that rely on abundant and cheap energy production 2023 brought a significant increase in new renewable-energy generation but two-thirds of the overall increase in energy demand that year was still met by fossil fuels with projections of “peak coal” being repeatedly pushed out to the future with each year’s forecast emissions from other sources are also rising with an upward trajectory that shows no signs of slowing down in the foreseeable future one of the most carbon-intensive activities is forecast to more than double over coming decades as the middle classes in countries such as China and India expand.[_] By 2050 urbanisation is expected to drive a 40 per cent increase in demand for steel and a 50 per cent increase in demand for cement – products that together contribute about 15 per cent of current global emissions.[_] While there are green alternatives for airline fuels the higher costs of these and the logistical difficulties of producing them (sustainable airline fuels in particular) means that without transformative solutions emissions from all three sectors are forecast to rise over coming decades the rise in emissions is due to the changing geographical profile of emitters North America and Europe were responsible for more than 70 per cent of the world’s cumulative carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions Europe and North America together accounted for 61 per cent of the world’s annual emissions their combined share of annual emissions had declined to just 30 per cent while the bulk of emissions – and emissions growth – were coming from emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs) CO2 emissions in the European Union fell by 29 per cent While much of this growth was fuelled by China and India (where total greenhouse gas emissions rose 232 per cent and 174 per cent countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines also saw rapid emissions growth with annual CO2 emissions in these countries rising 370 per cent and 280 per cent the six largest emitters globally are China India and the Russian Federation and decreased in the European Union and the United States[_] while remaining steady in Brazil.[_] China has been the top emitter for almost 20 years the United States remains the largest contributor to warming emitting around 24 per cent of all CO2 entering the atmosphere since 1750 India and the United States continue to fuel the bulk of global warming contributing 49 per cent of global emissions in 2023 China has committed to peaking emissions by 2030 yet in 2024 approved the large-scale expansion of coal power authorising 67 gigawatts of new coal-fired power capacity and initiating construction on new coal-power projects totalling 95 gigawatts (the equivalent of around 190 “average” coal-fired power stations) – the highest in nearly a decade.[_] Emissions from many other parts of the developing world are also likely to continue to grow emissions have been closely tied to the energy demands of economic growth As populations in developing countries expand and more people enter the middle class energy consumption and fossil-fuel use will inevitably rise further currently has an energy consumption per capita that is just one-third of the global average one-fifth of China’s and one-tenth of the United States’ If energy use in India and other emerging economies rises only to meet the global average without a shift to cleaner energy sources meeting the 2-degree climate target will be virtually impossible Developing countries have a right to grow and will naturally prioritise their own economic interests Restricting development and energy consumption is neither a moral political nor practical solution to climate change given the shifting geography of emissions and their link to development the approach to addressing climate change must also evolve we must focus on where emissions are being produced today – and where emissions growth is likely to come from in the future if current trajectories remain unchanged In addition to energy demand fuelled by economic development energy consumption is rising to support expanding AI systems and computational infrastructure beyond what is needed for developing countries will further accelerate emissions growth unless these new energy requirements are met through clean-energy sources the global challenge now is to address the current sources of emissions and to ensure that the increasing energy demands of both populations and technologies are met through clean and energy-efficient sources While developed countries relied on fossil fuels to fuel their progress it is now imperative that future economic growth – together with meeting the demand of new technologies – is powered by accessible Despite growing awareness of the risks of a warming climate global consensus about the policy solutions needed to reduce emissions has never been achieved – and nor has there been concerted global action the evolution of climate action reveals shifting political drivers and policy paradigms which can be categorised into overlapping narrative eras often constrained by economic and political realities and accompanied by constant concerns that action by individual economies focused on their own climate ambition wouldn’t produce the aggregate impact needed The early years of global consensus – where arguably the most progress could be easily made – were slowed down by debates over the science and the ethical choices of investing for the future rather than addressing more immediate problems saw the issue of climate change gain prominence as scientific warnings about the greenhouse effect and rising temperatures caused by fossil fuels started to reach the public Awareness grew with the establishment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 1988 and the 1992 Rio Earth Summit set the stage for action and created the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) climate change became a rallying point for global campaigns from grassroots protests to high-level diplomatic lobbying Global agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol set the stage for coordinated global action introducing legally binding emissions targets highlighted ongoing disputes over the economic impacts of climate policies climate action focused on systemic policy solutions within domestic economies such as the rise of emissions-trading schemes and green subsidies the debate became increasingly polarised between urgent action and economic scepticism with stark divides between activists advocating for climate action on moral grounds and those who viewed such measures as economically harmful or politically motivated The release of former US Vice President Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth in 2006 marked a pivotal moment catapulting climate change into mainstream consciousness and amplifying public engagement to its peak in the Activism Era galvanised public awareness and inspired widespread dialogue cementing the role of activism and advocacy in driving change the characterisation of decarbonisation as a moral obligation was increasingly met with opposition particularly from vested interests such as the fossil-fuel industry This resistance laid the groundwork for subsequent efforts to integrate climate action into broader economic and political frameworks climate policy was shifting towards aligning economic growth with environmental action The “Optimism Era” promised mutually supporting economic policy and climate win-wins and offered a work-around to leaders who didn’t want to trade growth for environmental objectives This economic focus increasingly displaced the moral-imperative arguments of the previous eras The Optimism Era was ushered into the mainstream of climate policy in part by the influential efforts of Sir Nicholas Stern a British economist who was commissioned to report to Tony Blair on the economics of moving to a low-carbon economy the Stern Review brought climate economics to the attention of policymakers at the highest level Stern’s report highlighted the economic risks of climate change arguing that the economic costs of inaction would be significantly higher than the cost of taking early and decisive action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions The Stern Review was a catalyst that helped to shift the focus of the climate-policy debate from one centred on the moral and environmental imperative to act to one emphasising the economic necessity of climate action and the substantial associated growth potential the broader economic narrative of this time dominated by the global economic and European sovereign-debt crises was far from one of confidence and broader economic optimism with many countries reeling from the economic shocks that characterised this period These crises meant that many countries were seeking new engines of growth that aligned with their values Green growth appeared to offer that opportunity The shift paved the way for leaders to embrace climate action as a strategic economic opportunity rather than a burden and an investment that could drive growth instead of just a cost This positive framing was coupled with concerns about economic stability and the financial-system risks posed by climate change and these together began to shape further policy interventions reinforcing the idea that green growth could offer a pathway to economic resilience By linking environmental sustainability to financial security policymakers positioned climate action as a means to drive long-term prosperity and economic competitiveness while attempting to balance the immediate financial burdens on households and businesses The signing of the Paris Agreement in 2015 was a key moment in the Optimism Era as nearly every country[_] committed to limiting global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius while pursuing efforts to cap it at 1.5 degrees with both developed and developing countries facing obligations to reduce emissions and reinforced the belief that economic development and climate action could go hand in hand this era saw governments continuing to invest in renewables energy efficiency and other domestic emission-reduction strategies The political narrative stressed innovation sustainable development and technological advancement this optimistic vision aligned governments businesses and citizens under a shared goal The Optimism Era saw many developed economies continue the trend of domestic decarbonisation invested heavily in green technology while continuing to burn fossil fuels allowing it to capture market shares in many clean technologies in the future critiques emerged over whether green growth could truly decouple domestic economic expansion from emissions particularly when trade partners and economic competitors continued to capitalise on cheaper fossil fuels geopolitical uncertainties (including the Brexit vote in 2016 and the US-China trade war) and stagnant economic momentum started to make it harder for governments and businesses to deliver on the ambitious domestic commitments made in previous years and regional fragmentation started to undermine the potential of export-driven green growth the signing of the Paris Agreement was perhaps the last moment when the politics of the climate transition aligned with the economic conditions that would enable the “easy” delivery of decarbonisation and the peak of global alignment on the necessity of the transition ahead the commitment to the transition and the political consensus around it started to erode Changing economic conditions also highlighted the difficulties that many economies would face in the years ahead Climate progress during the Optimism Era was made possible by low or negative borrowing costs in many economies which reduced the price of climate investment and made achieving ambitious climate target commitments appear more feasible this allowed governments and businesses to advance ambitious domestic climate policies with relatively few financial trade-offs as the global economic conditions that had enabled progress began to shift and financial constraints tightened the enthusiasm that had defined the Optimism Era started to wane This shift in economic conditions also brought attention to the costs borne by individuals as the costs of carbon pricing started to have impacts and policies aimed at sustainability necessitated upfront investments or changes in consumption patterns many governments prioritised regulatory interventions such as energy-efficiency standards and product labelling These measures sought to encourage sustainable consumption while minimising immediate financial strain on households and businesses none of the domestically focused policies were able to deliver the key goal – namely a halt to the constant rise in global emissions The Covid-19 pandemic in 2019–20 marked a dramatic end to the Optimism Era starkly highlighting growing tensions between short-term domestic recovery efforts and long-term global climate goals The pandemic caused a severe global economic contraction reversing growth trends and forcing governments to reallocate resources to urgent economic-stabilisation measures This effectively ended the dominance of the Optimism Era and green growth as priorities shifted towards domestic economic recovery Despite massive stimulus packages being agreed and attempts to integrate either climate action or investment in clean technologies into recovery strategies many governments ultimately deprioritised climate targets in the face of immediate economic concerns the US temporarily exited the Paris Agreement and resistance to carbon pricing grew Public opposition to costly climate policies as seen in the resistance to carbon taxes that triggered France’s gilets jaunes protests underscored the challenge of balancing climate goals with economic costs Governments increasingly moved to favouring subsidies over market-pricing mechanisms Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine further disrupted energy markets and global recovery efforts reinforcing a shift away from ambitious climate action The economic shocks of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine crisis laid bare a fundamental reality: when faced with financial hardship domestic economic stability and living costs take precedence over climate action whether or not there is a longer-term economic imperative or benefit to taking action in the short term This underscored the necessity of designing the climate transition in a way that does not disproportionately impact individual livelihoods global narratives critical of climate policies including the framing of climate action as “woke” gained traction in a number of political spheres further challenging the momentum of the climate agenda Questions about the effectiveness of the climate policy agenda also came to the fore as climate disasters accumulated and emissions continued to rise leading to questions about whether the policies selected would actually lead to lower emissions and the achievement of climate targets – and whether countries would still bear the costs of a warming future regardless of their domestic decarbonisation agenda The confidence of the Optimism Era is gone Global emissions have hit record highs[_] despite progress in some developed economies and current policies put us on track for a 3.1 degree temperature rise.