Thomas Hale

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The humbling of Xi Jinping

MundoAsia

For Chinese football fans watching World Cup matches on television, the first sign there was something amiss was when they realised they could hear the crowds in the stadium, but could not see them on their screens.

As nationwide protests against President Xi Jinping’s draconian zero-Covid policy gathered pace last weekend, the censors decided it was too embarrassing to see fans enjoying themselves in crowded stadiums in Qatar, with no one wearing a mask. So after every goal, Chinese television feeds focused only on the players and coaches on the pitch and ignored jubilant fans embracing each other in the stands.…  Seguir leyendo »

Turbines at a wind farm near Golmud, Qinghai province, China, last month. (Qilai Shen/Bloomberg News)

ReflexionesNaturaleza,

Most people probably do not pay much attention to international bodies such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). After all, setting global technical standards may seem like dull and esoteric work. But these standards can have big consequences.

Last week the ISO announced a process that could significantly shape the future of the climate — but only if the proposal avoids undue influence by polluters. Here’s how it might happen.

Why technical standards matter

ISO’s 24,000 technical standards cover issues as varied as food safety,information technology and carbon accounting. The rules are made by hundreds of expert committees representing national standard-setting bodies and are adopted directly by companies and industry associations.…  Seguir leyendo »

Boris Johnson at the launch of the UK-hosted COP26 UN Climate Summit at the Science Museum, London on February 4, 2020. Photo by Jeremy Selwyn - WPA Pool/Getty Images.

Europa, ,

The timing of many trade negotiations is now increasingly uncertain, as are the UK’s plans to host COP26 in November. Policy work continues, however, and the EU has released its draft negotiating text for the new UK-EU trade deal, which includes a sub-chapter specifically devoted to climate.

This is a timely reminder both of the pressing need for the UK to integrate its trade and climate policymaking and to use the current crisis-induced breathing space in international negotiations - however limited - to catch up on both strategy and priorities on this critical policy intersection.

The UK government has moved fast to reset its external trade relations post-Brexit.…  Seguir leyendo »

A penguin stands on an iceberg in Yankee Harbour, Antarctica, in February. (Reuters)

ReflexionesNaturaleza

The Monday release of a U.N. special report on limiting climate change to 1.5 degrees Celsius confirms what a long, hot summer of fire and storms has already told us. We’re not doing enough to combat climate change. Today, the 2018 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science went to two economists, William D. Nordhaus and Paul M. Romer, whose work on economic growth and climate change helped change the way we think about climate economics.

Climate politics are also changing, from a contest of who wins and loses to one of survival for communities and ways of life. This shift will require new approaches.…  Seguir leyendo »