[_] population growth and accelerating development in the Global South is driving rapid increases in energy demand This surge has significant implications for future emissions as clean energy alternatives aren't being deployed quickly enough to meet either existing or new demand or to displace the polluting energy generation that is currently driving emissions Financing for clean solutions remains woefully inadequate growing computational infrastructure and AI technologies are creating additional pressure on energy resources further complicating the demographic transition climate policies aimed at reducing emissions have largely been unable to harness the growth potential promised in the Optimism Era for either developed or developing economies the economic potential of green industries is increasingly met with scepticism rising living costs and social concerns have shifted public focus away from long-term climate goals While awareness of climate risks is at an all-time high willingness to bear costs for solutions that don’t appear to deliver is declining Individuals hesitate to invest in green technologies due to high upfront costs Many of the easy wins of decarbonisation in developed economies have been exhausted and much of the “low-hanging fruit” of climate action such as the widespread deployment of solar and wind energy in the Global North and the near-global phase-out of ozone-depleting substances rising emissions in China and India make domestic action in smaller economies seem futile even though these economies collectively match China’s emissions Clean energy solutions for developing economies offer major opportunities for sustainable growth but investment is stymied by financial barriers and political inertia are scaling back climate finance instead of ramping it up capital markets remain fixated on short-term gains As economic and geopolitical pressures mount governments are retreating from climate commitments and effective policies like carbon pricing are under threat climate action risks stalling – just when global coordination is needed most Scepticism is undermining climate action in this Citizens question whether domestic policies will meaningfully reduce emissions or if businesses and other nations will honour their commitments – making them unwilling to bear extra costs.[_] Businesses doubt government consistency on climate policy This widespread uncertainty fuels resistance to decarbonisation efforts and erodes political consensus reviving debates once considered settled and shifting political strategies as seen in the UK’s opposition retreat from net-zero commitments The climate transition is not self-sustaining: it relies on policy capital and a political narrative to drive action The climate paradox and the Apathy Era thus demand a bold rethinking of how the world reduces emissions across the globe No single country – aside from major emitters like China or Russia – can deliver real global impact through domestic decarbonisation alone National net-zero targets remain crucial for giving businesses the certainty they need to invest in the development of new clean solutions and drive the innovation and competition that will bring their costs down isolated efforts without global action risk economic strain adding economic near-term costs while still leaving nations fully exposed to future climate adaptation costs Just as the world must adapt to inevitable climate impacts already baked into the future climate action itself must evolve – shifting from a strategy of stifling demand for energy to focus on systemic global solutions that directly tackle the sources of emissions driving the crisis Whether it’s an era of negative disruption or positive disruption will depend on the decisions that leaders take humanity will suffer the physical impacts and economic costs of a rapidly warming planet bold leadership and disruptive innovation can deliver the decarbonisation we need We have the ability to change the path of climate change by disrupting traditional policy and harnessing new solutions Positive disruption in climate action will come from leaders seizing the narrative of technology and its potential to address the climate challenge harnessing the transformative potential of bold innovation and systemic changes to reshape the world’s approach to decarbonisation This approach envisions leaders leveraging ingenuity to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts Positive disruption encompasses a range of approaches from pragmatic near-term solutions to bold high-risk innovations with the potential to reshape the planet’s future Applying positive disruption to the climate narrative requires re-examining core principles pinpointing the primary sources of emissions and developing innovative This means targeting major emitters and focusing on the sources of emissions as a priority actions to remove coal from the global energy system will have significantly greater impact than investment in last-mile decarbonisation in economies where renewable energy already provides the bulk of generation Achieving this positive disruption thus calls for visionary leadership and coordinated international efforts to drive transformative action This does not imply the abandonment of ongoing domestic decarbonisation efforts – indeed these remain vital for reducing emissions and ensuring a sustainable future Harnessing economic growth and employment from the green transition remains a key opportunity for those countries who target the right sectors and think critically about the role of green industrial strategy capital providers focused on long-term results will continue to bet on clean energy sources the current trajectory of business-as-usual climate policy is not delivering results quickly enough to avert catastrophic warming or to secure political support for additional – or in many cases disruptive policies that challenge the status quo Harnessing positive disruption for the climate challenge requires transformative solutions that go beyond the incrementalism of current policies The traditional mechanisms guiding climate action – slow-moving multilateral institutions complex and fragmented rigid international agreements the prioritisation of domestic decarbonisation and cautious financing – are insufficient for the pace and scale of change required to both reduce emissions and renew political support for climate action Disruption is needed that harnesses accelerated technological innovation reimagines global cooperation and unlocks climate finance in novel ways These elements are necessary to drive decarbonisation at the scale needed Actions to address the climate-change challenge must include: together with significant investment and acceleration of engineered permanent carbon-dioxide-removal technologies including direct air capture (DAC) solutions to streamline and speed up both climate mitigation and adaptation Investing in breakthrough and frontier energy solutions to ensure future generation can be clean Scaling nature-based solutions in order to buy time for more systemic solutions acknowledging that this is a priority under any future scenario Simplify global efforts to deliver collective action including a shift away from a focus solely on domestic decarbonisation to target the key sources of current and future emissions to drive both emissions reductions and adaptation efforts including harnessing the power of philanthropic funding Leaders must acknowledge that the coming decade is likely to see rising demand for fossil fuels driven by increases in energy demand from populations in developing economies together with new technologies such as AI even a net-zero future is likely to include continued emissions from fossil fuels especially in electricity generation in developing economies as well as increased forecast demand in sectors such as aviation solutions must include the rapid scaling of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies that capture emissions at source While this technology is already being deployed it is not yet at the scale required or fully utilised across the sites of major emitters Governments should collectively agree to shift towards a goal of capturing and permanently storing every tonne of CO2 generated by the coal oil and gas industries – or removing an equivalent amount via other methods – making this part of these industries’ licenses to operate.[_] Fossil-fuel companies should be required to invest in and scale this technology expertise and capital to develop this solution even with aggressive deployment of CCS in the coming years the world faces significant warming from historical emissions already in the atmosphere and the inevitable continued emissions in the near term With fossil-fuel use persisting and demand increasing we need a dual approach: CCS to minimise new emissions and engineered carbon-dioxide-removal (CDR) solutions to address existing atmospheric carbon Both technologies must become urgent priorities in climate policy if we are to address the climate impacts already locked in and prevent further warming While CCS prevents new emissions from entering the atmosphere engineered CDR solutions actively remove existing CO2 from the atmosphere and can potentially store it permanently – or at least for thousands of years uses chemical processes to extract CO2 directly from the air and then store it permanently underground or utilise it in various applications including the production of synthetic fuels or sustainable plastics engineered CDR and DAC are prohibitively expensive often costing hundreds of dollars per tonne of CO2 removed This high cost reflects their status as relatively new technologies that require significant innovation and scaling to become economically viable these costs could decrease substantially – similar to the magnitude of cost reductions seen with solar panels and wind turbines over time.[_] Despite these current challenges engineered CDR generally and DAC specifically offer an essential solution for addressing historical emissions and for sectors where emissions are extremely hard to eliminate at source Current CDR policies have focused heavily on nature-based solutions as the primary method for removing carbon emissions from the atmosphere not only are there constraints on the land and water needed to deliver these at scale but nature-based solutions that accumulate carbon are not permanent and do not sequester carbon indefinitely the rate of new growth eventually becomes similar to the rate of decomposition they can release stored CO₂ suddenly back into the atmosphere This creates a fundamental temporal misalignment:[_] forest sinks are being used as an emissions offset for fossil-fuel CO₂ emissions that remain in the atmosphere for thousands of years increased pestilence and wildfire frequency heighten the risk of forests becoming net carbon emitters rather than carbon sinks vegetation and soils currently removing carbon risk becoming sources of future emissions.[_] Investment and innovation in permanent engineered CDR technologies particularly as global efforts to reduce emissions stagnate and fossil-fuel demand continues to rise.[_] This investment should be supported by government policies that create demand for engineered permanent removals such as requiring even a very small initial proportion of obligations under domestic emissions trading schemes to be met using credits generated from permanent removal technologies Critics of CDR and CCS technologies point to their high costs and the risk that carbon capture might be used to justify even greater fossil-fuel consumption limiting warming to 2 degrees or less without CCS would require substantial reductions in fossil-fuel consumption including a near elimination of coal use by 2050 and a 67 to 82 per cent reduction in coal by 2030 in scenarios limiting warming to 1.5 degrees.[_] The IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report indicates that without CCS coal and gas power plants worldwide would need to retire about 23 years earlier than expected to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees and 17 years earlier than expected to limit global warming to 2 degrees.[_] Given that global demand for both fossil fuels and energy is currently rising rather than falling the political and economic feasibility of rapid phaseouts is highly questionable making both CCS technologies and engineered CDR critical components of realistic climate solutions noting that carbon-dioxide removals are “an essential element of scenarios that limit warming to 1.5 degrees or below 2 degrees … by 2100 regardless of whether global emissions reach near zero While investment in CCS technologies is slowly expanding these solutions need to be scaled as rapidly as possible CDR solutions are less developed and require not only investment to drive innovation and reduce costs but also the development of markets and financial mechanisms needed for deployment (for example risk-transfer mechanisms They also require investment in frontier clean-energy solutions that will power this technology at scale government support for these technologies would have the additional benefit of shifting the incentives for deepening the deployment of renewable energy rejecting renewable options in the pursuit of fossil-fuel generation comes with little consequence A focus on DAC would not only drive innovation in this technology but would have the added benefit of highlighting to developed countries the true costs – and savings – associated with supporting renewable-energy deployment in other jurisdictions Compared with the costs of DAC to remove emissions in the future the deployment of renewables in developing economies in the short term may be the more economical choice Governments need to prioritise the deployment of new technologies Technological innovations must be urgently integrated into climate policy allowing them to drive progress across the value chain and translate into real-world impacts The use of AI will lead to better climate modelling infrastructure deployment (including grid design and improved resilience) energy-cost optimisation and innovation for decarbonisation end-to-end integration of AI into the energy system offers significant opportunities for delivering clean power more quickly and at lower cost This could involve utilising AI to more effectively identify sites and prioritise connections and to accelerate permitting procedures to reduce the time it takes to identify and permit new sites AI and other frontier technologies are revolutionising energy efficiency important not only for its potential to reduce emissions (the IEA estimates that doubling energy efficiency could provide larger emissions reductions by 2030 than any other intervention[_]) but also for its role in enhancing energy security and affordability buildings typically waste a significant proportion of the energy they demand AI-powered building-management systems can continuously optimise heating reducing energy consumption by up to 30 per cent.[_] Such savings are supported by the use of next-generation building materials including “super-cool” and smart materials which enable dramatic efficiency improvements in both new building and retrofits.[_],[_] In manufacturing digital twins can create virtual replicas of production processes allowing the identification and elimination of energy waste without disrupting operations.[_] Integrating AI into energy-system operations could improve weather forecasting enhance energy-storage management and improve demand-response mechanisms These improvements would in turn make energy systems more efficient and lower cost helping to address the challenges of integrating intermittent and decentralised renewable sources efficiently Smart-grid technologies leverage machine learning to balance electricity supply and demand precisely reducing transmission losses and integrating intermittent renewable sources more effectively new thermal-energy-storage solutions are enabling buildings and industrial facilities to shift energy demand to times when renewable generation is abundant solid-state batteries promise to extend electric vehicle (EV) ranges while reducing charging times and improving safety EVs can serve as distributed energy storage stabilising grids and maximising renewable integration For transport modes where conventional batteries are insufficient new fuel-cell technologies offer viable solutions including for heavy transport like shipping and aviation.[_] Advanced lightweight composites and aerodynamic designs are also drastically reducing energy requirements across all transport modes.[_] Satellite and remote-sensing technologies also offer a wealth of applications to assist in addressing climate change satellites have revolutionised the detection of methane leaks by enabling global continuous monitoring of emissions that were previously difficult to identify Advanced sensors aboard satellites can detect methane’s unique “spectral signature” pinpointing leaks with increasing precision including at the facility level.[_] This remote-sensing capability is particularly crucial because methane is a substantially more potent greenhouse gas than CO2 with more than 80 times the warming power of CO2 during its first 20 years in the atmosphere.[_],[_] Companies and regulatory agencies now use satellite data to create time-series analyses that show emission patterns helping prioritise maintenance and repairs where leaks are most severe The technology also provides accountability by making emissions data more transparent and accessible encouraging industry to address these highly damaging emissions promptly Fixing identified leaks also makes strong business sense as methane is the primary component of natural gas – a commodity that companies would rather sell than lose to the atmosphere Many companies find that leak-detection and repair programmes quickly pay for themselves through recovered product making satellite monitoring a win-win solution for both corporate bottom lines and climate protection As satellite resolution and methane-detecting capabilities continue to improve this technology promises to be a critical tool in reducing potent greenhouse gas emissions across multiple sectors delivering outsized climate benefits compared to equivalent reductions in carbon dioxide These technological innovations collectively address critical opportunities for climate action government efforts are needed in order to capitalise on their full potential A number of these technologies have existed for half a decade or more – yet there are many circumstances in which they have not been adopted Policies are needed to change the incentives to implement these solutions markets and systems that are not currently delivering and deploying the full potential of many technologies at the speed required political concerns and outdated financial models create bottlenecks that delay essential investments and innovation reluctant to adapt investment strategies or invest in new solutions at the scale and urgency needed for a climate-resilient future or to accept the risks that faster action will inevitably bring security and prosperity depends on reliable access to clean energy demand in developing countries is only growing and consumption in all countries will be accelerated by the growing needs of AI The IEA projects that global energy demand from data centres could double by 2026 with some estimates suggesting they may account for 4.5 per cent of total energy consumption by 2030 we need new zero-emissions energy solutions that together with traditional renewable solutions abundant and uninterrupted access to power Both will require advanced infrastructure such as long-distance inter-connectors that are capable of shifting energy where it is needed most fusion energy and long-duration battery storage each have the potential to complement existing solar and wind infrastructure while addressing intermittency challenges Large-scale AI companies are pouring vast sums of money into these next-generation energy solutions as they look to power the data centres of the future accelerating the development – and deployment – of these energy solutions also requires leaders to take proactive steps This includes increasing public investment in research closing the gap between early-stage innovation and commercial-scale viability and introducing financial incentives – such as tax credits loan guarantees and direct subsidies – to encourage private-sector participation Regulatory modernisation is also essential to streamline approval and permitting processes particularly for nuclear and geothermal projects where lengthy bureaucratic delays have historically hindered progress strategic international cooperation can facilitate knowledge-sharing drive down costs and build public confidence in emerging energy technologies Stronger carbon-pricing mechanisms and government procurement policies can further incentivise investment in new solutions for zero-emissions energy ensuring that these are brought to market at the scale and pace required to meet growing global energy needs while AI and clean-energy solutions will drive transformative change including meeting much of rising energy demand simply adding clean-energy generation has not displaced the fossil-fuel-driven generation responsible for ongoing emissions at least not at the pace that is required to limit temperature rise New energy solutions are thus only part of the answer We must also tackle current emissions to curb rising temperatures some of the best near-term returns on investment will be through nature-based solutions that will need support to accelerate These are especially important to “buy time” for both decarbonisation and for engineered CDR technologies to be scaled and deployed As noted in the discussion on engineered removals the impermanence of many nature-based solutions reinforces the need for a focus on engineered CDR technologies including DAC what nature-based solutions do offer is significant near-term potential at a relatively low cost The IPCC has estimated that forests and other managed ecosystems can provide 20 to 30 per cent of the global mitigation needed to limit temperature rise to 2 degrees although this is not sufficient to compensate for delayed reductions in emissions in other sectors improved management and restoration of forests savannas and grasslands has significant potential that technological solutions can accelerate and advance Expanding bio-engineered carbon-sequestering crops to enhance soil and forest carbon storage DNA editing allows crops to sequester more CO₂ and store it more durably,[_] including creating new crop varieties that photosynthesise more efficiently and funnel more carbon into the soil.[_] Similar approaches are also being explored with bio-engineered trees designed to accumulate more biomass and absorb more carbon.[_] Policy should help to accelerate these solutions Scaling agroecological and regenerative-agriculture practices Practices like cover cropping and reduced tillage can increase soil organic matter and carbon storage These practices require few inputs so are relatively low cost and can be adopted easily including using internet-of-things sensor networks and machine-learning algorithms to optimise fertiliser application reducing nitrogen emissions while improving crop yields These systems can reduce fertiliser use by up to 30 per cent while maintaining or increasing production directly cutting agriculture’s substantial nitrous-oxide emissions which collectively represent some of the most efficient carbon sinks on the planet These ecosystems grow faster than terrestrial forests meaning that they can absorb CO2 from the atmosphere at a faster pace.[_] For example mangrove forests sequester carbon up to four times faster than tropical rainforests and store up to ten times more carbon per equivalent area than traditional land-based forests.[_] They also provide critical coastal protection against storms and erosion while supporting marine biodiversity seagrass meadows capture carbon 35 times faster than tropical rainforests and can store carbon for millennia in their sediments Though they cover less than 0.2 per cent of the ocean floor they store approximately 10 per cent of the ocean’s carbon The underlying infrastructure to support these nature-based solutions will also be enhanced by a range of technologies Underwater drones/robots for seagrass and mangrove seeding with autonomous vehicles capable of planting thousands of seedlings per day Advanced monitoring systems for tracking blue carbon ecosystem health and sequestration rates Novel restoration techniques including lab-cultured coral fragments for reef rehabilitation AI and satellites to assess baselines and provide monitoring climate risks could impose steep economic costs with studies showing that every $1 invested in adaptation can yield $4 to $10 in avoided losses Failing to act could result in GDP losses of up to 18 per cent by 2050 making adaptation an essential economic strategy that must be embedded into national planning financial decision-making and investment frameworks Technological solutions in both disaster prediction and risk reduction AI-powered systems can model climate-risk scenarios optimise resource allocation and support more effective disaster response enabling faster and better-informed decision-making IoT-enabled monitoring and predictive analytics allow governments to better quantify climate threats and direct funding towards high-impact adaptation measures These kinds of technologies are essential in helping governments and businesses anticipate risks and develop data-driven cost-effective resilience strategies – and will require well-structured financial markets and targeted policies to help them scale creating global economic interdependencies that demand coordinated international action The creation of new insurance products and risk-sharing mechanisms will be essential to managing climate risks that affect multiple industries and nations the deployment of innovative financing models – such as resilience bonds blended finance and sovereign risk pools – must be accelerated to ensure adaptation efforts receive adequate funding without placing excessive strain on public budgets Countries that take the lead in climate-adaptation finance and risk-management solutions will be well-positioned to shape emerging markets for climate resilience The current process for harnessing global cooperation centred around the UNFCCC and the COP process Leaders need a laser focus on the key issues driving growing emissions rather than the current slow-moving negotiation system which is characterised by fragmentation across a plethora of initiatives This is especially true given the significant role of China India and a handful of other key economies where emissions are rising and are expected to continue increasing The world cannot meet its climate targets without action from these nations China is the world’s largest carbon emitter and continues to invest in new coal-fired power generation it is also the leading producer of renewable energy and dominates many clean-technology markets capturing the majority of economic benefits from sectors such as solar India’s emissions are growing rapidly as the country industrialises making its clean-energy transition critical for global decarbonisation efforts The world needs a new approach to multilateralism that either sits beside or replaces the UNFCCC/COP process and China and India need to be the focus of this approach – not only because of their role in emissions both now and in the future but also because they will drive many of the technological solutions that can solve the climate crisis The solution thus may lie in smaller plurilateral groups co-designed with China and India at their heart Leaders should look to convene smaller groups to agree a handful of priority actions Coal phase-out: Developing economies need finance and aid to replace coal generation while richer economies need a blueprint to self-manage the phase-out of coal at home Industrial change: A significant proportion of emissions come from state-owned oil and gas producers Targeted policy interventions and financial support are needed to reduce production over time and to support economies to transition away from the revenue and growth these firms currently contribute Capital-market reforms: Cooperative approaches are needed for capital-market reforms targeted at transitioning private investment away from key emissions sources The future might see more progress in these smaller plurilateral groups that commit to funding high-impact climate action in exchange for significantly enhanced trade or supply-chain access (for instance in critical minerals) sharing progress on fusion developments while committing to removing coal from national energy systems) these plurilateral groups have the potential to capitalise on the current opportunity to align the trade system with climate action a coalition of like-minded progressive countries with shared interests in retaining key trading partners and markets represents a generational opportunity to realign trade and decarbonisation objectives Such alliances would also create incentives and opportunities for the greater deployment of technologies that can assist with the climate challenge Underpinning positive disruption in global cooperation is a shift away from a sole focus on domestic decarbonisation particularly in developed economies where decarbonisation is already well progressed While high-income countries must continue working to reduce their emissions a key challenge lies in supporting the transition to cleaner energy systems in low- and middle-income countries Actions to enable this include creating both global and national markets that facilitate the development of clean-energy projects incentivising investment and catalysing flows of private capital; fully utilising international carbon markets; accelerating technology; and restructuring international financial and governance frameworks to address rising emissions among developing countries as part of plans to meet their own climate targets a commitment to meet a portion of their own climate targets through investment in decarbonisation in low- and middle-income regions the global mechanism that allows countries to trade emissions reductions to meet climate targets can play a key role in these investment commitments allowing countries to drive global decarbonisation in a way that fosters sustainable development and secures the greatest reduction in global emissions as quickly as possible Underpinning all of these solutions is the need for new forms of finance that can unlock trillions of dollars in investments in technological innovation and deployment current financial flows remain significantly misaligned with climate priorities with high-impact and potentially cost-effective interventions receiving insufficient funding Mitigating emissions – and preventing future emissions growth – in developing economies has been largely reliant on either aid funding or “blended finance” approaches which rely on public funding to attract private investment confidence in both of these mechanisms is rapidly eroding and growing emissions figures highlight the failure of either to deliver at the scale provided There are currently significant cuts in the aid budgets of developed countries and scepticism about the impact of blended finance in developing economies given the failure to deliver investment at the scale promised and at terms populations can afford new approaches are needed to support necessary investments to accelerate action Harnessing the power of philanthropic funding to supercharge the technology solutions that will assist in the climate challenge Optimising international carbon markets by addressing demand and supply-side barriers to channel more finance to the Global South from the Global North Implementing innovative ways to finance nature-based solutions At a time when governments are prioritising defence spending targeted philanthropic funding represents a critical opportunity to advance frontier climate technologies that would otherwise struggle to secure early-stage capital philanthropy can tolerate higher risks and longer time horizons making it uniquely positioned to support new climate solutions during their pre-commercial phases Climate-focused philanthropic capital should thus strategically target innovation gaps by funding high-risk research and development and facilitating market-entry for emerging technologies that are assessed as holding the most potential to reduce emissions or extract carbon from the atmosphere One good example of the power of philanthropic investment is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s investment in mRNA vaccine technology – years before the Covid-19 pandemic Their early funding helped establish the foundational platform that enabled the unprecedented rapid development and deployment of Covid-19 vaccines when urgently needed demonstrating how philanthropic capital can create technological readiness for critical global challenges A similar focus on climate solutions could now accelerate the further innovation DAC as well as other critical technologies like long-duration energy storage green hydrogen applications and advanced geothermal systems – all essential components of a net-zero transition that remain too costly or unproven for mainstream investment Form Energy provides a further illustration of how philanthropy-backed investment can advance frontier decarbonisation technologies.[_] The company long-duration energy storage using iron-air battery technology received early-stage funding from Breakthrough Energy Ventures This early support enabled Form Energy to pursue an innovative approach to grid-scale storage that can deliver electricity for 100+ hours at system costs competitive with conventional power plants thus addressing a critical barrier to renewable energy integration.[_] Traditional financial-market mechanisms had failed to solve this issue as conventional investors were reluctant to fund the extended R&D phase needed to commercialise novel battery chemistry following this philanthropy-backed development period Form Energy had secured major utility deployment agreements and substantial follow-on investment demonstrating how strategic philanthropic capital can de-risk promising climate technologies and accelerate their path to commercial viability A similar approach could now accelerate development of critical technologies like DAC driving the innovation and cost reductions that could make this solution truly transformative Optimising international carbon markets represents another promising avenue for redirecting financial flows towards climate priorities Current carbon markets face significant challenges that limit their effectiveness in channelling finance from the Global North to the Global South concerns about additionality and lack of transparency have undermined buyer confidence Supply-side barriers include high transaction costs and limited capacity in developing countries to develop and implement high-quality carbon projects addressing these barriers could unlock substantial new finance for emission-reduction projects in developing countries Integrating carbon markets with national climate policies and national climate targets under the Paris Agreement would further strengthen their legitimacy and effectiveness Recent initiatives to develop global implementation frameworks through Article 6 the Paris Agreement article that sets out carbon-market trading demonstrate growing momentum to overcome these barriers and establish robust international carbon-market mechanisms that could mobilise billions in investment for developing countries while bringing down the costs of emissions reductions globally Novel solutions should also be used to channel finance into nature-based climate action the Tony Blair Institute is currently exploring an end-to-end solution that uses technology to create trust and enable the commodification and preservation of the world’s forests aims to assist in the protection of forests – which currently store around 15.6 billion tonnes of CO2 per year[_] – by incentivising finance flows to countries with forests through new market mechanisms such as improved satellite technology and AI to establish robust baselines and projections of growth under different scenarios and new financial assets such as digital tokens distributed ledger technologies and smart contracts to allow trading of forest assets including transactions based on their real-time status thus creating new revenue streams for countries and new incentives for enhancing existing forests CanopyX then aims to link these transactions to country-level digital inventories allowing the potential of corresponding adjustments of country-level target accounting to occur as transactions are executed The combination of these technologies can help overcome the current challenges that can prevent finance flows to preserve forests including poor transparency and monitoring and issues around double counting and double claiming in which we fail to make significant progress on decarbonisation the world may need to seriously consider solar radiation management (SRM) a technology generally considered a last resort for addressing global warming One of the most radical and controversial forms of disruption SRM involves the direct manipulation of the Earth’s climate system to counteract global warming through techniques aiming to reflect sunlight away or limit the radiation that reaches the Earth such technologies may become necessary if mitigation efforts fail to prevent catastrophic climate shifts The range of impacts of solutions like SRM is currently highly uncertain while these technologies could provide temporary relief by slowing temperature rises and would need to be implemented alongside significant reductions in emissions or DAC at scale to address the root causes of warming these approaches represent the most extreme of bold and disruptive strategies that may be needed to supplement traditional mitigation efforts and accelerate global climate action Because the impacts of SRM are likely to be global and unequally felt the world needs a robust governance framework to ensure its equitable and ethical use This framework could mirror past efforts at limiting the proliferation of nuclear weapons There is currently significant risk that a single country could move ahead unilaterally with this technology at scale resulting in extreme weather effects that transcend national borders political leaders globally should progress with urgency a governance framework The potential for unintended consequences such as regional climate disruptions or unforeseen ecological impacts including risks from sudden temperature rise on the ceasing of SRM activities underscores the importance of international cooperation and oversight and makes this intervention the most disruptive of technological options Robust international governance to prevent unilateral action by individual nations Ethical and scientific research and oversight to understand and minimise unintended consequences Integration with emissions-reduction strategies to ensure that as they develop high-risk solutions remain a complement to rather than a replacement for decarbonisation efforts Marginalising these solutions raises the risks that may occur if these solutions are used in unilateral action and the forecast demand for products and services that produce emissions shows that without a fundamental change in our approach we don’t have a chance of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees we need positive disruption that harnesses new technological solutions together with the financial mechanisms and global cooperation that will enable change However, this path also offers immense opportunities. By embracing innovation, humanity can create new industries and new sources of economic value while building resilience against future disruptions – delivering on the optimism of earlier eras. Positive disruption fosters hope, empowering communities to envision and work towards a more sustainable and equitable world. The climate paradox presents global leaders with a stark choice: allow climate disruption to dictate our future and open the door to the most extreme of solutions, or embrace transformative positive disruption that accelerates decarbonisation and restores optimism. The decisions made today will determine whether disruption leads to collapse or to a thriving, sustainable world. Leaders must prioritise bold, systemic change – balancing near-term solutions with long-term innovation – to ensure the Apathy Era becomes the Progress Era. By embracing the path of positive disruption and the potential of new technology, leaders can turn the climate crisis into an opportunity to build a sustainable, resilient and thriving world. https://library.wmo.int/records/item/69455-state-of-the-global-climate-2024 https://aci.aero/2024/02/13/the-trusted-source-for-air-travel-demand-updates/#:~:text=Global%20passenger%20traffic%20is%20expected,2.5%20times%20the%202024%20projection https://iap.unido.org/articles/steel-and-cement-can-drive-decade-action-climate-change-how? https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-greenhouse-gas-emissions With the United States withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and prioritising the resurgence of fossil-fuel production, emissions there are likely to rise in the coming years. https://www.unep.org/resources/emissions-gap-report-2024 https://www.carbonbrief.org/chinas-construction-of-new-coal-power-plants-reached-10-year-high-in-2024 The Paris Agreement wasn’t signed in 2015 by either Syria (due to its engagement in a civil war) or Nicaragua (due to concerns that the agreement wasn’t ambitious enough and did not hold major emitters accountable), but both subsequently became “Parties” in 2017. Polling the Politics of Net Zero: What Can Politicians Learn From EU and UK Views on Climate Policy? https://www.cell.com/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351%2821%2900489-X?%5FreturnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS254243512100489X%3Fshowall%3Dtrue https://www.weforum.org/stories/2023/08/how-to-get-direct-air-capture-under-150-per-ton-to-meet-net-zero-goals/ https://pce.parliament.nz/media/humpby5q/report-farms-forests-and-fossil-fuels.pdf https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/downloads/report/IPCC%5FAR6%5FWGIII%5FFullReport.pdf https://www.bcg.com/publications/2023/solving-direct-air-carbon-capture-challenge?linkId=222535410 https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/downloads/report/IPCC%5FAR6%5FWGIII%5FFullReport.pdf, p114 https://iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/140a0470-5b90-4922-a0e9-838b3ac6918c/WorldEnergyOutlook2024.pdf https://www.aceee.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/a1701.pdf https://www.iea.org/energy-system/buildings/building-envelopes https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-supercool-materials-that-send-heat-to-space1/ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380393239%5FDeveloping%5FDigital%5FTwins%5Ffor%5Fenergy%5Fefficiency%5Fin%5Fthe%5Fproduction%5Fphase%5Fof%5Fproducts https://www.iea.org/reports/the-future-of-hydrogen https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844024156927 https://www.methanesat.org/satellite https://climate.mit.edu/ask-mit/why-do-we-compare-methane-carbon-dioxide-over-100-year-timeframe-are-we-underrating https://www.bcg.com/publications/2023/methane-global-warming-potential https://www.ctrfoundation.com/our-projects/designing-crops-to-sequester-more-co%e2%82%82-and-store-it-more-durably-in-the-soil/ https://innovativegenomics.org/crispr-for-climate-change/ https://www.bluemarinefoundation.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Blue-Carbon-UK-Report%5FFinal-1.pdf https://www.conservation.org/act/share-the-facts-about-mangroves https://formenergy.com/technology/ https://formenergy.com/technology/battery-technology/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-020-00976-6 policy and delivery in your inbox every month with our newsletter Tony Blair Institute, trading as Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, is a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales (registered company number: 10505963) whose registered office is One Bartholomew Close, London, EC1A 7BL. Terms of use Privacy Policy Accessibility Financial Statements Media Centre Contact Us For Current Students For Faculty and Staff University Directory The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has named Paige Blair a first-generation college student from Twin Groves the university’s highest honor for a graduating senior Blair is graduating with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and a Certificate of Proficiency in Applied Archaeology She has distinguished herself as a scholar and community volunteer who has made significant contributions to both the university and the field of anthropology “I feel very honored to have been selected out of all the amazing candidates that were eligible for this award,” Blair said Established in memory of Edward Lynn Whitbeck a senior at Little Rock University who passed away in 1965 and Beverly Whitbeck to recognize exceptional academic achievement and leadership and deliver a speech at the spring commencement ceremony Blair’s academic journey is a testament to perseverance and passion she attended community college but had to pause her education while raising her daughter as a single mother She returned to higher education and earned her associate degree from the University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton in 2021 before transferring to UA Little Rock in spring 2022 I’ll miss it because I really felt at home here Blair was a driving force in revitalizing the Anthropology Club after the COVID-19 pandemic and completed a variety of impressive internships and research projects She interned at the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory in fall 2022 becoming the first anthropology student from UA Little Rock to do so “Paige was the first anthropology major to intern with the State Crime Lab in the Office of the Medical Examiner,” said Dr associate professor of anthropology and interim co-director of the School of Human Inquiry “This has led to an ongoing program where the anthropology department places an intern with that office every semester It has resulted in many of our graduates becoming employed there.” “Sex and Ancestry Determination Based on Human Mandibular Measurements,” which she presented at the crime lab and the 2023 UA Little Rock Research and Creative Works Expo She is the only two-time winner of the Mark Hartmann Student Fieldwork Award from UA Little Rock using it to attend a forensic anthropology course at the University of Tennessee Knoxville and to work on artifact collection and research at the Meador Site in St “Late Woodland Occupations at the Meador Site Robert Scott of the Arkansas Archeological Survey and presented at three different conferences She also participated in the Arkansas Archeological Survey Training Dig in DeQueen in summer 2022 which she described as one of her favorite college experiences “We camped there for two weeks,” she recalled It was good to have people with you who knew what you were going through Blair has been actively involved in archaeological work throughout the state She volunteered with the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program for cemetery preservation workshops and assisted the Arkansas Archaeological Survey in a metal detection survey of the Prairie D’Ane Battlefield in Prescott These efforts help locate and document Civil War-era artifacts to preserve the historical integrity of the battlefield Since November 2024, Blair has interned with Dr. Maureece Levin, assistant professor of anthropology, on the UA Little Rock Garden Site Archaeology Project a community-oriented excavation near the Campus Garden “Her work involves technical skills like archaeological fieldwork and lab work social skills like working with our other interns and volunteers and creativity like designing outreach materials,” Levin said “She was specifically interested in being involved in this project because of the public aspect of bringing archaeology to the broader community She is the type of student who may come through a program maybe once every several years.” Blair helped organize and lead a community open house for the project educating visitors on archaeological techniques and the site’s historical context She also helped curate a display of artifacts from the dig that is now on exhibit at UA Little Rock’s Ottenheimer Library Blair also conducted an ethnographic study in collaboration with a local Catholic church exploring how changes in Catholicism have influenced traditional Mass practices Brent Knutson Memorial Award for Excellence in Religious Studies Blair and her family will relocate to Florida where she plans to gain field experience before applying to graduate school in 2026 to study historical archaeology “My best piece of advice to other students is this: If there isn’t an opportunity that you want “That Meador site project started from a thought I had on the way to work Take advantage of every opportunity or create your own.” Blair leaves UA Little Rock with a perfect 4.0 GPA the Most Outstanding Graduating Senior in Anthropology Award and the distinction of being the first graduate of the university’s Applied Archaeology Certificate program UA Little Rock is a metropolitan research university in the South that provides accessibility to a quality education through flexible learning and unparalleled internship opportunities The former PM has form when it comes to pushing corporate interests and meeting populists halfway When Tony Blair came out this week to say current net zero policies were “doomed to fail” there was something familiar in his arguments: phasing out fossil fuels wouldn’t work because people perceived it as expensive Stop banging on about renewables; won’t someone think of the things we don’t know how to do like carbon capture and such wizardry as is still locked in tech bros’ imaginations and yet still walk among us as the voice of the progressive left Memo to my fellow cancellers: we are bad at this The funny thing about meeting populists halfway is that it never works; it almost seems to drive them further into the reaches of their extremism Because net zero extremists are coming for the progressive cause and the sensible centre needs to head them off at the pass in so far as there’s no easy out-group (unless you count “supporters of net zero”) and differs from “woke” in so far as it has a meaning one that the climate journalist James Murray has handily recapped: “Net zero is a scientific term referring to the balance of anthropogenic emissions and carbon sinks required to stop temperatures spiralling out of control bringing with them drastically increased risk of food insecurity catastrophic weather and civilisation-level disaster.” There is no happy medium where ordinary people get to have slightly less net zero and lower bills There is only action that is fast enough or not and political decisions that distribute the cost of that action fairly or not so he could easily have bunged it to a mate and not intended to derail any nation’s environmental policies maybe he’s working against state regulation There’s a more soothing theory still, which is that Blair has always pushed corporate interests and had a deep distaste for grassroots movements for social change. There’s a direct through-line, from the man who pushed PFI and was rumoured to have banned beards on the frontbenches The last person to voice this anti-net zero position was, of course, Kemi Badenoch. She was asked at a conference in March, by someone who worked at the Eden Project, the only two cogent questions I heard anyone put to her: on what scientific basis did she resile from the 2050 target And what would she like the target to be instead something whimsical and impressionistic: “Why did we set the target at 2050 Because there was a zero at the end of the year not because there was a clear plan.” It was unprepared undergrad stuff; this politician alone could not hold back the energy for action on climate That’s what’s often so chilling about anti-climate action – the case for change is so established that you expect its opponents to be at the top of their game to have an argument so strong that it had never occurred to a waiting world; you expect them to be extraordinary it’s as if their paymasters are just dialling it in The do-nothing lobby needs as many voices as it can get: the upstart, the elder statesman, the right, the centre, the household name, the maverick, the lot. Those of us who would prefer to do something, to halt climate change, need to situate Tony Blair correctly: he’s not the charmer of crowds in the service of low-key progressive medicine they might not otherwise swallow He’s part of a different chorus; you can call it “corporate” Thanks for visiting The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy We ask that you consider turning off your ad blocker so we can deliver you the best experience possible while you are here The University is currently operating under normal conditions The Center for the Study of the American South director hopes to amplify the work ethic carried from enslavement to freedom Historian Blair Kelley wants people to expand their view of the American working class She reached that conclusion while researching her forthcoming book “Black Folk: The Roots of the Black Working Class,” which will publish in June Last summer Kelley was named director of the Center for the Study of the American South and co-director of the Southern Futures Initiative Williamson Distinguished Professor of Southern Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences Kelley wraps up a prestigious yearlong fellowship with the National Humanities Center in May The Well spoke with Kelley about her deep dive into the history of the Black working class I started working on “Black Folk” right before the pandemic after conversations with my literary agent and book editor I started to think about the stories that my family had told about their lives as Southerners who then migrated north in the interwar period I present a human perspective on what work was like for African Americans first as enslaved people and then coming out of slavery and into the 21st century It’s about how Black workers were behind up-building the country up-building communities and supporting one another — and how their work ethic should be amplified when we think about what America is I start the book with the earliest ancestor I can trace on my maternal line who chooses the name Henry Rucker in freedom I find him being owned in a place called Elbert County He’s mentioned in the will of the man who probably owned him and then he becomes an agricultural worker and a sharecropper after the end of slavery I use his story to talk about the skills that enslaved people had the knowledge that they had and the communities they built within slavery to survive we think of slavery for its exploitation and things taken and lost But I also talk about the value that the enslaved saw in themselves and each other in spite of their circumstances They aren’t given land or money or any thank yous for the work they do but they have themselves and they have each other And the way they see their work and each other is different than They’re interested in supporting one another interested in creating roots for survival that we see carried into the 21st century Most of the professions I highlight don’t exist to the same extent I talk about laundresses or washerwomen who’ve been replaced by the automatic washer At one time that was one of the largest job categories for Black women in the United States They made travel luxurious and comfortable for first-class travelers That ended up being the formation of the largest Black union in American history under the leadership of A who organized in 1865 and asked for a certain amount of money It’s a reminder that the principles of organization were already there within newly freed populations They didn’t have to have their consciousness raised by outsiders to tell them what they should do They understood how markets work and what power they had because there was an exclusivity in the assumptions of race It was perceived by many as being below the station of a white woman to do laundry And how about you pay us a little bit more And how about we get together and wedge some power out of this situation?’ They cannot change the overall circumstances and difficulties they’re facing but they can support one another and set boundaries and limits and build community out of the struggle We think of Rosie the Riveter as the female version of the worker Rosie the Riveter’s house was cleaned by a Black woman and her children were watched by a Black woman we’ll privilege the sort of liberatory story of a higher-class woman seeking work and we forget about the women who enable that work to happen The labor of the household is replaced some kind of way and most of the time it’s replaced by a woman My grandmother worked as a maid in Philadelphia She was part of the wider world of women who migrated away from the South to try and get away from those jobs or doing agricultural work or working in white households Many ended up being shoved right back into those stereotypical roles after they had migrated who are another amazing example of unionization and organization Both the postal workers and the Pullman porters overlap into the civil rights movement They become the leaders in many ways because they have a bit of independence The Pullman porters aren’t employed in the small towns of the South they take those claims to federal authorities There is a leadership cadre that’s built up both through their experiences in organizing in their workplaces and in organizing for the community as a whole They don’t think only about improving their own jobs but about how they can improve what everyone is going through what was most rich was having this opportunity to bring forth the stories of my ancestors and others who are amazing people who did so much with so little and really thought deeply about what justice and fairness and support should look like I feel like I was a vessel for being able to bring forth things that we don’t talk about that often from our past — things that matter and expand what we think of as the American working class The dean of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy talks about her research The Well compiled all the details you need before attending UNC-Chapel Hill’s May 10 graduation The Well newsletter updates Tar Heels on UNC-Chapel Hill’s top stories NC Children’s will be North Carolina’s first freestanding hospital dedicated to caring for kids The Carolina sophomore shares her life through her poems © 2024 The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Labour politicians warn former PM had boosted Tory and Reform climate sceptics on the eve of local elections Tony Blair has been forced by Downing Street to row back from his criticism of the government’s net zero strategy after furious Labour politicians warned he had given a boost to Tory and Reform sceptics on the eve of the local elections Climate experts also accused the former prime minister of granting political cover to fossil fuel interests and weakening momentum behind the UK’s legally binding target to reach net zero emissions by 2050 Senior No 10 officials called the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change [TBI] after he claimed the plans were “doomed to fail” The Guardian understands that Keir Starmer has not spoken to his Labour predecessor directly but furious government insiders said that Blair had undermined Starmer on a key issue One Downing Street insider said: “Tony fucked up.” Another said: “He has completely lost his touch.” A third government source questioned whether the decision to release the report on the eve of the elections was entirely accidental “It’s not the first time he’s written bombastic forewords suggesting we should slow down on net zero Another said they were particularly aggrieved that the words appeared a critique of Starmer himself “It looks like he is attacking Keir who has only just said climate action was in the DNA of the government.” Just moments before Starmer took prime minister’s questions in the Commons on Wednesday TBI issued a fresh statement to clarify that it believed the government’s net zero policy was “the right one” Downing Street also defended the energy secretary who has been the target of attacks by net zero sceptics including within the party winning the global race for the jobs for the future The PM absolutely backs him,” Starmer’s spokesperson said But Labour insiders warned the damage had already been done saying she felt “vindicated” by the comments and Nigel Farage boasting on X that Reform UK was “winning the argument” on net zero There are also concerns Labour could lose votes to the Greens with their co-leader Carla Denyer urging Starmer to distance himself from Blair’s “dodgy dossier” on net zero “The future is green; Labour must not allow yesterday’s man to drag us back into the dark ages,” she added Angry Labour MPs raised questions about the influence that TBI has within the party As well as the organisation regularly briefing No 10 officials it has also advised the governments of Saudi Arabia One MP said: “We are having PLP briefings organised from people who are essentially fossil fuel lobbyists If anyone speaks admirably about these libertarian tech bros who think that is what will save us A second added: “The day before polling day this just gives Reform talking points – Tony should know better unless it’s a desperate search to continue to be interesting and is handing talking points to the Tories and Reform on a silver platter TBI might want to remember it’s not running the country.” Writing the foreword for a report from TBI, Blair had called for the government to change course on climate suggesting a strategy that limits fossil fuels in the short term or encourages people to limit consumption is “doomed to fail” The former prime minister said voters were being “asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle” that would have “minimal” effect on global emissions He said the current climate debate was “riven with irrationality” and suggested net zero was losing public support Climate experts accused him of playing into the hands of a rightwing narrative to delay climate action. Nicholas Stern, the author of the influential Stern review of the economics of climate change commissioned by Blair when he was in power said the TBI report was “muddled and misleading” “The UK’s leadership on climate change, particularly the elimination of coal from its power sector, is providing an influential example to other countries. So, too, its climate change legislation and its Climate Change Committee If the UK wobbles on its route to net zero “And the report downplays the science in its absence of a sense of urgency and the lack of appreciation of the need for the world to achieve net zero as soon as possible in order to manage the growth in climate change impacts that are already hurting households and businesses across the world and in the UK Lady Brown, of the independent Climate Change Committee, said Blair’s intervention risked sending the wrong message at a crucial moment “My concern is that people might take away a message from that report that we should do adaptation instead of mitigation and that is absolutely the wrong message,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme Former Labour PM accused of ‘handing talking points’ to Tories and Reform after saying net zero strategy faltering Climate experts and politicians have criticised Tony Blair for claiming any strategy that relied on rapidly phasing out fossil fuels was “doomed to fail” The former prime minister’s comments, published in a report from the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI), prompted an internal row within Labour, with some accusing him of playing into the hands of a narrative used by rightwing parties to delay climate action. Blair argued the political case for net zero was faltering and that governments should prioritise “realistic” climate strategies, including a greater focus on adaptation measures and technology-based solutions. Read moreHe noted the current climate approach “isn’t working” with the debate having “become irrational” and people “turning away from the politics of the issue because they believe the proposed solutions are not founded on good policy” TBI published its report weeks after a recent YouGov poll found that 61% of people either strongly supported or somewhat supported the government’s commitment to cut carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 Only 24% said they somewhat opposed or strongly opposed it and 15% said they didn’t know There were 52% of voters who backed the Conservatives at the last general election and supported the net zero plans with 38% of them opposing it and 11% in the “didn’t know” category Blair wrote in the foreword for a report from the TBI: “In developed countries voters feel they’re being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal.” accusing Blair of giving political cover to fossil fuel interests and weakening momentum behind the UK’s legally-binding target to reach net zero emissions by 2050 the former World Bank chief economist and author of the landmark Stern review of the economics of climate change and chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change at the London School of Economics said the TBI report was “muddled and misleading” as “there is far more progress being made around the world to decarbonise the global economy than it suggests” He added: “The UK’s leadership on climate change particularly the elimination of coal from its power sector is providing an influential example to other countries its climate change legislation and its Climate Change Committee of the independent Climate Change Committee said Blair’s intervention risked sending the wrong message at a crucial moment because even if we get to net zero by mid-century there’s still a huge amount of climate change to come “As people know who live on the coast and suffer coastal erosion and flooding It’s absolutely critical that alongside adaptation The backlash has prompted TBI to issue a clarifying statement that said “the report is clear that we support the government’s net zero targets” and added and it is vital that we keep the public’s support for how we do it” Anger in Labour circles has not yet dissipated with some astonished at how close his intervention has come to the local elections Keir Starmer said Blair was “absolutely aligned” with the Labour government Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device Complete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders Complete digital access to quality analysis and expert insights complemented with our award-winning Weekend Print edition Terms & Conditions apply Discover all the plans currently available in your country See why over a million readers pay to read the Financial Times Voters in Leander came out on May 3 to cast their ballots Former Champaign police detective Danny Strand poses with Olympic speedskater Bonnie Blair for whom he and other officers raised funds to start her athletic career Former Champaign police detective Danny Strand Olympic speedskater Bonnie Blair and the late Champaign mayor and former police detective Jerry Schweighart show off merch made to celebrate the Champaign Police Department’s support of Blair the Olympic great will be honored as a Lincoln Laureate by The Lincoln Academy of Illinois and Danny Strand plans to be in attendance at Krannert Center for the Performing Arts in Urbana To subscribe, click here. Sign up for our daily newsletters here CHAMPAIGN — Before she was an accomplished Olympic speedskater Bonnie Blair was a hometown athlete supported by the Champaign Police Department she’ll be honored as a Lincoln Laureate by The Lincoln Academy of Illinois and the last living police officer who led fundraising efforts to start her career plans to be in attendance at Krannert Center for the Performing Arts in Urbana I think we’re probably still the only police organization in America that’s sponsored an Olympian like that,” said Danny Strand a former Champaign police detective sergeant He’s pretty sure they’re the only department to have been featured in Sports Illustrated Blair connected with Detective Jerry Schweighart in 1982 short thousands of dollars she needed to further her speedskating career As the Champaign Policemen’s Benevolent Association was in the business of supporting local kids’ sports teams they started fundraising to make it happen “That help lasted 17 years before she retired,” Strand said “She retired from skating the day I retired from the police department.” Strand had no idea Blair would become not only a local legend but the first American to win five gold medals at the Olympic Winter Games but she did do better than any other American — and the story of a young woman supported by a police organization started to catch on “And then the phone calls started coming,” Strand said His second job was fielding calls from the likes of the L.A all wanting to talk to Blair or some of the police officers Strand says the highest-pressure call he ever received was from one Eleanor Blair “She called me one day at work and said ‘Danny They just put some boxer on the front cover of Sports Illustrated who just won two medals for America,’ ” Strand said the folks at the magazine informed Strand they were already laying out next week’s cover with Blair front and center — and they’d even send him some oversized copies Strand and Schweighart got a lot of attention for supporting Blair Strand remembers filling up Doyles Bar in the Ramada Inn which was a huge sponsor for the fundraising efforts he would’ve had a tizzy fit because it was wall-to-wall,” Strand said half of the department was busy investigating a triple homicide There may have been some disconnect between their work and their celebrations for Blair but Strand said that was part of the goal of the sponsorship The department wanted young people to think of the police as people who they could turn to for help “You couldn’t be happier as a policeman to sponsor somebody You just can’t name a better role model than Bonnie Blair for children,” Strand said Blair has worked with the Alzheimer’s Association the American Brain Tumor Association and the Leukemia Association to raise funds and is the director of community engagement for Developing Athletes for Speedskating High-Performance Strand said he was there for Blair’s last race and later went to her wedding He thinks it’ll be “fantastic” to see her again at the Lincoln Laureate ceremony … even if he did have to make a phone call to learn what to wear to a “black tie” event when Major League Baseball called it a season after the seventh-inning stretch Illinois gave its most savage serial killer a shot of potassium chloride and Thursday night TV watchers got their first look at Ross we rounded up a few special guests to guide us through the newsy 12 months that were 1994 Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: Explore Altoona, which has been Blair County’s official marketing organization for more than 60 years, will soon be dissolved. Blair County commissioners voted Thursday to decertify the non-profit while Laura Burke abstained from the vote because of a conflict of interest said Explore Altoona was unwilling to align with the commissioners’ goals one of which is to create more trails and outdoor recreation but it's about a bigger vision of this county and where that money can be used and leveraged to help this county," Kessling said Mark Ickes, the executive director of Explore Altoona, defended the agency in a public hearing last week in advance of the decertification vote He said using hotel tax to build trails is not best-practice for using marketing funds those funds are to be used to put ‘heads in beds,’ to promote the destination…not to build it," Ickes said Ickes also said his agency was willing to work with commissioners to find other funding sources and to promote Blair County’s vision for outdoor recreation commissioners also approved an ordinance to create the Blair County Trail When asked if bed taxes could be redirected to that authority but state law is specific on what bed taxes can be used for Kessling said they will soon start the process to certify a new marketing organization revenue from the county’s bed tax will go into a bank account set up by Blair County Commissioners The vote to decertify comes after a long process to gather support from Blair County's municipalities. Eighteen out of 25 municipalities opted out of voting, but the remaining municipalities, which make up the majority of the county's population, did vote to decertify Explore Altoona Have a tip for the WPSU newsroom? Email radionews@psu.edu Selma Blair has great news to share about her health more than six years after she shared her diagnosis with fans "I've been feeling great for about a year," said Blair but now I actually have stamina and energy and getting out and going out isn't so scary." Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox Blair also shared that the improvement in her health has allowed her to think about the future in a way that she wasn't able to before "I spent so much of my life so tired from being unwell that I think I just was trying to get through the day," she said I realize I don't know what my goals are." Selma Blair opens up: She talks about her 'cathartic' MS discussions, service dog 'boyfriend' Scout Blair announced she was battling multiple sclerosis on Instagram in 2018 saying at the time that she was diagnosed in August of that year And my left side is asking for directions from a broken gps According to the Mayo Clinic multiple sclerosis occurs when "the immune system attacks the protective sheath that covers nerve fibers known as myelin," which "interrupts communication between the brain and the rest of the body." Symptoms can include numbness or tingling lack of coordination and difficulty walking though treatments are available to manage symptoms the location of damage in the nervous system and how bad the damage is to the nerve fibers," the Mayo Clinic notes "Some people lose the ability to walk on their own or move at all Others may have long periods between attacks without any new symptoms In 2019, Blair underwent a hematopoietic stem cell transplantation a process that "attempts to 'reboot' the immune system which is responsible for damaging the brain and spinal cord in MS," according to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society "It took about a year after stem cell for the inflammation and lesions to really go down," she said in 2021 there's still maintenance and treatments and glitches and wonderful things and wonderful things I've learned In August, Blair explained to Us Weekly that while she "fell into a major relapse" after her bone marrow transplant she was doing better after finding an "amazing" new doctor In a prior health update in January 2024, Blair told fans that she was "doing well" but still experiencing pain and stiffness "I say that only for you people that hurt also 'Legally Blonde 3': Is Selma Blair for reprising the icy Vivian? In March, the "Legally Blonde" actress stepped out at the Vanity Fair Oscars Party and walked the red carpet with her service dog “When I have to kneel down to be able to talk more clearly or to just kind of get my circulation on track it made a lot more sense to have a dog by my side,” she told USA TODAY past it because once I start getting nervous or self-conscious (This article has been updated to add new information.) “This place is extremely familiar to me,” the actor said during a tour of the set where his character keeps his victims captive on the Netflix thriller I support the Climate Paradox report from the Tony Blair Institute but his foreword risks compromising what must be achieved I have always been proud of the progress the UK made between 2003 and 2007 in formulating a credible response to the climate change the UK placed climate at the heart of global diplomacy our understanding was based largely on scientific projections and models the crisis is in full view – faster and more devastating than many imagined The world is now experiencing the daily impacts of climate breakdown and our responses must reflect this escalating emergency urgent interventions to ensure a manageable future for humanity That is why I support much of the thrust of The Climate Paradox report from the Tony Blair Institute It rightly recognised that the era of endless summits and slogans must give way to one of delivery and impact But the comments I gave were prior to seeing the foreword and while there has been some clear misinterpretation from elements of the media I do believe it has removed the balance of the report in ways that risk undermining what still can – and must – be achieved We have done so without undermining growth or prosperity but it proves what is possible when leadership This is also not the time to walk back ambition. The UK’s goal of reducing emissions by 81% by 2035 – reaffirmed by Keir Starmer’s team – is not only achievable has demonstrated that the transition can be delivered Blair is also right that financial flows must be restructured to support climate action the answer is not to downplay emissions cuts at home – it is to build new coalitions of the willing that drive delivery globally Kenya and Brazil and others are already showing leadership and we need to support that with real investment What is fragmenting is not public belief – but political coherence climate has become a proxy for culture war battles in many countries transparent policies and honest leadership are essential in rebuilding the trust And here is where I know Blair and I will be lock-step in agreement: the next phase must be about delivery clean transport – and rapidly deploying new technologies where they make sense It means investing in nature and resilience And it means building a new kind of internationalism – less about process and more about progress I take enormous pride in what Tony and I helped initiate together – a climate-conscious policy platform And I deeply respect his longstanding commitment to development and with the right leadership a fairer and more prosperous society for all is there to grasp David King was chief scientific adviser to the UK government under Tony Blair and is founder and chair of the global Climate Crisis Advisory Group The Justice Department Inspector General has released a harshly critical report about the FBI's handling of investigations into allegations of child exploitation And this report identifies multiple ways in which the FBI is continuing to fall short in these types of investigations A 47-year-old Blair man faces criminal charges after he was arrested in Holmen during a child sex sting Sobotta was charged in La Crosse County Circuit Court with felony counts of attempted second-degree sexual assault of a child under 16 and use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime Sobotta made online contact with a police officer impersonating a 15-year-old girl Sobotta reportedly raised the possibility of graphic sexual intercourse and asked about how often she engaged in sex Sobotta allegedly inquired about a meeting and posted “I’m on the way Where do I pick you up(?).” The undercover officer arranged an April 17 meeting near a fast-food restaurant in Holmen where Sobotta was arrested without incident Sobotta is free on a $2,500 signature bond He has a preliminary hearing set for May 8 Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email Email notifications are only sent once a day The Justice Department Inspector General has released a harshly critical report about the FBI's handling of investigations into allegations of… Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device Account processing issue - the email address may already exist Invalid password or account does not exist Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account Labour insider rebukes ‘tech bros’ within Tony Blair Institute as critics question past work with petrostates In little more than 1,600 words voicing his scepticism over net zero policies Tony Blair this week propelled himself and his increasingly powerful institute back into the national debate In the past eight years, the former prime minister has built a global empire employing more than 900 people across more than 40 countries, providing policy advice to monarchs, presidents and prime ministers But while Blair’s thinktank has brought him influence in his post-Downing Street career it has also renewed scrutiny on his political views and how they are shaped by his commercial relationships The Labour MP James Frith said on Wednesday: “I give congratulations to the marketing department at the Tony Blair Institute (TBI) who have managed to time it brilliantly to get maximum coverage.” the head of fossil fuel investigations at the nongovernmental organisation Global Witness said: “Blair’s well-documented links to petrostates and oil and gas companies ought to alone be enough to disqualify this man as an independent and reliable arbiter of what’s possible or commonsense in the energy transition.” Another Labour MP said: “The TBI is a bunch of tech bros who don’t care about social justice or fairness.” The TBI declined to comment on these criticisms but said the institute was editorially independent Blair first set up the institute eight years ago with a plan to take money from high-rolling donors and foreign governments and plough it into policy analysis and philanthropic work Much of its policy work promotes technology and artificial intelligence as the solution to challenges facing governments around the world Those stances have attracted some scepticism from critics given the institute gets much of its money from people connected to the technology industry One of the TBI’s biggest sources of cash is the foundation set up by Larry Ellison, the billionaire founder of Oracle and ally of the US president, Donald Trump. Filings in the US show the foundation gave the TBI more than £52m in 2023 and had promised another $218m (£163m) Like many technology companies, Oracle is investing heavily in AI products, including tools for improving healthcare. Ellison has also spoken in favour of using AI for the mass surveillance of civilian populations Blair’s policy proposals dovetail with Oracle’s corporate interests in other areas too. In his foreword to the net zero report he writes: “The new generation of small modular reactors offers hope for the renaissance of nuclear power but it needs integrating into nations’ energy policy.” Ellison announced last year that Oracle was designing a new datacentre to be powered by three small modular reactors The TBI says its policies are often focused on helping bolster public services in developing countries. Benedict Macon-Cooney, the institute’s chief policy strategist, told the Guardian in 2023: “There is no conflict of interest and donations are ringfenced.” Longtime Blair allies meanwhile are divided on whether the former prime minister has always harboured doubts about climate policies. Free weekly newsletterThe planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential Nicholas Stern, whom Blair commissioned in 2006 to write an influential report on the economics of climate change, said: “I think Tony Blair has got a very good track record on climate change, which makes me slightly puzzled by this piece of work. I don’t think this is the Tony Blair Institute’s finest hour.” Another former adviser and colleague however said: “Blair always had to be dragged along when it came to climate change. He was generally resistant to green arguments.” Read moreMeanwhile the former prime minister has also been cultivating relationships with Labour MPs holding a series of roundtable discussions with small groups of MPs over the last year One MP who had attended one meeting said: “His message was that technology companies have deep pockets and so are going to be able to drive change faster than governments can That message was pretty unhelpful politically and the exact opposite of what the Labour government is trying to tell people.” believe he is providing a useful service in making Labour think again about some of its more radical climate policies “Blair was making a point about the purpose of our energy policy,” said one “He needs to work on his timing but the point is right – energy security and reducing bills are the goals of UK energy policy because they benefit working people Your request has been blocked by our security system due to potential security concerns Please contact us for assistance Reflections of a journalist as he begins his sweet 16th year at Hawaiʻiʻs independent online news source Chad Blair is the politics editor for Civil Beat. You can reach him by email at cblair@civilbeat.org or follow him on X at @chadblairCB Honolulu Civil Beat started publishing 15 years ago today and Iʻve been here as a reporter and editor from the start — actually a month before the launch I’ve told the story of Civil Beat’s origins before, including just five years ago on our 10th anniversary I write this piece in a more reflective mood than the celebratory state I was in five years ago because the state of American journalism has never seemed so dire The world and Civil Beat’s work has changed since 2020 all coming down during an historic presidential election another historic presidential election and our current uncertain and anxious times — tariffs Something shifted tectonically five years ago and I am proud that my colleagues were on top of it The last five years saw major stories on high-profile political corruption cases the Red Hill environmental disaster and the Maui wildfires Indeed, stories we ran in May 2020 alone pointed the way to topics that would lead our coverage through the present day: climate change leaky fuel tanks and raising the hotel tax In May 2024, we were named a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in breaking news for coverage of the Maui fires Hawaiʻi remains very much impacted by and involved with national events It makes me want to state the obvious: We need independent journalism the Trump administration’s policies have directly impacted the islands and demand greater local reporting The state of the media was also very much on my mind as I attended a Society of Professional Journalists conference in San Francisco this weekend The theme was “Reporting In Hostile Times,” and it drew members from SPJ chapters in Hawaiʻi “Journalists today face unprecedented challenges — press freedom is under attack and the media industry is evolving at a rapid pace,” said the promotion for the conference based on just the last 100 days and counting It’s a fair question to wonder whether journalism can survive worries grow that robots are trying to steal the few good media jobs that remain Artificial intelligence was a major topic at the conference as it has been for several years now at all journalism conferences expanded coverage while others cast warnings Here are a few SPJ conference takeaways that chime with Civil Beat’s mission Nonprofit news websites: Trump’s threats to nonprofit organizations including news organizations such as PBS and NPR Some donors are holding back on giving because of fear of retribution Others are evaluating more carefully whether they are getting the biggest bang for their bucks Takeaway: Don’t turn news audiences into commodities It takes time to build trust and build communities Do these things and philanthropy will follow Artificial intelligence: As a member of the original generation of CB journalists My anxiety was eased somewhat at the SPJ conference — although it was unnerving how many Google driverless ride-hailing cars I saw on the streets of San Francisco Takeaway: AI is already being used to scrape data in order to track state governments for trends in legislation to see how lawmakers vote and to analyze election results albeit with spreadsheets and databases and, in my case a pen and yellow pad.) AI is a tremendous time-saver but AI makes many mistakes and human judgment is essential to fact-checking The words “existential,” “seminal,” “unprecedented” and “uncertain” were used a lot at the conference Supreme Court decision in New York Times Co Sullivan that requires public officials to show actual malice on the part of the press in libel cases survive Will the 1971 Pentagon Papers case that defended the First Amendment right of a free press against prior restraint survive the courts are our greatest hope to preserve the Constitution covered Trump back in the president’s Atlantic City casino days He is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist and co-chair of SPJ NorCal’s Freedom of Information Committee Peele’s advice to journalists: Work harder electricity and food costs are still exorbitant and homes are still falling into the sea Lack of transparency and accountability in local governance remain Honolulu Civil Beat is a nonprofit organization and your donation helps us produce local reporting that serves all of Hawaii Ideas is the place you'll find essays, analysis and opinion on public affairs in Hawaiʻi. We want to showcase smart ideas about the future of Hawaiʻi, from the state's sharpest thinkers, to stretch our collective thinking about a problem or an issue. Email news@civilbeat.org to submit an idea Sign up for our FREE morning newsletter and face each day more informed announced his resignation effective at noon today Holsey first stepped into the president’s role in 2021 and ran for reelection in 2024 was the youngest branch president in Pennsylvania See Friday’s Mirror for complete coverage The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the Blair County Court of Common Pleas to hold a hearing within .. A Blair County couple face drug trafficking charges after a traffic stop led police to discover about $5,000 worth .. Copyright © 2025 Central Pennsylvania Newspapers LLC | https://www.altoonamirror.com | 301 Cayuga Ave. We use cookies. Read more about them in our Privacy Policy View all Topics View all Explainers Responding to the publication of the new report on ‘The Climate Paradox: Why We Need to Reset Action on Climate Change’ by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change: Nicholas Stern, Chair of the Grantham Research institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and author of the ‘The Economics of Climate Change: The Stern Review’ which was published by Tony Blair’s Government in October 2006, said: “This new report is muddled and misleading There is far more progress being made around the world to decarbonise the global economy than it suggests China is the world’s leading producer and domestic deployer of renewables and electric vehicles Its power generating capacity from renewables has now exceeded that of fossil fuels and its emissions are likely to peak in the next two years “The UK’s leadership on climate change If the UK wobbles on its route to net zero The transition to clean domestic energy offers British consumers the prospect of lower bills and greater energy security by not being dependent on volatile international markets for fossil fuels And the report downplays the science in its absence of a sense of urgency and the lack of appreciation of the need for the world to achieve net zero as soon as possible in order to  manage the growth in climate change impacts that are already hurting households and businesses across the world and in the UK Policy and Communications Director of the Grantham Research institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics and Political Science said: “This report provides weak analysis and the wrong solutions the more that households and businesses will suffer from growing impacts of climate change “So the challenge is to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels Investments in carbon capture and storage and nuclear are fine but they are not the best ways to accelerate the transition Faster deployment of renewables is the best way to speed up the transition.” Sign up to our newsletter Further contact details and map Blair County NAACP President Andrae Holsey resigned from his position effective Thursday at noon after nearly four years of service citing the pursuit of a professional career and taking care of his family as top priorities Holsey was elected to lead the branch in May 2021 at age 22 making him the youngest branch president in the state at the time following longtime NAACP president Don Witherspoon’s death in December 2020 Holsey first announced his intention to “pass the torch” of the branch’s leadership in October 2024 “When I first stepped into this role in 2021 I made several public commitments — to serve with energy to lead with intention and to step aside after establishing a strong base so that new voices could rise,” Holsey said He ran to retain his seat in 2024 to enable a “smoother” transition and help “build a bridge strong enough for the next leader to cross,” Holsey wrote in his statement Holsey is succeeded by Vice President Tracy N who previously served as the branch’s executive committee chairperson and was elected branch vice president in November 2024 Brown will “carry this torch with both strength and care” grounded in the NAACP’s principals of “justice dignity and unwavering love for this community,” Holsey said “I think he’s well equipped,” Holsey said “He has the support he needs in the role and he’ll bring in a more unique perspective.” But Holsey “isn’t going anywhere anytime soon,” Brown said adding that he’s an “instrumental part of the association.” saying he’s “still a member” and “still very much involved” but won’t be holding a leadership position “It’s time for other people to do the decision making,” Holsey said Holsey described serving as branch president as “one of the greatest honors” of his life “We didn’t always take the easy path but we chose the meaningful one,” Holsey said “We made waves that central Pennsylvania will feel for years to come.” Branch historian and executive committee member Harriett Gaston said Holsey became president “at a time that was so full of uncertainty and uneasiness.” “It was hard for anyone to follow Don Witherspoon,” Gaston said Holsey and the local NAACP leadership team faced a “steep climb,” Gaston said dealing with challenges including the national and state NAACP changing how branches were to be run Other difficulties arose when he “seemed to be too young” to be president “For any successful social justice organization to be successful there must be collaboration with other social justice organizations,” Gaston said “Andrae did work with other social justice organizations and social justice warriors in Blair He brought the leadership team of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission to this area.” had another child and started his own business “The hard part of being a younger president is that I’m still finding and experiencing things in life for the first time,” Holsey said “I want to be able to be present and experience those things.” Holsey said he thinks the branch is “stronger than ever” and “ready to move forward.” “There’s more that can be done by someone who has more time to dedicate to those things,” Holsey said it impacts every single person in Blair County.” “I look forward to what President Tracy Brown the other members of the executive committee and our membership will do going forward in carrying out the mission statement of our branch and joining others who are seeking equity and fairness,” Gaston said There will “definitely be some growing pains,” Brown said Brown is a “transplant,” which he said “sometimes is a good thing.” Brown has family ties in Huntingdon County He came to the area every summer as a child as his family has long been involved in the happenings of Mount Union Brown said he maintains a residence in Philadelphia Brown said he was “grandfathered” in as a licensed practical nurse and worked in Philadelphia’s first HIV nursing home in 1989 Brown then became a Philadelphia firefighter in 1992 until his retirement in 2019 “I’m just trying to make a difference in my community for those who are less fortunate than myself,” Brown said He is “in the process of learning and keeping God first.” “I’m encouraged,” Brown said “I believe that we’re dedicated to getting things done My faith and dedication has brought me this far.” Brown said the branch will focus on recruitment as it needs members and “boots on the ground.” Brown said they’re working on installing a landline at their office in the old Gables Building for people to leave voicemails held the third Wednesday of every month at 1331 12th Ave. saying their contact information is still the same and people will still receive responses “I ask people to be patient as the transition occurs,” Holsey said “We’re the only civil rights organization in this region Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor is at 814-946-7458 HOLLIDAYSBURG — Blair County commissioners Dave Kessling and Amy Webster followed through Thursday with an .. Clearfield County is a small step closer to being able to sue the architect and contractors who made a critical .. UPMC Altoona will conduct a free workshop for the public Saturday designed to provide information that has the .. The 'Legally Blonde' actress was diagnosed with the chronic immune disease in 2018 "I haven't spent enough time having dreams what are my dreams?" Blair tells PEOPLE Michael Nied has been a digital news editor with PEOPLE since 2025 He has previously been published by Just Jared and other lifestyle content for over fifteen years Pa (WJAC) — State police say a Blair County man is behind bars after he allegedly shot another man in the back of the head Wednesday night in Greenfield Township allegedly nicknamed 'Termite,' is charged with attempted homicide following a shooting incident along the 300 block of Juniata Street police say the victim was reportedly found on the second floor of a garage Troopers say the victim was then taken to Conemaugh Hospital in Cambria County Investigators say a witness reported seeing Davis flee the scene after the shooting Police say Davis was taken into custody a short time later after being found trying to hide on nearby properties Davis was allegedly angry with the victim and had reportedly accused the victim of stealing a .22 caliber gun from him Authorities say a third witness reported similar accusations about the stolen gun and told police that Davis had allegedly made prior statements about wanting to "kill" the victim Police say that when they interviewed the victim about the shooting the man admitted to knowing Davis and stated that he was aware that Davis had accused him of stealing a gun from him police say the man remembered working in his garage when he "heard a bang Online court records show that Davis was arraigned Thursday morning on several charges attempted aggravated assault and reckless endangerment Davis is jailed at the Blair County Prison Pennsylvania State Police is investigating an attempted homicide in Blair County Wednesday State Police say the victim was flown from Greenfield Township to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center Police also say they have a suspect in custody Troopers have not elaborated on the incident or the victim's condition at this time The Blair County District Attorney's office is assisting with the investigation Former PM claims net zero policies losing public support and says there should be greater focus on carbon capture Tony Blair has called for the government to change course on climate In comments that have prompted a backlash within Labour the former prime minister suggested the UK government should focus less on renewables and more on technological solutions such as carbon capture Blair said people were “being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal” He said “any strategy based on either ‘phasing out’ fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail” Writing the foreword for a report from the Tony Blair Institute (TBI) he said the current climate debate was “riven with irrationality” and suggested net zero was losing public support His comments echo similar criticism of net zero by the Conservative leader said net zero policies were now “increasingly viewed as unaffordable climate change policies have retained popularity The thinktank Persuasion UK said in a report published on Monday that Labour could lose far more seats at the next election from disillusioned leftwing voters defecting to the Greens than from defections to Reform The most recent YouGov poll on the subject found 66% of UK voters were worried about climate change Last week Keir Starmer said the government was going “all-out” for a low-carbon future, telling a conference in London that tackling the climate crisis and bolstering energy security were “in the DNA of my government” and that “we won’t wait – we will accelerate” said present policy solutions were inadequate and leaders should shift towards a “pragmatic policy” that prioritised technological solutions He said this was borne out by rising demand for production of fossil fuels the doubling of airline travel and increased demand for steel and cement He said he still believed the climate was “one of the fundamental challenges of our time” and that renewable energy was necessary But he said the government needed “to alter where we put our focus” Fossil fuels are the largest contributor to the climate crisis accounting for more than 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions Blair said there was disdain for policies such as carbon capture in favour of renewables though the UK government has already made some significant commitments on carbon capture He called for an international embrace of nuclear power and more work on new small modular reactors One Labour MP said it was an unhelpful intervention that could be interpreted as a direct critique of Starmer and his energy secretary “We know that businesses see renewables as a key path to economic growth and it’s not like the government aren’t already doing things like carbon capture I don’t get the point of pushing something like this – and the unpopularity of net zero is just plain wrong,” they said An industry source said: “I don’t think the sector has any need for a tech-optimist vision of climate action that doesn’t represent the fantastic work the industry is doing today to both decarbonise and roll out clean energy at an unprecedented scale and it seems bizarre that the TBI report doesn’t recognise that.” The TBI, which has been highly influential in Labour circles, had welcomed action on renewables as recently as February when the seventh carbon budget was published Fursman said the programme was “rightly ambitious cleaner options like heat pumps and EVs [electric vehicles] must be affordable and accessible” Campaigners and industry figures said there were flaws in the TBI argument the deputy director of politics at Green Alliance said: “This report is disappointing given Tony Blair’s strong track record on climate action seeming to throw in the towel on avoiding the worst climate impacts and promoting defeatism instead of real solutions “It also wildly exaggerates the public backlash especially in the UK where support for climate action remains solid.” the director of policy and advocacy at Energy UK said: “Net zero is the economic opportunity of the 21st century Through the rapid uptake in technologies like wind and solar “It’s not a question of either or: the UK will need both conventional clean technologies that are operating at scale today in addition to investments in newer technologies.” Marlene Ida Blair (nee Garni) passed away peacefully at her home with her family by her side on Sunday She was born in Milwaukee to parents Bruce “Bruno” and Theresa (nee Miller) Garni on July 9 her teenage sweetheart George Blair on August 28 she owned a janitorial service and worked as a private secretary for Aetna Insurance Marlene was a gifted musician who enjoyed playing piano at St Ann’s Nursing home and providing music therapy to those in need and she enjoyed spending time with them and attending her grandkids’ sporting events Marlene also devoted many years giving back to the community by volunteering at the Waukesha Food Pantry for 32 years Marlene was a woman of faith and will be missed by many She is survived by her loving husband of almost 60 years George Blair; children Brett (Tracy) Blair and Joel (Kelly) Blair; grandchildren Zach and Anna Blair; sisters-in-law Betty Garni and Janet Harding and further survived by dozens of nieces Marlene is preceded in death by her brother Erhard Garni The family would like to give a special thanks to the doctors and nurses at Elmbrook Hospital/Sherman Cancer Center Croix Hospice who lovingly made Marlene comfortable Visitation will be held on Friday, May 9, 2025, at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 818 N. East Avenue, Waukesha, WI 53186 from 10:00 a.m. until the 12:00 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial. Following Mass inurnment will take place at St. Joseph Cemetery at 1:00 p.m. A luncheon will follow. In lieu of flowers, memorials are appreciated to Waukesha Food Pantry (https://www.waukeshafoodpantry.org/get_involved/give/) Enter your phone number above to have directions sent via text Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker went to be with his Lord and Savior on Monday He is now peacefully rejoicing in the arms of Jesus Justin was a man of strong character and unwavering faith and son who walked with Christ and put his family above all whether it was building Legos with his girls coaching his daughter's basketball team He was committed to his role as a provider while at the same time ensuring he always prioritized quality time with his family He was a thoughtful and caring husband who loved his wife and best friend Amanda dearly Their love story began almost 18 years ago there was an immediate and seamless love that began Their love for one other and their children is never-ending Justin graduated from the McCallie School and received his bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga He was an all-star athlete and two-time state champion wrestler He was also an avid runner and loved competing in numerous races with his close friends in the last several years Justin was co-owner of Blair's Estate Sales with his father Justin conducted each sale meticulously with a keen eye for detail His calm and gentle demeanor always put clients at ease caring and prioritized honesty and integrity in all matters of his business and personal life he developed and sustained meaningful relationships with countless individuals the love of his life; three children he adored and Krista Blair; grandmother Sara Blair; in-laws Hoyt and Terry Rogers; brother and sister-in laws Robin (Eddie) Grant and Colby Rogers; nieces and nephews Brody Grant and Kaiya Blair; as well as numerous aunts and uncles There will be a Celebration of Life at Calvary Chapel Northside on Saturday memorial contributions for the children's education fund can be made payable to:  Attn: Blair Children Scholarship Fund  Add to Calendar